ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE: A SURVEY STUDY OF ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AND BEHAVIORAL STUDIES

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Transcription:

ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE: A SURVEY STUDY OF ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AND BEHAVIORAL STUDIES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PLANNING AND
MANAGEMENT AYALEW GIZAW Addis Ababa University June, 2014

Organizational Culture: A Survey Study of Ethiopian Airlines ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF
EDUCATION AND BEHAVIORAL STUDIES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PLANNING AND
MANAGEMENT BY:- AYALEW GIZAW FELEKE A thesis submitted to the Addis Ababa University College of
Education and Behavioral Studies Department of Educational Planning and Management in partial
fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of the Master of Arts in Human Resource and
Organization Development in Education. June, 2014

DDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AND BEHAVIORAL STUDIES DEPARTMENT OF

EDUCATIONAL PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT ORGAIZATIONAL CULTURE: A SURVEY STUDY OF
ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES BY AYALEW GIZAW FELEKE ADDIS ABABA JUNE, 2014
ADDIS ABABA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF GRADUATES STUDIES COLLEGE OF EDUCATION AND BEHAVIORAL
STUDIES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE:
A SURVEY STUDY OF ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES By:- Ayalew Gizaw Feleke Dr. Hussen Chairman, Department
Committee Signature Dr. Befekadu Zeleke Advisor Signature Ato Melaku Yimam Internal Examiner
Signature Dr. Temesgen F. External Examiner Signature Addis Ababa University June, 2014

AKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my deepest gratitude to my advisor Dr. Befekadu Zeleke
for his encouragement, valuable comment, and support to undertake this thesis. It is also with great
pleasure that I acknowledge my indebtedness to the help I have been given by my wife W/ro Tewabech
Tulu and my son Hailemichael Ayalew. I would like to thank all my friends particularly Ato Bekalu, Ato
Yikum, Ato Gizachew, Ato Asrat and Dr. Merid for their material and moral support.

Table of Contents Contents Page No. Acknowledgements..................................... i. List of

Tables......................................... ii. List of Figures........................................ iii.
Abbreviations........................................ iv. Abstract............................................ v. Chapter One 1.
Introduction...................................... 1 1.1 Background.................................... 1 1.2 Statement of the
Problem.......................... 3 1.3 Objective of the Study............................ 4 1.4 Significance of the
Study.......................... 4 1.5 Delimitation of the study.......................... 5 1.6 Limitation of the
Study........................... 5 1.7 Operational Definition............................ 5 1.8 Organization of the
Study......................... 5 Chapter Two 2. Review of Related Literature.......................... 7 2.1 The Concept
of Organizational Culture............... 7 2.1.1 Characteristics of Organizational Culture.......... 10 2.1.2
Functions of Organizational Culture............. 11 2.1.3 Strong and Weak Organizational Culture.......... 12
2.1.4 Dimensions of Organizational Culture............ 14 2.2 Approaches to Organizational
Culture................ 15 2.2.1 The Competing Value Framework.............. 15

2.2.2 The Three Levels of Culture Model............. 17 2.2.3 The Four Conditions of Culture............... 18 2.3
The Ethiopian Airlines: An Aviation Business Organization 19 2.3.1 The Inception of Ethiopian
Airlines............. 20 2.3.2 The Development of Ethiopian Airlines.......... 22 2.3.3 Pioneer in A Sub Saharan
Africa............... 23 Chapter Three 3. Research Design and Methodology...................... 25 3.1 Research
Design................................ 25 3.2 Data Sources................................... 25 3.3 Sample size and Sampling
Techniques................ 25 3.4 Data Gathering Tools and Procedures................ 26 3.4.1 Data Gathering
Tool........................ 26 3.4.2 Procedures of Data collection................. 29 3.5 Methods of Data
analysis........................ 30 Chapter Four 4. Presentation, Analysis, and Interpretation of Data.......... 31
4.1 Characteristics of Respondents.................... 31 4.2 Analysis and Interpretation of Data................ 34
4.2.1 Profiles of Each of the Six Culture Attributes..... 36 4.2.2.1 Dominant Characteristics............ 37
4.2.2.2 Organizational Leadership............ 38 4.2.2.3 Management of Employees............ 38 4.2.2.4
Organization Glue.................. 39 4.2.2.5 Strategic Emphasis................. 40 4.2.2.6 Criteria of
Success.................. 41 Chapter Five 5. Summary, Conclusion and Recommendation.............. 42

5.1 Summary of Findings........................... 42 5.2 Conclusions.................................. 43 5.3

Recommendations.............................. 43 Bibliography.................................. 46
Appendices....................................

List of Tables Table No. Title Page No. Table 1 Characteristics of Respondents by Age 31 Table 2
Characteristics of Respondents by Sex 32 Table 3 Characteristics of Respondents by Qualification 32
Table 4 Characteristics of Respondents by Service Year 33 Table 5 Characteristics of Respondents on the
basis of Marital Status 33

List of Figures Figure No. Title Page No. Figure 1 Average culture Plot of the EAL 34 Figure 2 Average
Preferred Culture of the EAL 35 Figure 3 Dominant Characteristics Profile wise 36 Figure 4 Organizational
Leadership 37 Figure 5 Management of Employees 38 Figure 6 Organizational Glue 39 Figure 7 Strategic
Emphasis 40 Figure 8 Criteria of Success 41

Abbreviations CVF - Competing Value Framework EAL - Ethiopian Airlines HRM - Human Resource
Management MRO - Maintenance Repair Organization OC - Organizational Culture OCA I -
Organizational Culture Assessment Institute TWA - Trans World Airlines

Abstract The purpose of this study was to identify the dominant and preferred culture at Ethiopian
Airlines as perceived by its employees. A descriptive survey design was employed. Ethiopian Airlines
employees particularly in human resource management, finance, maintenance and repair organization,
marketing and aviation academy were sampled. Cameron and Quinn s (2006) standard questionnaire
was utilized to collect data from sampled respondents on the dominant as well as preferred culture
perception of these employees. The data obtained through the instrument were analyzed with graphs
drawn what employees believe the existing culture and what they preferred to be. Profiles of each of
the six culture attributes and their average were analyzed and graphed. The results of the study revealed
that market culture was the dominant culture as perceived by employees and the preferred culture as
perceived by employees was the clan culture. Ethiopian Airlines leaders firmly believed that application
of market culture was the principal means to with stand the aggression of the giant carriers particularly
the aggression of the Middle East Airlines. However, employees preferred the clan culture. Since
organizational culture is the most important agent for the success of an organization the study
concluded that the gap between market culture and clan culture is wider than acceptable limit which is
less or equal to three points. Therefore, to withstand the domination (market domination) of the Middle
east and Gulf carriers Ethiopian Airlines is advised to adjust the existing culture gap between the two
cultures which is ten points.

CHAPTER ONE This chapter deals with the background of the study, statement of the problem,
objectives of the study, Significances of the study, limitations of the study, delimitation of the study,
operational definition and organization of the study. 1. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY There are more
than 150 definitions of organizational culture. The definitions might have been stemmed from the
diverse use of the term culture (Schabracq, 2007). The concept of Organizational culture immerged
initially from two different disciplinary roots: anthropological and sociological foundation (Cameron and
Quinn, 2006). Cameron and Ettington (1988) reviewed a long list of published definitions of
organizational culture and noted that in the majority cases, culture has been treated as an enduring set
of values, beliefs and assumptions that characterize organizations and their members. On the other
hand Schein (2004) defines organizational culture as a pattern of shared basic assumptions that were
learned by a group as it solved its problems of external and internal integration. Organizational culture is
quite complex. There are a number of problems and disagreements associated with conceptualization of
organizational culture. However, most definitions recognize the importance of shared norms and values
that guide the behavior of the participant s of the organization (Luthons, 2005). Hofstead in Drummond
(2000) depicts culture as the software of the mind that is the collective programming of the mind which
distinguishes the member of one group or category of people from another. On the contrary, Robins in
Garcia et. al. (2004) affirms

that organizational culture refers to how employees perceived their characteristics. Organizational
culture is the most important instrument for the success of an organization. A culture can generate a
positive or negative way or affects the working environment. A strong organizational culture can
generate motivation, responsibility and loyalty of employees to the organization (Goldstone, 2007). But,
according to Schabracq (2007) organizational culture is not as such so vivid; rather most of it is hidden
from the eyes of the beholder like the proverbial ice berg of which only one tenth sticks out of the
water. Organizations like human beings have their own personalities, and institutional culture is the
personalities of organizations. As every individual has a set of values every organization has a set of
values (Drafke, 2008). Organizational culture is a dynamic phenomenon that surrounds us at all times
being constantly in acted and created by our interactions (Schein, 2004). In the mean time organizations
tend to develop dominant organizational culture through time as they adapt and respond to challenges
(Schein, 1983). A dominant culture is a set of core values shared by the majority of members of the
organization. For example, most employees at South west Airlines seen to subscribe to such values as
hard work, company loyalty, and the need for customer service (Luthons, 2005). The Ethiopian Airlines
(EAL) is a veteran organization in a frequently changing and developing technology in the field. As per its
mission and vision, it is carrying (performing) an extensive construction work, fleet modernization, route
expansion and massive human development program and yet much is not known about its
organizational culture.

