The Johari Window and the dark side of organisations

Stewart Hase, Southern Cross University
Alan T. Davies, Southern Cross University
Bob Dick, Southern Cross University

Abstract

The dark side of organisations is a phenomenon rarely dealt with in management training programs and spoken of only in whispers in corporate tea rooms. Conspiracies of silence, collusion, 'jobs for the boys', hidden agendas and collusion are just some of the issues that affect the quality of working life of individuals and the effectiveness of organisations. The Johari Window (Lutz, 1969) has been used here in a modified form to describe aspects of the dark side of the organisation and as a way of bringing them to life for would be players in 'corporate games'.