Finding a goat to scape…

Working with high growth organisations in a perputual state of change, it is unsurprising that I am frequently in discussions with clients about problematic individuals/teams in their respective businesses. The familiar narrative paints a picture of a context undergoing significant transition and an aspiration for change which is undermined by the behaviour of certain troublesome characters. Life would seem easier, people happier and the change smoother if these folk would simply get with the programme.

I am reminded of Obholzer and Roberts (2019) paper entitled “The Troublesome individual” which suggests that “institutional difficulties are often attributed to the personalities of particular individuals, identified as ‘troublesome’ ” (p. 144). These individuals behave in such way as to disrupt the good work of the majority with the logical conclusion that their exclusion would lead to a greater functioning within the group or organisation.

In my experience it is not unusual for these characters to arise whenever the organisation faces significant change. In such scenario’s becoming the organisational mouthpiece for unconscious needs that the group find it hard to openly discuss — to be heard; to voice dissent; to voice anxiety or confusion; whilst allowing the group disown these needs and conclude “it is he, not we, who are finding this difficult” (pg. 146)

Obholzer and Roberts suggest that rather than seeing this as an individual issue “isn’t it terrible how X is behaving” (pg. 147) we might consider such behaviour from a group-as-a-whole perspective and acknowledge our own ambivalent feelings about the context in which we find ourselves. This can sometime prove difficult as it is often the most vulnerable or an outlier who may be selected for the role of scape-goat.

Put simply how might we interpret the actions of these individuals as revealing something about the “unspoken” dynamics of the broader system rather than about the capability and/or motivation of the individual themselves. How might they prove useful in understanding the system response to change rather than a hinderance to this change.

This is important because if we are able to take this group-as-a-whole perspective and view individual behaviour partially as a product of this whole, we may make better choices about the actions we might take. It is worth noting that the obvious, excluding the individual, rarely solves the problem and often results in another being selected for the role.

If you are involved in a context that is changing rapidly, it may be worth asking who or where might the goats be found in your system and what might they teach you about the underlying dynamics of that system.

References:

Obholzer, A. Zagier Roberts, V. (2019) “The Troublesome Individual and the Troubled Institution”, Obholzer, A. Zagier Roberts, V. (eds) The Unconscious at Work: The Tavistock Approach to Making Sense of Organisational Life”, London:Routledge, pp. 144–153