1.1 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM Several reasons could be given for the failure of an organization but
none of them parallel organizational culture. The most frequently sighted reason given for the failure
was a neglect of the organization s culture. Cameron and Quinn s mode of competing values frame work
consists of four competing values that correspond with four types of organizational culture. Every
organization has its own mix of these four types of organizational culture. The major distinguishing
features of top performing organizations, their most competitive advantage, their powerful factor and
their key ingredient in their success is considered to be their organizational culture. Using Organizational
Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) the Ethiopian Airlines (EAL) can identify its current culture and its
preferred culture. The management of the EAL can exploit what employees identify, their perceptions
on both existing culture and their desired future culture. Congruence between individual and
organizational culture contribute to higher level of performance (Cameron and Quinn, 2006) and this
will enable the EAL to fulfill its mission and vision. Fulfilling mission and vision is transferring oneself to
higher (great) organization. The critical tool for the transfer is then the congruence between individual
and organizational culture. Most of the studies conducted on organizational culture are on educational
institutions but, this study is on a service giving industrial organization. Industrial organizations like the
EAL differ from educational institutions in their goals, missions and visions. This makes the study
principally different from the other studies. The purpose of this study is to identify the dominant culture
and the preferred culture at the Ethiopian Airlines (EAL) as perceived by

employees. Therefore, the study seeks to answer the following basic questions. 1. What is the dominant
culture at the EAL as perceived by employees? 2. What is the preferred culture at the EAL as perceived
by employees? 3. What is the implication of the existing and preferred culture to the EAL? 1.2
OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY The general objective of the study was to identify the dominant and the
preferred culture at the EAL as perceived by the employees of the Airlines. Specifically the study
indicates that organizational success depends on the organization s culture match with the demands of
the competitive environment. 1.3 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY Intellectuals and researchers in the field
confirmed that organizational culture is the most powerful factor and key ingredient for the success of
an organization. Hence, this study attempts to identify the dominant culture at the EAL and the
preferred culture as perceived by the employees of the Airlines. Therefore, the study is specifically
significant for the following reasons: As far as the researcher knows no research is made in the field in
the organization so that both leaders and managers shall give their attention and time to exploit the
study. To contribute its part to minimize shortage of knowledge. The findings of the study will create
awareness on the part of the management and employees of the organization; Tries to identify the
dominant culture of the EAL and suggest workable solutions that better enhance cultural elements;
Serves as a base to those individuals who have the desire to deal with such similar issues. It serves as a
starting ground to encourage interested researchers for further investigation; The study may help the
top management of further diagnose their organizational culture practice. 1.4 DELIMITATION OF THE
STUDY The EAL has got numerous employees in all the countries where it flies. It is very difficult and very
expensive to reach all of them. Because of the distribution of the population, shortage of money and
time the research is delimited to only some sections of the EAL situated at Bole. The scope of the study
is delimited to HRM, Finance, MRO, Marketing and Aviation academy. 1.5 LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
Shortage of time, materials and very limited cooperation of administration were among the front
runners that the researcher encountered. Had it not been for time shortage the researcher would have
interviewed leaders of the organization and also perform standardized observation that would have
made the study more refined and complete. Lack of information what the researcher desired to show in
his research work was the other one. 1.7. OPERATIONAL DEFINITION Organizational Culture: The existing
and preferred culture in the context of the EAL as viewed by the employees based on Cameron and
Quinn s OCAI. Preferred Culture: A selected culture by employees on the context of the EAL among clan,
adhocracy, market and hierarchy cultures based on Cameron and Quinn s CVF.

Dominant Culture: A culture what is currently being implied (going on) in an organization in the context
of the EAL as perceived by employees based on Cameron and Quinn s CVF. 1.8 ORGANIZATION OF THE
STUDY The study consists of five chapters. The first chapter deals with introduction, the second chapter
consists of the review of the related literature, the third chapter is about the research design and
methodology, the forth chapter deals with the presentation, analysis and interpretation of data. Finally,
summary, conclusion and recommendations are forwarded on the basis of analysis.

2. Review of Related Literature CHAPTER TWO Chapter one explored the background to and the
motivation for this study, with specific reference to organizational culture as a main construct. In this
chapter the concept Organizational Culture is explored in more detail. The main focus areas of this
chapter include theoretical aspects of concepts of organizational culture, functions of organizational
culture, characteristics of organizational culture, strong and weak culture, dimensions of organizational
culture, approaches of organizational culture and then a brief history of the establishment and
development of the Ethiopian Airlines. 2.1 The Concept of Organizational Culture Although the concept
of organizational culture was popularized in the early 1980s, its roots can be traced back to the early
human relations view of organizations that originated in the 1940s. Human relation theorists viewed the
informal, nonmaterial, interpersonal, and moral bases of cooperation and commitment as perhaps more
important than the formal material and instrumental controls stressed by the rational system theorists.
The human relations perspective drew its inspirations from even earlier anthropological and sociological
work on culture associated with groups and societies (Hofstde, 1973). On the other hand, social
scientists have explored the notion of organizational culture as a perspective in organizational theory
over the past decades. Brown (1998) states that current interests in organizational culture stems from at
least four different sources: Climate research, national cultures, human resources management, and
from conviction approaches which emphasize the national and structural

nature of the organization to be unable to offer a full explanation of organizational behavior. The
concept of organizational culture to Human relation theorists is the informal, non material,
interpersonal and morale issues. Whereas to the rational system theorists it is the formal, material and
institutional control. To social scientists to develop the concept organizational culture climate, national
cultures, human resource management and convicting approaches are the base. Background and
outlooks could be possible causes for these different perspectives. Research surveys conducted in the
1970s suggest that organizational culture seems to be a sophisticated approach to understand the
beliefs and attitudes of individual members about their respective organizations (Brown, 1998). On the
other hand, studies in the 1990s stress on what people value causes organizations to have cultures and
require the reputations they have. World class companies usually have cutting edge technology,
superior management systems, and outstanding electronic system, and data base management but their
reputations all comeback to human beings (Pohlman & Gardiner, 2007). Furthermore, an organization s
culture then is what its members choose to make it. The organization itself does not have values; it is
comprised of people who bring their values to their work. These personal values join with and become
part of the organizational culture. The origin of organizational culture from a national culture point of
view is based, among others, on the work of Deal and Kennedy (1982). According to this view,
organizational culture is seen as being central to organizational success rather than factors such as
structure, strategy or politics. As a result the attention shifted away from national cultures and focused
more on organizational culture. Interests in organizational culture from the human resource
management and performance point of views stem from the fact that

organizational culture was perceived to be offering a non mechanistic, flexible and imaginative approach
to understanding how organizations work (Brown, 1998). Besides, organizational culture is the most
important agent for the success of an organization. A culture can generate a positive or negative way or
affect the way we work. A strong organizational culture can generate motivation, responsibility, and
loyalty of employees to the organization (Goldstone, 2007). A positive example stated by Pohlman &
Gardiner (2007). Southwest airline employees make their planes ready in less than have the time of the
industry average. Teamwork, belongingness, group alliance, a sense of participation and bottom up
communication make them work hard. They work hard in as fast as they can to minimize ground time of
the aircraft. Workers with full enthusiasms and a sense of pride travel a distance to accomplish their jobs
and assist their colleagues. Consequently, organizational culture is considered to be the great Cure all
for most organizational problems (Wilson, 1992). To summarize, studies in the 1970s suggested that
organizational culture was a sophisticated approach to understand the beliefs and attitudes of individual
members about their respective organizations. The concept of organizational culture popularized in the
1980s. Views of Rationalists and Human relation theorists were quite different. They seem opposite. This
might be due to their base on anthropological and sociological outlooks. Studies in the 1990s stressed
on what people value that considered organization s culture as what its members choose to make it.
2.1.1 Characteristics of Organizational Culture All the beliefs, feelings, behaviors, and symbols make the
characteristic of an organization. Even if there is a certain variation between organizations most of them
include observed behavioral regularities, norms, dominant values, philosophy, feelings, and rules as
characteristics (Luneburg & Ornstein, 1991).

On the other hand, based on the eastern culture, particularly based on Taiwanese organizations, Chang
and Lu identified four characteristics of organizational culture. They are: family kin, informal work
obligations, organizational loyalty, and sub group involvement (Chang, 2000). Furthermore,
characteristics of organizational culture could either alleviate or aggravate stress depending on
employees perception and attribution. Sources of stress can depend on the characteristics of the culture
existed in organizations (Katyk et al., 2000; Shahar et al., 2004). Some studies indicated an association
linking stress and characteristics of organizational culture, such as levels of organizational commitment,
and communication style. Characteristics of organizational culture not only reflect organizational
uniqueness but also may become potential source of stress. Chang and Lu (2000) found that
organizational culture is often regarded as an invisible principle to organizational members, that is, a
collective value indicating how people are supposed to behave within the organization. When the
personal value matches a collective value, the legitimacy of such value is committed. However, when the
personal value is incongruent with the collective value, conflict will occur and provoke a sense of
pressure. In summary, beliefs, feelings, behavior and symbols make the characteristics of an
organization. These characteristics reflect organizational uniqueness. Sources of stress can depend on
the characteristics of the culture and depending on the employee s perception; characteristics of
organizational culture could alleviate or aggravate stress. Levels of organizational commitment and
communication style seem to have linkage with stress and characteristics of organizational culture.

2.1.2 Functions of Organizational culture The main function of organizational culture is to define the way
of doing things in order to give meaning to organizational life (Arnold, 2005). Making meaning is an issue
of organizational culture, because organizational members need to benefit from the lessons of previous
members. As a result, organizational members are able to profit from whatever trials and errors
regarding knowledge others have been able to accumulate (Johnson, 1990). Organizational culture also
determines organizational behavior, by identifying principal goal; work methods; how members should
interact and address each other; and how to conduct personal relationship (Harrison, 1993). Brown
(1998) states the following functions of organizational culture: conflict reduction, coordination and
control, reduction of uncertainty, motivation, and competitive advantage. In addition to the above
functions, Martins (2003) also mention the following as functions of organizational culture: a boundary
defining role, a sense of identity to organizational members, facilitates commitment, enhances social
system stability as the social glue, and serves as a meaningful control mechanism. These functions of
organizational culture suggest that an organization cannot operate without a culture, because it assists
the organization to achieve its goals. In general, organizational culture gives organizational members
direction towards achieving organizational goals (Hampden Turner, 1990). To summarize, organizational
culture defines the way of doing things to give meaning to organizational life. It determines
organizational behavior by identifying principal goals and methods. To Brown functions of organizational
culture are: conflict reduction, reduction of uncertainty, motivation, coordination and control and
competitive advantage. Whereas to Martins functions of organizational culture are: boundary

defining roll, a sense of identity, facilitates commitment and control mechanism. In general
organizational culture gives organizational members directions to achieve organizational goals. 2.1.3
Strong and Weak Organizational Culture Organizational culture can either be strong or weak. Strong
culture is said to exist when the staff respond to stimulus because of their alignment to organizational
values. That is in a strong culture; the organization s core values are held strongly and shared widely.
This suggests that when organizational members accept the shared values, they become more
committed to them. In such environments, strong cultures help firms operate like well oiled machines,
engaging in outstanding execution with only minor adjustments to existing procedures. A strong
organizational culture has a great influence on members (Martins, 2003). In other words, a strong
culture is a powerful lever for guiding behavior (Deal and Kennedy, 1983). In a company with a strong
culture, one can feel the human energy that flows from aligned, committed employees. Strong culture
Extracted from The Secret of a Winning Culture PP 49 Research indicates that organizations may derive
the following benefits from developing strong and productive cultures: Better aligning the company
towards achieving its vision, mission and goals; High employee loyalty and motivation;

