Free agent vs The Organization Man
We work as free agents. What’s the difference between free agents and the organization man?
The Organization Man: an individual, who ignored or buried his own identity and goals in the service of a large organization, which rewarded his self-denial with a regular pay-check, the promise of job security and a fixed place in the world.
They had lowered their sights to achieve a good job with adequate pay and proper pension and a nice house in a pleasant community populated by people as nearly like themselves as possible. They abided by a Social Ethic, a secular theology that placed the organization at the center of belief. Work was a one-size-fits-all proposition, for example: people arrived at work at the same time and left in unison as well.
(William H. Whyte, 1956)
Free agent: the independent worker who operates on his own terms, untethered to a large organization, serving multiple clients and customers instead of a single boss. They are free from the bonds of a large institution and agents of their own futures. They are the new archetypes of work.
The rise of free agency shatters many ironclad premises about work, life and business, from how companies should operate to how we structure our health care, retirement and education systems, to which values guide our lives.
Free agents fashion their work lives to suit their own needs and desires, instead of accepting the uniform values, rules and structure of a traditional job. Opposite to the organization man era of “one size fits all” they prefer “my size fits me”.
(Daniel H. Pink, 2001)
