Book: The Road Less Traveled: Part 1: Discipline (pages 11-78)

Study Question:
In keeping with the four-fold explanation offered by Peck concerning the nature of discipline, consider and respond to each of the following questions:
1. What is Peck’s thesis concerning the delaying of gratification? How can you see it applying at an organizational level?
2. What is Peck’s perspective concerning the appropriate acceptance of responsibility? As you think back on Session 1’s content on the modern corporation, in what ways does the design and operation of the modern organization potentially frustrate or complicate the appropriate acceptance and/or non-acceptance of responsibility by an individual manager?
3. What, according to Peck, does it mean to maintain a commitment to reality at all costs? In what ways might the nature of many organizations make maintaining such a ‘commitment’ inherently problematic? How do your answers relate to the Gioia’s idea of a ‘script’ as encountered in his Journal of Business Ethics article?
4. Finally, what, according to Peck, is “balancing”? When you look back over the examples you have encountered thus far in the course, what have been the most noteworthy examples of the kind of “balancing” (or lack thereof) advocated by Peck?

Answer:

Peck’s thesis concerning the delaying of gratification is that a person is able to overcome procrastination by taking on the hard work first and saving the pleasure for later. The simple example on gratification is that of a young student that learns by his parents that they should do their homework first and then have free time to play or do anything else they wish. As result, this concept helps the individual to confront their problems here and now, and avoid ignoring them, or suffering more than they should be. The concept of delaying gratification is applicable to the organizational level, by having the individuals face their tasks, issues or responsibilities. For example, in the Pinto case managers knew about problem with cars. If Ford executives had dealt with the cars defect ahead of time, many car accidences wouldn’t have happens, despite the fact that this would have caused a lot of short term problems. Such as Ford reputation would suffer and a lot of explanations would have to be given.

Perk’s perspective about the appropriate acceptance of responsibility is that an individual can obtain such a thing, only with the willingness to continue evaluate themselves, and by assessing their responsibilities. In other words, a person ought to neither believe that everything is their own responsibility nor that everything is somebody else’s responsibility. I think that the modern corporation shows straight situation because for all issues is responsible manager, but corporation does not allow to make independent decisions by manager.

A “commitment to reality” means that people and organizations need to make sure their plans are connected to current events, and that are being constantly revised, as the world is changing very quickly, and the need to adapt is a matter of extreme importance. An organization script often dictates a certain way of thinking and most of the times; the reality check is not included. People are expected to do things in a certain way, and there is little limit for failure.

According to Peck, “balancing” is a conduct by which a person is able to stand in the “middle” between pleasure and pain, excitement and caution. It is the “golden ratio” that allows us to live a healthy life by avoiding to deal in black and white. In my opinion, the most noteworthy example of lack of balancing is the case of Jack Welch that during his career in GE.

Small wins

Study Question:
What is a “small win”? Why, according to Weick, should the size of a win matter? What, if any, are the practical implications as it concerns the pursuit of responsible executive behavior?

Answer:

According to Weick, when people need to deal with large issues, they often feel powerless and tend to over-think, which makes them less willing to face them. That why people are breaking those large issues into smaller parts. Taking one step at a time is perceived as much easier than having to deal with the whole problem. Regarding responsible executive behavior, the concept of small wins can be applied of responsible executive behavior by steadily point work towards the right direction.

Multinational enterprises and the promotion of civil society: The challenge for 21st century capitalism

Study Question:
What exactly is the challenge 21st century capitalism faces as it concerns ‘civil society’? Incidentally, what exactly is civil society? And, finally, what does ‘civil society’ have to do with ‘executive responsibilities’?

Answer:

Civil society is characterized by a true free enterprise system such as volunteer and independent contribution is being praised, not only because it provides more freedom for its members, but also because it significantly contributes to the sustainable economic growth. The problem is that, when poor countries decide to unite economically in order to grow, they lack proper infrastructure, technology and overseeing mechanisms to enforce sustainable growth, and as a result, the danger of depletion of the natural resources enlarges significantly. It is then crucial for Multinational Corporations to support the civil society and its products, such as non-profit organizations, as it will be extremely beneficial in the long term, not only for them, but for the whole world.