Otti Vogt’s Post

AUTONOMY – The Misunderstood Ideal of Self-Management Effective self-management in organizations is often misconceived as purely about autonomy and freedom. In truth, it is the product of a socialization process emphasizing self-discipline, shared responsibilities, and contextual controls. Drawing from Norbert Elias's The Civilizing Process, advanced governance forms emerge through organizational structures like selective recruitment (prioritizing attitude over skill), community development, intensive training, peer norms (e.g., peer feedback, peer salary reviews), conflict resolution protocols, decision-making routines, and shared constitutions or frameworks. As history has shown, more autonomous organizational systems often yield better outcomes. By minimizing universal external constraints, they foster greater individual creativity and self-actualization. However, autonomy or “templated” authenticity (cf. Mats Alvesson) is not simply liberation from control but its internalization. The maze of external controls shifts into self-discipline within the individual, reducing the need for formal constraints. Both forms—external and internal controls—are the result of socialization, highlighting that autonomy involves a reconfiguration of control rather than its absence. Conversely, genuine individuation or “subjectification” (cf. Gert Biesta) requires increased personal maturity and reflexivity—the ability to detach and decenter from the social or organisational system. Contrary to popular gospel, personal or ‚ego identity’ development is not simply the absence of order, but the presence of wisdom to attain an appropriate positioning within it; the focus lies on the capacity to critically examine both internal or external controls. Nancy Fraser’s concept of 'justice as participation' might offer an interesting lens here: according to her theory, organizational wisdom entails a dialectical progression toward internal justice by dismantling barriers across three dimensions—recognition (status, valuing diverse views and identities), distribution (class, promoting equitable access to economic resources), and participation (membership, ensuring inclusivity in decision-making processes). However, it should be clear that representation through organisational governance cannot be unconditional; it must be grounded in qualifications, commitment to shared goals and embodiment of common good.. Assuming rights exist without corresponding responsibilities is a "Cheshire Cat fallacy," as Philip Pettit points out. This brings us back to the interplay between a right of autonomy and a duty of representation: autonomy, paradoxically, is not freedom from the organization but entails fuller participation within it. Graphic: Willem Mastenbroek, Norbert Elias as organisational sociologist, in: van Iterson, The Civilised Organisation, JBP, 2002 #transformation #leadership #psychology #organisationalchange