The leadership of America and other countries could use this book! The common theme in leadership today usually rests upon talent, skill and motivation, whereas this book's authors look at the "spirit". I found it to be one of the best books I have read in the area of leadership.
The story centers around a manager who seeks out a mentor as his spiritual guide. The real crux here is to seek. I think many leaders rely to heavily upon themselves and do want to seek help from anyone, especially soul help.
One of the key elements in this book is that each reader could percieve differnt lessons and take on their own meaning, which I think is a great lesson in leadership. The book requires the reader to soak in the information and even gives the reader an opportunity to practice what they have read.
On the personal level, I believe that leaders need to soul search and model the behavior in the workplace. Coming from the educational perspective, this is true as far as values and morals are taught. A leader needs to be in touch with themselves if they are to lead others.
In the story, Steve finds Maria and is challenged to look within, which is fearful to him, as it is to most of us. The key is to not avoid our own pain. If we do, we tend to avoid feelings that come out sideways, and this is very dangerous as a human being and as a leader. When we can look inside at ourselves and find a sense of peace, we have more energy, and can be more producticve as leaders. In addition, the "burnout" rate will be much less in all levels of leadership.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who would feel they could benefit from this form of reading. I feel that you need an open mind to this idea of leadership. It is the untraditional form of thinking for leaders and educators alike. The story of Steve Camden and Maria are thought provoking and the interludes get the thoughts going. If you do not fear change or are looking for a deeper sense of self this book gives you the parable to study leadership in a wide range of concepts from the worlds of philosophy, spirituality, and poetry.

Bolman and Deal walk away from the academic view of leadership and its trappings and tell a story of a person's journey to find his inner spirit. In doing so, he finds understanding of the basic elements of being an excellent leader who inspries people and takes the organization on a path to find success. The book is an easy read, written in a narrative, novel-type style that provides a refreshing look at what people can become.

Reframing Organizations is considered by many to be a modern masterpiece. Today it is used as a class textbook by some major universities in their management and leadership classes. Bolman & Deal encourage leaders to step back and re-examine the operation of their organization through the use of various frames or windows. These different lenses can bring organizational life into a different or clearer focus. They allow the leader to view the workplace from different images to make judgments, gather information and get things done. The authors label four windows and name them the structural, human resource, political and symbolic frames. The purpose of the book is to examine the elements and advantages of the four frames presented by Bolman & Deal. The end result is that we learn the importance of stepping back and looking at a situation from more than a single pane of glass. This is vitally important because most of us have the tendency to look at situations or problems from a limited narrow perspective, and this hinders our ability to be effective and visionary leaders.

The Structural Frame attempts to look at the social context of work and not simply at the individual. Once an organization designates specific roles for employees, the next decision is to form or group them into working units. Coordination and control of these various groups are achieved either vertically or laterally. The best structure depends on the organization's environment, goals and strategies. Bolman & Deal list six assumptions behind the Structural Frame. 1) Organizations exist to achieve established goals and objectives. 2) Organizations work best when rationality prevails over personal preferences and external pressures. 3) Structures must be designed to fit organizational circumstances. 4) Organizations increase efficiency and enhance performance through specialization and division of labor. 5) Appropriate forms of coordination and control are essential to ensuring that individuals and units work together in the service of organizational goals. 6) Problems and performance gaps arise from structural deficiencies and can be remedied through restructuring.

The Human Resource Frame is another window to bring an organization into a unique focus. It views an organization like a large extended family. From this perspective, an organization is inhabited by individuals. These individuals have needs, prejudices, feelings, limitations and skills. The goal of the leader is to mold the organization to meet the needs of its people. The leader will seek to merge the peoples' need to feel good about what they are doing with the ability to effectively get the job done. Bolman & Deal state that the key to this window is a "sensitive understanding of people and their symbiotic relationship with organizations."

The Political Frame is a window that looks at the workplace as a jungle. This may not sound pretty but the reality is that "it is a jungle out there". It is a competitive environment or contest in which different people compete for power and limited resources. Reframing Organizations recognizes the work environment is one of rampant conflict immersed in negotiation, bargaining, compromise and coercion. Bolman & Deal offer five propositions as a summary of this frame. 1) Organizations are coalitions of various individuals and interest groups. 2) There are enduring differences among coalition members in values, beliefs, information, interests, and perceptions of reality. 3) Most important decisions involve the allocation of scarce resources and what gets done. 4) Scarce resources and enduring differences give conflict a central role in organizational dynamics and typically make power the most important resource. 5) Goals and decisions emerge from bargaining, negotiation, and jockeying for position among different stakeholders. Unfortunately, this is truly the business and social world most of us live in.

