Managing the Organization as a Community of Contributors

Abstract

Today's service and knowledge organizations, which employ around 80percent of the Australian workforce, are no longer managed most effectively as hier archies of full-time employees. Today's (and tomorrow's) organizations are diverse communities comprising a mix of highly committed, core workers; flex ibly employed casual and part-time workers; consultants, contractors, and business partners. Clients, themselves, now do some of the work in service organ izations and must be 'managed' as contributors to corporate success. These different groups can have very different types of legal, economic and psycho logical relationships to the organization and, therefore, to its goals and values.

This article proposes a classification of the different types of contributor in today's organizational community based on the intended purpose and expected duration of the relationship between a contributor and the organ ization. It is argued that the classification can be used as a practical guide by managers at all levels in aligning their management and human resource practices with the characteristsics of the different contributor relationships for which they are responsible. This should result in more realistic mutual expec tations on the part of managers and contributors; greater contributor produc tivity; more flexible and appropriate career paths ; reduced levels of workplace stress and alienation—and organizations that are more successful in attract ing and keeping the best talent.