Submitted By: Sidra Tahir (CE-063/2018-19)

Mid-Term Assignment
EM-501 Organizational Systems –MEM(Civil)

Q1. Discuss Organizational Structure, Major Functions and SWOT (strengths, weaknesses,
opportunities and threats) Analysis of NESPAK. Also compare its major functions with Pak PWD.

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE:
National Engineering Services Pakistan (NESPAK) has a Functional Organizational Structure having Dr.
Tahir Masood as a Managing Director & President of the organization. Here, the employees in the
organization are grouped by function / division. It could also be classified as a Tall Organizational
Structure as there are many levels in the organization and possess Centralization that is accumulation
of the decision making authority lies with the top management.

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 Submitted By: Sidra Tahir (CE-063/2018-19)

This organizational structure of NESPAK falls in the Classical Approach as there is

 high degree of work specialization;
 high degree of departmentalization;
 narrow span of control;
 centralized authority for decision making and;
 more formalization

Although for a firm of this size, a functional organizational structure may not be more effective in
promoting delegation of authority, responsibility, and accountability.

MAJOR FUNCTIONS:

Following are the major functions of NESPAK:

Architecture & Planning Function: This function provided in this Sector range from conception to
completion of projects including feasibility studies, planning, designing, tender documentation,
valuation, construction supervision and project management.

Building Services Function: The Building Services Sector provides specialty input on mega projects
related to energy, transportation, health, education, environment and recreation.

Disaster Management and Reconstruction Function: to provide consultancy services for the
rehabilitation and reconstruction projects in the calamity-hit areas.

Energy Function: In the Energy Sector, NESPAK offers engineering services in the following fields:
 Hydropower
 Thermal Power
 Transmission
 Substations
 Distribution and Rural Electrification
 SCADA and Telecommunications
 Mechanical and HVAC

Environment Function: A team of highly qualified and well experienced professionals are well versed
in the latest techniques of environmental protection and applicable international standards.

Industrial Function: In the Industrial Sector, NESPAK has provided professional services on 193
projects relating to heavy, medium and light engineering industries including steel mills, cement
factories, automobile manufacturing units, process plants, seed processing plants and rice cleaning
mills.

Information Technology and GIS Function: In the IT and Software Engineering Sector, NESPAK has so
far undertaken 40 projects out of which 37 have been completed.

Oil, Gas & Petrochemical Function: In the Oil, Gas & Petrochemical Sector, NESPAK has formed a team
of highly qualified and experienced professionals who have provided consultancy services on more
than 33 projects in Pakistan and overseas

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 Submitted By: Sidra Tahir (CE-063/2018-19)

Public Health Engineering Function: In the Public Health Engineering Sector, NESPAK professionals
have the capability to transform technologies according to the socio-economic conditions of the
country/area for which problems are to be addressed.

Transportation Function: NESPAK has its share of contribution to the development and progress of
Pakistan in the form of its unmatched engineering consultancy services in the Highways and
Transportation Sector.

Water Resources Development and Dam Engineering Function: The services for Water Resources
Development, Agriculture and Dam Engineering Sector are being provided within Pakistan and abroad
by a highly qualified and well-experienced team

SWOT:

STRENGTHS:
1. Strong share in domestic market
2. Efficient human resource
3. Proven and successful business model
and professionally managed setup
4. Credible
5. A national resource
6. Growing Market
7. Successful past projects
WEAKNESSES:
1. Decline in the market share due to local
competitors in the private sector
2. Government influence, restricting to
penetrate in commercial market
3. Functional organizational structure and
classical approach, limiting the
delegation of power and authority to
the employees.

OPPORTUNITIES: THREATS:
1. Strong and Flourishing Market 1. Strong Competitors
2. Penetration to international market 2. Growing bargaining power of the
3. Employee Development clients
3. Changing regulations

FUNCTIONS OF PAKISTAN PWD:

Following are the functions of Pakistan Public Works Department as

 Federal Government land acquisition and development

 Maintenance of all federally owned Government Building and their furnishing except those
financed from Defence budget
 Construction of federally financed Government Offices and residential accommodation
 Management of Federal Lodges
 To act as technical adviser to Federal Government in Engineering matters

References:

 http://www.nespak.com.pk/index.html
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Public_Works_Department

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 Submitted By: Sidra Tahir (CE-063/2018-19)

Q2. After going through the research work presented in the following paper, answer the questions
given below.

Maimoona Waseem (2016) Deviant Workplace Behaviors in Organizations in Pakistan, the Lahore
Journal of Business, p- 93–104

i. What is the idea outlined in the paper? Also discuss methodology adopted by the author.

IDEA: The author examines the deviant workplace behavior of the employees and the management
in the organization, the extent of deviance, reason of deviance, the causes and its impact on the
organization as a whole. The author believes that each individual in the organization brings his/her
own set of values to the workplace. Organizations that adopt the positive changes are more likely to
provide the employees a positive environment and are more productive.

