Luận án Tiến sĩ Tâm lý học: Tiếp cận Tâm lý học trong Quản lý Hợp đồng Tổ chức Phức tạp - Stuart Strachan

… and one man in his time plays many parts (William Shakespeare, As You Like It, Act 2 Scene 7) A Psychodynamic Approach to Implementing Contract Management in a Complex Organization A thesis submitted in (partial) fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Professional Doctorate in Organization Stuart James Strachan Grad Dip Maintenance Management (Tero) Master Applied Science (Innovation and Service Management) College of Business RMIT University March 2013 1 Declaration I certify that except where due acknowledgment has been made, the work is that of the author alone; the work has not been submitted previously, in whole or in part, to qualify for any other academic award; the content of the thesis is the result of work which has been carried out since the official commencement date of the approved research program; any editorial work, paid or unpaid, carried out by a third party is acknowledged; and, ethics procedures and guidelines have been followed. Stuart Strachan 18 March 2013 2 Acknowledgements I would like to thank Professor Susan Long, my principal supervisor, for her support and encouragement that has taken place during the entirety of my candidature. Without her support, particularly in latter years, I would not have completed this work. Most certainly I would not have raised my level of knowledge in this field as quickly and effectively as has occurred.

Susan, despite some health issues, took on a more demanding supervision than one would normally expect. I had tried this final lap several times since the 2009 bushfires and it had just not worked. My ability to focus was lost, I was angry, darting from pillar to post and I had little tolerance for those who needed to work through their own troubles and anxieties. I am still not back to my former ability as I believe it was, but at least the thought processes are still there, just a lot slower and fragmented.

Susan helped me to maintain sufficient continuity to be able to analyze my little bites at the elephant and eventually form them into a meal! My source of calm, the farm, had to be put right before anything else could even start. It was that important to the anxieties I faced. I would also like to thank Dr Peter Bryar who quietly supported me through my Masters degree, encouraged me to consider this degree, and then regularly met to ensure that my completion of the work was never far from my mind’s eye. Without Peter’s quiet counsel during some quite torrid times, I may not have completed the work.

During the time I was employed by RMIT University it was both supportive and helpful in providing a vehicle for the research. There were many staff who provided various pieces of information throughout the research and to whom I am extremely grateful for their contributions. Also for their less formal discussions during which they imparted suggestions which I may follow to further the research at the time. My thanks also to Bryan Waters and his employer Lee Hecht Harrison for facilitating the engagement of a consultant to undertake the role analysis sessions.

I also wish to thank the members of our doctoral study group for their support and comments on my work. Particularly I would like to thank Janelle who despite not being physically present with me during the latter stages of my candidature provided the necessary inspiration to bring what was in my head onto paper. My doctoral cohort provided more inspiration than I think they, or the university, could understand. I found the weekly sessions to be very helpful.

3 As I tried to overcome the, somewhat selfish, ‘what had happened to me’ I would reflect on the turmoil in others lives as they studied, the woman of a similar vintage to myself who struggled with the difficulties of dyslexia, then experienced the tragic death of her daughter during her doctoral journey. She completed her candidature a couple of years ago - how inspiring. Then another in the cohort whose wife died from a debilitating disease. I believe he is still grafting at his work - a strong man.

A key part of my determination to complete was when I read in Janelle’s thesis: I would particularly like to thank Helen and Stuart, my original and enduring doctoral cohort. It made it easier knowing there were others going through the same pain at the same time. I could not believe that I had been noticed, let alone made it easier for someone else! Clearly I was not alone and this work could be done. Thank you Janelle, I am humbled.

Then Dr Wendy Harding who patiently worked me through re-commencing my candidature and caused me to remember Dave’s exhortation for most problem solving – ‘Its like eating an elephant! It starts with the first bite’. Except that he didn’t realize that the anxiety of the first, second and all the rest of the bites must be assuaged each time to reach the end. Dr Claire Davison deserves thanks for making formatting of the final stages of this thesis sound so simple and eased that burden for me. I would also like to thank all the people who were part of the interview and role analysis groups.

They were a mix of RMIT University Staff, RMIT Council and contractors to RMIT. Without their input this research could not have been undertaken. Also Himadri Potter who facilitated the role analysis exercise and pointed out some aspects to which his psychology background perhaps attuned him to recognize. Throughout my career, certainly since the mid 1970’s, I have been on a quest to make organizations with which I am involved more effective and efficient.

This has involved making changes, some subtle, some more akin to a sledge hammer. I have been influenced by a myriad of supervisors, managers, subordinates and associates who have contributed to my knowledge and experience. Some very clearly respected my ideas while others clearly considered me to be somewhat ‘whacky’. Nevertheless I owe all of them a debt of gratitude for sending me on this quest for organizational improvement.