Increase team cohesiveness among the company s various departments and divisions; Promoting
consistency and encouraging coordination and control within the company; Sharing employee behavior
at work, enabling the organization to be more efficient. A weak organizational culture, on the other
hand, is where there is a little alignment with organizational values and control must be exercised
through extensive procedures and bureaucracy. Organizational members do not subscribe to the shared
believes, values, and norms (O Reilly et al., 1991). Organizational members in a week culture find it
difficult to identify with the organization s core values and goals (Wilson, 1992). As a result different
departments within such an organization uphold different believes that do not necessarily address the
core goals of the organization. In a company with a weak culture, the available energy is fragmented and
often dissipated through conflicting agendas, blaming, and unclear communication. Weak culture
Extracted from The Secret of a Winning Culture PP 49 Weak cultures have a negative impact on
employees because they are directly linked to increased turnover (Harrison, 1993). In essence, the
fundamental strength of the organization s culture is determined by how weak or strong it is. In
summary, if staff s response is high and organizations values held strongly and shared widely then there
is a strong culture and organizations benefit from the developed culture. And if organizational
members cannot identify the organizations core values and goals then the organization is said to have a
weak culture. Weak cultures have negative impact such as increased turnover. 2.1.4 Dimensions of
Organizational Culture The culture dimension is central in all aspects of organizational life. Different
writers use different dimensions to measure aspects of organizational culture. For example, Hofsteade
(1980) in his first study identified four dimensions of organizational culture. They are: power distance,
uncertainty avoidance, individualism Vs collectivism, and masculinity Vs femininity. In his second study
he added a fifth dimension namely long Vs short term orientation. Schein (2004) in his dimension of
organizational culture asserts that organizations can be thought of as involving three dimensions of
career movement. They are: lateral movement from one task or function to another, vertical movement
from one rank to another and inclusionary movement from outsider to insider. Furthermore, Hofsteade
and Bond in Schein (2004) identified a dimension that contrasted a past/present orientation with a
future orientation and found that economic development was correlated with future orientation.
According to Dension (1990) organizational culture can be described by four general dimensions:
mission (strategic direction and intent, goals, objectives, vision), adaptability (creating change, customer
focus, organizational learning), involvement (empowerment, team orientation, and capability),
consistency (core values, agreement, coordination/ integration). Deal and Kennedy (1982) on their part
carried a model of culture that is based on four different types of organizations. They each focus on how
quickly the organization receives feedback, the way members are rewarded and the level of risks taken:
work hard/ play hard culture, tough guy/macho culture, process culture, Bet the company culture.

Handy (1985) popularized Roger Harison with linking organizational culture to the following: power
culture (concentrates power among a small group), role culture (authorities are delegated within a
highly defined structure), task culture (teams are formed to form particular culture), person culture
(formed where all individuals believed themselves superior to the organizations). On top of this
Cameroon and Ettington (1988) indicated two kinds of dimensions. Content and pattern dimensions.
Each of which contains its own sub sections. Content dimension refers to the aspects of an organization
s culture that should be used as cues in scenarios in order to help individuals to recognize their
organizations cultural values. Whereas pattern dimensions refer to a cultural profile that is produced by
scoring a culture assessment instrument. To summarize the above views of organizational culture
provide broader opinion of the variations that exist between theorists in their description of the
concept. The variations and differences mainly evolved overtime. 2.2 Approaches of Organizational
Culture There are various approaches to organizational culture. In fact, there is no one best way to
access organizational culture. Three different approaches, each linked to specific method of measuring
and assessing culture are discussed. They are: the competing value frame work approach, the three
levels of culture approach, and the four conditions of culture approach. 2.2.1 The Competing Value
Framework The competing value framework was developed by Cameron and Quinn (2006) and broadly
applicable and intended to foster successful leadership; improved organizational effectiveness; and
promote value creation.
The competing value framework can tell if an organization s prominent culture falls into one or two of
four types: the clan culture, the hierarchy culture, the adhocracy culture or the market culture. The
Competing Values Framework Flexibility and Discretion INTERNAL FOCUS AND INTEGRATION Clan
Hierarchy Adhocracy Market EXTERNAL FOCUS AND DIFFERENTIATION Stability and Control Extracted
from Cameron and Quinn (2006 P. 35) The Clan Culture: is internally oriented and flexible control. It is
characterized by shared values and goals, cohesion, participation, development of individuals, the sense
of group performance by team work, loyalty and consensus standards. Its name comes from its similarity
to a family organization. The organization is like a family extended. The heads of the organization are
considered leaders and mentors, the figure is paternal. Cohesion and morality are very important.
Success is defined by the concern to employees and sensitivity to customers and consumers (Cameron
and Quinn, 2006). The Hierarchy culture: is characterized by stable internal guidance and control. It is
based on rules, specialization, impersonality, responsibility and hierarchy. The goals of the organizations
long term stability, predictability and efficiency. The organization is a structured and formalized
workplace. The leaders provide themselves on being good

coordinators and organizers. The item concerning the long term is stability and the efficient and
accurate operations. Success is in terms of delivering reliable, accurate scheduling and low cost
(Cameron and Quinn, 2006). The Market culture: shows stable control and external orientation. It works
as a market in itself. The core values are competitiveness and productivity. A market culture is a work
space led to results. It is result-oriented organization. Leaders are guides tough, productive and
competitive. The element that holds the organization is the emphasis of winning. Corporate reputation
and success are constant concerns (Cameron and Quinn, 2006). The Adhocracy Culture: is manifested by
external focus and flexible control. A culture of pioneering and innovative as key to success. The
company is a dynamic, enterprising creative workplace. The leaders are considered innovators and risk
takers. The organization is held together by experimentation and innovation. Success is conceived as
generating new and unique products and services. 2.2.2 The Three Levels of Culture Model This model is
developed by Schein (1999). It focuses on three different levels of culture which move the visible to the
invisible. The first level consists of visible artifacts (such as myths, rites, stories and symbols). Artifacts
provide easily observable clues to the culture of the workplace. They include elements such as the
architecture, décor and space design, whether actions are fast paced or careful and deliberate (Schein,
1999). The second level consists of espoused values which are strategies, goals or philosophies that
characterize a specific way of thinking with in a company. An organization s values will shape why it
functions the way it does. These values are, usually learned and adopted. For example, an organization
may say it believes in team work but the espoused value

shows that most decisions are made without involving employees (Schein, 1999). The third level of
organizational culture consists of basic assumptions (unconscious) often taken for granted beliefs,
perceptions, thoughts and feelings. These basic assumptions such as the perception of human nature,
the nature of human interaction or the basic understandings of time or truth are often implicit and not
consciously known to employee (Schein, 1999). 2.2.3 The Four Conditions of Culture The four conditions
of culture was developed by Shain (2001) and they are control, demand, effort, and reward. He then
identified conditions of work which disproportionately contribute to stress and satisfaction outcomes in
employees. These conditions range from low control (having too little influence over the way we do our
daily work) and low reward (not receiving adequate recognition of feedback on performance) to high
effort (having to expend too much mental energy over too long a period) and high demand (having too
much to do in too little time over too long a period). Each condition affects employee outcomes and the
ability of the organization to meet or exceed performance indicators. For instance, low control and low
reward circumstances tend to contribute to low employee satisfaction while low reward and high effort
contribute to high stress. The Four Conditions Effecting Culture Condition Effecting Culture Low control:
having too little influence over the way we do our daily work Low Reward: not receiving adequate
recognition or feedback on performance High Effort: having to expend too much mental energy over too
long a period High demand: having too much to do in too little time over too long a period. Employee
outcome LOW SATISFACTION HIGH STRESS Extracted from Organizational Culture: from Assessment to
action pp. 13

To summarize, there are different approaches of organizational culture each linked to specific method of
measurement. The CVFW intends to develop successful leadership, improve organizational effectiveness
and promote value creation. The three levels of culture model focuses on levels of culture which moves
the visible to the invisible and the four conditions of culture (control, demand, effort and reward)
identify condition of work which contributes to stress and satisfaction. As there is no one best style of
management, so there is no one best approach of organizational culture. 2.3 The Ethiopian Airlines: An
Aviation Business Organization Some people say aviation entered in Ethiopia on the 12 th of August,
1921. Reasons given to an early entrance of aviation in the country were: very limited surface (land)
transport in the country, the 24 th October, 1922 Great Britain s air show where Ethiopian Delegates
attended the show and frequent appearance of locust in the country Arhibu Magazine). According to
Habtemariam (2000), the first air show in the history of the Ethiopian Aviation was 24 th September,
1927. The reason for the air show was the finding of the true cross. Mersae Hazen Wolde Qirqos (2009)
shares his memory as flows: he witnessed the first/pioneer Ethiopian pilots, Asfaw Ali and Mishkai
Babich as the first examinees. I flew with each one of them to witness their takeoffs and landings. Asfaw
and Miskai were trained by Musse Bedel in 1930. (translated by the researcher from MERSAE s book
TEZETAYE Page 211). Two planes flown by Letena Maye and Koris participated in the war between
Dejazmach Mulugeta the then war minister and Ras Gugissa Wolle the then governor of Begemdir and
Semen on 30 th March, 1932 (LEU LEU Aviation magazine, 1974).

