Stewardship: Choosing Service Over Self-interestStewardship was provocative, even revolutionary, when it was first published in 1993, and it remains every bit as relevant and radical today. Most organizations still rely on patriarchy and hierarchy as their core form of governance, stifling initiative and spirit and alienating people from the work they do. Peter Block asserts that a fundamental shift in how we distribute power, privilege, and the control of money can transform every part of an organization for the better, and he examines the nitty-gritty of implementing these reforms. This revised and expanded edition includes a new introduction by Block addressing what has and hasn't changed since the first edition and a new chapter on applying stewardship to the common good of the wider community. This visionary yet pragmatic book is sure to open your mind and change the way you do your job forever. |
Contents
REPLACING YOUR KINGDOM WITH STEWARDSHIP | 3 |
Choosing Partners | 7 |
Choosing Empowerment | 8 |
Choosing Service | 9 |
We Dont Act on What We Know | 10 |
The Leadership Question | 13 |
The Underbelly of Leadership | 15 |
The Stewardship Answer | 18 |
Mandated Supplier | 122 |
Mandated Services | 123 |
Offering Choice and Building Capability | 126 |
Service Guarantee | 132 |
FINANCIAL PRACTICES CREATING ACCOUNTABILITY WITH SELFCONTROL | 135 |
The Money Is the Message | 137 |
Building Widespread Financial Stewardship | 138 |
Living within the Law | 144 |
Stewardship and Building Organizations | 19 |
CHOOSING PARTNERSHIP OVER PATRIARCHY | 23 |
Distributing Ownership and Responsibility | 25 |
Partnership as the Alternative | 27 |
Balancing Power | 28 |
Four Requirements of Partnership | 29 |
Partner in Charge | 31 |
CHOOSING ADVENTURE OVER SAFETY | 33 |
Entitlement Is Empowerment Run Aground | 34 |
Choosing Empowerment | 35 |
Stewardship Begins at Home | 38 |
CHOOSING SERVICE OVER SELFINTEREST | 41 |
Teaching Revolution to the Ruling Class | 44 |
Rank without Privilege | 47 |
Connecting the Heart and the Wallet | 48 |
The Point | 49 |
The Redistribution of Power Purpose and Wealth | 53 |
Sometime Later in the Week | 55 |
DEFINING THE STEWARDSHIP CONTRACT | 63 |
Principles for the Practice | 64 |
The Stewardship Contract | 68 |
UPSETTING EXPECTATIONS THE EMOTIONAL WORK OF STEWARDSHIP | 75 |
The Trail Is Inside Out | 76 |
Facing the Wish for Dependency and Dominance | 77 |
Where Is Everyone? | 80 |
Everyone Is on the Bus | 81 |
Just Say No | 85 |
REDESIGNING MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND STRUCTURES | 91 |
Management Practices | 97 |
Changing Basic Architecture | 100 |
The Phone Center Story | 108 |
RETHINKING THE ROLE OF STAFF FUNCTIONS | 115 |
In the Service of Top Management | 116 |
Police and Conscience to the Line | 118 |
HUMAN RESOURCES ENDING THE PRACTICE OF PATERNALISM | 147 |
Institutional Caretaker | 148 |
The Structure of Human Resources | 150 |
Human Resource Practices That Support Stewardship | 152 |
COMPENSATION AND PERFORMANCE EVALUATION OVERTURNING THE CLASS SYSTEM | 161 |
The Divine Right of Kings | 162 |
Pay Reinforces Class Distinctions | 164 |
Performance Not for Sale | 167 |
Rank Individualism | 170 |
Confusing Supervisory Evaluations with Performance | 172 |
Pay for Empire | 173 |
The End of Caretaking | 181 |
The Triumph of Hope over Experience | 183 |
COSMETIC REFORM WHEN THE DISEASE BECOMES THE CURE | 185 |
The Open Office | 186 |
Patriarchy Recreating Itself | 190 |
RECREATING OUR ORGANIZATION THROUGH STEWARDSHIP | 203 |
Stewardship Strategy for Political Reform | 204 |
Steps toward Political Reform | 214 |
The Answer to the Power Company Story Sometime Later in the Week | 218 |
CYNICS VICTIMS AND BYSTANDERS | 221 |
The Power of the Cynic | 222 |
Rescuing the Victim | 224 |
Facts Wont Help | 226 |
Treating Caution as a Choice | 227 |
The Opening of Eyes | 232 |
CHOOSING FREEDOM SERVICE AND ADVENTURE | 233 |
How? Is a Defense | 234 |
Democracy on the Line | 238 |
Lost and Found | 243 |
The Artist | 255 |
The Author | 256 |
| 257 | |
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Common terms and phrases
accountability answer appraisal Arthur AT&T become behavior belief boss budget caretaking choice choose client coach commitment compliance consistency and control core workers cost create culture customers cynics define democracy economic effort employees empowerment executive FACING THE WISH freedom give human resource idea implement individual institutions intent leaders leadership learning levels line organization live managerial class marketplace Martin Buber means measures ment offer operate organizational ourselves outcomes ownership and responsibility parenting partnership patriarchy pay system percent performance performance appraisal person Phone Centers policies political reform practices privilege problem promise purpose question redesign role safety self-interest self-management serve social contract someone staff functions staff groups stewardship contract stock options strategy structure subordinates supervisors task tion top management total quality management unit vision workplace