The Positive Organization: Breaking Free from Conventional Cultures, Constraints, and Beliefs

by Robert E. Quinn

Beholden to accepted assumptions about people and organizations, too many enterprises waste human potential. Robert Quinn shows how to defy convention and create organizations where people feel fully engaged and continually rewarded, where both individually and collectively they flourish and exceed expectations.

The problem is that leaders are following a negative and constraining “mental map” that insists organizations must be rigid, top-down hierarchies and that the people in them are driven mainly by self-interest and fear. But leaders can adopt a different mental map, one where organizations are networks of fluid, evolving relationships and where people are motivated by a desire to grow, learn, and serve a larger goal. Using dozens of memorable stories, Quinn describes specific actions leaders can take to facilitate the emergence of this organizational culture—helping people gain a sense of purpose, engage in authentic conversations, see new possibilities, and sacrifice for the common good.

The book includes the Positive Organization Generator, a tool that provides 100 real-life practices from positive organizations and helps you reinvent them to fit your specific needs. With the POG you can identify and implement the practices that will have the greatest impact on your organization.

At its heart, the book helps leaders to see new possibilities that lie within the acknowledged realities of organizational life. It provides five keys for learning to be "bilingual"--speaking the conventional language of business as well as the language of the positive organization.  When leaders can do this, they are able to make real and lasting change.

Genres: Leadership, Business, Nonfiction, Buisness, Management

168 pages, Hardcover

First published August 24, 2015

Reviews

[Irene]

-was for class-

[Don · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quinn builds on Kim Cameron’s work to provide leaders with a practical guide to creating a positive organization. He organizes the framework into six ideas - 1. Becoming bilingual 2. Creating a sense of purpose 3. Nurturing authentic conversations 4. Seeing possibility 5. Embracing the common good 6. Trusting the emergent process.

The examples and guidance within each of these frames is powerful. The book then attempts to summarize how to implement these using the Positive Organization Generator. I can’t make the connection between the rich content in the framework with the surface ideas in the generator.

I plan to visit the web site he has built for more insight. Http://LiftExchange.com/Generator. I admit that I was not rigorous in completing the exercises at the end of each chapter, and that effort may have deepened my understanding of how the framework ties to the generator. For now, I will embrace the framework and then work to figure out how to use this in my organization.

[Love · Rating 4 out of 5]

I actually really liked this book, because it gives a lot of practical examples and tools. I'm definitely going to have to use some of these in my team.

[Jodie | GeauxGetLit · Rating 1 out of 5]

There are better books out there. This one didn’t provide any breakthrough information.

[Zak Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clear discussions around the tensions between the collective conventional and positive mental maps within an organisation, and the negative characteristics that can result from giving a positive characteristic too much attention. Enjoyed the concept of becoming a bilingual leader and the chapter on purpose. Overall quick easy read but came away with lots of ideas and greater awareness of how my own organisation operates. The Positive Organization Generator provided in the appendix is a good tool to start you on your way with lots of incremental improvements. Will seek out more from this author.

[D. S. Dennison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was a frustrating read. After a principle is introduced, there's a case study of an unnamed executive at an unnamed company and then each chapter ends with a call to action to visit the author's consulting company website. The chapters are long on _what_ but short on _how_. It was all very frustrating.

Then, in the last chapter, it all came together. He ties it all together into a single coherent framework that is immediately actionable. The last chapter makes all those that came before worth it.

In the end, if you're willing to work for it, this is actually a pretty good book.

[Travis Standley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve listened to this book for the second time. I’m a follower of Bob Quinn and his guidance in the field of positive organizational leadership. This book has examples that show how easy it is to let the conventional mindset in orgs prevent positive culture change. The end of the book has examples of orgs realizing that they CAN make changes and avoid staying the victim of “same old, same old” thinking.

[Michael MacDonald · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent food for thought

Anyone interested in leadership, change management, and positive organizational thought should give this book some serious attention.

It’s practical and clear in its approach. I look forward to implementing some of these strategies.

[Wai-kit Ng · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, well. A short book, but packs a punch. Makes a lot of sense. Most of it.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh, good info but generic, though it's possible I'm jaded on business theory since I'd been in school for it for so long. Worth a listen but nothing groundbreaking.

[Amber Griffith · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who is constantly looking for better ways to manage teams and increase morale, I found this book to be a fresh perspective. I can't wait to try to implement the ideas and hope to see progress in attitudes and motivation. I won this book on a good reads giveaway. Thank you!

[Richard Gombert · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pseudo science.
Another sad attempt to try and link religious values to work values (pealeism).
Not a book for the alt-right.