On the contrary, during the battle of Maichew Italian war planes used to throw poison gas at the front
on Ethiopian fighters. After the battle not only the leaders but also all Ethiopians recognized the
importance of aviation. The following anonymous piece of poem is an example. BE OGADEN BEHON
MECH YIGEBA NEBER BE MAICHEWS BEHON MECH YIGEBA NEBER BE SEMAY META ENJI BE
MANAWKEW HAGER He would have never entered through Ogaden. He would have never entered
through Maichew He had entered through the sky, a country we had never known before. (translated by
the researcher) Tracing back what has happened in the battle as a preceding history of aviation,
commercial aviation started in Ethiopia in 1945. 2.3.1 The Inception of the Ethiopian Airlines The late
Prime Minister Aklilu Habtewold s Historical recollections from a prison cell (2010 pp153-154) states
about the establishment and development of the EAL as follows: After completing my mission at San
Francesco, I traveled to Washington DC and I held discussion with the United States government officials
on various issues. The core of the discussion and the succeeding major accomplishment was the
establishment of the Ethiopian Airlines. Ato Minasse was present throughout the discussion. As Ethiopia
did not have airline and trained pilots, I requested for the establishment of a joint airline venture. The
Americans did not accept my request on the ground that no Ethiopian could be a pilot. When I returned
home, I requested the Emperor to buy our own airline on credit and employ the Transcontinental and
Western airlines (TWA) on a yearly basis for the management of the Airline. The Emperor agreed and I
signed the agreement with the TWA president in Addis Ababa.

My effort paid back. The EAL now flies all over the world by internationally accredited Ethiopian pilots
and is managed by our own people. On the other hand the personal account of Spencer (1984) tells us
something different from what Prime Minister Aklilu told us. It is stated as follows: While in San
Francisco entirely on my own I telephoned to George Allen of the Near East Division of the Department
of State in Washington to enquire how it might be possible for me to interest an American airline to help
in establishing an airline in Ethiopia. Suchan initiative appeared to me to be essential if ever Ethiopia
were to begin to free herself from foreign controls over transport and communications, particularly
since the country had few roads and was surrounded by nearly impossible deserts. I was, moreover,
anxious to establish a domestic route structure in connection with Ethiopia s effort to recover the
Ogaden. It seems that Spencer personally knows some of the then aviation personnel of the USA and
facilitated the ground for the preliminary agreement. This might be because that he was a long time
legal advisor of the Emperor. He further states: My inquiry elicited the replay that TWA had just been
certified to develop the Cairo New Delhi route and would be the company to approach. Within two days
representatives of TWA came to San Francisco to discuss the establishment of the Ethiopian Airlines
under TWA management. It was agreed that following the return of the delegation to Addis Ababa, Jack
Nichols of TWA would come there to complete an agreement. A slightly different approach of Teffera
(2006) is as follows: The Emperor was directly interested in the building up of the Imperial Ethiopian Air
Force and the Ethiopian Airlines. The Ethiopian government signed a seven years contract in September,
1945 with the management of the American aviation company, Trans-continental and Western Air
(TWA), later renamed Trans World Airlines, for the establishment and management of national
Ethiopian Airlines. The chartered US Army plane, carrying TWA s newly appointed general

manager and other officials for the projected airline, crashed near Dessie and no one survived. This early
accident was to set the exacting safety, operating and maintenance standards the EAL was to follow in
the ensuing decades. 2.3.2 The Development of the Ethiopian Airlines When the first TWA contract
expired in 1952, there were some indecision by both parties as to their relationship. Despite the many
operating and management problems, the EAL had shown its potential for growth. The British and other
West European airlines were showing keen interest to manage the EAL. In 1953 the contract with TWA
was extended for three more years and in 1955 a new general manager, Mr. Victor Harrell Jr., was
appointed (Teffera, 2006). As a commercial enterprise, the airline operated with greater independence
and institutional autonomy. The maintenance shops for aircraft and communication equipment have
had spectacular growth. In the 1950s the EAL had facilities and equipment to do complete engine and
accessory overhaul, sheet metal work and other types of aircraft maintenance (Teffera, 2006). The
Ethiopian Airlines was gradually improving its fleet and it progressed from DC 3 to acquiring Conveyers
and then DC 6Bs. In 1962, with the building of the Bole airport, the airline entered the jet age (the EAL
received its first jet B 720 on the 3 rd of December, 1962. The jet made its inaugural flight to Nairobi in
January 1963). Furthermore, step by step it moved to B707, B737, B747 (cargo), B757, B767, B777 and
now B787 the dream liner (Selamta Magazine). With the help of General Giles, the US commandant in
Cairo, American pilots were released from the Air Force ( Tex Salyers, Green, Mon, Noon and others)
and served for years in the Ethiopian Airlines (Spencer, 1984). The availability of TWA s training facilities
has made possible the sound development of the EAL s personnel. To qualify as flight captains the

Ethiopian pilots were sent to TWA s pilot school in Kansas City. This advanced flight training to achieve
the highest pilot grades was later conducted at the home base in Addis Ababa (Teffera, 2006). 2.3.3
Pioneer in a sub Saharan Africa The Ethiopian Airlines established as a leading airline of independent
Africa with early destinations to Cairo, Asmara, Djibouti, Nairobi, Aden, and Bombay also made a major
stride in bringing Africa together expanding to West, East, North and South of the continent. Its
passengers including President Nelson Mandela were unable to believe their eyes. In our flight from
Accra to Addis, we stayed briefly in Khartoum, where we changed to an Ethiopian Airways flight to
Addis. I had never seen a black pilot before, and the instant I did I had to quell my panic. How could a
black man fly an airplane? But a moment later I caught myself: I had fallen into the apartheid mind set,
thinking Africans were inferior and that flying was a white man s job (Mandela, 1994). This kind of
reputation is not an easy blue riband, rather can only be found with the highest dedication and struggle.
In fact, the achievement of highest quality, skill and attitude that the profession requires is mandatory.
Captain Alemayehu Abebe, the first Jet pilot of the EAL (probably the first in black Africa) asserts the
following (2004) The American Pilots thinking and our condition were incongruent. They were the only
ones to decide everything. Even if we take the case to the board, technical cases were to be decided by
the Americans and nothing was to be done. The Americans knew this very well and they were
intimidating us. (Hiwote Be Semay Ena Be Mider, translated by the researcher). The Ethiopian Airlines
further extended its flight to more cities in Africa, Middle East, Europe, Asia, North America and South
America with a motto of going to great length to please. And now to a total of 79 international
destinations flying this time with a motto of the new spirit of Africa.
The Airline domestic service also played an important role in the national integration by providing
indispensable links to places that had no other access. Before the development of significant high way
net work, the EAL transported coffee and other goods to and from such remote areas like Mizan Teferi
and Teppi (Teffera, 2006). The EAL now flies to 18 destinations in the country. To summarize, aviation
started in Ethiopia in 1927/28. Then the birth of commercial aviation was 1945. Prime Minister Aklilu
Habtewold and John Spencer played their own role for the establishment of the EAL. Ato Teffera
Degefue and Captain Alemayehu Abebe discussed the role played by employees on the Ethiopianization
of the work and management. Despite the many operating and management problems, the EAL had
shown its potential growth. Maintenance shops have had spectacular growth. Facilities and equipment
to do complete engine and accessory overhaul and other types of aircraft maintenance are fulfilled.
Fleet wise, the 1 st flight started with DC 3 and is now in a position to operate and maintain 787 (dream
liner). As a business organization the EAL is a pioneer airline in Black Africa. It is now flying to 79
destinations in the world and to 18 domestic destinations. From 1945 to 1970 the EAL was consecutively
led by people from TWA. They were seven in number. The 8 th leader was an Ethiopian; Col. Semret
Medhane who was a deputy for some time; was the first Ethiopian to take over the leadership. Since
then the general managers are all Ethiopians.

CHAPTER THREE RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY 3.1 Research Design The purpose of this study
is to identify the dominant culture and the preferred culture at the Ethiopian Airlines as perceived by
employees. To accomplish this, the design employed was a descriptive survey. Surveys are concerned
with describing, recording, analyzing and interpreting conditions that either exist or existed. They deal
with opinions that are held processes that are going on effects that are evident or trends that are
developing. Above all, surveys are primarily concerned with present. On the other hand, every
organization s culture is special and thus requires flexible research approach in the process (Schein,
1992). 3.2 Data Sources The primary sources of data for this study were Ethiopian Airlines (EAL)
employees working at Bole, Particularly employees of Human Resource management, Finance,
Maintenance Repair Organization (MRO), Marketing and Aviation Academy. Cameron and Quinn s
Competing Values Framework (CVF) which utilizes Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI)
to assess organizational culture was used by sampled employees. 3.3 Sample size and Sampling
Techniques As of December, 2013, the total numbers of Ethiopian Airlines employees were 7900. They
were found in almost all part of the world (Africa, Europe, Asia, North and South America). Because of
the distribution of the population, shortage of time, and money the researcher limited the site to Bole.
At Bole where the Head Office was situated, there were a number of sections and departments. The
researcher limited his study to Human Resource Management (HRM), Finance, Marketing,

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CONTENTS

ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR

Chapter 3: Understanding People at Work, Individual Differences and Perception

Chapter Learning Outcomes

After reading this chapter, you should be able to know and learn the following:

Define personality and describe how it affects work behaviours.

Understand the role of values in determining work behaviours.

Explain the process of perception and how it affects work behaviours.

Understand how individual differences affect ethics.

Understand cross-cultural influences on individual differences and perception.

Introduction

Most executives assume they know who their “people” people are: They’re the team players, the ones
who know what’s going on in their colleagues’ personal lives, the ones who can smooth over
interpersonal conflicts. They’re usually found in human resources or sales. The truth, however, is much
more nuanced than that. Interpersonal savvy is critical in almost every area of business, not just sales
and HR. In fact, it comprises aptitudes( skills) and attitides that are more varied than a lot of people
might think. we know that individuals do their best work when it most closely matches their underlying
interests. Managers, therefore, can boost productivity by using their employees’ relational interests and
skills to guide personnel choices, project assignments, and career development.
Alicia DiGiavonni is the internal medicine unit manager at a Boston-area HMO. Alicia has an MBA and is
a focused, task-oriented operating manager, but her success comes from her effectiveness as the
organization’s unofficial psychologist. Alicia has done more in the way of counseling, conflict resolution,
coaching, and informal personality assessment than many of the therapists who work in the mental
health unit. Staff members frequently confide in her when there is disabling friction within a work team,
when they need career advice, or when they’re struggling with personal issues. She is an expert at
recognizing hidden agendas at meetings and identifying the problems that workers are reluctant to
share with senior managers. She knows which combinations of people on a project team would yield
great synergy and which would be disastrous. On countless occasions, Alicia has kept projects on track
through skillful, behind-the-scenes interventions.

