Message-ID: <Pine.GSO.3.96.980711181636.29361D-100000@dante> Date: Sat, 11 Jul 1998 18:42:53 -0600 From: "SUSTAINABLE SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL (SSI)" <mailto:juwandem@NMSU.EDU> Subject: beating a dead horse To: mailto:DEVEL-L@AMERICAN.EDU
Many studies (Hudson, Isham, IRIS, Kottak, Pretty, etc.) have pointed out the main problem of development project, namely: ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN from CONCEPTION to implementation and maintenance of desired outcomes. So it is not the consultants fault, they are just part of the bureaucratic mess.Research has also shown that humans have only TWO ways (despite what OD consultants may say) of organizing themselves: 1) as bureaucarcies or First Design Principle structures(DP1); and 2) as Participative Democracies or Second Design Principle SYSTEMS. Before criticising these "genotypic" organizational structures, one must learn about them. But the bottom line is that the implications on human behavior derived from these two genotypic types of organizations are profoundly different (see web.nmsu.edu/~juwandem/seminar.html) or my Ph.D. dissertation at NMSU.
Humans (in the correct environment or organizational design, i.e., DP2) can be not only PURPOSEFUL but also IDEAL-SEEKING individuals (as oppossed to individualistic goal-seekers under bureaucratic conditions). Only ideals (inherently time-free) such as the universal ideals of Humanity, Homonomy, Nurturance and Beauty can serve as appropriate guidelines for sustainable development (however defined).
SO, the first step is changing the way we organize ourselves. But we can only do that if we know from what are we changing and into what are we changing. The rest, i.e., transparency, committment, active partipation, etc., etc. will follow. But this is NO easy task. For it is easier to break than to create.
Best regards, ************************************************************ |J.C. Wandemberg PhD |
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|SUSTAINABLE SYSTEMS INTERNATIONAL (SSI) |
|810 Poe Dr., Las Cruces, NM 88001 - USA |
|URL:http://web.nmsu.edu/~juwandem Email:mailto:juwandem@nmsu.edu |
**********************************************************On Sat, 11 Jul 1998, Sam Lanfranco wrote: snip > It can be argued that the quality failures surrounding
> consultancies are more a function of the process by which
> projects are formulated, approved and financed under donor
> funding than of the specific talents (or non-talents) of the
snip