Introduction

Dilemmas and choices are part of the fabric of organizational and individual life. We are often presented with two (or more) equally compelling propositions. These may be trivial, such as whether to purchase a coffee or tea at a café (in which case the term dilemma would appear excessive), or they may be key turning points in our lives such as changing a career. Whatever these are, there is a need to find ways of resolving dilemmas – for example, by finding criteria that can be used to make the decision and select a particular option. If we do not address dilemmas effectively we could end up frozen into inaction (unable to make a decision) or using inappropriate techniques to make them (leading to poor decisions). A typical approach to dilemmas is to treat them as two opposing poles from which we need to select, often called the ‘horns’ of the dilemma. An example from the literature on strategy is Porter’s idea of generic strategies (1985), i.e. should an organization go for cost leadership (low-cost mass production) or differentiation (low volume high-value niche products)? In this way dilemmas are presented as dichotomies, as a choice between these two poles – the dilemma is resolved by selecting one pole. In this free course, that assumption will be put to the test. In particular, you will focus on:

• The extent to which dilemmas are or should be treated as choices between two extremes.
• How the response to and resolution of dilemmas can move beyond binary choices to the reconciliation of opposites.
• The ways in which our values affect the way we perceive and respond to dilemmas.

Given the practice focus here, the course not only explores these issues conceptually but offers you two approaches that offer practical insight into the construction, recognition, understanding, and response to dilemmas.  

Learning Outcomes

After studying this course, you should be able to:

• Recognize the nature and extent of dilemmas in organizational life and the challenges they often present for customary ways of thinking
• Explain the limitations of treating dilemmas as if they were choices
• Reconstruct individual organizational dilemmas using Hampden-Turner’s dilemma theory
• Use these two approaches to engaging constructively with colleagues over challenges and dilemmas encountered.