5.

BEHAVIOR MODIFICATION STRATEGIES

- Self-management

Self-management interventions are multicomponent behavioral strategies that

emphasize the monitoring and regulation of behaviors and reinforcements (rewards).
The core elements of self-management interventions involve (a) self-observation of a
targeted behavior, (b) self-recording, and (c) delivery of a reinforcer. The identified
person in treatment (e.g., client, child, or adult) is given a central role in managing
behavior change. The client is taught to observe or monitor (self-monitor) and track
(self-record or self-manage) his or her behaviors by using a recording method (tallying
the occurrence of a target behavior on paper or with a counter device). When treatment
goals are met, the client is expected to obtain a reward (reinforcement).

- Managerial grid

Two crucial factors affect leadership style. These are the need to adapt according to the
situation, and the psychological status of the leader.

Robert Blake and Jane Mouton created their 'Managerial Grid' model in 1964, in their
book, The Managerial Grid: The Key to Leadership Excellence. They then depicted their
model as a grid with two axes which are: Concern for People, and Concern for
Production. With this, there are five kinds of leadership styles that are identified.

Country Club Style

High People: Low Task – Here, the leader has a high concern for the people, but a low
concern for the task. There is usually an overly friendly relationship between the leader
and the led group. Leaders like this appear to care about their people, however, this
style is often not good for creating producing results. The group will suffer ultimately
because they fail to achieve the set goals.
Impoverished Style

Low People: Low Task - Here the leader has both a low concern for people and a low
concern for the task. This is the least effective approach to leadership. This would
ultimately cause an organization to crumble.

Middle of the Road Style

Mid People: Mid Task. This is essentially an incompetent compromise. There is some
concern for the task and, equally, some concern for people, we can also say there is a
lack for either. This shows leadership without conviction and insight. Leadership
generally requires a good degree of natural authority and decisiveness, so a style that
lacks these aspects has much room for improvement.

Produce-or-Perish Style

Low People: High Task. Here we see a high focus on the task with little or no concern
for people. This style is often referred to as autocratic. Leaders using this style seek to
control and dominate others. Staff under this style is usually treated like machines to
serve the organization. This can be effective in the short term, however, unsustainable
in the long run.

This reflects Theory X of Douglas McGregor's X-Y Theory; with the leader often
operating under the assumption that individuals are naturally lacking in motivation, and
require an external stimulus to inspire productivity.
Team Style

High People: High Task. This style combines a high concern for and involvement in the
group with a strong well-organized and communicated focus on achieving the task.
Blake and Mouton saw this as the ideal behavioral approach. Leaders who adopt this
style shows more production due to the good relationships with their group, and a clear
and concise information stream for brainstorming and teamwork. This style normally
requires that followers/the group are suitably mature and skilled for a high level of
involvement. The style is difficult to use when the factors in both leadership and group
members are lacking.

This reflects Theory Y in Douglas McGregor's X-Y Theory; with the leader often
operating under the assumption that individuals are naturally self-motivated and happy
to work so long as they are led well and provided with enough freedom to do so.

Conclusion

People are greatly affected by rewards and leadership. The former is how self-
management works to the advantage of both the individual and the company. The
employee will personally track his behavior until the wanted results are achieved.
Management also plays a huge role in the 'Managerial Grid' model. These models are
seen in every organizational setup and depending on what you use will make or break
your organization. There is always an ideal setup in things like this however, factors
should align for it to be achievable.
6. MANUFACTURING, SERVICE, AND MERCHANDISING COMPANIES

- Change in prices management

Business-to-business pricing research has often focused on developing rational and

normative frameworks and models for pricing issues, strategies, and tactics. However,
there has been less attention given to behavioral models that help us understand the
realities of pricing and how managers set prices. Specifically, there has been less
attention given to the various individual and group influences on the price-setting
process. Scholars have proposed several rational and normative frameworks for
decision making concerning prices (see, for example, Morris and Calantone 1990;
Noble and Gruca 1999; Oxenfeldt 1973; Tellis 1986).

Researchers are aware that most firms do not always make the correct strategic
decisions and in the context of pricing, these could have severe financial implications for
the organization. Researchers have also uncovered that managerial price-setting
suffers from various issues ranging from the selection of inappropriate objectives to
misunderstandings of the concept of value and how it relates to price (Hinterhuber
2004; Hogan and Lucke 2006; Morris and Calantone 1990). Moreover, significant
opportunities are lost given that even marginal increases in prices could yield
significantly more profits as compared to other strategic or tactical actions (Hinterhuber
2004). Apart from a failure to adjust prices to account for changes in industry demand
when pricing through a product's lifecycle (Baker, et al. 2010b), significant concerns
arise when companies set prices lower than what the market could pay (Eugster,
Kakkar and Roegner 2000). This is because low prices contribute to lost opportunity
and in markets that are often inelastic, represent errors that do not, even fortuitously,
translate into increased sales. Indeed, there is considerable evidence from practice that
errors in pricing may have serious consequences for the organization (Baker, Marn and
Zawada 2010b; Eugster, Kakkar and Roegner 2000; Johansson, Krishnamurthy and
Schlissberg 2003; Krishnamurthy, Johansson and Schlissberg 2003)
 - Politics in the workplace

Organizational politics refers to activities associated with the use of influence tactics to
improve personal or organizational interests. Studies show that individuals with political
skills tend to do better in gaining more personal power as well as managing stress and
job demands, than their politically inexperienced counterparts. They also have a greater
impact on organizational outcomes.

However, political behavior is also likely to be present, but not explicit, until it is too late.
It is also occasionally necessary for employees to work behind the scenes to build
coalitions of believers in a new vision to convince others. Whatever the situation, it is
important to understand that the root cause of political activities is often scarce
resources (including time pressures), social and structural inequalities, and individual
personal motivations.

Some people view political moves as dirty and will try to distance themselves from those
activities. However, what they find hard to accept is that such activities can be for the
benefit of the organization and its members. Thus, the first step to feeling comfortable
with politics requires that executives are equipped with a reliable map of the political
landscape and an understanding of the sources of political capital.

There is an existing political terrain used to address these challenges. Included in this
are the four metaphoric domains: the weeds, the rocks, the high ground, and the woods.

The Weeds is a quadrant where personal influence and informal networks rule. It is
called "the weeds" because it's a dynamic that grows naturally, without any
maintenance. It can be a good thing. For example, at one not-for-profit organization, the
Secretary-General was seriously underperforming, and sometimes acting unethically,
leading staff to worry that they'd lose the support of key donors and government
officials. As a result, an informal group regularly met to cover up his mishandling of
situations. However, the problem became unsustainable and the same group, within the
year, helped to ease him out to protect the organization's reputation. Thus, the
development of an informal coalition saved the organization, and political activities, in
this case, were a force for good.

Power in “The Rocks" rests on individual interactions and formal (or "hard") sources of
authority such as title, role, expertise, or access to resources. It might also include
political capital that arises from membership or strong ties to a high-status group. It is
called "the rocks" because rocks can symbolize a stabilizing foundation that keeps an
organization steady in times of crisis. But on the contrary, the sharp edges of hard
power can wreck a plan.

Consider a mid-sized advertising agency that was implementing a new growth strategy.
The Chairman used his formal power to stop the changes. He would constantly question
decisions agreed with the management team, change his mind from one meeting to the
next, stop agreed on allocation of resources to new structures, and take people off the
special task forces, without notification. Here we see the formal use of hard power to
satisfy self-interest over the firm's longer-term value.

The High Ground combines formal authority with organizational systems; The term is
used to describe the rules, structures, policy guidelines, and procedures that form the
basis of political activities. The benefits of these rules and procedures are they provide
a check against the whims of individual level, charismatic or autocratic individuals.
Thus, the 'high ground' provides guide rails for the rocks. It's a functional political
process that uses structures of control systems, incentives, and sanctions that keep the
organization in compliance. However, as many executives know, rules and procedures
can also lead to the company becoming overly bureaucratic, where rules are used as a
political device to challenge interests not aligned with the bureaucrats or to prevent
innovation and change.
The Woods can provide cover and safety for people in your organization, or they can
be a bewildering place where good ideas and necessary changes get lost.

