Boleman and Deals Four Frame Model

  Boleman and Deals Four Frame Model

Boleman and Deal’s four-frame model is a concept that divides any organization into four frames and seeks to understand and solve organizational issues in an effective manner. Most organizations today have questions constantly arising due to problems like poor communication, conflict of interests and office politics. The four-frame model consists of structural, human resources, political and symbolic frames. The structural frame is the pillar of an organization that comprises the structure, functions, duties, systems and processes of the organization. The human resource frame deals with individuals with their social needs and skills that are needed to run the organization. The Political framework deals with policies and conflicts within the organization. The symbolic frame focuses on how people use certain values, beliefs to form an organizational culture. The symbolic frame makes an organization distinctive and creates a sense of purpose for the workers or employees.

The four-frame model is designed to help leaders in organizations tackle significant issues that affect the day to day running. Common problems in organizations are; lack of communication from leaders, lack of clear goals and directions of the organization, conflicts among employees and poor performance by employees (Bolman, 2017). Leaders should be keen in knowing types of issues present in their organizations for long term growth and sustainability. Ignoring significant problems is a sure way of setting up the organization for failure and possibly closure.

Poor communication among leaders is a significant problem in most organizations in the world. Most leaders have high expectations and demands from their employees and tend to assume that employees should be well conversant with the policies and functions of organizations all at once. Leaders fail to communicate priorities and expectations promptly, which leads employees to make mistakes hence arousing conflicts. Leaders can address this issue by applying the structural frame in the Boleman and Deals model (Philips, 2018). Leaders should communicate outline roles, responsibilities, functions and goals of every employee promptly to avoid last-minute disappointments on deadlines of pending projects.

Poor performance and redundancy among employees is also a severe issue that organizations are grappling with. Many leaders complain about this problem but forget that they continuously need to motivate and empower their employees with the necessary skills and knowledge. The human resource frame in the model seeks to address this issue. According to the human resource frame, a leader should pay attention to individuals and their social needs because they are the driving force of an organization (Sowell, 2014). For an organization to achieve quality results, leaders must ensure employees are happy and motivated. Quality results can also be achieved through team building events that help improve communication and interactions.

Conflicts and office politics are also significant challenges in organizations that have created unnecessary feuds. A leader should acknowledge the fact that politics exist in every organization and strive to make the outcomes of its positive (Deal, 2017). The Political frame in the model suggests that a leader should identify where there are competition, power and conflicts and apply advocacy. Conflicts and politics are only healthier when they drive employees to achieve new targets and accomplishments. A leader should create a positive connotation out of conflicts and collaborate with the conflicting individuals to make the organization better.

Lack of accountability by the leadership and management of the organization is also a major issue. Responsibility in areas of finances in the organization, mismanagement and shortage of resources by leaders pose a threat to the well being of an organization. Lack of accountability can quickly bring down an organization (Baron, 2018). An organization must appoint a leader with high integrity who does not fear to whistle-blow in case he or she notices theft and mismanagement. All departments in an organization should coordinate with the human resource to utilize available resources for maximum productivity.

Poor implementation of policies, rules and regulations are among issues that can lead to inevitable organizational failure. Poor implementation of policies is mostly brought about by an inherited organizational culture among employees and leaders that are not used to abide by rules and regulations. The symbolic frame can best address this issue by creating a sense of purpose for employees, recognizing their needs and creating a motivating vision for them.  A leader should come up with a clear and concise structure of the policies and rules of an organization (Sowell, 2014). Punishments and fines (not physical), should be introduced and applied for those who will not adhere to them. When a leader enforces sanctions, it will save an organization in the long run.

Low attendance and poor participation at meetings by and employees is also a significant issue in an organization. Most employees fail to realize that it is through meetings that their grievances can be recognized and solved. Employees tend to skip meetings, especially when they are optional (Probst, 2011). The structural frame shows that an organization thrives on cooperation. A leader should encourage employees to attend meetings and state that failure to do so will make their issues not to be addressed. This will compel them to participate and contribute to meetings.

In conclusion, the Boleman and Deals four-framee model is a classic example of a framework that can help leaders address organizational issues more directly. The structure is laid out in a way that any leader can interpret for the benefit of the benefit and long term survival of an organization.

References

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2017). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership.

John Wiley & Sons.

Phillips, R. S., & Baron, M. A. (2018). Leadership effectiveness of collegiate aviation program leaders: A four-frame analysis. The Collegiate Aviation Review International, 31(1).

Probst, M. B. (2011). An analysis of leadership frame preference of academic administration: Using the Bolman and Deal four frame model (Doctoral dissertation, Capella University).

Sowell, S. (2014). Building a new paradigm: Analysis of a case study in organizational change in collection management using Bolman’s and Deal’s four-frame model. Collection management, 39(2-3), 211-226.