The Symbolic Frame is a powerful window that builds on cultural and social anthropology. It views organizations as carnivals, theaters or tribes. An organization is a unique culture driven by stories, ceremonies, rituals and heroes. This is in contrast to an organization being driven by rules, authority or policies. The organization is analogous to a theater. With this theater, various actors play their respective roles in the drama and the audience forms its own impressions of what is seen on the stage. The Symbolic Frame also looks at team building in a different light. It views the development of high-performing teams as a spiritual network also enhanced by rituals, ceremonies and myths. One does not need to look far to discover these symbols. They exist from the proverbial "corner office", to corporate seals, to the camaraderie of military units.

The four windows or frames presented by Bolman & Deal allow a leader to see events in new ways and to shift perspective. The use of the multiple frames can assist the leader to see and understand more broadly the problems and potential solutions available. It encourages the leader to think flexibly about their organization and opens various opportunities to the leader to view events from multiple angles. Reframing Organizations is the kind of book that forces you to view organizational life from a different viewpoint and new reality.

"Managers, consultants, and policymakers draw, formally or otherwise, on a variety of theories in efforts to change or improve organizations. Yet only in the past few decades have social scientists devoted much time or attention to developing ideas about how organizations work (or why they often fail)...Each tradition claims a scientific foundation. But theories easily become theologies, preaching a single, parochial scripture. Each theory offers its own version of reality and its own vision of the future. Each also offers a range of techniques for reaching the promised land. Modern managers encounter a cacophony of voices and visions...Our purpose in this book is to sort through the multiple voices competing for managers' attention. In the process, we have consolidated major schools of organizational thought into four perspectives. There are many ways to label such perspectives. We have chosen the label 'frames.' Frames are both windows on the world and lenses that bring the world into focus. Frames filter out some things while allowing others to pass through easily. Frames help us order experience and decide what to do. Every manager, consultant, or policymaker relies on a personal frame or image to gather information, make judgments, and determine how best to get things done" (from the Introduction pp.10-12).

In this context, after dividing their book into six parts, Lee G.Bolman and Terrence E.Deal devote the four of these parts to detailed description and discussion of the frames. And hence, they firstly determine basic assumptions behind each frame as following:

1. The Structural Frame:

* Organizations exist to achieve established goals and objectives.

* Organizations work best when rationality prevails over personal preferences and external pressures.

* Structures must be designed to fit an organization's circumstances.

* Organizations increase efficiency and enhance performance through specialization and division of labor.

* Appropriate forms of coordination and control are essential to ensuring that individuals and units work together in the service of organizational goals.

* Problems and performance gaps arise from structural deficiencies and can be remedied through restructuring.

2. The Human Resource Frame:

* Organizations exist to serve human needs rather than the reverse.

* People and organizations need each other; organizations need ideas, energy, and talent; people need careers, salaries, and opportunities.

* When the fit between individual and system is poor, one or both suffer: individuals will be exploited or will exploit the organization-or both will become victims.

* A good fit benefits both: individuals find meaningful and satisfying work, and organizations get the talent and energy they need to succeed.

3. The Political Frame:

* Organizations are coalition of various individuals and interest groups.

* There are enduring differences among coalition members in values, beliefs, information, interest, and perceptions of reality.

* Most important decisions involve the allocation of scarce resources-who gets what.

* Scarce resources and enduring differences give conflict a central role in organizational dynamics and make power the most important resource.

* Goals and decisions emerge from bargaining, negotiation, and jockeying for position among different stakeholders.

4. The Symbolic Frame:

* What is most important about any event is not what happened but what it means.

* Activity and meaning are loosely coupled: events have multiple meanings because people interpret experience differently.

* Most of life is ambiguous or uncertain-what happened, why it happened, or what will happen next are all puzzles.

* High levels of ambiguity and uncertainty undercut rational analysis, problem solving, and decision making.

* In the face of uncertainty and ambiguity, people create symbols to resolve confusion, increase predictability, provide direction, and anchor hope and faith.

* Many events and processes are more important for what is expressed than what is produced. They form a cultural tapestry of secular myths, rituals, ceremonies, and stories that help people find meaning, purpose, and passion.

Finally, in the last part of the book, they focus on the implications of these frames for central issues in managerial practice, including leadership, change, and ethics.

Highly recommended.

Bolman and Deal have given us a well-researched, thorough study of the human dynamics unfolding in virtually all organizations. For those seeking to live considerately, i.e. understand and take into account, the aspirations and perspectives of others, this book will prove a great benefit. For those who just "don't quite get it" with people, but who need to (to survive), this book will reward study. I took issue with some of the conclusions reached, especially regarding the "symbolic" frame; but then that's how we SHOULD read.