Strong implicit norms can define what is even up for discussion. In some organizations,
for example, displays of emotion may be seen as socially undesirable, and so the
organization finds ways to marginalize, ignore, or reframe any emotions that are shown.
In other organizations, the display of certain emotions is essentially mandatory — think
of the smiling flight attendant.

Some organizations get lost in their woods. They focus on the presenting issue rather
than the unspoken ecosystem of habits and practices that remain unseen. The
challenge here is to make the implicit explicit. Ask the stupid question, bringing implicit
organizational routines and behaviors to the surface. Ask clients, recent hires, or
temporary contractors about their observations and experience of how the company
works; a fresh pair of eyes will often identify things that incumbents are blind to seeing.
Get benchmark information from surveys and specialist experts. Once the implicit
assumptions are out in the open, ask your team to reflect on whether they're helping
your company or hindering it.

Understanding the political terrain can help executives fight dysfunctional politics. But
it’s also important to recognize that each landscape also contains positive dynamics. In
either case, try to understand the drivers rather than just judge the behaviors. Project
leaders who do can avoid the hidden traps of political dynamics, defend themselves
against the dark side of politics, and use what they know to support wider organizational
goals will find it easier and get more skilled engaging in positive political behaviors at all
levels of the organization.

- Stress management
While it is generally agreed that stress occurs at work, views differ on the importance of
worker characteristics versus working conditions as its primary cause. The differing
viewpoints suggest different ways to prevent stress at work. Different individual
characteristics, like personality and coping skills, can be very important predictors of
whether certain job conditions will result in stress. In other words, what is stressful for
one person may not be a problem for someone else.

Four categories of stressors underline the different causal circumstances for stress at
work:

1. Task Demands – This is the sense of not knowing where a job will lead you and
whether the activities and tasks will change. This uncertainty causes stress that
manifests itself in feelings of lack of control, concern about career progress, and
time pressures.
2. Role Demands – Role conflict happens when an employee is exposed to
inconsistent or difficult expectations. Examples include inter-role conflict (when
there are two or more expectations or separate roles for one person), intra-role
conflict (varying expectations of one role), person-role conflict (ethics are
challenged), and role ambiguity (confusion about their experiences about the
expectations of others).
3. Interpersonal Demands – Examples include: emotional issues (abrasive
personalities, offensive co-workers), sexual harassment (directed mostly toward
women), and poor leadership (lack of management experience, poor style,
cannot handle having power).
4. Physical Demands – Many types of work are physically demanding, including
strenuous activity, extreme working conditions, travel, exposure to hazardous
materials, and working in a tight, loud office.

If employees are experiencing unhealthy levels of stress, a manager can bring in an

objective outsider, such as a consultant, to suggest a fresh approach. But there are
many ways managers can prevent job stress in the first place. A combination of
organizational change and stress management is often the most effective approach.
Among the many different techniques managers can use to effectively prevent
employee stress, the main underlying themes are awareness of possibly stressful
elements of the workplace and intervention when necessary to mitigate any stress that
does arise.

Organizations can prevent employee stress in the following ways:

Intentional Job Design

 Design jobs that provide meaning and stimulation for workers as well as
opportunities for them to use their skills.
 Establish work schedules that are compatible with demands and responsibilities
outside the job.
 Consider flexible schedules—many organizations allow telecommuting to reduce
the pressure of being a certain place at a certain time (which enables people to
better balance their personal lives).
 Monitor each employee’s workload to ensure it is in line with their capabilities and
resources.

Clear and Open Communication

 Teach employees about stress awareness and promote an open dialogue.

 Avoid ambiguity at all costs—clearly define workers’ roles and responsibilities.
 Reduce uncertainty about career development and future employment prospects.

Positive Workplace Culture

 Provide opportunities for social interaction among workers.

 Watch for signs of dissatisfaction or bullying and work to combat workplace
discrimination (based on race, gender, national origin, religion, or language).
Employee Accountability

 Give workers opportunities to participate in decisions and actions that affect their
jobs.
 Introduce a participative leadership style and involve as many subordinates as
possible in resolving stress-producing problems.

Conclusion

In every organization, be it large or small, will always have politics attached to it. Politics
is not always a bad thing, as most people would state. These politics could also help us
in matters of company growth and development, achieving the best deals with suppliers
and other stakeholders, and also shaping the organization as a whole. Every
undertaking is accompanied by stress, and stress management has done greatly in
assisting employees to lighten their burdens and manage them properly.

7. GROUP AND SOCIAL PROCESSES

- Decision making

Decision-making refers to making choices among alternative courses of action—which

may also include inaction. While it can be argued that management is decision making,
half of the decisions made by managers within organizations ultimately fail.  Therefore,
increasing effectiveness in decision making is an important part of maximizing your
effectiveness at work.

Decisions can be classified into three categories based on the level at which they occur.
Strategic decisions set the course of an organization. Tactical decisions are decisions
about how things will get done. Finally, operational decisions refer to decisions that
employees make each day to make the organization run.

Making Rational Decisions

The rational decision-making model describes a series of steps that decision-makers

should consider if their goal is to maximize the quality of their outcomes. In other words,
if you want to make sure that you make the best choice, going through the formal steps
of the rational decision-making model may make sense. The formal steps are: identify
the problem, establish Decision criteria, weigh decision criteria, generate alternatives,
evaluate the alternatives, choose the best alternative, implement the decision, and
evaluate the decision.

Making “Good Enough” Decisions

The bounded rationality model of decision making recognizes the limitations of our
decision-making processes. According to this model, individuals knowingly limit their
options to a manageable set and choose the first acceptable alternative without
conducting an exhaustive search for alternatives. An important part of the bounded
rationality approach is the tendency to satisfice (a term coined by Herbert Simon from
satisfy and suffice), which refers to accepting the first alternative that meets your
minimum criteria. For example, many college graduates do not conduct a national or
international search for potential job openings. Instead, they focus their search on a
limited geographic area, and they tend to accept the first offer in their chosen area, even
if it may not be the ideal job situation. Satisficing is similar to rational decision making.
The main difference is that rather than choosing the best option and maximizing the
potential outcome, the decision-maker saves cognitive time and effort by accepting the
first alternative that meets the minimum threshold.

Making Intuitive Decisions

The intuitive decision-making model has emerged as an alternative to other decision-

making processes. This model refers to arriving at decisions without conscious
reasoning. A total of 89% of managers surveyed admitted to using intuition to make
decisions at least sometimes and 59% said they used intuition often. Managers make
decisions under challenging circumstances, including time pressures, constraints, a
great deal of uncertainty, changing conditions, and highly visible and high-stakes
outcomes. Thus, it makes sense that they would not have the time to use the rational
decision-making model. Yet when CEOs, financial analysts, and health care workers
are asked about the critical decisions they make, seldom do they attribute success to
luck. To an outside observer, it may seem like they are making guesses as to the
course of action to take, but it turns out that experts systematically make decisions
using a different model than was earlier suspected. Research on life-or-death decisions
made by fire chiefs, pilots, and nurses finds that experts do not choose among a list of
well thought out alternatives. They don't decide between two or three options and
choose the best one. Instead, they consider only one option at a time. The intuitive
decision-making model argues that in a given situation, experts making decisions scan
the environment for cues to recognize patterns. Once a pattern is recognized, they can
play a potential course of action through to its outcome based on their prior experience.
Thanks to training, experience, and knowledge, these decision-makers have an idea of
how well a given solution may work. If they run through the mental model and find that
the solution will not work, they alter the solution before setting it into action. If it still is
not deemed a workable solution, it is discarded as an option, and a new idea is tested
until a workable solution is found. Once a viable course of action is identified, the
decision-maker puts the solution into motion. The key point is that only one choice is
considered at a time. Novices are not able to make effective decisions this way,
because they do not have enough prior experience to draw upon.
Making Creative Decisions

In addition to rational decision making, bounded rationality, and intuitive decision-

making models, creative decision making is a vital part of being an effective decision-
maker. Creativity is the generation of new, imaginative ideas. With the flattening of
organizations and intense competition among companies, individuals and organizations
are driven to be creative in decisions ranging from cutting costs to generating new ways
of doing business. Please note that, while creativity is the first step in the innovation
process, creativity and innovation are not the same things. Innovation begins with
creative ideas, but it also involves realistic planning and follow-through. Innovations
such as 3M's Clearview Window Tinting grow out of a creative decision-making process
about what may or may not work to solve real-world problems. These are the steps in
making creative decisions: problem recognition, immersion, incubation illumination,
verification, and application.

