On Feb 5, Dutch Driver wrote:
"In defense of Pat's humor item, the cynicism, sarcasm, and satire
evident
throughout the piece is indicative of an image problem faced by those
who
are in management/administration with the public.
In move toward an intellectual discussion of this phenonmenon, what can
B-schools do in order to change the public's perception?
Scott Adams' _Dilbert_ is doing to managers/administrators what dumb
blonde jokes did to--well, the blonde stereotype, and lawyer jokes to
the
lawyer stereotype."
And Gregg Conroy added:
"Let me offer for discussion the premise that all the above "corporate"
focused humor may reflect a growing anger with and distrust of
corporations
in the US. With the constant barrage of reorganizing, down-sizing,
right-sizing, etc., that has gone on in the US for the last decade-plus,
there are a lot of people in the US who have been through it, been
closely
effected by it, etc.. Especially today, the trend continues, and US
corporations are showing more (short-term) profit "at the expense of the
employees."
I'm not sure that B-schools should strive to change public perception.
Around here (OD in a steel plant), Dilbert serves as a useful antidote
to all of the fad-management literature we are bombarded with daily. It
deflates management pomposity, and it's biggest fans are those people it
skewers. Posting gems in the hallway helps us not take ourselves too
seriously, and to remind us we're dealing with peoples' lives. If there
is a lesson for business schools, it may be to incorporate Scott Adams
into the curriculum.
________________________________
Barry Colbert
Dofasco, Inc.
Hamilton, Ontario