Unitarism Vs Pluralism

Of what relevance is an understanding of the Unitarism/Pluralism debate to our understanding of organisational life?

Introduction

Organisational life in modern times has changed significantly over the years. Whereas once upon a time it was a place in which senior managers’ and owners’ sole purpose was to rule in order to fulfil their objectives through the organisation made up of its subjects, the employees, today it is now made up largely of a complex partnership of employees and employers all glued strongly or loosely to fulfil their individual objectives and to a greater or lesser extent, the objectives of the organisation. Thus, the organisation, made up of its staffing structure, leadership style and culture can be considered as
The rise of managerialism in the NHS represented an “unsettled” period and gave rise to ideological conflict as is common within the pluralistic approach.
Participants resisted the attempts of facilitators to provide “closure” whereby managerial ways of doing things were suggested as the “obvious way ahead”.
This was reflected in comments made by a clinical services manager within maternity services who asked, “What planet are these people on … I’m not going to do stupid paperwork that doesn’t contribute to the priority of delivering care … all these wonderful buzzwords they keep coming out with.”
It has been suggested, there is a natural conflict between management and professionals within the NHS, because of differences in educational background, socialisation, values, vocational interests, work habits and outlook.
Such potential conflict may necessitate mediating strategies for the management of professionals so that their goals are met.
Relevant mediation processes identified from the managerial point of view to reduce professional and managerial clashes include mentorship and allowing professionals to manage the means towards prescribed