- Managing creativity and innovation

This type of management results from the intersection of the divergent managerial view
and the deviant managerial direction, in a context that requires intense creativity to
boost innovation. Here, the organizational conditions converge with the creative
individual, creative culture, and creative leadership style.

Internally, the infringement of organizational norms occurs through deviant behavior, an

irreverent attitude that can damage social relationships but may prove a fruitful source
of creativity that contributes to corporate competitiveness.

Mainemelis (2010) defines deviant behavior as a breach of management orders to work

on a new idea, which occurs at the individual level. In the author's view, this behavior
does not seek to violate the overall cultural objectives but rather to achieve them
differently.
Externally, Berg (2016) maintains that creativity and innovation occur when creative
people operate under a perspective of divergence from the established status quo. This
process usually involves a search for new associations, combinations, or perspectives.
Paradoxically, in contrast, managers should adopt a convergent position related to a
certain concern with its commercial applicability, economic feasibility, and track record
of achievements, trying to minimize the risk associated with innovation. Therein lies the
challenge for creative leadership to stimulate the new, but without losing sight of the
market, compatible with the complex perspective that creativity entails.

According to Fairhurst, the leader should articulate his or her vision through the
strategic use of cultural artifacts such as slogans, symbols, rituals, ceremonies, and
stories of success or heroism. These symbolic elements can disseminate the desirable
values and promote identification with the organization, and in this manner, leaders
facilitate the emergence of a context guided by shareable values. In this sense, argue
that culture plays a fundamental role in enhancing creativity. In their view, even though
culture generates a certain convergent thought, it can facilitate the idea selection
process, given the need to legitimate them among peers in the organization.

- Group dynamics

A group is defined as several individuals who come together to achieve a particular task
or goal. Group dynamics refers to the attitudinal and behavioral characteristics of a
group. Group dynamics concerns organizational success because it consists of various
groups and a lot depends on how groups form, how they configuration and process, and
most importantly how they function. Group dynamics are pertinent in both formal and
informal groups of all types. In an organizational setting, groups are a very common
organizational entity and the study of groups and group dynamics is an important area
of study in organizational behavior.
There are several theories on why groups develop. The classic theory, developed by
George Homans, advocates that group development is based on activities,
interactions, and feelings. What it means is when individuals share common activities;
they will have more interaction and will develop attitudes that could be positive or
negative toward each other. The major element in this theory is what kinds of
interactions are shared by the individuals involved in the group.

Social exchange theory offers an alternative explanation for group development.

According to this theory, individuals form relationships based on the implied expectation
of mutually beneficial exchanges based on trust and felt an obligation towards each
other. Thus, an insight that in relationships exchange of thoughts and ideas is positive
and essential if individuals are to be attracted to and affiliate with a group.

Social identity theory suggests that individuals get a sense of identity and self-esteem
based upon their membership in outstanding groups. The nature of the group may be
demographically based, culturally suitable, or organizationally based. Individuals are
motivated to belong to and contribute to identical as their character groups because of
the sense of belongingness and self-worth membership in the group imparts.

Forming: This is the first stage. In this stage lot groups form temporarily; this stage is
characterized by some puzzlement and a lot of uncertainty. The group is not sure about
their major goals. Leadership matters here a lot. Thus, forming is a direction period
when members get to know one another and share expectations about the group.
Members learn the purpose of the group as well as the rules to be followed. If the
forming stage is rushed trust and openness cannot be developed. Individuals are often
confused during this stage because roles are not clear and leadership matters to bring
in a feeling of settlement. If the group is formed based on weak leadership, the group is
far from being formed.

Storming: This stage is called storming because, in this stage, the group is likely to see
the highest level of incongruity and conflicts. Members in the group challenge group
goals and the struggle for power. Individuals often compete for the leadership position
during this stage of development. This can be a positive experience for all groups if
members can get organized through resolution. Members often voice concern and
criticism in this stage. If members are not able to determine the conflict, then the group
will often split up or continue in existence but will remain unproductive and never
advance to the further stages.

Norming: This stage is categorized by the identification of individual differences and

shared expectations. If in this stage the group members begin to develop a feeling of
group unity and identity the group's existence strengthens. They experience cooperative
efforts that begin to yield results. In this stage usually, responsibilities are divided
among members and the group decides on evaluating progress. Roles and
responsibilities are passed on to members in the group in the norming stage.

Performance: Performance of the group occurs when the group matures and attains a
feeling of cohesiveness. During this stage of development, individuals accept one
another, and conflicts are resolved through group discussions. Members of the group
make decisions through a sensible process that is focused on relevant goals rather than
emotional issues.

Adjourning: This stage is not being not experienced by all groups, because it is
characterized by the performance discharged by the group. Some groups stay relatively
permanent. There are reasons why groups disband; they differ from group to group.
Some common reasons are the achievement of the tasks or individuals deciding to go
their ways. Members of the group often experience feelings of conclusion and sorrow as
they prepare to leave the group. The reasons could be rational or irrational.

- Managing teams and teamwork

Organizations benefit from the ability to build and manage great teams. To do that, we
need to understand what sets one group apart from the rest and makes that group a
team.

The first distinguishing feature of a team is that the individual members are fully
committed to a common goal and approach. Often, they’ve developed this approach
themselves. The members should agree that the team’s goal is worthwhile and have a
desire to achieve it. This agreement on the goal is imperative—this gives the team its
vision and the motivation for the members to perform.

The second distinguishing feature is mutual accountability. If the team is going to

succeed, the members should feel accountable to each other as well as the
organization for the process and outcome of their work. It’s not unusual for team
members to take on extra work and responsibility because they feel a deep commitment
to the team, even if there is an accountable leader of that team.

The third distinguishing feature is that of trust and collaboration. Culture is built on
compromise, cooperation, and collaboration, directed to reaching their common
purpose. This doesn't mean that there isn't conflict involved. On the contrary, healthy
conflict can boost creativity and performance as long as it's managed well. Their sharing
can continue to the point of shared leadership, even though the team may have an
appointed leader.

The fourth distinguishing feature of a team is synergy. Synergy is the process of

combining two or more actions that result in an effect that differs from the total of the
individual actions. It means that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. The team
produces more together than they would individually.

Types of Teams

Organizations use different types of teams in different ways to accomplish their

objectives. Some teams have a very simple and specific focus, and others face complex
issues with organization-wide ramifications. We can look at teams and classify them in a
variety of ways. Let’s first take a look at them based on their task complexity and team
member fluidity.

Task complexity is the extent to which a task is intricate and consists of different,
interrelated parts. Membership fluidity is the extent to which members within a team is
stable. Low membership fluidity would mean that people are often entering into and
leaving the team, and high membership fluidity means they are quite stable, not
changing often at all.

Simple work teams have low task complexity and low team fluidity. Their goal is simple
problem solving, and often they are a group that supports day-to-day activities, dealing
with issues that require input from more than one person or to generate commitment
from employees. Usually, these are people from the same team or department, so they
generally have a similar focus and tend to work together relatively easily.

An administrative team has high task complexity but low team membership fluidity,
meaning that the problems the team deals with are complex but people stream in and
out of the group. The goal of an administrative team is to problem solve and then “sell”
their ideas to the rest of the organization. Their focus could be internal, external, or
both, and the team members are usually management level.

An example of an administrative team might be a relocation committee that's dedicated

to relocating a plant to a new area. Members of the team might flow in and out, but the
complexity of the task is rather high and not at all part of their routine. Management
level members work for a finite time to accomplish the strategic objective of moving the
plant—all its machinery, all its people, and so on—to a new address.

