Human Centered

Central to the intrapersonal level of inquiry is the assumption that our behaviour is primarily a function of our style, personality or nature and represents the eternal life and dynamics of our experience as an organisational member.

Inquiring at the intrapersonal level.

Individual level analysis explains organisational events in terms of a single person’s traits or behaviours. The focus is on relatedness to self. By inquiring into personality characteristics, character traits, ego defences, ego ideal, and various needs and pulls driving an individual, we gain an understanding of organisational events. In doing so, we do not focus on processes that occur outside or with others. Instead, emphasis is placed on an individual’s personality, knowledge and skills.

Improving the situation at this level.

The individual level of seeing allows a number of possible types of action in an organisational context. Most common are two broad approaches - removal of the individual from the situation, or changing of the individual’s behaviour through coaching, training, counselling or educating.

The challenges of working with this level.

Individual explanations predominate organisational life. The first explanation articulated by most is personal - an incompetent boss, subordinate or peer. Even when complaining about the system, we often hold a person responsible for that system’s failure. The truth is that, a single explanation rarely accounts for events in organisations. Individuals are embedded in groups, departments, organisational cultures and larger systems, and examination and understanding through the other four levels is needed. Only when that leads to the conclusion that the individual level is the single or most compelling explanation, then removal or behavioural modification of the individual involved may improve the situation at hand.