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29 October 2018
Making the workplace humanised again
From left: Acting Dean of the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, Prof Philippe Burger; Acting Vice-Rector: Academic, Prof Hendri Kroukamp; Prof Tina Kotzé, and Prof Helena van Zyl. Director: UFS Business School.

In a rapidly changing world, companies are increasingly being evaluated on the basis of their relationship with employees, customers, communities, as well as their influence on society at large. Gone are the times when institutions and corporates were assessed purely based on financial performance and product-quality.

Relationships matter

Prof Tina Kotzé, an industrial psychologist and professor at the University of the Free State (UFS) Business School presented her inaugural lecture on The Voices of the Workplace: A Social Systems Perspective on Leadership on Thursday 11 October 2018 at the Bloemfontein Campus. She mapped a path that leads to organisations becoming more human-centred in their operations.

Social systems and leadership

In her argument, Prof Kotzé problematises the concept of hierarchies, given their tendency to exert too much structure and control. She also touched on the importance of taking into consideration factors such as the underlying assumptions and expectations of the various voices that influence the workplace.

“Leaders need to look at their organisations from a social-system perspective, critically examine the DNA, underlying assumptions that drive the thinking, decisions and actions in organisations. To do this we need to think differently about leadership,” she asserted. 

Overcoming resistance to change

Transforming organisations from a hierarchy to a social-systems model is a challenge due to their inclination to develop a pre-determined order which often replicates itself by reinforcing assumptions and old thinking styles.

Some of Prof Kotzé’s proposed solutions to navigating the complexities of organisations include shifting the mechanical way workplaces are viewed, discarding hierarchies, inflexible reporting lines, and challenging the unquestioned underlying assumptions that drive the strategy, structure and policies in organisations. 

News Archive

UFS presents its third Amazing Rainbow Rally
2007-05-31

The University of the Free State (UFS) and OFM will present the third Amazing Rainbow Rally on Friday, 8 June 2007 in Bloemfontein.

This year’s Rally promises to be loads of fun with plenty of new surprises in store. The Amazing Rainbow Rally, our version of the popular television series the Amazing Race, is held in aid of children and babies with serious diseases in the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health in the Faculty of Health Sciences. By raising the necessary funds, equipment can be acquired to meet the unique health care needs of these special patients. It will also enable the UFS to maintain the high standards of education, training and research in this field.

In the Amazing Rainbow Rally, teams travel along a route with various checkpoints where activities will have to be completed, or clues solved, to be able to proceed to the next checkpoint. The team who completes the Rally first will be the winner of the Amazing Rainbow Rally 2007.

The day promises to be a huge event with lots of challenging activities for the teams and live crossings to the OFM Breakfast Team. Teams will travel in marked “taxi’s” from checkpoint to checkpoint. So give them a shout and show your support!

The Coca-Cola Celebrity Team, with Ebi Halberstadt (Braam from Egoli) and Lorraine Kriek (UFS Rag Queen and SRC President) will add extra sparkle to the event.

Join us at the Windmill Casino, the starting point for this year’s Rally at 12:00 on 8 June 2007!

Media release
Issued by: Lacea Loader
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2584
Cell: 083 645 2454
E-mail: loaderl@ufs.ac.za
29 May 2007
 

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