A cross-departmental team tends to have a low complexity level but a high team
membership fluidity, meaning that the work is fairly simple but the teams are committed
and fairly unchanging. Their goal is integration in structure and setting ground rules, and
their focus is internal and very specific.
A cross-departmental task force is an example of this type of team. Perhaps an
organization is installing a new system that will manage all their data, both at the main
office and at their plants, in an entirely different way. The task force might come
together from different areas of the organization to identify the types of data their
departments generate and how that data will be transferred over to the new system,
how people will be trained to use the new system, and even how to change around the
system will be managed.

Process teams deal with high complexity tasks and have high team member fluidity,
meaning people are assigned to the team and stay. These folks are creative problem
solvers and deal with implementation. Their focus is strategic and broad.

Process teams do not have departmental affiliation and function independently to

undertake broad, organizational-level process improvements. For instance, the
department store Mervyn's, the now-defunct discount department store chain, had a
SWAT team that rushes in to solve a store's critical issues. They were deployed at any
time, whenever they're needed. They even attempt to solve organizational-wide issues
like flextime and insurance.

Self-managed teams (SMTs) are a commonly used process team used in organizations.
Self-managed teams are process teams of employees who have full managerial control
over their work. Volvo is known for having abandoned its typical assembly line structure
for one that included only self-managed teams. The teams were charged with
assembling their large part of the car, but they could decide how to do it and who was
going to work on what parts. The results included significant improvements in product
quality and employee satisfaction.

Overall self-managed teams include these characteristics:

 The power to manage their work

 Members with different expertise and functional experience
 No outside manager
 The power to implement decisions
  Coordination and cooperation with other teams and individuals impacted by their
decisions
 Internal leadership, based on facilitation. This means that a rotating leader
focuses on freeing the team from obstacles as they do their work.

Self-managed teams require a change in the structure on behalf of the organization and
a high level of commitment on behalf of all parties to ensure their success. Most self-
managed teams that fail do so because of a lack of commitment on the part of the
organization.

It’s worth noting that there are now also virtual teams, which are teams that use
computer technology to tie together physically dispersed members to achieve a
common goal. These virtual teams might indeed be an administrative, cross-functional,
simple work, or even a process team, but they are distinctive in that they allow people to
collaborate online.

Because virtual teams have limited social interaction – many times they have not met in
person – they tend to be more task-oriented and exchange less social information. But
they're able to do their work even if the members of the team are thousands of miles
apart and allows people to work together who may not otherwise be able to collaborate.

- Managing conflict and negotiations

Conflict is a process that involves people disagreeing. Researchers have noted that
conflict is like the common cold. Everyone knows what it is, but understanding its
causes and how to treat it is much more challenging. Wall, J. A., & Callister, R. R.
(1995). Conflict and its management. Journal of Management, 21, 515–558. As we
noted earlier, conflict can range from minor disagreements to workplace violence. Also,
three types of conflict can arise within organizations. Let's take a look at each of them in
turn.
Intrapersonal conflict arises within a person. For example, when you're uncertain about
what is expected or wanted, or you have a sense of being inadequate to perform a task,
you are experiencing intrapersonal conflict. Intrapersonal conflict can arise because of
differences in roles. A manager may want to oversee a subordinate's work, believing
that such oversight is a necessary part of the job. The subordinate, on the other hand,
may consider such extensive oversight to be micromanagement or evidence of a lack of
trust. Role conflict, another type of intrapersonal conflict, includes having two different
job descriptions that seem mutually exclusive. This type of conflict can arise if you're the
head of one team but also a member of another team. The third type of intrapersonal
conflict involves role ambiguity. Perhaps you've been given the task of finding a trainer
for a company's business writing training program. You may feel unsure about what kind
of person to hire—a well-known but expensive trainer or a local, unknown but low-priced
trainer. If you haven't been given guidelines about what's expected, you may be
wrestling with several options.

Interpersonal conflict is among individuals such as coworkers, a manager, and an

employee, or CEOs and their staff. For example, in 2006 the CEO of Airbus S.A.S.,
Christian Streiff, resigned because he conflicted with the board of directors over issues
such as how to restructure the company. Michaels, D., Power, S., & Gauthier-Villars, D.
(2006, October 10). Airbus CEO's resignation reflects the company's deep structural
woes. Wall Street Journal, pp. A1–A10. This example may reflect a well-known trend
among CEOs. According to one estimate, 31.9% of CEOs resigned from their jobs
because they had a conflict with the board of directors. Whitehouse, K. (2008, January
14). Why CEOs need to be honest with their boards. Wall Street Journal, Eastern
edition, pp. R1–R3. CEOs of competing companies might also have public conflicts. In
1997, Michael Dell was asked what he would do about Apple Computer. "What would I
do? I'd shut it down and give the money back to shareholders." Ten years later, Steve
Jobs, the CEO of Apple Inc., indicated he had held a grudge as he shot back at Dell in
an e-mail to his employees, stating, "Team, it turned out Michael Dell wasn't perfect in
predicting the future. Based on today's stock market close, Apple is worth more than
Dell.
”Haddad, C. (2001, April 18). Why Jobs and Dell are always sparring. Business Week
Online. Retrieved May 1, 2008, from
http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/apr2001/nf20010418_461.htm;
Markoff, J. (2006, January 16). Michael Dell should eat his words, Apple chief suggests.
New York Times. Retrieved January 19, 2007, from
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/16/technology/16apple.html.
In part, their long-time disagreements stem from their differences. Interpersonal conflict
often arises because of competition, as the Dell/Apple example shows, or because of
personality or values differences. For example, one person's style may be to "go with
the gut" on decisions, while another person wants to make decisions based on facts.
Those differences will lead to conflict if individuals reach different conclusions. Many
companies suffer because of interpersonal conflicts. Keeping conflicts centered around
ideas rather than individual differences is important in avoiding a conflict escalation.

Intergroup conflict is a conflict that takes place among different groups. Types of groups
may include different departments or divisions in a company, and employee union and
management, or competing companies that supply the same customers. Departments
may conflict over budget allocations; unions and management may disagree over work
rules; suppliers may conflict with each other on the quality of parts. Merging two groups
can lead to friction between the groups—especially if there are scarce resources to be
divided among the group. For example, in what has been called "the most difficult and
hard-fought labor issue in an airline merger," Canadian Air and Air Canada pilots were
locked into years of personal and legal conflict when the two airlines' seniority lists were
combined following the merger. Stoykewych, R. E. (2003, March 7). A note on the
seniority resolutions arising out of the merger of Air Canada and Canadian Airlines.
Paper presented at the American Bar Association Midwinter Meeting, Laguna Beach,
CA. Seniority is a valuable and scarce resource for pilots because it helps to determine
who flies the newest and biggest planes, who receives the best flight routes, and who is
paid the most. In response to the loss of seniority, former Canadian Air pilots picketed at
shareholder meetings, threatened to call in sick, and had ongoing conflicts with pilots
from Air Canada. The conflicts with pilots continue to this day. The history of past
conflicts among organizations and employees makes new deals challenging.

Causes of Conflict

Conflict tends to take different forms, depending upon the organizational structure.
Jaffe, D. (2000). Organizational theory: Tension and change. New York: McGraw Hill.
For example, if a company uses a matrix structure as its organizational form, it will have
decisional conflict built-in, because the structure specifies that each manager report to
two bosses. For example, global company ABB Inc. is organized around a matrix
structure based on the dimensions of country and industry. This structure can lead to
confusion as the company is divided geographically into 1,200 different units and by
industry into 50 different units. Taylor, W. (1991, March–April). The logic of global
business: An interview with ABB’s Percy Barnevik. Harvard Business Review, 69, 90–
105.

Resources such as money, time, and equipment are often scarce. Competition among
people or departments for limited resources is a frequent cause of conflict. For example,
cutting-edge laptops and gadgets such as a BlackBerry or iPhone are expensive
resources that may be allocated to employees on a need-to-have basis in some
companies. When a group of employees has access to such resources while others do
not, conflict may arise among employees or between employees and management.
While technical employees may feel that these devices are crucial to their productivity,
employees with customer contact such as sales representatives may make the point
that these devices are important for them to make a good impression on clients.
Because important resources are often limited, this is one source of conflict many
companies have to live with.

