Nitrigin Eireann Teoranta (NET) Project:

Date:
1968-1976
Reference:
SA/TIH/B/2/56
Part of:
Tavistock Institute of Human Relations
  • Archives and manuscripts

About this work

Description

Nitrigin Eireann Teoranta (NET), was a semi-state body set up in 1962 to build and operate a factory for the production of nitrogenous fertilisers. By around 1972, the company had expanded rapidly from a basis of around 200-300 employees to nearing 1000 employees. In the wake of rapid expansion, communications between staff and management were put under strain, with many employees beginning to feel unrecognised for their work. As a result, a strike by employees in forced NET management to address these issues.

In 1972, senior managers of NET approached the Tavistock Institute of Human Relations to consult and advise on a collaborative project to improve industrial relations within the company. Elliot Stern, Patrick Quinn, and Michael Foster were the principle members of Tavistock who were involved with the project which came to be known as the Change Programme in NET.

Phase one of the project was an observation and diagnosis of the present situation within NET in order to obtain information about the organisation of the company. This included interviews and idscussions with representatives of various groups within the company, as well as Trade Union representatives. Through this process, Tavistock members also instigated the setting up of the Steering Committee to advise on and oversee changes throughout the project.

Issues that were addressed throughout the implementation of the Change Programme included welfare facilities and working conditions, job security and conditions of employment, career development and training, industrial relations and democracy, and company objectives and philosophy. The project dealt simultaneously with all sections and all levels of the organisation to develop a more effective structure and processes for industrial participation. It was an attempt to work and implement change from the centre of the organisation rather than from the more traditional starting points of the top or the bottom. The project also closely followed the Tavistock concept of the socio-tecnical system with a focus on matching human and technological resources to ensure the company could fulfill its potential.

As the project progressed, responsibility for the implementation of the Change Programme and the organisation of the Steering Committee lay more with NET with the Tavistock Institute taking on a less active, consultancy role.

Publication/Creation

1968-1976

Physical description

16 boxes

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