The Life and Behaviour of Living Organisms

A General Theory
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Publisher:
Praeger (December 30, 2001)
Date:
2001

Book summaries

Book condensed to 15% of its original length

 

Ken Craddock's editorial notes:

Jaques presents a totally new general theoretical foundation for understanding the individual and social behavior of all living organisms. In contrast to existing theories of behavior which are static, Jaques has succeeded in breaking through to a truly dynamic orientation. This breakthrough, resulted from his fundamental research into work organizations that led to the realization that the difference between inanimate processes and all living behavior, is that all living behavior is composed of intentional goal-directed work.

This continuous work entails the use of judgment in choosing goals and in making the decisions necessary to get to these goals. This work process is the same in all living organisms, including humans. It is an ineffable process of the total organism, inaccessible to direct observation and experience. Intentionality is the dynamic of behavior. This discovery has led over the past 50 years to extensive discoveries--objective measures of work complexity, and of the level of complexity (capability) of individuals in all species; how human language differs from communication in other species; the need to distinguish between horizontal evolutionary mutations within a given level of capability, and vertical evolution to species with higher levels of complexity; the nature of freedom within mutual-trust inducing constraints. Set forth to radically change the nature of all behavioral and social sciences in the new millenium, Jaques' analysis is essential reading for all scholars, students, and researchers as well as the general public involved with the behavior of living organisms.

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Clinical researcher in organization design
Requisite Organization International Institute - deceased

 

Elliott Jaques' five-decade career significantly influenced organizational development through his insistence on clear terminology and evidence-based research to enhance our understanding of human conduct and organizational structures. Beyond writing 20 books and contributing to various academic journals, he consistently worked as a consultant-researcher with organizations, taking a growth-oriented approach to improve their operational effectiveness.

His multidisciplinary background in medicine, psychology, sociology, economics, psychoanalysis, and social sciences informed his unique contributions to organizational theory. The central question driving his work concerned how organizational hierarchies could be structured to align job complexity with the cognitive abilities of those managing work at each level.

This Canadian psychoanalyst completed his bachelor's degree at the University of Toronto (1937), followed by medical training at Johns Hopkins (1941), and a doctorate in Social Relations from Harvard (1952). His professional appointments included pioneering leadership at the Tavistock Institute, membership in the Royal College of Psychiatry, founding the School of Social Sciences at Brunel University, research professorship at George Washington University, honorary professorship at Buenos Aires University, and emeritus status at Brunel. With his wife Kathryn, he established Cason Hall Publishing.

His achievements were recognized through awards from the American Psychological Association's Consulting Psychology Division, the U.S. Armed Forces Joint Chiefs of Staff, and General Colin Powell for "exceptional contributions to military leadership theory." Despite being described as one of the most unjustifiably overlooked management scholars of modern times, Jaques remained actively engaged in consulting, research, and concept development for organizations until his death on March 8, 2003, in Gloucester, Massachusetts.

Major organizations and consulting firms that provide Requisite Organization-based services

A global association of academics, managers, and consultants that focuses on spreading RO implementation practices and encouraging their use
Dr. Gerry Kraines, the firms principal, combines Harry Levinson's leadership frameworks with Elliott Jaques's Requisite Organization. He worked closely with Jaques over many years, has trained more managers in these methods than anyone else in the field, and has developed a comprehensive RO-based software for client firms.
Former RO-experienced CEO, Ron Harding, provides coaching to CEOs of start-ups and small and medium-size companies that are exploring their own use of RO concepts.  His role is limited, temporary and coordinated with the RO-based consultant working with the organization
Founded by Gillian Stamp, one of Jaques's colleagues at Brunel, the firm modified Jaques;s work-levels, developed the Career Path Appreciation method, and has grown to several hundred certified assessors in aligned consulting firms world-wide recently expanding to include organization design