ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the effect of the performance of a single person on an organization, on its structure, style, and process. It analyzes the different ways a single person might be in a position to exert strong influence on an organization's behavior, making a distinction between formal power and strategic power. The chapter investigates systematic differences in the ways a person at top, middle, or lower levels of an organization could have an impact on system functions. It also examines the implications of individual impact for performance measurement. A critical performance-measurement issue in the case of the founder is that ultimate control often remains with the founder. And if the performance of the organization is highly dependent on that of the founder, there may be no real opportunity for an independent assessment of and feedback about performance. There are several ways the performance of the lower-level individual can affect the style and process of the organization.
