Adrenaline Junkies and Template Zombies: Understanding Patterns of Project Behavior
by Tom DeMarco, Peter Hruschka, Tim Lister, Steve McMenamin, James Robertson, Suzanne Robertson
4. Happy Clappy Meetings
Display of high morale becomes a factor in personal performance evaluation.
High morale is an unfailing indicator of organizational health. Similarly, low morale is a sure sign that something is wrong. There is a certain kind of managerial mind that seizes upon this relationship and attempts to exploit it in reverse. The logic goes like this: Force morale up and other good things will follow.
Ah, but how to force morale up? In particular, how to do it without investing all the bothersome time and energy and expense necessary to make things truly improve? That’s a tough one, but don’t think people won’t try. Thus the sour humor of the saying, “The beatings will continue until morale improves.”
Chris Linn, Corporate Entertainer ...
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