Abstract
This chapter focuses on the work of Robert E. Quinn. He has devoted his professional and personal life to developing himself and others into understanding what it means to be an inspiring change agent. From his life lessons as a child to his unconventional insights as a college student to his work in church life, and especially in his scholarship, Quinn has used key life experiences to learn and grow. Every step of the way, he has sought to understand, document, and ignite transformational experiences. In this way, he is an exemplary applied behavioral scientist, continually integrating scholarship and practice. Quinn’s major contributions include (1) the development of the competing values model which embraces the role of tension and paradox to understand organizational life, (2) articulating the essential role of self-empowerment in inspiring positive change, and (3) challenging the assumption that leadership is less about having a position of authority and more about having a mind-set (the fundamental state of leadership). In the last decade, Quinn has brought these different contributions together as a cofounder of a new field of organizational studies, named positive organizational scholarship, which focuses on the science for bringing out the very best in organizations, teams, and individuals. Quinn’s contributions extend beyond these content areas as he is also a masterful teacher and mentor who helps others envision their full potential. For all of these reasons, Quinn’s personal vision to inspire positive change has been fulfilled on many dimensions.
References
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Spreitzer, G., & Quinn, R. (2001). A company of leaders: Five disciplines for unleashing the power in your workforce. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Further Reading
Cameron, K. (1988). Paradox and transformation: Towards a theory of change in organization and management. Cambridge: Ballinger.
Quinn, R. (1988). Beyond rational management: Mastering the paradoxes and competing demands of high performance. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Quinn, R. (2012). The deep change field guide: A personal course to discovering the leader within. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Quinn, R. (2015). https://thepositiveorganization.wordpress.com/2015/10/26/a-golden-opportunity/
Quinn, R., & Cameron, K. (1988). Paradox and transformation: Towards a theory of change in organization and management. Cambridge: Ballinger.
Quinn, R., & Thakor, A. (2014). Imbue the organization with a higher purpose. In J. Dutton & G. Spreitzer (Eds.), How to be a positive leader. San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler.
Quinn, R., Spreitzer, G., & Fletcher, J. (1995). Excavating the paths of meaning, renewal and empowerment: A typology of managerial high performance myths. Journal of Management Inquiry, 4(1), 16–39.
Quinn, R., Spreitzer, G., & Brown, M. (2000). Changing others through changing ourselves: The transformation of human systems. Journal of Management Inquiry, 9(2), 147–164.
Quinn, R., Faerman, S., Thompson, M., McGrath, M., & Bright, D. (2015). Becoming a master manager: A competency framework (6th ed.). New York: Wiley.
Weick, K., & Quinn, R. (1999). Organizational change and development. Annual Review of Psychology, 50, 361–386.
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Spreitzer, G.M. (2017). Inspiring Positive Change: The Paradoxical Mind of Robert E. Quinn. In: Szabla, D., Pasmore, W., Barnes, M., Gipson, A. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Organizational Change Thinkers. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-49820-1_54-1
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Quinn, Robert E.: The Paradoxical Mind that Inspires Positive Change- Published:
- 27 August 2020
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-49820-1_54-2
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Inspiring Positive Change: The Paradoxical Mind of Robert E. Quinn- Published:
- 21 February 2017
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-49820-1_54-1