Diane Weiss, a senior editor for a major magazine. Whether the question is which illustration to use,
how best to express data graphically, what title to give an article, or what image to put on the cover,
Diane is the one to ask: She has an unerring sense of what will pull readers in. But she is not known for
her easy management style or her ability to “read” people. In fact, even her most ardent fans will agree
that she can be exceedingly difficult to work with. For understanding the masses, though, Diane is as
good as you can get. She is a genuine people person.

Andy Keller, manages sales for the West Coast region of a successful sporting goods company. Likable
and full of energy, Andy was one of a handful of MBA graduates from an esteemed business school who
pursued a career in sales. His classmates saw sales as a low-prestige option, but Andy knew what he
wanted. Almost immediately, he became a top-performing rep. He enjoyed driving from pro shop to pro
shop, talking both with the store managers and with the players coming off the golf course. But while he
liked selling, when he was promoted to manage a sales team in northern California, he loved it—which is
not always the case when salespeople move into management. Andy would be the first to tell you that
he is neither a strategist nor a negotiator. He’s more interested in talking to people and leading a team;
he also likes seeing tangible feedback on his—and his group’s—performance every month.

Individuals bring a number of differences to work, such as unique personalities, values, emotions, and
moods. When new employees enter organizations, their stable or transient characteristics affect how
they behave and perform. Moreover, companies hire people with the expectation that those individuals
have certain skills, abilities, personalities, and values. Therefore, it is important to understand individual
characteristics that matter for employee behaviours at work.

3.1 Advice for Hiring Successful Employees: The Case of Guy Kawasaki
When people think about entrepreneurship, they often think of Guy Kawasaki , who is a Silicon Valley
venture capitalist and the author of nine books as of 2010, including The Art of the Start and The
Macintosh Way. Beyond being a best-selling author, he has been successful in a variety of areas,
including earning degrees from Stanford University and UCLA; being an integral part of Apple’s first
computer; writing columns for Forbes and Entrepreneur Magazine; and taking on entrepreneurial
ventures such as cofounding Alltop, an aggregate news site, and becoming Managing Director of Garage
Technology Ventures. Kawasaki is a believer in the power of individual differences. He believes that
successful companies include people from many walks of life, with different backgrounds and with
different strengths and different weaknesses. Establishing an effective team requires a certain amount
of self-monitoring on the part of the manager. Kawasaki maintains that most individuals have
personalities that can easily get in the way of this objective. He explains, “The most important thing is to
hire people who complement you and are better than you in specific areas. Good people hire people
that are better than themselves.” He also believes that mediocre employees hire less–talented
employees in order to feel better about themselves. Finally, he believes that the role of a leader is to
produce more leaders, not to produce followers, and to be able to achieve this, a leader should
compensate for their weaknesses by hiring individuals who compensate for their shortcomings.

Picture of Guy Kawasaki

Guy Kawasaki – evangelist, author, speaker

In today’s competitive business environment, individuals want to think of themselves as indispensable

to the success of an organization. An individual’s perception that he or she is the most important person
on a team can get in the way of the team’s success. Kawasaki maintains that many people would rather
see a company fail than thrive without them. He advises that we must begin to move past this and see
the benefit that different perceptions and values can bring to a company. The goal of any individual
should be to make the organization they work for stronger and more dynamic. Under this type of
thinking, leaving a company in a better shape than when you found it becomes a source of pride.
Kawasaki has had many different roles in his professional career and as a result realized that while
different perceptions and attitudes might make the implementation of new protocol difficult, this same
diversity is what makes an organization more valuable. Some managers fear diversity and the possible
complexities that it brings, and they make the mistake of hiring similar individuals without any sort of
differences. When it comes to hiring, Kawasaki believes that the initial round of interviews for new hires
should be held over the phone. Because first impressions are so important, this ensures that external
influences, negative or positive, are not part of the decision-making process.

Many people come out of business school believing that if they have a solid financial understanding,
then they will be a successful and appropriate leader and manager. Kawasaki has learned that
mathematics and finance are the “easy” part of any job. He observes that the true challenge comes in
trying to effectively manage people. With the benefit of hindsight, Kawasaki regrets the choices he made
in college, saying, “I should have taken organizational behaviour and social psychology” to be better
prepared for the individual nuances of people. He also believes that working hard is a key to success and
that individuals who learn how to learn are the most effective over time.

If nothing else, Guy Kawasaki provides simple words of wisdom to remember when starting off on a new
career path: do not become blindsided by your mistakes, but rather take them as a lesson of what not to
do. And most important, pursue joy and challenge your personal assumptions (Kawasaki, 2004; Iwata
2008).

imageimage

3.2 The Role of Fit

Red Bull beverage

Red Bull drink

Have you heard of Red Bull? Tried it? Enjoyed the taste and the feeling? Or maybe not.

Red Bull has a very unique way of hiring talent that they beleive will be a good fit to the organisation.

Red Bull use their trademark slogan to fit within their recruitment process by stating “Red Bull
Wingfinder, give wings to your career.”

The test takes about 30 minutes and is based on 30 years of psychological research.

The genius behind this recruitment technique is that often candidates want a role in a company where
they can develop and progress within their career.

Red Bull is paving the way for employee learning and progression making them attractive prospective
employers.
Individual differences matter in the workplace. Human beings bring in their personality, physical and
mental abilities, and other stable traits to work. Imagine that you are interviewing an employee who is
proactive, creative, and willing to take risks. Would this person be a good job candidate? What
behaviours would you expect this person to demonstrate?

The question posed above is misleading. While human beings bring their traits to work, every
organization is different, and every job within the organization is also different. According to the
interactionist perspective, behaviour is a function of the person and the situation interacting with each
other. Think about it. Would a shy person speak up in class? While a shy person may not feel like
speaking, if the individual is very interested in the subject, knows the answers to the questions, and feels
comfortable within the classroom environment, and if the instructor encourages participation and
participation is 30% of the course grade, regardless of the level of shyness, the person may feel inclined
to participate. Similarly, the behaviour you may expect from someone who is proactive, creative, and
willing to take risks will depend on the situation.

When hiring employees, companies are interested in assessing at least two types of fit. Person–
organization fit refers to the degree to which a person’s values, personality, goals, and other
characteristics match those of the organization. Person–job fit is the degree to which a person’s skill,
knowledge, abilities, and other characteristics match the job demands. Thus, someone who is proactive
and creative may be a great fit for a company in the high-tech sector that would benefit from risk-taking
individuals but may be a poor fit for a company that rewards routine and predictable behaviour, such as
accountants. Similarly, this person may be a great fit for a job such as a scientist, but a poor fit for a
routine office job. The opening case illustrates one method of assessing person–organization and
person–job fit in job applicants.

3.3 Individual Differences: Values and Personality

Values

Values will affect the choices people make. For example, someone who has a strong stimulation
orientation may pursue extreme sports and be drawn to risky business ventures with a high potential for
payoff.

Figure 3.2 Values will affect the choices people make. For example, someone who has a strong
stimulation orientation may pursue extreme sports and be drawn to risky business ventures with a high
potential for payoff. G B – CCK – ‘Gunks’ – CC BY-ND 2.0.

Company Values: Definition, Importance and Examples

Values refer to stable life goals that people have, reflecting what is most important to them. Values are
established throughout one’s life as a result of the accumulating life experiences and tend to be
relatively stable (Lusk & Oliver, 1974; Rokeach, 1973). The values that are important to people tend to
affect the types of decisions they make, how they perceive their environment, and their actual
behaviours. Moreover, people are more likely to accept job offers when the company possesses the
values people care about (Judge & Bretz, 1992; Ravlin & Meglino, 1987). Value attainment is one reason
why people stay in a company, and when an organization does not help them attain their values, they
are more likely to decide to leave if they are dissatisfied with the job itself (George & Jones, 1996).

You are working for a profitable company that excels in its industry. But something is not right. Why is it
you don’t feel engaged and excited about your job? Instead of excelling and loving your job, it is just a
“job” and you continue to work for the company only because of the money. What would it be like if
you went to work each day and not only got the salary you deserve but you loved the job you were
doing?

Research has shown that when you match your personal values to the values of the Company there is
synergy. Employees are happier and more engaged. The values of a Company underlie the purpose and
drive to move forward. The values are the “Why” that make a difference. They lead to impact and
performance for employees.

When business objectives become a personal matter, a closer connection is made. Employees feel they
are part of the bigger picture and have a reason to work hard and produce. Remember, both internally
to their teammates and to the public.

So what values in a company make a difference for you? Is it strictly skill driven and hard work? Or is it
the right mix of both skills and developing and recognizing your people?

Ask yourself. What values does your Company embrace? Is it Collaboration, Trust and Communication?
Or is it Innovation, Drive and Intelligence? What if your company had the right mix all six elements?

When there is Trust, employees feel safe. You understand the purpose and have a greater drive to see
the company succeed.
With Collaboration, teams work together. Ideas are created and employees become part of the greater
whole. They know the work they are doing will make a difference.

With open Communication, people talk about what is important and what is needed in an organization.
With effective communication you tear down the walls to any misunderstandings and negativity that can
foster when teams don’t know the direction.

With Innovation, companies excel and strive to create new and better ideas. It is with creativity that
organizations continue to tweak and improve, to become a more profitable business.

Drive is what gets you up in the morning. It is the desire to constantly succeed and move past what is in
the way and not working.

Intelligence is always needed. But when the leader is intelligent, has strong people development skills
and knows how to motivate and mentor others, there is a winning formula in an organization.

Value congruence refers to the extent to which personal values are similar to the surroundings – which
could be the indivdiual’s employer. It has been used to explain why subordinates are willing to follow
their leader and show their loyalty and support (Burns, 1978; Shamir et al., 1993; Klein and House,
1995). The higher the value congruence , the higher the job satisfaction, loyalty, organizational
citizenship and lower the stress and turnover.

The values a person holds will affect his or her employment. For example, someone who has an
orientation toward strong stimulation may pursue extreme sports and select an occupation that involves
fast action and high risk, such as fire fighter, police officer, or emergency medical doctor. Someone who
has a drive for achievement may more readily act as an entrepreneur. Moreover, whether individuals
will be satisfied at a given job may depend on whether the job provides a way to satisfy their dominant
values. Therefore, understanding employees at work requires understanding the value orientations of
employees.

