The science of Javanese management: Organizational alignment in an Indonesian development programme

Abstract

Abstract Studies of business organizations reveal the importance of combining two elements for mobilizing and aligning action in large organizations: informed decision making and contingent incentives. A national development programme in Indonesia tested both elements under exceptionally demanding conditions. The Government of Indonesia ended its subsidy of agricultural pesticides in the late 1980s, and it sought to prepare its large but poorly educated farming population in the use of ecologically based integrated pest management (IPM) methods. With a staff of 2,000 trainers by the early 1990s and a curriculum emphasizing information analysis and management decisions, the Indonesian national IPM programme created a capacity to train as many as 50,000 farmers per growing season. Field studies, trainee surveys and other evidence reveal that, consistent with national programme objectives, (1) pesticide applications were reduced by more than 60 per cent; (2) pesticide use depended more on field decisions, less on prescriptions; (3) small landholders were as likely as large holders to master IPM techniques; (4) IPM‐trained farmers experienced no loss in rice yield and significant savings in pesticide expense; (5) IPM‐trained farmers sought to share the new information and skills with other farmers. Together, informed decision making and contingent incentives provided the organizational foundation for a sustainable national change in agricultural methods.