Organisational Analysis and Design

Introduction

The concept of a frame of reference was adapted from work on cognitive frameworks . It has since been adapted by Bolman and Deal within the broad context of management theory to construct a conceptual framework for the analysis of organizations. Dunbar ,Garud and Raghuram expanded the concept of a multi-framed firm to emphasize the concept of deframing. Deframing advocates the constant re-evaluation of established frameworks to creatively meet managerial challenges.

A "manager's frame of reference" is taken to mean a referential frame outlined in Bolman and Deal's work. That a manager's frame of reference is an "enabling asset" is taken to mean that by using only one of the four frames to interpret a given situation, a manager will be effective in pursuing an organization's overall goals.

Development of the argument shall begin by outlining some of the criticisms against a multi-framed approach that bring into doubt its utility. It will then be argued that w...