Personality
Personality encompasses the relatively stable feelings, thoughts, and behavioural patterns of a person.
Our personality differentiates us from other people, and understanding someone’s personality gives us
clues about how that person is likely to act and feel in a variety of situations. In order to effectively man-
age organizational behaviour, an understanding of different employees’ personalities is helpful. Having
this knowledge is also useful for placing people in jobs and organizations.

College students in a classroom.

The way people behave is only in part a product of their natural personality. Situations also influence
how a person behaves. Are you for instance a “different person” as a student in a classroom compared
to when you’re a member of a close-knit social group?

When asked to think about what our friends, enemies, family members, and colleagues are like, some of
the first things that come to mind are their personality characteristics. We might think about how warm
and helpful our first teacher was, how irresponsible and careless our brother is, or how demanding and
insulting our first boss was. Each of these descriptors reflects a personality trait, and most of us
generally think that the descriptions that we use for individuals accurately reflect their “characteristic
pattern of thoughts, feelings, and behaviours,” or in other words, their personality.

If personality is stable, does this mean that it does not change? You probably remember how you have
changed and evolved as a result of your own life experiences, attention you received in early childhood,
the style of parenting you were exposed to, successes and failures you had in high school, and other life
events. In fact, our personality changes over long periods of time. For example, we tend to become
more socially dominant, more conscientious (organized and dependable), and more emotionally stable
between the ages of 20 and 40, whereas openness to new experiences may begin to decline during this
same time (Roberts, Walton, & Viechtbauer, 2006). In other words, even though we treat personality as
relatively stable, changes occur. Moreover, even in childhood, our personality shapes who we are and
has lasting consequences for us. For example, studies show that part of our career success and job
satisfaction later in life can be explained by our childhood personality (Judge & Higgins, 1999; Staw, Bell,
& Clausen, 1986).

Is our behaviour in organizations dependent on our personality? To some extent, yes, and to some
extent, no. While we will discuss the effects of personality for employee behaviour, you must remember
that the relationships we describe are modest correlations. For example, having a sociable and outgoing
personality may encourage people to seek friends and prefer social situations. This does not mean that
their personality will immediately affect their work behaviour. At work, we have a job to do and a role to
perform. Therefore, our behaviour may be more strongly affected by what is expected of us, as opposed
to how we want to behave. When people have a lot of freedom at work, their personality will become a
stronger influence over their behaviour (Barrick & Mount, 1993).

Big Five Personality Traits

How many personality traits are there? How do we even know? In every language, there are many
words describing a person’s personality. In fact, in the English language, more than 15,000 words
describing personality have been identified. When researchers analyzed the terms describing personality
characteristics, they realized that there were many words that were pointing to each dimension of
personality. When these words were grouped, five dimensions seemed to emerge that explain a lot of
the variation in our personalities (Goldberg, 1990). Keep in mind that these five are not necessarily the
only traits out there. There are other, specific traits that represent dimensions not captured by the Big
Five. Still, understanding the main five traits gives us a good start for describing personality. A summary
of the Big Five traits is presented in Figure 3.3 “Big Five Personality Traits”.imageOpenness is the degree
to which a person is curious, original, intellectual, creative, and open to new ideas. People high in
openness seem to thrive in situations that require being flexible and learning new things. They are highly
motivated to learn new skills, and they do well in training settings (Barrick & Mount, 1991; Lievens et al.,
2003). They also have an advantage when they enter a new organization. Their open-mindedness leads
them to seek a lot of information and feedback about how they are doing and to build relationships,
which leads to quicker adjustment to the new job (Wanberg & Kammeyer-Mueller, 2000). When
supported, they tend to be creative (Baer & Oldham, 2006). Open people are highly adaptable to
change, and teams that experience unforeseen changes in their tasks do well if they are populated with
people high in openness (LePine, 2003). Compared to people low in openness, they are also more likely
to start their own business (Zhao & Seibert, 2006).

Conscientiousness refers to the degree to which a person is organized, systematic, punctual,

achievement oriented, and dependable. Conscientiousness is the one personality trait that uniformly
predicts how high a person’s performance will be, across a variety of occupations and jobs (Barrick &
Mount, 1991). In fact, conscientiousness is the trait most desired by recruiters and results in the most
success in interviews (Dunn et al., 1995; Tay, Ang, & Van Dyne, 2006). This is not a surprise, because in
addition to their high performance, conscientious people have higher levels of motivation to perform,
lower levels of turnover, lower levels of absenteeism, and higher levels of safety performance at work
(Judge & Ilies, 2002; Judge, Martocchio, & Thoresen, 1997; Wallace & Chen, 2006; Zimmerman, 2008).
One’s conscientiousness is related to career success and being satisfied with one’s career over time
(Judge & Higgins, 1999). Finally, it seems that conscientiousness is a good trait to have for
entrepreneurs. Highly conscientious people are more likely to start their own business compared to
those who are not conscientious, and their firms have longer survival rates (Certo & Certo, 2005; Zhao &
Seibert, 2006).
Extraversion is the degree to which a person is outgoing, talkative, sociable, and enjoys being in social
situations. One of the established findings is that they tend to be effective in jobs involving sales (Barrick
& Mount, 1991; Vinchur et al., 1998). Moreover, they tend to be effective as managers and they
demonstrate inspirational leadership behaviours (Bauer et al., 2006; Bono & Judge, 2004). Extraverts do
well in social situations, and as a result they tend to be effective in job interviews. Part of their success
comes from how they prepare for the job interview, as they are likely to use their social network
(Caldwell & Burger, 1998; Tay, Ang, & Van Dyne, 2006). Extraverts have an easier time than introverts
when adjusting to a new job. They actively seek information and feedback, and build effective
relationships, which helps with their adjustment (Wanberg & Kammeyer-Mueller, 2000). Interestingly,
extraverts are also found to be happier at work, which may be because of the relationships they build
with the people around them and their relative ease in adjusting to a new job (Judge et al., 2002).
However, they do not necessarily perform well in all jobs, and jobs depriving them of social interaction
may be a poor fit. Moreover, they are not necessarily model employees. For example, they tend to have
higher levels of absenteeism at work, potentially because they may miss work to hang out with or attend
to the needs of their friends (Judge, Martocchio, & Thoresen, 1997).

Studies show that there is a relationship between being extraverted and effectiveness as a salesperson
realtor.

Figure 3.4 Studies show that there is a relationship between being extraverted and effectiveness as a
salesperson realtor – CC BY 2.0.

Agreeableness is the degree to which a person is nice, tolerant, sensitive, trusting, kind, and warm. In
other words, people who are high in agreeableness are likeable people who get along with others. Not
surprisingly, agreeable people help others at work consistently, and this helping behaviour is not
dependent on being in a good mood (Ilies, Scott, & Judge, 2006). They are also less likely to retaliate
when other people treat them unfairly (Skarlicki, Folger, & Tesluk, 1999). This may reflect their ability to
show empathy and give people the benefit of the doubt. Agreeable people may be a valuable addition
to the team and may be effective leaders because they create a fair environment when they are in
leadership positions (Mayer et al., 2007). At the other end of the spectrum, people low in agreeableness
are less likely to show these positive behaviours. Moreover, people who are not agreeable are shown to
quit their jobs unexpectedly, perhaps in response to a conflict they engaged in with a boss or peer
(Zimmerman, 2008). If agreeable people are so nice, does this mean that we should only look for
agreeable people when hiring? Some jobs may be a better fit for someone with a low level of
agreeableness. Think about it: when hiring a lawyer, would you prefer a kind and gentle person, or a pit
bull? Also, high agreeableness has a downside: agreeable people are less likely to engage in constructive
and change-oriented communication (LePine & Van Dyne, 2001). Disagreeing with the status quo may
create conflict and agreeable people are inclined to avoid creating such conflicts, missing an opportunity
for constructive change.
Neuroticism refers to the degree to which a person is anxious, irritable, aggressive, temperamental, and
moody. These people tend to have emotional adjustment problems and experience stress and
depression on a habitual basis. People very high in neuroticism experience several problems at work. For
example, they are less likely to be someone people go to for advice and friendship (Klein et al., 2004). In
other words, they may experience relationship difficulties. They tend to be habitually unhappy in their
jobs and report high intentions to leave, but they do not actually leave their jobs (Judge, Heller, &
Mount, 2002; Zimmerman, 2008). Being high in neuroticism seems to be harmful to one’s career, as
they have lower levels of career success (measured with income and occupational status achieved in
one’s career). Finally, if they achieve managerial jobs, they tend to create an unfair climate at work
(Mayer et al., 2007).

Scores on the Big Five traits are mostly independent. That means that a person’s standing on one trait
tells very little about their standing on the other traits of the Big Five. For example, a person can be
extremely high in Extraversion and be either high or low on Neuroticism. Similarly, a person can be low
in Agreeableness and be either high or low in Conscientiousness. Thus, in the Five-Factor Model, you
need five scores to describe most of an individual’s personality.

In the field of psychology, the five dimensions (the ‘Big Five’) are commonly used in the research and
study of personality. Since the late 20th Century, these factors have been used to measure and develop
a better understanding of individual differences in personality. It’s commonly used as a pre-employment
assessment—and as a basis for other personality systems.

How Accurately Can You Describe Your Big Five Personality Factors? Click here BIG5 to see how you
score on these factors. This is part of your applied weekly module for the chapter.

Myers-Briggs Type Indicator

Aside from the Big Five personality traits, perhaps the most well-known and most often used personality
assessment is the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). Unlike the Big Five, which assesses traits (a
distinguishing quality or characteristic, typically one belonging to a person), MBTI measures types.
Assessments of the Big Five do not classify people as neurotic or extravert: it is all a matter of degrees –
meaning what is your extent of being a neurotic or an extravert. These are represented in percentages.
If you have done the BIG5 personality test through the link above, you would have obtaiend your results
in percentage form.
MBTI on the other hand, classifies people as one of 16 types . These were created by Isabel Myers and
Katharine Briggs (mother of Isabel) . Myers and Briggs created their personality typology to help people
discover their own strengths and gain a better understanding of how people are different.In MBTI,
people are grouped using four dimensions. Based on how a person is classified on these four
dimensions, it is possible to talk about 16 unique personality types.

The goal of the MBTI is to allow respondents to further explore and understand their own personalities
including their likes, dislikes, strengths, weaknesses, possible career preferences, and compatibility with
other people. By helping people understand themselves, Myers and Briggs believed that they could help
people select occupations that were best suited to their personality types and lead healthier, happier
lives.