Another cause of conflict is task interdependence; that is when the accomplishment of

your goal requires reliance on others to perform their tasks. For example, if you're
tasked with creating advertising for your product, you're dependent on the creative team
to design the words and layout, the photographer or videographer to create the visuals,
the media buyer to purchase the advertising space, and so on. The completion of your
goal (airing or publishing your ad) is dependent on others.

Sometimes conflict arises when two parties think that their goals are mutually exclusive.
Within an organization, incompatible goals often arise because of the different ways
department managers are compensated. For example, a sales manager's bonus may
be tied to how many sales are made for the company. As a result, the individual might
be tempted to offer customers "freebies" such as expedited delivery to make the sale. In
contrast, a transportation manager's compensation may be based on how much money
the company saves on transit. In this case, the goal might be to eliminate expedited
delivery because it adds expense. The two will butt heads until the company resolves
the conflict by changing the compensation scheme. For example, if the company
assigns the bonus based on the profitability of a sale, not just the dollar amount, the
cost of the expediting would be subtracted from the value of the sale. It might still make
sense to expedite the order if the sale is large enough, in which case both parties would
support it. On the other hand, if the expediting negates the value of the sale, neither
party would be in favor of the added expense.

Personality differences among coworkers are common. By understanding some

fundamental differences among the way people think and act, we can better understand
how others see the world. Knowing that these differences are natural and normal lets us
anticipate and mitigate interpersonal conflict—it’s often not about “you” but simply a
different way of seeing and behaving. For example, Type A individuals have been found
to have more conflicts with their coworkers than Type B individuals. Baron, R. A. (1989).
Personality and organizational conflict: Type A behavior pattern and self-monitoring.
Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 44, 281–297.

Sometimes conflict arises simply out of a small, unintentional communication problem,

such as lost e-mails or dealing with people who don’t return phone calls. Giving
feedback is also a case in which the best intentions can quickly escalate into a conflict
situation. When communicating, be sure to focus on behavior and its effects, not on the
person. For example, say that Jeff always arrives late to all your meetings. You think he
has a bad attitude, but you don't know what Jeff's attitude is. You do know, however, the
effect that Jeff's behavior has on you. You could say, "Jeff, when you come late to the
meeting, I feel like my time is wasted." Jeff can't argue with that statement, because it is
a fact of the impact of his behavior on you. It's indisputable because it is your reality.
What Jeff can say is that he did not intend such an effect, and then you can discuss the
behavior.

- Strategy in meetings

Anyone who has been involved in a team knows it involves team meetings. While few
individuals relish the idea of team meetings, they serve an important function in terms of
information sharing and decision making. They also serve an important social function
and can help to build team cohesion and a task function in terms of coordination.
Unfortunately, we’ve all attended meetings that were a waste of time and little happened
that couldn’t have been accomplished by reading an e-mail in 5 minutes. To run
effective meetings, it helps to think of meetings in terms of three sequential steps.

Much of the effectiveness of a meeting is determined before the team gathers. There
are three key things you can do to ensure the team members get the most out of their
meeting.

Is a meeting needed? Leaders should do several things before the meeting to help
make it effective. The first thing is to be sure a meeting is even needed. If the meeting is
primarily informational in nature, ask yourself if it is imperative that the group fully
understands the information and if future decisions will be built upon this information. If
so, a meeting may be needed. If not, perhaps simply communicating with everyone in a
written format will save valuable time. Similarly, decision-making meetings make the
most sense when the problem is complex and important, there are questions of fairness
to be resolved, and commitment is needed moving forward.
Create and distribute an agenda. An agenda is important in helping to inform those
invited about the purpose of the meeting. It also helps organize the flow of the meeting
and keep the team on track.

Send a reminder before the meeting. Reminding everyone of the purpose, time, and
location of the meeting helps everyone prepare themselves. Anyone who has attended
a team meeting only to find there is no reason to meet because members haven’t
completed their agreed-upon tasks knows that, as a result, team performance or morale
can be negatively impacted. Follow up to make sure everyone is prepared. As a team
member, inform others immediately if you will not be ready with your tasks so that they
can determine whether the meeting should be postponed.

During the meeting, there are several things you can do to make sure the team starts
and keeps on track.

Start the meeting on time. Waiting for members who are running late only punishes
those who are on time and reinforces the idea that it’s OK to be late. Starting the
meeting promptly sends an important signal that you are respectful of everyone’s time.

Follow the meeting agenda. Veering off agenda communicates to members that the
agenda is not important. It also makes it difficult for others to keep track of where you
are in the meeting.

Manage group dynamics for full participation. As you've seen in this chapter, many
group dynamics can limit a team's functioning. Be on the lookout for full participation
and engagement from all team members, as well as any potential problems such as
social loafing, group conflict, or groupthink.

Summarize the meeting with action items. Be sure to clarify team member roles moving
forward. If individuals' tasks are not clear, chances are that role confusion will arise
later. There should be clear notes from the meeting regarding who is responsible for
each action item and the time frames associated with the next steps.
End the meeting on time. This is vitality important, as it shows that you respect
everyone’s time and are organized. If another meeting is needed to follow up, schedule
it later, but don’t let the meeting run over.

Follow up on action items. During the meeting, the participants probably generated
several action items. You'll likely need to follow up on the action items of others.

Conclusion

Decision-making refers to choosing an alternative option among the existing ones, and
inaction is also considered as one of those. Increased effectiveness in decision-making
increases effectiveness at work. Decisions are classified into three categories: rational,
to get the best choice; good enough just to satisfice the situation; and intuition, a gut
feeling that is guided by your experiences in the field. In the light of creating an
organization, groups will always be formed, be it formal or informal. And group
dynamics is an important area of study in organizational behavior as groups affect the
performance of the individuals involved. A group can also become a team. It's when
they are fully committed to a common goal, have mutual accountability, have trust and
collaboration, and synergy. Being in a group entails conflict. It is natural as individuals to
face conflict once in a while. The important thing is how we manage conflict. This can
be resolved informally with a one-on-one talk, or it could be through a team meeting if
the issue is work-related. Just like any meeting, a meeting needs to be well-thought of.
Things to think about before and after a meeting are if it is needed, what agenda to
discuss, taking of minutes and assignment of tasks, and following up on action items.
8. ORGANIZATIONAL MICROCOSM

- Communication in the organization

We define organizational communication as the sending and receiving of messages

among interrelated individuals within a particular environment or setting to achieve
individual and common goals. Organizational communication is highly contextual and
culturally dependent. Individuals in organizations transmit messages through face-to-
face, written, and mediated channels.

Organizational communication helps us to 1) accomplish tasks relating to specific roles

and responsibilities of sales, services, and production; 2) acclimate to changes through
individual and organizational creativity and adaptation; 3) complete tasks through the
maintenance of policy, procedures, or regulations that support daily and continuous
operations; 4) develop relationships where "human messages are directed at people
within the organization-their attitudes, morale, satisfaction, and fulfillment" (Goldhaber
20); and 5) coordinate, plan, and control the operations of the organization through
management (Katz & Kahn; Redding; Thayer). Organizational communication is how
organizations represent, present, and constitute their organizational climate and culture
—the attitudes, values, and goals that characterize the organization and its members.

Organizational communication largely focuses on building relationships and interacting

with internal organizational members and interested in external publics. We have two
ways of looking at organizational communication. The conventional approach focuses
on communication within organizations. The second approach is communication as an
organization — meaning organizations are a result of the communication of those within
them. Communication is not just about transmitting messages between senders and
receivers. Communication constitutes our social world. Much of our communication
involves sending and receiving relatively unproblematic messages and acting on that
information. Other times things are a bit more complex, such as when you need to
resolve conflict with a close friend or family member. There is much more going on in
these situations than merely exchanging information. You are engaging in a complex
process of meaning and negotiating rules created by the people involved.

- Influence tactics, power, and empowerment

Organizational influence is the characteristics or attributes of an organization and the

impact they have on the people and work completed within, including project
management. This can be tangible, like location, office space, etc. or intangible, like
culture. It can also be intentional and unintentional.