Do you think you have what it takes to be a principal? Jaime Rodriguez did, and he entered his first year on the job thinking he had all the answers. Like so many of us who leave graduate school with diploma in hand, Jaime thought he had learned all there was to know from books and course work. It didn't take long for the faculty at Pico School to show him just how much he didn't know. As many new principals do, Mr. Rodriguez made costly mistakes his rookie year, but what made the difference for him was mentor Brenda Connors, a veteran principal who guided Jaime through the roller coaster ride of his first year at Pico.
Authors Bolman and Deal have written a must-read book for anyone who wants to make a difference in the journey of school leadership. Their book takes a look at a school through four different lenses that can help any principal facilitate effective change. Through the dialogue between Rodriguez and Connors, the authors touch on critical issues such as school culture, school politics, shared decision-making, supervision of teachers, and total quality management. Ms. Connors provides crucial insights that should be taken to heart by all school leaders. It is a book to be cherished, especially by rookie principals who will no doubt adopt Dr. Connors as a mentor of their own.

Lee G. Bolman and Terrence E. Deal have done it again. They have provided aspiring leaders with a tool of references that can help one to become an effective leader. In " The Path to School Leadership: A Portable Mentor", Bolman and Deal summarize the use of four frames of leadership --- political, human resource, structural, and symbolic --- to demonstrate how a veteran principal helps a first year principal deal with troublesome situations in his school. The book also provides interns in school leadership with information, experiences, and possible solutions to problems that are not always available during one semester of "on-the-job" (internship) experiences. "The Path to School Leadership: A Portable Mentor" is easy to read, hard to put down, and filled with a wealth of principalship advise. It commands a position among must read leadership literature. Thank you, Dr. Smith for providing your graduate students with a portable mentor.

In THE PATH TO SCHOOL LEADERSHIP: A PORTABLE MENTOR, Bolman and Deal take you on a journey of the life of a new principal and his mentor and leave you with the thought that they were actually mentors to each other. Quite simply, it is the kind of book that you don't want to put down. Leadership becomes a metaphor for finding a path within your own heart and then traveling its length without setting boundaries. Jamie Rodriguez, a new principal, and Brenda Connors, a veteran principal, work together to develop strategies for effective and powerful leadership while raising thoughtful questions, providing new perspectives, and strengthening your heart. They provide real-life examples to explain how to convert knowledge into experience by looking at things from different perspectives. The book offers valuable advice for both new and experienced administrators and leaders. It leaves the reader wanting to continue having a dialogue with both Rodriguez and Connors, and it encourages dialogue and mentoring to be a part of any professional life.

Take just a little bit of useful information, add a little bit more of relevant information, put in a whole lot of useless junk and fluff, and tack on a catchy title: That's what this one is folks. I usually give away books that I end up not wanting to keep. In the case of this book, I wouldn't do that to anyone. I bought this one yesterday and it is destined for the trash barrel today. It's interesting that trash like this even gets published.

This book was written for those who are experiencing serious problems in the workplace. In the Introduction, the authors provide a self-audit consisting of a series of direct questions. For example:

"Have you ever wondered why so many people in high positions seem to be selfish, power-crazed boneheads?"

"Do you detest office politics?"

"Do relationships at work remind you of a dysfunctional family?"

The balance of the book focuses on strategies and tactics to help resolve (or at least alleviate) the problems suggested by the various questions. The book is divided into several different parts which focus on the nature of cluelessness, organizational politics, improving relationships on the job, "mapping the pecking order", "cracking the cultural code", understanding change, and "choosing [an appropriate] life path." The book makes tons of sense. The authors obviously care sincerely about the victims of cluelessless. They offer what they call "both an atlas and a guide" for coping with system dynamics, "the murky world of politics", "the emotional world of people at work", "the red tape of bureaucracy", "the depths of tribal life at work", and sudden/traumatic change. Finally, they examine "a deeper question that's a silent companion at work: What life path do you really want to follow?"

Who should read this book? I highly recommend it to those who feel that they are clueless and/or victims of those who are. The authors offer excellent advice as to what to do (and what not to do), how to do it, and when. I also recommend it highly to anyone in a senior management position who has direct responsibility for developing others to their full potential. Chances are that many (of not most) of those "others" are clueless, not only in the workplace but also to the fact that this book is available.

No school situation will ever be as easy and neat as the story presented in this somewhat annoying book. I didn't care for the style, although ultimately that didn't get in the way of my taking away a few kernels of goodness from this book. The authors present four "frames" and urge teachers, in particular, to notice what frame they most naturally align with. At the same time, they point out how the political and the personal are an overlay on so many parts of school life. Stepping back and defining what is going on can never really hurt. The main teacher in this fable is a likeable sort...and it was with amazement that at the end of the book I was wiping away tears.....so I guess if the premise was a bit hokey it didn't matter a whole lot, because they sure got me involved. I would have prefered a little less manipulation of the reader, but all in all, it was worth the two hours it took to read.