Abstract
On an almost daily basis I am confronted with stories or examples of people disengaged at work, or stories of managers who are frustrated by their inability to engage employees. In many cases, work simply is not working. Researchers at the ISEOR Institute in France have identified a root cause of organizational dysfunction they have worked with throughout Europe and Latin America that may explain some of the flaws of the modern workplace. ISEOR researchers have determined that management ideology is largely based on the modern interpretation of three proponents of scientific management; Taylor, Fayol, and Weber. Thus they named this ideological flaw the TFW Virus. This was an interpretive case study seeking to discover if management practices of American organizations reveal and transmit the TFW Virus. The study took place at Manufacturing Corp., a high tech business in the Pacific Northwest of the United States and included interviews with 19 individuals in middle management and line worker positions. In the study I found that the workers did express that they experienced depersonalization and a need to submit to the organization at work. Additionally, I found the four elements of the virus; an aristocratic view, apathy, separation, and massification. While this study may not be applicable to other organizations, it does indicate clearly that there is value in looking at the ideological influences of American management to determine if there are foundational flaws leading to organizations that are inhumane and unproductive. Even in a very successful American organization where people reported they were happy the elements of the virus were easy to find, indicating that that virus may be prevalent throughout organizations in America.