Revolution at Oticon A/S: the spaghetti organization

Résumé du document

The first aspect designed in the Oticon's new organization to foster creativity is a process that we can call: called "the learning process". In fact, creativity is put forward, thanks to the knowledge of the employees. The knowledge, itself, is exchanged between employees through collaboration. Collaboration happens when there is cohesion between employees. Thus, the first stage of the "learning process" is the cohesion of employees. An organization has to set up cohesion between employees in order to be creative. Nevertheless, the organization cannot force employees to be cohesive, and Oticon's new management, and more especially Lars Kolind is aware of this. He has put forth some means to merge his employees. This involvement was initiated at the beginning of his arrival in the organization. Lars Kolind confided his dream about the Oticon's organization in a memo and asked all employees to "think the unthinkable". He involved the employees in the building of a new creative organization through "dialogue and actions".

Extraits

[...] Employees began to change their perception, and the new Oticon had become a reality. The employees were settled in the new Oticon headquarters in Hellerup. All the employees and the management accepted to move into the new headquarters. The change was driven by the organization and not by one or a particular set of individuals. In fact, the employees felt more and more involved in this project, and they have finally accepted it. In terms of leadership, it is first driven by one person: Lars Kolind. [...]

[...] It is the consequence of the organization. There is no definite department in the organization; therefore the employees manage themselves the Human Resource Development. In terms of organization and job design, Human Resource Development implies also defining how tasks, authority and systems will be organized and integrated across organizational units and in individual jobs. At the new Oticon the organization is completely unhierarchical without organization diagram, and is called the “spaghetti organization”. The employees are empowered and work in team projects. [...]

[...] This cohesion between employees leads to their collaboration. Each employee worked on two or three projects. To achieve their projects the members have to be in interaction with one another: they collaborate. At Oticon, the team provides a “greater confidence to ask questions when necessary and to be less afraid of making mistakes”. Besides the work environment has been studied to facilitate collaboration between employees. At Oticon, the members of a team dedicated to a project would physically sit together in order to take decisions instantly rather than wait for a scheduled meeting. [...]

[...] So a person working in a finance domain was asked to do marketing or advertising for instance. Employees have gained knowledge in participating in some projects; they learned and had new skills from these experiences. To maintain, renew and revitalize the employees' knowledge, Oticon asked to some coordinators to evaluate their competences and to put trainings in place to fill their lack of skills. Through collaboration meaning working in team and through the interaction of the employees, they enlarged their abilities, capabilities, skills and knowledge. [...]

[...] Even if the career development can not be rewarded through a promotion on a higher hierarchical level, Oticon has put forward the career development of employees through empowerment and enlargement of knowledge If you have the choice to work at Oticon, would you do so? Explain If tomorrow a recruiter of Oticon asks me to work with them, I will definitely accept. In fact, many characteristics of the organization are very attractive. The first one, which is very appealing, is the work environment, and more especially the project team. In my future career, I would like to work in teamwork, because I am attracted by the relationships there are in this kind of work environment. [...]