Finally, my family. My father influenced me to question the status quo and achieve the best in the most simple way possible. If it was getting too complicated or expensive it was probably the wrong way! 4 My mother always urged me to do the best, this didn’t always happen but she was always there to offer encouragement even when I knew it was not deserved. My wife and children have also been supportive even though they have not fully understood the need for me to complete this journey.

Their acceptance of my withdrawal to focus on thinking and writing has been much appreciated. 5 Table of Contents Declaration. 3 Table of Contents. 11 Chapter 1 – The purpose of my research .1 Introduction - The aims of this project and organization of this thesis.3 How I fit in .4 Why should I do anything to change the way contract management was practiced at the university? .5 Why did I arrive at using a systems psychodynamics approach .6 What the project was to achieve .7 The project design .8 The organization of this thesis .9 The research question.

27 Chapter 2 – What is contract management? .1 What is contract management? .2 In the wider realm it is known as Project Management .3 What are the models? .5 Are we considering project management as in the wider realm or is it a narrower focus?. 43 Chapter 3 – Research Methodology.1 Overview - What is Action Research .2 Why Action Research is appropriate for my research .3 How I know that I am doing Action Research .4 Adapting the Kemmis McTaggart model .5 Other research methods that were employed. 61 Chapter 4 – An introduction to the research. 77 Chapter 5 – The First Iteration.

84 Chapter 6 – The Second Iteration. 86 Chapter 7 – The Third Iteration .8 Major themes across the interviews .9 Analysis and reflection .10 Final reflection from the interview Action Research iteration. 108 Chapter 8 – The Fourth Iteration. 110 Chapter 9 – The Fifth Iteration .5 Contract managers’ sessions .6 Supervisors of contract managers sessions .8 Analysis and reflection.

133 Chapter 10 – Case Study Review .4 Observations and comparisons with the Action Research.5 Reflection and learning. 142 Chapter 11 – Performance interview with worker experiencing role boundary confusion .3 Reflection and learning. 147 Chapter 12 – An exploration of intersecting cultural boundaries .3 Reflection and learning. 157 Chapter 13 – Overall analysis and conclusions .1 Current contract management training, implementation and their effects .2 A systems psychodynamic approach .3 A working hypothesis from the research .4 What happens when two systems engage through a simple role? .5 Two systems operating through a complex role .6 What is the complexity? .7 What is the cause of a complex role? .8 Can individual systems be consolidated into a single system-in-the-mind using ORA?.9 A road map for more effectively introducing part-time contract managers to their role .13 Contributions of the research.

176 Appendix 1 - Participants invitation to engage with the research. 180 Appendix 2 – Interview Questions. 181 7 Appendix 3 – Plain English explanation of the project with guidance on ethical conduct. 184 Appendix 4 Interview Schedule .1 The Contract Cycle .1 Simple Model of Project Management .2 Association for Project Management (APM) project management body of knowledge diagram.1 Organizations as self-organizing holograms, a blending of the old and the new ways of organizing and managing .2 Action Research model .3 Matrix of Loops in a Project (Strachan 2004) .4 Overall Research Methodology Diagram .1 Action Research model .1 Overall design of the interviewee roles .2 Person role system interface .4 Complex system and role .1 Flexible system boundaries .2 Participant's ORA drawing .2 Complex system and role .1 Australian/British complex system .2 Split-off Australian system .3 Complex role being absorbed in person as heritage .4 Representation of person moving from University contract management role to Agency contract management role .1 Role Daisy of taken roles .2 Introjection of system 2 into system 1 .3 Potentially unstable complex system as a result of influences from simple system roles .4 Systems within their context .5 Integration of required parts of system 2 into system 1 .1 Recommended Contract Administration Features .1 Comparison between classical experiments and Action Research .2 A comparison of the three Action Research paradigms .3 Moments of Action Research.

91 8 Abstract The world is becoming increasingly focused on an imperative to reduce the cost of providing services. Managers at this cutting edge of practical organizational development are continually trying to identify ways to achieve this aim. This study takes place amongst the support services of a large Australian university which is outsourcing much of its non-core services. It has commenced using people whose principal role is not that of contract management to take up a part time contract management role.

This part-time role frequently fails in the longer term with significant financial implications to the organization. The research uses a systems psychodynamic approach to investigate the roles taken up by a cohort of contract management staff as a major focus. A lesser, but still important focus, were the cohort’s unconscious motivations. These contract managers are only responsible for contract management as a small part of their principal role.

The current process of training contract managers is to only provide a range of procedures and guidelines. The training of contract managers is also reviewed as a minor focus within the thesis. When compared with a full-time contract manager, a specialist career contract manager, the part- time contract management role does not appear able to be held over a long period of time. When the role is neglected the financial implications are significant to the organization.