No one personality type is “best” or “better” than another. It isn’t a tool designed to look for dysfunction
or abnormality. Instead, its goal is simply to help you learn more about yourself. The questionnaire itself
is made up of four different scales.

The 4 dimensions of MBTI ( source: Research Gate)

Definition of four dimensions of the MBTI instrument (see online... | Download Scientific Diagram

Each type is then formed into a 4 letter code = The 16 unique personality type codes ( source:
paulsohn.org)

What Experts Will Never Tell You About Your Myers-Briggs Personality Type - Paul Sohn

The MBTI has extremely unreliable test-retest scores. If you retake the test after 5 weeks, there is a 50%
chance you will fall into a different type. In other words, the reliability is equivalent to a coin toss.

There is no concrete evidence that the MBTI measures what it claims to measure, making the categories
invalid.
Finally, the MBTI is mot comprehensive because its categories do not capture the full extent of
personality. There is no measure for negative emotion, and the remaining domains lack information
central to personality assessment.

More than 80 of the Fortune 100 companies used Myers-Briggs tests in some form. One distinguishing
characteristic of this test is that it is explicitly designed for learning, not for employee selection
purposes. In fact, the Myers & Briggs Foundation has strict guidelines against the use of the test for
employee selection. Instead, the test is used to provide mutual understanding within the team and to
gain a better understanding of the working styles of team members (Leonard & Straus, 1997; Shuit,
2003).

You can click on MBTI and get to know which of the 16 personality type you are.

What does your MBTI score mean.? Click here

Positive and Negative Affectivity

Happy and sad masks

Positive and negative affectivity – Courtney E. Ackerman

You may have noticed that behaviour is also a function of moods. When people are in a good mood,
they may be more cooperative, smile more, and act friendlier. When these same people are in a bad
mood, they may tend to be picky, irritable, and less tolerant of different opinions. Yet, some people
seem to be in a good mood most of the time, and others seem to be in a bad mood most of the time
regardless of what is going on in their lives. This distinction is manifested by positive and negative
affectivity traits. Positive affective people experience positive moods more frequently, whereas negative
affective people experience negative moods with greater frequency. Negative affective people focus on
the “glass half empty” and experience more anxiety and nervousness (Watson & Clark, 1984).

Positive affective people tend to be happier at work (Ilies & Judge, 2003), and their happiness spreads to
the rest of the work environment. As may be expected, this personality trait sets the tone in the work
atmosphere. When a team comprises mostly negative affective people, there tend to be fewer instances
of helping and cooperation. Teams dominated by positive affective people experience lower levels of
absenteeism (George, 1989). When people with a lot of power are also high in positive affectivity, the
work environment is affected in a positive manner and can lead to greater levels of cooperation and
leading to more mutually agreeable solutions to problems (Anderson & Thompson, 2004).

Self-Monitoring

Self-monitoring refers to the extent to which a person is capable of monitoring his or her actions and
appearance in social situations. In other words, people who are social monitors are social chameleons
who understand what the situation demands and act accordingly, while low social monitors tend to act
the way they feel (Snyder, 1974; Snyder, 1987).

High social monitors are sensitive to the types of behaviours the social environment expects from them.
Their greater ability to modify their behaviour according to the demands of the situation and to manage
their impressions effectively is a great advantage for them (Turnley & Bolino, 2001). In general, they
tend to be more successful in their careers. They are more likely to get cross-company promotions, and
even when they stay with one company, they are more likely to advance (Day & Schleicher, 2006; Kilduff
& Day, 1994). Social monitors also become the “go to” person in their company and they enjoy central
positions in their social networks (Mehra, Kilduff, & Brass, 2001). They are rated as higher performers,
and emerge as leaders (Day et al., 2002).

While they are effective in influencing other people and get things done by managing their impressions,
this personality trait has some challenges that need to be addressed. First, when evaluating the
performance of other employees, they tend to be less accurate. It seems that while trying to manage
their impressions, they may avoid giving accurate feedback to their subordinates to avoid confrontations
(Jawahar, 2001). This tendency may create problems for them if they are managers. Second, high social
monitors tend to experience higher levels of stress, probably caused by behaving in ways that conflict
with their true feelings. In situations that demand positive emotions, they may act happy although they
are not feeling happy, which puts an emotional burden on them. Finally, high social monitors tend to be
less committed to their companies. They may see their jobs as a stepping-stone for greater things, which
may prevent them from forming strong attachments and loyalty to their current employer (Day et al.,
2002).

Proactive Personality

Proactivity is the ability to do things in advance of an event to ensure you have maximum control. It is
the opposite of reactivity, which is when you simply respond to events after they have unfolded.
Proactive personality refers to a person’s inclination to fix what is perceived as wrong, change the status
quo, and use initiative to solve problems. Instead of waiting to be told what to do, proactive people take
action to initiate meaningful change and remove the obstacles they face along the way.

Some examples of a proactive personality are:

Turning Up to Work Early.

Doing Extracurricular Work to Increase Chances of Getting a College Scholarship.

Asking Your Professor for Advice on How to Complete An Assignment.

Writing Daily To-Do Lists.

Researching About a Company Before a Job Interview.

In general, having a proactive personality has a number of advantages for these people. For example,
they tend to be more successful in their job searches (Brown et al., 2006). They are also more successful
over the course of their careers, because they use initiative and acquire greater understanding of the
politics within the organization (Seibert, 1999; Seibert, Kraimer, & Crant, 2001). Proactive people are
valuable assets to their companies because they may have higher levels of performance (Crant, 1995).
They adjust to their new jobs quickly because they understand the political environment better and
often make friends more quickly (Kammeyer-Mueller & Wanberg, 2003; Thompson, 2005). Proactive
people are eager to learn and engage in many developmental activities to improve their skills (Major,
Turner, & Fletcher, 2006).

Despite all their potential, under some circumstances a proactive personality may be a liability for an
individual or organization. Imagine a person who is proactive but is perceived as being too pushy, trying
to change things other people are not willing to let go, or using their initiative to make decisions that do
not serve a company’s best interests. Research shows that the success of proactive people depends on
their understanding of a company’s core values, their ability and skills to perform their jobs, and their
ability to assess situational demands correctly (Chan, 2006; Erdogan & Bauer, 2005).

Self-Esteem

Woman looking at a board that says believe in yourself

Self esteem – Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Self-esteem is the degree to which a person has overall positive feelings about his or herself. People
with high self-esteem view themselves in a positive light, are confident, and respect themselves. On the
other hand, people with low self-esteem experience high levels of self-doubt and question their self-
worth. High self-esteem is related to higher levels of satisfaction with one’s job and higher levels of
performance on the job (Judge & Bono, 2001). People with low self-esteem are attracted to situations in
which they will be relatively invisible, such as large companies (Turban & Keon, 1993). Managing
employees with low self-esteem may be challenging at times, because negative feedback given with the
intention to improve performance may be viewed as a judgment on their worth as an employee.
Therefore, effectively managing employees with relatively low self-esteem requires tact and providing
lots of positive feedback when discussing performance incidents.

Self-Efficacy

A man feeling challenged between " can do " and " cannot do "

Self efficacy – Believing “I can” – Source : Knowledge One

Self-efficacy is a belief that one can perform a specific task successfully. Research shows that the belief
that we can do something is a good predictor of whether we can do it. Self-efficacy is different from
other personality traits in that it is job specific. You may have high self-efficacy in being successful
academically, but low self-efficacy in relation to your ability to fix your car. At the same time, people
have a certain level of generalized self-efficacy where they believe that whatever task or hobby they
tackle, they will reach a certain degree of success.

Studies have found that learners with high self-efficacy are more likely to engage in activities that
challenge them and provide opportunities to develop skills rather than easy tasks that they have already
mastered. These learners are also more likely to set high goals, persevere in the face of adversity,
regulate their efforts more skillfully, better manage their stress and anxiety, and perform better. In
addition to these observations, they are less likely to cheat, are more likely to ask for help — for
example, during assessments

Research shows that self-efficacy at work is related to job performance (Bauer et al., 2007; Judge et al.,
2007; Stajkovic & Luthans, 1998). This relationship is probably a result of people with high self-efficacy
setting higher goals for themselves and being more committed to these goals, whereas people with low
self-efficacy tend to procrastinate (Phillips & Gully, 1997; Steel, 2007; Wofford, Goodwin, & Premack,
1992). Academic self-efficacy is a good predictor of your GPA, whether you persist in your studies, or
drop out of college (Robbins et al., 2004).
Is there a way of increasing employees’ self-efficacy? Hiring people who can perform their tasks and
training people to increase their self-efficacy may be effective. Some people may also respond well to
verbal encouragement. By showing that you believe they can be successful and effectively playing the
role of a cheerleader, you may be able to increase self-efficacy. Giving people opportunities to test their
skills so that they can see what they can do (or empowering them) is also a good way of increasing self-
efficacy (Ahearne, Mathieu, & Rapp, 2005).

image

Locus of Control

What do you feel when you’re suddenly faced with a tough challenge or obstacle? What thoughts go
through your mind?

Do your thoughts go to how might overcome this challenge to achieve what you want? Or, do you
wonder why this is happening to you or feel under attack? Do you feel paralyzed? Or, energized?
Choiceless or determined?

When you are dealing with a challenge in your life, do you feel that you have control over the outcome,
or do you believe that you are at the mercy of outside forces? Your answer to this question refers to
your locus of control.

Our locus of control influences our response to events in our lives and our motivation to take action. If
you believe that you hold the keys to your fate, you are more likely to change your situation when
needed. Conversely, if you think that the outcome is out of your hands, you may be less likely to work
toward change.

Individuals with high internal locus of control believe that they control their own destiny and what
happens to them is their own doing, while those with high external locus of control feel that things
happen to them because of other people, luck, or a powerful being.

A student gets a good grade on a test and tells herself that she studied hard or is good at the material
(internal locus of control). She gets a bad grade on another test and says the teacher doesn’t like her or
the test was unfair (external locus of control).
Internals feel greater control over their own lives and therefore they act in ways that will increase their
chances of success. For example, they take the initiative to start mentor-protégé relationships. They are
more involved with their jobs. They demonstrate higher levels of motivation and have more positive
experiences at work (Ng, Soresen, & Eby, 2006; Reitz & Jewell, 1979; Turban & Dougherty, 1994).
Interestingly, internal locus is also related to one’s subjective well-being and happiness in life, while
being high in external locus is related to a higher rate of depression (Benassi, Sweeney, & Dufour, 1988;
DeNeve & Cooper, 1998).

