“Goal-Driven” or “Data-Driven”: An Ethnographic Study of MBO in a College in China

Abstract

MBO (management by objectives) is a popular management model in Western countries though its effectiveness was questioned. The study based on D college showed ideal “goal-driven” turned into “data-driven”. Those including single X-theory, data orientation, lack of participation mechanism, dominant quantitative assessment and so on resulted in the variation of MBO. Rebuilding organizational trust, encouraging faculty to participate in management, improving organizational communication networks and regulating performance procedure are suggested for D college to reconstruct the system of MBO.