METHODOLOGY: For this, the author interviewed 50 employees working in the private sector of
Pakistan and they were asked to rate the deviant workplace behaviors that they have witnessed in
their careers. First, the relevant literature was reviewed with the help of which the author formulated
a questionnaire (adapted from Robinson and Bennet). The questions were rated on a multi-point Likert
Scale. After this the interviews were conducted with the managers they were asked to provide
information on gender, marital status, educational qualifications, job contract, income range and
current designation.

As per the study of Robinson and Bennet, the dependent variable (deviant behavior) was measured
with five independent variable (political deviance, production deviance, intention to quit,
organizational sabotage and leader mistreatment). This study suggests four hypnothesis based on the
literature review:

 H1: individuals who are mistreated by their leaders engage in deviant workplace behaviors.
 H2: the prevalence of organizational sabotage leads to employee deviance in the organization.
 H3: employees who are satisfied with their jobs are less likely to engage in deviant workplace
behaviors.
 H4: political deviance among employees increases deviant workplace behaviors

Based on these, the regression analysis was done and the results were formulated.

ii. What are deviant behaviors and their causing factors identified in the paper?

Deviant behavior can be described as any activity that violates the rules, regulations and norms of a
particular organization. The author divide workplace deviance into two broad categories:
organizational and interpersonal deviance. Organizational deviance includes acts such as sabotage or
theft of a company’s assets, and behavior such as an unwillingness to work or to meet targets and
deadlines. Interpersonal deviance includes instances such as blaming another coworker without
reason, or physically or verbally abusing a colleague. Key factors that relate to employee deviance
include absenteeism, high turnover and withholding efforts (Oh, Lee, Ashton & de Vries, 2011).

Causes: Various studies show that factors such as stress, job commitment, organizational sabotage
and leader mistreatment are strongly and positively related with workplace deviance Deviant
workplace behavior may be related to employee stress, which ultimately affects the firm’s productivity
and returns.

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iii. Compare the author’s conclusions with your organization’s behavior.

The author concludes that the workplace deviance could be harmful and detrimental for the
organization and its growth. It may result to the incurrence of the additional cost also. This statement
also holds truth for the organization where I work. In my organization interpersonal and organizational
deviance, both are prevalent. The causes are same as highlighted in this paper. For example, unfair
treatment by the managers, favoritism by the top management, due credit not given to the employees
which demotivates them. This results in unwillingness to work among the employees. Thus the work
usually gets delayed resulting in the additional cost for the organization. Deviance at workplace at my
organization results in demotivation and employees thus lack direction which makes the overall
environment unproductive, fruitless and unprofitable.

References:

 Maimoona Waseem (2016) Deviant Workplace Behaviors in Organizations in Pakistan

Q3. What is boundary less organization? Discuss its main features, advantages and disadvantages.
Examine in detail ‘AUTOMATIC’ as a boundary less organization.

BOUNDARYLESS ORGANIZATION & MAIN FEATURES

Whereas conventional organizational structures have characterized vertical and flat borders and
chains of command, boundary less associations are characterized specifically by a lack of structures
and an approach to business that's based on the free flow of data and concepts to drive advancement,
proficiency and development in a world that’s continually changing. The concept was spearheaded by
well-known management mastermind and previous General Electric chairman Jack Welch, who
needed to break down existing obstructions between distinctive parts. Flexibility and adaptability are
imperative criteria of boundaryless associations. Another main feature of boundaryless organizations
is that they are very tech-savvy and will utilize the most recent and most prominent tools brought by
technology to make it simpler to break borders that would have traditionally been unbreakable.
Adaptable working schedules and virtual collaboration are a few examples of such tools. Workers also
regularly telecommute in a boundaryless organization, which is to say that they don’t really have to
be turn up at work. They may utilize video conferencing and virtual collaboration program to
communicate with each other and collaborate on ventures. They, subsequently, ought not to bargain
with geographically forced obstructions to working together.

In such companies, since workers don't need to come to the office all the time, there are usually
adaptable working schedules which permit workers to work at the time that'smost helpful for them,
particularly when they’re working from a different country in a totally distinctive time zone. This
makes it simpler for the representatives to attain work-life balance.

ADVANTAGES & DISADVANTAGES

As for advantages, Versatility and adaptability are imperative criteria of boundaryless organizations.
Boundaryless organizations will regularly make use of the most recent innovation and tools to
encourage the breaking down of conventional borders, such as virtual collaboration and adaptable
working. The disadvantages are that there's a lack of control and it presents communication

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challenges. Perplexity may arise as to the main purpose and duty of the organization and individuals.
Loss of information have more chances to delay and affect the outcome.

AUTOMATTIC:

Automattic was founded in 2005. It is the company behind open source software tools like WordPress
and has always allowed its employees to work from anywhere. Although Automattic doesn't release
its financial information to the public, its revenues are estimated to be around $50 million annually,
and the company is profitable.

