Mslc 6302 - Leadership Reflection

Matt Fulmer
MSLC 6302
Leadership Reflection

Final Paper
April 30, 2018

Abstract

This paper chronicles a personal journey, framed through the prospects of evolution in organizational development. To understand how these concepts connect, one must look at the models of organizations and how they define themselves. Many organizations see themselves as machines, with each member as a gear that keeps the organization running. However, newer, more evolutionary organizational thinking sees organizations as living organisms, with employees as cells that make up the purpose, fabric, and growth of that organism. It is within this context that we can see self-development as essential to organizational excellence, and development of personal qualities like empathy, self-actualization of personal purpose, and authenticity of self as key to being the best cell we can be within the organism. I was able to begin the transformation from gear to cell through this course of study and focus not only on the evolution of an organization through transformative practice, but ultimately that evolution of self that all effective evolutionary (or teal) organizations require to be thriving organisms. This evolution requires not just knowledge of how one’s organization functions, but also how he or she functions within that organization.

Dismantling Dysfunction

While I have worked a bit in corporate America (and Japan and Korea), most of my career has been in higher education. I love the dynamism of researching, discourse and service that a university is known to represent, and as a lifelong learner, I find myself satisfied in a way I couldn’t be in the corporate world. That being said, I do realize that higher ed is overdue to be radically transformed to meet with the evolving needs of students, faculty, staff and community. No change in over 150 years= hopelessly out of touch. Coming into class, I had already finished the reading and was ready to transform my organization (St. Ed’s) to a “next-level” educational institution. It was helpful to discuss the reading with classmates and get their take on it as well. It was also great to have the Leadership Map to focus my passions, interests, and goals into a simplified, comprehensive form. The main thing that really got me excited about the class was the instructor’s desire to diverge from the overdone tropes and methods that plague higher ed AND business, both in his teaching style and in student work. I looked forward to doing creative, interactive, and impactful work in the class.

Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.        -ALBERT EINSTEIN

This quote has been my mantra for many years in education, as a student, as a teacher, and as a parent. I immediately found its business counterpart in the first chapter of The Three Laws of Performance. The shortsightedness of many organizations does not consider the special circumstances, backgrounds or biases of its workforce, and effectiveness suffers. Empathy has finally become a necessity to lead a successful organization.