Researchers have identified distinct influence tactics and discovered that there are few
differences between the way bosses, subordinates, and peers use them. Responses to
influence attempts include resistance, compliance, or commitment. Resistance occurs
when the influence target does not wish to comply with the request and either passively
or actively repels the influence attempt. Compliance occurs when the target does not
necessarily want to obey, but they do. Commitment occurs when the target not only
agrees to the request but actively supports it as well. Within organizations, commitment
helps to get things done, because others can help to keep initiatives alive long after
compliant changes have been made or resistance has been overcome.

1. Rational persuasion includes using facts, data, and logical arguments to try to
convince others that your point of view is the best alternative. This is the most
commonly applied influence tactic. One experiment illustrates the power of
reason. People were lined up at a copy machine and another person, after
joining the line asked, “May I go to the head of the line?” Amazingly, 63% of the
people in the line agreed to let the requester jump ahead. When the line jumper
makes a slight change in the request by asking, “May I go to the head of the line
because I have copies to make?” the number of people who agreed jumped to
over 90%. The word because was the only difference. Effective rational
persuasion includes the presentation of factual information that is clear and
 specific, relevant, and timely. Across studies summarized in a meta-analysis,
rationality was related to positive work outcomes.
2. Inspirational appeals seek to tap into our values, emotions, and beliefs to gain
support for a request or course of action. When President John F. Kennedy said,
“Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country,”
he appealed to the higher selves of an entire nation. Effective inspirational
appeals are authentic, personal, big-thinking, and enthusiastic.
3. Consultation refers to the influence agents asking others for help in influencing or
planning to influence another person or group. Consultation is most effective in
organizations and cultures that value democratic decision making.
4. Ingratiation refers to different forms of making others feel good about
themselves. Ingratiation includes any form of flattery done either before or during
the influence attempt. Research shows that ingratiation can affect individuals. For
example, in a study of résumés, those résumés that were accompanied with a
cover letter containing ingratiating information were rated higher than résumés
without this information. Other than the cover letter accompanying them, the
résumés were identical. Effective ingratiation is honest, infrequent, and well-
intended.
5. Personal appeal refers to helping another person because you like them and
they asked for your help. We enjoy saying yes to people we know and like. A
famous psychological experiment showed that in dorms, the most well-liked
people were those who lived by the stairwell—they were the most often seen by
others who entered and left the hallway. The repeated contact brought a level of
familiarity and comfort. Therefore, personal appeals are most effective with
people who know and like you.
6. Exchange refers to give-and-take in which someone does something for you, and
you do something for them in return. The rule of reciprocation says that “we
should try to repay, in kind, what another person has provided us.” The
application of the rule obliges us and makes us indebted to the giver. One
experiment illustrates how a small initial gift can open people to a substantially
larger request at a later time. One group of subjects was given a bottle of Coke.
 Later, all subjects were asked to buy raffle tickets. On average, people who had
been given the drink bought twice as many raffle tickets as those who had not
been given the unsolicited drinks.
7. Coalition tactics refer to a group of individuals working together toward a
common goal to influence others. Common examples of coalitions within
organizations are unions that may threaten to strike if their demands are not met.
Coalitions also take advantage of peer pressure. The influencer tries to build a
case by bringing in the unseen as allies to convince someone to think, feel, or do
something. A well-known psychology experiment draws upon this tactic. The
experimenters stare at the top of a building in the middle of a busy street. Within
moments, people who were walking by in a hurry stop and also look at the top of
the building, trying to figure out what the others are looking at. When the
experimenters leave, the pattern continues, often for hours. This tactic is also
extremely popular among advertisers and businesses that use client lists to
promote their goods and services. The fact that a client bought from the company
is a silent testimonial.
8. Pressure refers to exerting undue influence on someone to do what you want or
else something undesirable will occur. This often includes threats and frequent
interactions until the target agrees. Research shows that managers with low
referent power tend to use pressure tactics more frequently than those with
higher referent power. Pressure tactics are most effective when used in a crisis
and when they come from someone who has the other's best interests in mind,
such as getting an employee to an employee assistance program to deal with a
substance abuse problem.
9. Legitimating tactics occur when the appeal is based on legitimate or position
power. “By the power vested in me…”: This tactic relies upon compliance with
rules, laws, and regulations. It is not intended to motivate people but to align
them behind a direction. Obedience to authority is filled with both positive and
negative images. Position, title, knowledge, experience, and demeanor grant
authority, and it is easy to see how it can be abused. If someone hides behind
people’s rightful authority to assert themselves, it can seem heavy-handed and
 without choice. You must come across as an authority figure by the way you act,
speak, and look. Think about the number of commercials with doctors, lawyers,
and other professionals who look and sound the part, even if they are actors.
People want to be convinced that the person is an authority worth heeding.
Authority is often used as a last resort. If it does not work, you will not have much
else to draw from in your goal to persuade someone.

Empowerment is an inevitable program to do more with fewer expenses. Organizers

have fewer choices about whether they want to train managers and employees enabled
or not. Empowerment happens because the more successful organizations are
uncovering better ways to take full advantage of the intellectual resources of their
employees. Organizations are this issue that only their real capital is their thinking.
These reasons explain the growing tendency to empowerment
Methods of empowerment for empowering of human resources, directors chose,
perform, and follow up different ways that the most important of these methods can be
summarized in these cases:

Participation
In this way, decisions are delegated to staff, involving employees and their active
participation in decision-making and project organization is as one of the mechanisms
and effective methods of empowerment which can lead to motivation and job
satisfaction, and ultimately more empowering them.

Involve the people

It means staff provide their experiences, ideas, and suggestions

Create commitment
More commitment to the goals of the organization include improving employee job
satisfaction.

Flatting of structure
In this way, crossing the structure and reducing the number of layers and levels of
management is performed in the organizational structure.

Training
Undoubtedly, effective and penetrating training is an important tool in empowering
employees to achieve organizational goals. Educational programs will be useful if that
associate employee involvement and management as well as participation in
institutional programs to enhance work incentives. It is achievable through periodic
meetings, workshops, and lectures of management. In addition to training and learning,
mechanisms such as performance management, coaching, job rotation, and succession
planning can play the role of education in empowering employees (Moslehi, et al)

- Strategic leadership

Strategic leadership, as a process, is therefore realized by strategic leaders. From this

last category, it is considered that strategic leaders can be selected from the following
types of managers: general managers, front line managers, board members, division
managers, etc. Strategic leadership involves conceiving and implementing successful
strategies. (Stan, 2013).

Strategic management is a leading, comprehensive, continuously, process, which helps

training and implementing effective strategies that ensure agreement between the
organization and its environment, to achieve strategic objectives. (Ionescu et al, 2011).

Strategic efficient actions are the essential existential conditions in developing and
obtaining competitive advantages. Also, strategic leadership involves using activities of
general interest to help the growth of human interest when it comes to helping an
organization face the challenges that are constantly rising. (Țuțurea et al, 2010).
A manager has to poses four main abilities to be able to apply efficient leadership
strategies:
 intellect;
 abilities of self-evaluating;
 abilities to supervise and control;
 abilities to communicate;
There are two different leadership strategies when it comes to strategic leadership:
task-oriented (T) or people-oriented (P) (Mardar, 2013). Some (Warren & Bennis, 2000)
state that strategic leadership has the following key elements:
 vision (applied in a medium-long term plan)
 social architecture (which include elements that are defining, such as the origin of
the organization, the fundamental operating principles, the nature of his work,
information management, power distribution, and decision-making abilities,
impact and statute)
 the promotion of trust inside the organization
 the promotion of innovation and creativity and social development.