How they operate?

When the company first started its employees communicated via IRC, an early form of instant
messaging. Now it uses a whole host of software that is tailor-made to meet the requirements and
need of the company in the technological terms.

Automattic only recently started having regular meetings after it started using ZOOM, a video
conferencing tool that works even on a slow internet connection.

Automattic flies team members to meet in small groups, and once a year it brings the entire company
together in a gathering called the Grand Meetup. The Grand Meetup is where new employees are
brought into the fold and make face-to-face connections with their colleagues from around the world.

Workforce:

The CEO believes that the distributed approach has led to employees who are even more loyar and
competent. The employees are more productive because they have almost no commutes and fewer
interruptions.

Negatives:

When asked about the negatives of such system, the CEO said that if the employees do not have any
strong network outside the work, they may face isolation and chances are that they may fall into bad
habits. So, the CEO encourages his employees to join groups, play sports etc.

For example, 14 employees in Seattle who wanted to beat the isolation by meeting up for work once
a week decided to rent out a bar that didn’t open until 5pm on company’s expense.

References:

 Study: The Boundaryless Organization: Structure and Advantages

 PC Mag: Definition of: virtual company
 Shift eLearning: Why a Learning Culture Helps You Improve Your Company’s Bottom Line

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Q4. Describe the management’s functions and skills? Why four management skills are necessary for
a manager? How do you use these skills in your daily organizational life? Discuss example of each
skill.

MANAGEMENT’S FUNCTION

Management includes far more than telling others what to do. Whereas most positions and divisions
inside a business are entrusted with particular duties based on specific information, skill, or company
needs, managers can have a broader and more complex set of obligations. More than specialized
information, management requires capacity to explore various procedural, basic, and interpersonal
challenges in the process of directing one's group to the completion of different goals. Originally
recognized by Henri Fayol as five components, there are presently four commonly acknowledged
functions of management that envelop these fundamental abilities: planning, organizing, leading, and
controlling

PLANNING: Planning is a very important aspect of management. It includes defining goals, establishing
strategies and developing plans to coordinate activities. In brief, planning implies deciding what the
organization’s position and the circumstance ought to be at some time within the future and choose
how best to bring about that circumstance.

ORGANIZING: Along with planning, efficient organizing can guarantee a company or departmental
unit runs easily. Organizing is determining what everyday operations need to be don, who is to do
them, how it is to be carried out, who reports to whom and where the authority lies. For smooth
transition of operations, organizing is a vital part.

LEADING: The third essential managerial function is leading. The abilities of influencing individuals for
a specific task or reason is called leading. Leading can be the most critical and challenging of all
managerial activities. Leading is motivating and directing the people, selecting most efficient
management tools, identifying best potential and most importantly managing and avoiding the
conflicts.

CONTROLLING: Controlling is measuring the deviation and rectifying them to achieve the true
objectives or targets of the organization. Controlling comprise of exercises, like; measuring the
performance, monitoring activities, removing obstacles, and steering the team in right direction.

MANAGEMENT SKILLS

Management skills can be characterized as certain qualities or capacities that an official ought to have
in arrange to fulfill particular assignments in an organization. They incorporate the capacity to perform
executive obligations in an organization whereas dodging emergency circumstances and expeditiously
understanding issues when they happen. It includes:

TECHNICAL SKILLS: Technical skills not only include working machines and software, but moreover the
skills required to boost deals, plan diverse types of items and administrations, and showcase the
services and the products.

CONCEPTUAL SKILLS: These include the abilities managers display in terms of the information and
ability for unique thinking and formulating thoughts. The manager is able to see a whole concept,
analyze and detect an issue, and discover creative solutions.

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HUMAN SKILLS: The human skills are the abilities that show the managers’ capacity to connected,
work or relate successfully with individuals. These abilities empower the supervisors to make use of
manpower in the company and motivate others for better results.

POLITICAL SKILLS: The political skills refers to the ability to enhance one’s power, build power base
and establish right connections.

Q5. According to news item appeared in media, the Prime Minister has declared the construction
sector as an ‘Industry’. Collect and describe the details of this exercise followed by your opinion
about the possible advantages and disadvantages to the construction organizations and working
civil engineers.

Construction industry and construction activities are considered as one of the major sources for
economic growth and development in Pakistan. It is said that latest technology is being introduced to
ensure transparency and simplify the procedures in the construction industry. Promoting construction
industry would yield multiple benefits for the economy as it would generate employment and offer
plenty of job opportunities to millions of unskilled, semiskilled and skilled workers. Tangible measures
for ease of doing business in construction sector would boost business activities and help the economy
to achieve quick revival. The government is giving special emphasis to simplify construction-related
laws and do away with the condition of unnecessary approvals, compliance of zoning and NOCs. This
would be beneficial for the construction organization and engineers associated with them.

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