This paper seeks to offer a detailed explanation on organizational theories perspectives and the roles they play in an organization. The paper’s approach is pluralist; pointing out the diverse nature of theory of organization and giving chance to other contributors from other academic subjects to play a role. Particularly the perspectives are described as modern, post-modern and symbolic-interpretive. The researcher is encouraged to expand on his own view to demonstrate understanding and adopt the perspectives accordingly. The key concept discussed through out the text is the introduction of the multi-perspective method, presentations of ways in which an organization can be analyzed in respect to the environment, its organizational structure, its culture and the technologies it uses. The last part will dwell on how the organization theory applications affect the practical affairs of the organization theory, taking care of complex adaptive systems and organizational learning (Tunnar, 2005). Finally, the paper will compare and contrast the three organization theory perspectives pertaining to the assumptions underlying the management of organizations from those views, how the perspectives help us to create a range of possibilities for designing and managing organizations, and the perspective that appears to have the most utility.

Postmodern, Modern and Symbolic-interpretative theory

According to the modern organization theory, determining the effectiveness of the organization through examining its efficiency is based on the fact that an organization does not have goals to achieve apart from offering goods and services. Whereas an organization is instead a multifunctional unit having continuous interaction with the environment. Modern organizational theory takes the organization as whole without consideration of its interaction with the environment. Modern perspective deals with the factors of how people interact within an organization. The modernist tries to explore the explanation, prediction and the control through the organizational studies (Blunt, 1992). In their approach they try to solve the conflict of different ideas by imposing order so that a common ground is established and the vision guides upheld (Daft, 2004). Symbolic interpretative perspectives explain how members of a group use symbols, the effects of their usage and their results on collective responsibilities. These are also based on a person’s rationale and ways in which the groups and their dynamics can become product of symbolic interpretation (Blunt, 1992). According to Morgan, (2002) postmodernists consider information as being subject to culture and history. It is not acceptable that reasoning can be faded away by science. Organizations are the platforms necessary for the control, instilling discipline and power (Morgan, 2002).Their views are based on the diversification of elements within an organization. Besides that they believe that organizations are a kind of culture and their importance is seen in the symbolic order (Kaplan, 2006)

There are epistemological and ontological position of both modernism and postmodernism. In modernism theory, organizations are objectively real estates operating in real world. When well managed and designed, they are systems of decisions actions driven by norms of efficiency and effectiveness in their stated purposes. In postmodernism theory, organizations are sites for enacting power, oppression and irrationality. They are texts written in a language that individuals can rewrite so as to save themselves from the human oppression. This means that the structures of organizations that subject people to human degradation can be changed to more favorable units (Jacques, 1996).

Organizational Theory

Organizational theory gives an insight of the study of organizations and the process of organization. In a firm it states the goals and activities in an organization, and application of knowledge about how individuals or groups of people act within an organization. Psychologists provide an insight into individual or group behavior within an organization ad the effects of such behavior in the organization. Organization theory also seeks to explain the relationship of the organization with its surrounding environment. The objective of the theories is to explain why an organization has the structure it has in things such as power centralization, mechanisms of coordination and control. The main aim of researchers in this field is to understand why organizations vary in their structures. Organization theories are also designed to offer clear and comprehensive guide to the study of the organizational structures and the organization process. It offers an appreciation of the various perspectives pointing to the challenges of organizations. It offers ways in which organizations can be analyzed in relation to the environment, as a social structure, in relation to technology and as a product of power process.