There are also six ways in which strategic leadership can be translated:

 developing human capital – refers to the knowledge, professional abilities, level

of specialization, and qualifying, professional expertise of the labor force from an
organization. Employees are viewed as a capital resource, with them being a
major resource in obtaining competitive advantages.

 establishing a strategic direction– it refers to establishing strategic intentions and

missions, long term visions (5 to 10 years). In establishing a strategic direction
there need to be taken into consideration the strengths of a company. These
strengths can make up as important elements of support into achieving major
changes
  keeping and utilizing high standard performances - as strategic leaders,
managers need to make decisions that help develop an organization, maintaining
and enforcing high performances within the organization.

 developing an efficient organizational culture – organizational culture refers to a

set of complex ideologies, myths, slogans, symbols, and values within an
organization, which influence the leadership and help regulate and control
employer behavior. An organizational culture that promotes initiative spirit must
also promote risk-taking, and rewards must take into consideration long term
performances as being the opposite as short term performances. Reward
systems are also decisive in ensuring the development and maintaining an
organizational culture oriented in ensuring a high initiative spirit and ability to
achieve strategic goals.

 requirements of ethical behavior – strategic leaders are well known for insuring
an ethical behavior within the organization. One way of promoting this kind of
practice is to introduce ethics into the organizational culture of the organization,
which then will guide the actions of employees inside and outside the
organization, with the help of sanctions if necessary.

 existence of a strategic control system – within an organization there can be

used, mainly, two control systems: financial and strategic control. In some
situations, the two control systems are opposable, with strategic leadership trying
to ensure a balance between strategic control and financial control.

- Executive fitness

Organizational fitness is a function of multiple factors: a company's collective

performance and how well they respond to an employee's need for meaningful work,
how much opportunity exists for personal and professional growth, how well different
corporate functions fuse to share the same purpose, and the difference you make as a
leader.

Fitness entails growth. It entails change. Whether the focus is an individual or

organizational improvement, there must be alignment, execution, and re-alignment—
adaptability—to keep oneself or one's company at the leading edge. Here are three
principles to remember:

Don't copy and paste. No two fitness routines are the same. Just as what works for
“Barbell Joe” doesn’t work for the gym newbie, the best practices of one company
culture don't translate to others. What does translate, however, are high-level learnings
such as taking the time to reflect on past successes or failures; dedicating resources to
professional development; allocating greater autonomy for employees to make
decisions.

Make your goals explicit. Having a “fun” atmosphere is great, but what does “fun” look
like? Language is integral to establishing clarity; clarity is vital for certainty; certainty
produces results. Becoming the "best in the business" is admirable but the obscurity of
what "best" looks like fails on two fronts:

1. It doesn't guide people's decision-making. If I know that best is synonymous

with the cheapest, then every decision I make will be governed by price.
2. It doesn't provide feedback. Without knowing when the best is achieved, people
and processes continue operating and adding undue costs to realize a goal that
was already achieved.

Mindset is everything. The disposition of employee attitude toward the organization,

the company's feasibility in realizing stated objectives, and the likelihood of personal
fulfillment all affect how and what people think about the culture—among other things. If
their minds aren’t in the right place, then neither will their output. Mindset is everything.
Being organizationally fit means having the right people in the right places with the
freedom to maneuver and optimize output.

Conclusion

Organizational communication focuses on building relationships inside the organization

and outside with external interested parties. Communication constitutes our social world
and is not just by sending and receiving of messages. Influence tactics, power, and
empowerment go together. Power is the ability to influence others to achieve a certain
goal. And when supported by influence tactics, it turns into a powerful convincing or
compliance tool. Empowerment is there applied to fully support the cause in whatever
way possible. You may include these into strategic management, which applies
strategic and efficient actions to attain objectives. All of this will impact the
organization's fitness. Executive fitness is how well they respond to an employee's need
for meaningful work, how much opportunity exists for personal and professional growth,
how well different corporate functions fuse to share the same purpose, and the
difference you make as a leader.

9. SUCCESS, CHANGE, AND EVOLUTION

- Organizational effectiveness

Organizational effectiveness can be defined as the efficiency with which an

association can meet its objectives. This means an organization that produces the
desired effect or an organization that is productive without waste.

1. Leadership. To achieve high performance or sustain results, leaders must define

and refine key processes and execute them with daily discipline. They must translate
vision and values into strategy and objectives, processes and practices, actions and
accountabilities, execution, and performance. Leaders address three questions: 1)
Vision/Value. What unique value do we bring to our customers to gain a competitive
advantage? What do we do, for whom? Why? 2) Strategy/Approach. In what distinctive
manner do we fulfill the unique needs of our customers and stakeholders? What
strategy supports the vision for achieving a competitive advantage? 3)
Structure/Alignment. What is the designed alignment of structure and strategy,
technology and people, practices and processes, leadership and culture, measurement,
and control? Are these elements designed and aligned to create optimal conditions for
achieving the vision?

2. Communication. Everything happens in or because of a conversation, and every

exchange is a potential moment of truth—a point of failure or critical link in the success
chain. Strategic communication ensures that the impact of your message is consistent
with your intentions, and results in understanding. What you say, the way you say it,
where, when, and under what circumstances it is said to shape the performance culture.
When leaders maximize their contribution to daily conversations, they engage and align
people around a common cause, reduce uncertainty, keep people focused, equip
people for moments of truth that create an on-the-table culture, prevent excuses, learn
from experience, treat mistakes as intellectual capital, and leverage the power of
leadership decisions to shape beliefs and behaviors.

3. Accountability. Leaders translate vision and strategic direction into goals and
objectives, actions, and accountabilities. Performance accountability systems clarify
what is expected of people and align consequences or rewards with actual
performance. Leaders need to build discipline into their leadership process and
management cycle to achieve accountability, predictability, learning, renewal, and
sustainability.

4. Delivery. The best organizations develop simple processes that are internally
efficient, locally responsive, and globally adaptable. Complexity is removed from the
customer experience to enable them to engage you in ways that are both elegant and
satisfying. Establishing and optimizing operational performance is an ongoing journey.
Operations need to be focused on the priority work, using the most effective techniques
—aligning initiatives and operations with strategy; continuously improving operations;
pursuing performance breakthroughs in key areas; using advanced change techniques
in support of major initiatives; establishing a pattern of executive sponsorship for all
initiatives; and building future capability and capacity.

5. Performance. The Human Performance System is designed to attract, develop, and

retain the most talented people. The idea is to hire the best people and help them
develop their skills, talents, and knowledge over time. Of course, it becomes more
critical, as they add abilities and know-how, that we reward them properly so they feel
good about their work and choose to remain with the organization as loyal employees.

6. Measurement. A system of metrics, reviews, and course corrections keeps the

business on track. Organizations need concrete measures that facilitate quality control,
consistent behaviors, and predictable productivity and results. Within these parameters,
control is instrumental to viability and profitability. Every activity has a set of daily rituals
and measures. Leaders establish and maintain the measurement system to ensure
disciplined processes. They track progress against strategy and planning; review status
on operational results through clear key metrics; update the strategy regularly; and
ensure action is driven by insight based on relevant, current information that is focused
on achieving the vision.

- Managing change in learning organizations

Over the past few decades the concept of "Organizational Learning" has acquired
increasing importance, due to rapid changes in the business environment and
increasing competition. An extensive review of the Literature stresses the fact that the
organizations which build their learning capabilities can enjoy a leadership edge in the
competition, can remain innovative, and significantly improve their top line as well as
bottom-line profitability. In 1990, Senge in his seminal book “The Fifth Discipline”,
provided an elaborate coverage on the core disciplines which contribute towards
building a learning organization and those are shared vision, learning of teams,
systemic approach, personal mastery, and mental models.

Organizational Learning can be interpreted in terms of a continuum from progress from

the stage of no learning to the complete learning stage. No learning stage is
characterized by rigidities, insensitive approaches, or closed attitude towards the
sharing of realities and experiences. While, on the other hand, full learning stage
characterizes openness, flexibility, and adaptability towards the changing events or
experiences. There are several forces or mechanisms which contribute towards the
establishment of learning organizations.

Elements of Organizational Learning

 Organizational Learning is an ongoing process that produces everlasting

changes in several areas as a result of integrated initiatives.
 Organizational Learning involves three main subsystems: The first subsystem is
the acquisition of new inputs and its analysis. The new inputs may include any
change within the organization, changes in the organizational structure, or
technology. This stage characterizes innovation in the organization.
 The second subsystem is involving retention of the newly acquired input and the
successful retention would largely depend on how effectively the new input is
integrated with the existing processes. This subsystem can be regarded as the
implementation stage of Organizational Learning.
 The third subsystem involves the stabilization and usage of the newly acquired
inputs in the day to day processes of an organization.
 Organizational Learning results in improving the capabilities of an organization
for further learning on its own.

