Articles

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="5/6"][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1563590572128{margin-right: 0px !important;}"]by Ralph H. Kilmann An earlier version of this article was published in Accounting, Organizations and Society, Vol. 8, No. 4, 1983, pages 347-357. ABSTRACT For theoretical and methodological convenience, accountants often assume that the divisions of an organization are largely independent of one another and that divisional managers therefore can make decisions consistent with global optimality. Along with these assumptions, accountants have taken the structure of an organization as fixed and not changeable. This paper suggests a framework and method for assessing the costs resulting from non-independent divisions, as a component of organization...

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="5/6"][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1563581314129{margin-right: 0px !important;}"]by Ralph H. Kilmann Conflict exists whenever the needs of two people appear to be incompatible—which reflects relevant differences between them. The fundamental question in conflict situations is always the same: How can people resolve their differences so their needs and concerns—both short term and long term—will be met? RESPONDING TO THE TKI Taking the TKI is the first step in learning how you typically approach differences with others and why you might not be getting your needs met. Like most people, you’ve probably developed a habitual way of dealing with conflict—always trying...

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="5/6"][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1668362943162{margin-right: 0px !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;border-radius: 4px !important;}"]by Ralph H. Kilmann FIRST CONTACT In the fall of 1970, I entered the doctoral program in UCLA’s Graduate School of Management. I chose to major in the behavioral sciences. During my first year in the program, with the ten other entering students in the same major, I was required to take a twenty-four-credit seminar, “Foundations in the Behavioral Sciences,” which was team-taught by five faculty members. That’s how I met Kenneth W. Thomas. Aside from teaching at UCLA, he was also completing...

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="5/6"][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1677707658334{margin-right: 0px !important;}"]by Ralph H. Kilmann, co-author of the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI) On the occasion of the 40th Year Anniversary of the TKI assessment, I’d first like to highlight some of the key features of the TKI that enable people to improve how they resolve their interpersonal conflicts (whether at home or at work). Then I’d like to encourage people to apply their improved conflict management skills to transform their surrounding systems (including cultural norms, strategies, structures, reward systems, and work processes) that tend to dominate organized action. In fact, by successfully addressing...

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1559939633432{margin-right: 100px !important;}"]by Ralph H. Kilmann An earlier version of this article was published in Organizational Dynamics (Summer 1989), pages 4-19. INTRODUCTION Freedom to determine one’s destiny is a recurring struggle for mankind. It is no less important to any modern-day organization. Members want to contribute to a worthwhile cause. Often, however, the organization holds them back. Members are caught in a bureaucratic grip, one that prevents them from fully contributing their talents and efforts to the organization’s mission. For them to get free from this grip, all barriers to success must be transformed into channels for...

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column][vc_column_text]with Donald M. Epstein and Ralph H. Kilmann   [audio wav="/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Epstein_Kilmann.May2015.wav"][/audio] [/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]...

[vc_row css_animation="" row_type="row" use_row_as_full_screen_section="no" type="full_width" angled_section="no" text_align="left" background_image_as_pattern="without_pattern"][vc_column width="5/6"][vc_column_text css=".vc_custom_1563581898488{margin-right: 0px !important;}"]by Ralph H. Kilmann This article is adapted from R. H. Kilmann and Associates, Managing Ego Energy: The Transformation of Personal Meaning into Organizational Success (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1994). ABSTRACT The social science literature has relied on numerous self-concepts to study human behavior. Some of the most popular ones include self-esteem, self-efficacy, self-regard, self-respect, self-confidence, and self-worth. Since these terms are often used synonymously and interchangeably, however, research on the self-concepts has become increasingly fragmented. As a consequence, its potential contribution to interdisciplinary domains – such as organizational theory – has not been realized....