We have defined a role for the way in which we think we should behave within an organisation. This isn’t always a very human approach. We look at things too instrumentally and often judge too quickly. This kind of judgment can be hurtful or denigrating. It is important to make people aware of this dynamic, says Mariëlle Heijltjes – Professor of Organisational Behaviour at Maastricht University and Executive Director of UMIO. Making people more central within the organisation is her drive. It’s about simple things like how we talk to each other and what the impact might be of what we say. It’s those basic, interpersonal processes that are at the core.
Dear leader, know the impact of your behaviour!
As a leader, what behaviours do you show in your interactions with another person? Understanding this is crucial for how you as a leader form an organisational culture. Speaking from her own experience, Mariëlle is involved in UMIO’s executive programmes where the impact of a leader’s behaviour can make a difference. At UMIO, she has unlearned how to only talk about leadership in an academic way, with all the details that come with it. Instead, she uses what she has learned from scientific research as a lens to look at practice and teaches others to look through that same lens as well.
The illusion of control
The ‘command and control’ model is a legacy of the industrial revolution and no longer fits within today’s society and modern organisations. It produces an illusion of controllability. You have to let go of the idea that everything can be planned and controlled. Certain systems, especially in large organisations, provide a certain order. But you have to dare to face the reality of those systems. The modern leadership role is, according to Mariëlle Heijltjes, essentially paradoxical: control remains, but you must also be open to the change that is constantly taking place.
