I have been a finance and marketing agent for the last eight years. Mr. George the manager has been my role model for the past eight years. Together we have seen the company grow and make a great impact in our lives. Looking back I have generated three applicable laws from the Fifth Discipline that Senge explores in his text. “The Fifth Discipline” is a text that aims on solving group problems and helps companies run as learning organizations.
The 11 fifth discipline laws (Senge, 2014., P. 23) are:
1. Today’s problems come from yesterday’s “solutions.”
2. The harder you push, the harder the system pushes you back.
3. Behavior grows better before it grows worse.
4. The easy way out usually leads back in.
5. The cure can be worse than the disease.
6. Faster is slower.
7. Cause and effect are not closely related in time and space.
8. Small changes can produce big results–but the areas of highest leverage are often the least obvious.
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9. You can have your cake and eat it too–but not at once.
10. Dividing an elephant in half does not produce two small elephants.
11. There is no blame.
The fifth law states that “The cure can be worse than the disease.” I remember a time when there were plenty of design jobs and very few reliable employees. This is because design jobs require a high level of creativity which most of our potential employees had not attained. As a result, the manager, one other employee, and I decided to handle the present jobs as best as we could. This was the worst decision ever. We all had less sleep with long working hours to ensure we provided our service in time. We were late for several deadlines and at the end of the ordeal, the other employee quit and it was just the two of us. We were so tired that we stayed for a whole week without taking up new jobs let alone replying to emails. The week we went off to rest would also have led to great benefits in the company.
The fourth law states that “The easy way out usually leads back in.” It reminds me of a time when the company was facing financial difficulties. The bidding team decided to quote jobs at low prices to ensure there were plenty of jobs so there could be a flow of cash. For a while, the present employees were able to handle tasks but after some time there was a need to employ new designers. The extra cost of the new employees was high that the company almost suffered another financial crisis.
The eleventh law states that “There is no blame”. During the eight years, I have worked in the company I have learned that mistakes, success, and losses are part of running a company. There is no one to blame when things go wrong. We all work together and hopefully tap into the digital system in ways that benefit our company. I would like to ask you which laws do you think to reflect instances in the company? Do you agree with Senge that running this company has taught you many lessons? What advice would you give an upcoming company?
Reference
Senge, P. M. (2014). The fifth discipline Fieldbook: Strategies and tools for building a learning organization . Currency.
