Understanding Organizations (Hardcover)

by Charles Handy (Author) "I came to the study of people in organizations expecting certainty and absolute knowledge in the behavioural sciences..." (more)
Key Phrases: Harvard Business Review, Understanding Organizations, Organizational Psychology (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Charles Handy's revolutionary 1989 bestseller The Age of Unreason catapulted him into the ranks of the top management consultants. Now, in this new edition of his acclaimed study Understanding Organizations, he solidifies his reputation as a seminal business thinker, offering a brilliantly insightful, wide-ranging look at business organizations.

Long a bestseller in the United Kingdom, this classic text offers an illuminating discussion of key concepts of concern to all managers: culture, motivation, leadership, power, role-playing and working in groups. Ever mindful of actual business practice, Handy directly addresses how managers can translate the six main concepts into invaluble tools for effective management. He discusses how all organizations need to select, develop and reward their people; to structure and design their work; to resolve political conflicts; to lay down guidelines for their managers; and to plan for the future. In each case, the approaches and techniques described here are invaluable.

Equally important, Handy excels at presenting his ideas in colorful, immediately accessible ways, filling the book with illuminating examples and inventive metaphors that range from Tolstoy's ideas on the concept of self, to the many meanings of "good morning," to the conversations that occur in a stopped elevator, to the proper size for a vineyard or an elephant. He shows, for instance, how an optical illusion experiment sheds light on interdepartmental relations, and how the way schoolchildren are typecast by their peers helps explain corporate hierarchies. And along with case studies, graphs, charts, and questionnaires, Understanding Organizations is peppered with boxed sections that offer advice and stimulate thought, brimming with provocative quotations from business wizards such as Peter Drucker, Tom Peters, Warren Bennis, Alvin Toffler, and Rosabeth Moss Kanter, as well as from Aristotle, Shakespeare, Gilbert and Sullivan, Gail Sheehy, and Joseph Heller.

What the successful manager knows intuitively, Charles Handy puts into words. His powerful interpretive schemes will help managers grasp the underlying dynamics of their company, make sense of its past, and assess--and shape--its future.

About the Author

Charles Handy is a visiting professor at the London Business School as well as a writer and management consultant. His books include The Age of Unreason, Waiting for the Mountain to Move, and Inside Organizations.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 448 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA; 4 edition (December 2, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195087321
• ISBN-13: 978-0195087321
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #708,984 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great research into organisations, December 30, 2000

By	Gerard Kroese (The Netherlands) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Understanding Organizations (Penguin Business Library) (Paperback)

Charles Handy is one of Britain's management gurus. This original edition of this book was written while he was professor at the London Business School. Although this book is not simple to read and is very comprehensive, it is an excellent introduction to understanding organisations (yes, just like the title).

The book consists of three parts. Part I introduces a set of models/frameworks, for better understanding of people and organisations. Handy selected six themes common to organisations - motivation, roles and interactions, leadership, power and influence, workings of groups, and cultures of organisations. Each of these themes receives an excellent, extremely in-depth literature review, which all have been updated in this 4th edition to include the latest literature and trends. Handy looks at each of these themes from various angles and does not really push the reader into any dominant one; "This book is eclectic. ... It is wise to be eclectic, to pick from each anything that helps, to compile the sort of personal anthology which is what book aims to be." In addition, Handy uses a large number of quotes from other academics to explain his comments.

In Part II, Handy looks at each of the themes introduced in Part I and their impact on organisations. This part is a lot less academic and Handy tries to apply the models/framework introduced in Part I into practice. "One bookcase for the theorectical models, another for the tips and hints on current practice. The discussion in this part is not intended to be a review of best current practice but rather an interpretation, often a provocative one, of the implications of some of the theories that we say we all subscribe to." Handy applies it to people of organisations and their development, the work of the organisation - and its design, politics and change, being a manager, and the future of organisations.

In Part III, Handy provides a brief overview of the relevant field of theory, makes suggestions on useful sources and gives references to the major studies mentioned in the text. "Part Three is for those who wonder about the sources of my ideas, concepts, and theories, or for those who wish to pursue any topic in greater depth." Handy does this on a chapter-by-chapter basis, which is very useful for any MBA-student or researcher.

This book is a comprehensive piece of work into organisations. It certainly helps you understand organisations better, but do not take this book too lightly as it is not for the fainthearted. It is so extremely comprehensive that I do not see anybody read this book in one go. On the other hand, I must stress that the literature reviewed and covered is spectacular and done fantastically. Handy's ability to bring this into perspective with practice is also very strong. A MUST for MBA-students and all other people interested in organisational studies.

5.0 out of 5 stars A great place to start learning about organizations, January 11, 2009

By	Stephen Parry "Author of Sense and Respond" (Lean Service Transformation Designer London) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Understanding Organizations (Penguin Business Library) (Paperback)

Charles Handy has been very influential shaping my attitudes to work, life styles and the management of organisations. This is a great primer for new students. I also highly recommend reading all his books and listening to his audio recordings.

His later works outline succinctly the demands changing corporations and globalization place on individuals and society. A very inspirational and thought provoking commentator, he positions the world of work in the larger context of ethics and morality. He also explores the human struggle to maintain individuality, spirituality, choice, freedom and dignity

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very useful book on organisational behaviour!, December 10, 2000

By	kamal kant (Singapore) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Understanding Organizations (Penguin Business Library) (Paperback)

If you want a good grasp of the key concepts in organisational behaviour, Mr Handy has done a fantastic job of putting it in an inexpensively priced book which covers most if not all topics in the subject. In fact, even if you are not taking organisational behaviour as a subject, it is still relevant in Human Resource Management & Development courses. For the established HR practitioner, it would be a useful book to have on your work-shelf which you can occassionally dip in, to refresh yourself on key concepts.