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HUBBARD COMMUNICATIONS OFFICE
Saint Hill Manor, East Grinstead, Sussex
HCO POLICY LETTER OF 13 MARCH 1965
Gen Non Remimeo
DIVISIONS 1,2,3
THE STRUCTURE OF ORGANIZATION
WHAT IS POLICY?
The only reason anyone fights good policy is they're too stupid or too
inexperienced in an org to understand it. Unable to grasp it, they are too
lazy to work at trying. They miss words, don't see reasons, imagine
situations are otherwise and in general can't grasp it. So they try not to
use it or dream up their own. People with bad study histories can't grasp
policy. For policy also follows the rules of study.
Therefore never put a person with bad study history on a key executive
post. They can't grasp policy as they can't study it either.
Only personnel with quick study histories, fast passages through
courses, can be counted on to put in an org or department pattern and keep
it wheeling. The others are too involved in their own troubles and too
imperceptive to be of any use in making an org boom.
Such people do however sometimes have a use even when not straightened
up. They do well in pioneer areas where they have to do it all off the cuff
and where their very inability to accept anything causes them also to
refuse defeats and discouragements. Their inability to grasp a situation is
often of benefit when bravery is required. This does not however excuse
efforts to make them more capable and as they grow older and more
experienced, they will also become brave and quick and will follow policy.
Following policy is a matter of grasping situations and knowing policy
well enough to apply the right policy to the right situation-where no
policy covers, an experienced, quick person can easily extend the idea of
general policy to cover it, knowing it isn't covered.
The dull person has never even grasped basic general policy and so
confronted with usual or unusual situations alike, can't find any policy to
cover anything and so acts in any old way.
On the other hand, policy, to fit and be of benefit, must be itself born
out of great insight and familiarity with the facts. Government policy is
usually written by clerks who have never heard a shot fired in anger.
Therefore almost all current government policy is completely silly. Nobody
can apply it as it fits nothing and just gets everyone in trouble.
Therefore a quick person with good judgement in the field and in the real
situation can get through only by following his own policies and insights.
This is easily mistaken for a dull person acting against policy that is
good.
But even dull policies provide wide agreement as a basis for work co-
ordination and so something happens on a larger scale. Individual policy
making on every post is the definition of chaos. Thus even bad policy is
usually more workable than individual policy and can make stronger orgs.
Brilliant policy based on experience of course can cause orgs to zoom.
We conclude then that where we see a person constantly off policy in an
area that has worked well when on policy, that we must act.
Where we have a large organizational scope we must have workable policy
that is followed. For just lacking policy good or bad and lacking its being
followed, we stay small by definition.
NO POLICY EXISTING MAKES SMALL NON-EXPANDING DEPARTMENTS OR ORGS.
POLICY GOOD OR BAD EXISTING BUT NOT FOLLOWED MAKES CHAOTIC DEPARTMENTS
OR ORGS AND CAUSES SHRINKAGE.
GOOD POLICY BASED ON ACTUAL SITUATIONS EXPERIENCED FOLLOWED WELL MAKES
AN EXPANDING DEPARTMENT, ORG OR CIVILIZATION.