Management Practices and Collective Psyches

At a glance, management practices seem to emerge from a combination of managerial experiences, organisational traditions, business school teachings, and so on. But if we delve deeper, we’ll find that these practices are rooted in the underlying assumptions and beliefs of managers and their colleagues. This deeper layer, what we as organisational psychotherapists term as the ‘collective psyche’ of the organisation, plays a crucial role in shaping its management practices, and in selecting which practices apply.

This collective psyche, composed of the organisation’s shared assumptions and beliefs, acts as the foundation for how an organisation operates and makes decisions. It’s not just about what is explicitly taught or conveyed; it’s the unwritten, unspoken ‘truths’ that permeate the organisation. It’s about how employees perceive the organisation’s goals, how they view their roles within the business, and what they believe to be the ‘right’ way to do things.

For instance, an organisation that collectively values innovation will likely adopt management practices that promote creativity and risk-taking. Conversely, an organisation that holds conservative beliefs may implement more risk-averse and hierarchical management approaches.

These assumptions and beliefs also influence how an organisation reacts to challenges and changes. The collective psyche can either facilitate adaptability and resilience, or it can lead to resistance and rigidity.

It’s important to note, however, that this collective psyche isn’t static. It evolves over time, shaped by experiences, leadership, external influences, and even the individual beliefs of employees. It’s a complex and dynamic construct, deeply interwoven with the fabric of an organisation’s culture.

Thus, while we may see management practices as coming from experience, training, and tradition, they fundamentally spring from the organisation’s collective psyche – its shared assumptions and beliefs. This understanding highlights the importance of aligning management practices with the collective psyche, as well as nurturing a healthy, positive collective psyche within an organisation.

It also explains the key benefit of #OrganisationalPsychotherapy – enabling organisations to surface and reflect on their all to often submerged collective psyche.