The mechanism for fostering Organizational Learning: This can be analyzed in five
different categories
1. Organizational Flexibility and Experimentation: Flexible organizations have
improved capabilities in addressing the problems or issues by identifying newer
alternatives or various possible solutions. Organizations which remain open for
experimentation and trying out newer methodologies, enjoy an edge in the
competitive battle and are more profitable. For promoting organizational flexibility
and experimentation, the following mechanisms may be used:
 Invite experienced practitioners or experts who have met success at work
by implementing change in the organization. Ask them to share their
experiences with a few selected representatives of the organization.
 Encourage employees to use their problem-solving abilities for addressing
various issues and apply their creative mind to tackling various problems,
even if they may not get success every time.
 Provide positive reinforcements in the form of rewards to the people who
use new approaches for solving a problem and achieve success in it.
 Review performance periodically and hold periodic meetings for sharing
the objectives and experiences, successful initiatives and outcomes of
various experiments.
 Organize seminars and workshops for raising awareness on the new
changes and successful initiatives.
2. Team work and Mutuality: Team work and mutuality is one of the major pre-
requisite for promoting organizational learning. The following mechanisms may
result in establishing an environment of collaboration, mutuality and team
support:
 Sharing of experiences, new ideas and innovative approaches both within
the organizations as well as with other organizations.
 Create task forces for realizing mission critical goals, implementing new
projects and reviewing the project success and for communicating a
shared vision to the employees of the organization.
 Review the progress of new initiatives or projects by holding periodic
meetings headed by the top or senior management officials. Top
management can play a crucial role in integrating objectives, building
 internal synergies and fostering a collaborative environment for
implementing change successfully.
3. Contingency and Incremental Planning: A contingency approach to planning
or incremental planning foster organizational learning. Contingency planning
improves organizational preparedness in identifying alternative solutions for
proactively addressing problems of varying nature. The mechanisms can lead to
contingency planning:
 Detailed plans reflecting the contingent approach can be prepared. Time
bound goals can be defined, but should equally include the best possible
alternatives.
 Learning gets reinforced if new initiatives are integrated with the existing
processes or practices.
 Record the learnings derived from new experiences and continuously
review performance and improvements which take place as a result of
effective planning.
 Create task forces and encourage groups to identify alternative
approaches and solutions for implementing a change.
4. Competency Building: Organizational Learning requires strengthening of
desired competencies, which can be done in the following ways:
 Competency building can be done by inviting experts or practitioners for
sharing their experiences or best practices and encouraging people to
endorse change.
 Organizing seminar programs and representing employees for
participating in external trainings for acquiring new skills or competencies.
 Creating task forces for communicating shared goals to the people
involved in the change process, implementing pilot projects for achieving
pre-defined change objectives in several areas as per the plans of the top
management.
5. Establishing Temporary System: Temporary systems in the form of task forces
or groups or pilot project groups are formed with the objective of achieving quick
 outcomes/decisions involving various aspects of change. The advantages of
temporary system have been provided below:
 Diverse viewpoints or decisions can be obtained from the members
representing cross functional, interdepartmental and inter-regional
backgrounds.
 Time bound objectives can be fulfilled as a result of which the tasks can
be completed faster.
 Temporary system facilitates objective oriented approach for addressing
the problems of diverse nature.
 Temporary system encourages risk orientation and independent outlook
for solving complicated issues.
 Temporary systems are a flexible framework which can be created or
dissolved as per the changing requirements.

- Crisis management

A sudden and unexpected event leading to major unrest amongst the individuals at the
workplace is called an organization crisis. In other words, crisis is defined as any
emergency situation which disturbs the employees as well as leads to instability in the
organization. Crisis affects an individual, group, organization or society on the whole.

Characteristics of Crisis

 Crisis is a sequence of sudden disturbing events harming the organization.

 Crisis generally arises on a short notice.
 Crisis triggers a feeling of fear and threat amongst the individuals.

Crisis can arise in an organization due to any of the following reasons:

 Technological failure and Breakdown of machines lead to crisis. Problems in

internet, corruption in the software, errors in passwords all result in crisis.
  Crisis arises when employees do not agree to each other and fight amongst
themselves. Crisis arises as a result of boycott, strikes for indefinite periods,
disputes and so on.
 Violence, thefts and terrorism at the workplace result in organization crisis.
 Neglecting minor issues in the beginning can lead to major crisis and a situation
of uncertainty at the work place. The management must have complete control
on its employees and should not adopt a casual attitude at work.
 Illegal behaviors such as accepting bribes, frauds, data or information tampering
all lead to organization crisis.
 Crisis arises when organization fails to pay its creditors and declares itself a
bankrupt organization.

Crisis Management

The art of dealing with sudden and unexpected events which disturbs the employees,
organization as well as external clients refers to Crisis Management.

The process of handling unexpected and sudden changes in organization culture is

called as crisis management.

Need for Crisis Management

 Crisis Management prepares the individuals to face unexpected developments

and adverse conditions in the organization with courage and determination.
 Employees adjust well to the sudden changes in the organization.
 Employees can understand and analyze the causes of crisis and cope with it in
the best possible way.
 Crisis Management helps the managers to devise strategies to come out of
uncertain conditions and also decide on the future course of action.
 Crisis Management helps the managers to feel the early signs of crisis, warn the
employees against the aftermaths and take necessary precautions for the same.
Essential Features of Crisis Management

 Crisis Management includes activities and processes which help the managers
as well as employees to analyze and understand events which might lead to
crisis and uncertainty in the organization.
 Crisis Management enables the managers and employees to respond effectively
to changes in the organization culture.
 It consists of effective coordination amongst the departments to overcome
emergency situations.
 Employees at the time of crisis must communicate effectively with each other and
try their level best to overcome tough times. Points to keep in mind during crisis
 Don’t panic or spread rumors around. Be patient.
 At the time of crisis, the management should be in regular touch with the
employees, external clients, stake holders as well as media.
 Avoid being too rigid. One should adapt well to changes and new situations.

- Corporate governance

Corporate governance is the system of rules, practices, and processes by which a firm
is directed and controlled. Corporate governance essentially involves balancing the
interests of a company's many stakeholders, such as shareholders, senior management
executives, customers, suppliers, financiers, the government, and the community. Since
corporate governance also provides the framework for attaining a company's objectives,
it encompasses practically every sphere of management, from action plans and internal
controls to performance measurement and corporate disclosure.

A company’s corporate governance is important to investors since it shows a company's

direction and business integrity. Good corporate governance helps companies build
trust with investors and the community. As a result, corporate governance helps
promote financial viability by creating a long-term investment opportunity for market
participants.
The board of directors is the primary direct stakeholder influencing corporate
governance. Directors are elected by shareholders or appointed by other board
members, and they represent shareholders of the company. The board is tasked with
making important decisions, such as corporate officer appointments, executive
compensation, and dividend policy. In some instances, board obligations stretch beyond
financial optimization, as when shareholder resolutions call for certain social or
environmental concerns to be prioritized.

Boards are often made up of inside and independent members. Insiders are major
shareholders, founders, and executives. Independent directors do not share the ties of
the insiders, but they are chosen because of their experience managing or directing
other large companies. Independents are considered helpful for governance because
they dilute the concentration of power and help align shareholder interest with those of
the insiders.

The board of directors must ensure that the company's corporate governance policies
incorporate the corporate strategy, risk management, accountability, transparency, and
ethical business practices.

Conclusion

An organization shows organizational effectiveness if it is efficient in meeting its desired

goals and objectives. An organizations effectiveness is not only brought by putting the
right people, but also by training the people. There will always be room for
organizational learning and it is characterized by openness, flexibility, and adaptability
towards the changing conditions. Issues leading to unrest within the entity and its
individuals are dealt by crisis management. Crisis are mostly unprecedented, like the
COVID-19 pandemic. As an organization, business continuity plans are created and
polished to act as a solution or an airbag to lessen the impacts to the organization. All of
this are under the umbrella of corporate governance. This involves balancing the
interests of everyone involved in the company, from stakeholder to the community. A
company's governance will also dictate the company's direction and integrity. Thus,
good governance will build a network of trust and promote good investment
opportunities.

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