The connection between internal locus of control and health is interesting, but perhaps not surprising. In
fact, one study showed that having internal locus of control at the age of 10 was related to several
health outcomes, such as lower obesity and lower blood pressure later in life (Gale, Batty, & Deary,
2008). It is possible that internals take more responsibility for their health and adopt healthier habits,
while externals may see less of a connection between how they live and their health. Internals thrive in
contexts in which they can influence their own behaviour. Successful entrepreneurs tend to have high
levels of internal locus of control (Certo & Certo, 2005).

Personality Testing in Employee Selection

Personality is a potentially important predictor of work behaviour. Matching people to suitable jobs
matters because when people do not fit with their jobs or the company, they are more likely to leave,
costing companies as much as a person’s annual salary to replace them. In job interviews, companies try
to assess a candidate’s personality and the potential for a good match, but interviews are only as good
as the people conducting them. In fact, interviewers are not particularly good at detecting the best trait
that predicts performance: conscientiousness (Barrick, Patton, & Haugland, 2000). One method some
companies use to improve this match and detect the people who are potentially good job candidates is
personality testing. Companies using them believe that these tests improve the effectiveness of their
selection and reduce turnover. For example, Overnight Transportation in Atlanta found that using such
tests reduced their on-the-job delinquency by 50%–100% (Emmet, 2004; Gale, 2002).

Companies hire consultants to offer pre-employment personality testing.

These consultants provide custom benchmarks that measure a candidate’s aptitude, interests and
personality. By creating job-specific profiles, a hiring manager can find the right puzzle piece to fit the
team.
these assessments are designed to help the business leader better understand his/her team, to discover
how different personalities work together, ways to manage efficiently, and improve effectiveness.

Yet,are these methods good ways of selecting employees? Experts have not yet reached an agreement
on this subject and the topic is highly controversial. Some experts believe, based on data, that
personality tests predict performance and other important criteria such as job satisfaction. However, we
must understand that how a personality test is used influences its validity.

Imagine filling out a personality test in class. You may be more likely to fill it out as honestly as you can.
Then, if your instructor correlates your personality scores with your class performance, we could say
that the correlation is meaningful. In employee selection, one complicating factor is that people filling
out the survey do not have a strong incentive to be honest. In fact, they have a greater incentive to
guess what the job requires and answer the questions to match what they think the company is looking
for. As a result, the rankings of the candidates who take the test may be affected by their ability to fake
results. Some experts believe that this is a serious problem (Morgeson et al., 2007; Morgeson et al.,
2007). Others point out that even with faking, the tests remain valid—the scores are still related to job
performance (Barrick & Mount, 1996; Ones et al., 2007; Ones, Viswesvaran, & Reiss, 1996; Tett &
Christiansen, 2007). It is even possible that the ability to fake is related to a personality trait that
increases success at work, such as social monitoring. This issue raises potential questions regarding
whether personality tests are the most effective way of measuring candidate personality.

Scores are not only distorted because of some candidates faking better than others. Do we even know
our own personality? Are we the best person to ask this question? How supervisors, coworkers, and
customers see our personality matters more than how we see ourselves. Therefore, using self-report
measures of performance may not be the best way of measuring someone’s personality (Mount, Barrick,
& Strauss, 1994). We all have blind areas. We may also give “aspirational” answers. If you are asked if
you are honest, you may think, “Yes, I always have the intention to be honest.” This response says
nothing about your actual level of honesty.

There is another problem with using these tests: how good is personality at predicting performance
anyway? Based on research, it’s not a particularly strong one. According to one estimate, personality
only explains about 10%–15% of variation in job performance. Our performance at work depends on so
many factors, and personality does not seem to be a key factor. In fact, cognitive ability (your overall
mental intelligence) is a much more powerful influencer on job performance, and instead of personality
tests, cognitive ability tests may do a better job of predicting who will be good performers. Personality is
a better predictor of job satisfaction and other attitudes, but screening people out on the assumption
that they may be unhappy at work is a challenging argument to make in the context of employee
selection.
Discover what you are great at. Take this HIGH5 test.

This test is frequently applied in personal development, team building, coaching, and leadership
development.

After answering 100 questions in 20 minutes, you will identify your HIGH5 or the top 5 most developed
strengths free of charge.

imageimage

3.4 Perception

Street SIgn

To some the glass is half empty. To others it is half full. It is all about perception. Image by Gerd Altmann
from Pixabay

Our behaviour is not only a function of our personality, values, and preferences, but also of the
situation. We interpret our environment, formulate responses, and act accordingly. Perception may be
defined as the process with which individuals detect and interpret environmental stimuli. What makes
human perception so interesting is that we do not solely respond to the stimuli in our environment. We
go beyond the information that is present in our environment, pay selective attention to some aspects
of the environment, and ignore other elements that may be immediately apparent to other people. Our
perception of the environment is not entirely rational.

For example, have you ever noticed that while glancing at a newspaper or a news website, information
that is interesting or important to you jumps out of the page and catches your eye? If you are a sports
fan, while scrolling down the pages you may immediately see a news item describing the latest success
of your team. If you are the parent of a picky eater, an advice column on toddler feeding may be the first
thing you see when looking at the page. So what we see in the environment is a function of what we
value, our needs, our fears, and our emotions (Higgins & Bargh, 1987; Keltner, Ellsworth, & Edwards,
1993). In fact, what we see in the environment may be objectively, flat-out wrong because of our
personality, values, or emotions. For example, one experiment showed that when people who were
afraid of spiders were shown spiders, they inaccurately thought that the spider was moving toward
them (Riskin, Moore, & Bowley, 1995). In this section, we will describe some common tendencies we
engage in when perceiving objects or other people, and the consequences of such perceptions.

Self-Perception

Human beings are prone to errors and biases when perceiving themselves. Moreover, the type of bias
people have depends on their personality.

Many people suffer from self-enhancement bias. Self-enhancement is the tendency for individuals to
take all the credit for their successes, while giving little or no credit to other individuals or external
factors. It could also mean overestimating our performance and capabilities and see ourselves in a more
positive light than others see us. People who have a narcissistic (Narcissism is extreme self-involvement
to the degree that it makes a person ignore the needs of those around them) personality are particularly
subject to this bias, but many others are still prone to overestimating their abilities (John & Robins,
1994).

At the same time, other people have the opposing extreme, which may be labeled as self-effacement
bias. This is the tendency for people to underestimate their performance, undervalue their capabilities,
and see events in a way that puts them in a more negative light. We may expect that people with low
self-esteem may be particularly prone to making this error. These tendencies have real consequences
for behaviour in organizations. For example, people who suffer from extreme levels of self-enhancement
tendencies may not understand why they are not getting promoted or rewarded, while those who tend
to self-efface may project low confidence and take more blame for their failures than necessary.

A leader who values his or her team could say “This achievement had nothing to do with me, it is my
team.” This could be considered an example of self-effacement because you understate your role and
emphasize the team members.

When perceiving themselves, human beings are also subject to the false consensus error. Simply put, we
overestimate how similar we are to other people (Fields & Schuman, 1976; Ross, Greene, & House,
1977). We assume that whatever behaviours we have are shared by a larger number of people than in
reality.
One example of the false-consensus effect is someone believing that the political candidate that they
favor has more support in the population than other candidates, even when that isn’t the case.

People who take office supplies home, tell white lies to their boss or colleagues, or take credit for other
people’s work to get ahead may genuinely feel that these behaviours are more common than they really
are. The problem for behaviour in organizations is that, when people believe that a behaviour is
common and normal, they may repeat the behaviour more freely. Under some circumstances this may
lead to a high level of unethical or even illegal behaviours.

Social Perception

How we perceive other people in our environment is also shaped by our values, emotions, feelings, and
personality. Moreover, how we perceive others will shape our behaviour, which in turn will shape the
behaviour of the person we are interacting with.

One of the factors biasing our perception is stereotypes. Stereotypes are generalizations based on group
characteristics. Examples of stereotypes are:

Girls should play with dolls and boys should play with trucks.

Boys should be directed to like blue and green, girls toward red and pink.

Asian students are better at Math than students of other nationalities.

Women with children are less devoted to their jobs.

Men who spend time with family are less masculine and poor breadwinners

Stereotypes may be positive, negative, or neutral. Human beings have a natural tendency to categorize
the information around them to make sense of their environment. What makes stereotypes potentially
discriminatory, and a perceptual bias is the tendency to generalize from a group to a particular
individual. If the belief that men are more assertive than women leads to choosing a man over an
equally (or potentially more) qualified female candidate for a position, the decision will be biased,
potentially illegal, and unfair.
In a seminal paper, two American social psychologists experimentally demonstrated how racial
stereotypes can affect intellectual ability. In their study, black participants performed worse than white
participants on verbal ability tests when they were told that the test was “diagnostic” – a “genuine test
of your verbal abilities and limitations”. However, when this description was excluded, no such effect
was seen. Clearly these individuals experienced a stereotype threat and had negative thoughts about
their verbal ability that affected their performance.

Stereotypes often create a situation called a self-fulfilling prophecy. This cycle occurs when people
automatically behave as if an established stereotype is accurate, which leads to reactive behaviour from
the other party that confirms the stereotype (Snyder, Tanke, & Berscheid, 1977). If you have a
stereotype such as “Asians are friendly,” you are more likely to be friendly toward an Asian yourself.
Because you are treating the other person better, the response you get may also be better, confirming
your original belief that Asians are friendly. Of course, just the opposite is also true. Suppose you believe
that “young employees are slackers.” You are less likely to give a young employee high levels of
responsibility or interesting and challenging assignments. The result may be that the young employee
reporting to you becomes increasingly bored at work and starts goofing off, confirming your suspicions
that young people are slackers!

There are two types of self-fulfilling prophecies: Self-imposed prophecies occur when your own
expectations influence your actions. For example:

You form expectations of yourself, others, or events.

You express those expectations verbally or nonverbally.

Others adjust their behavior and communication to match your messages.

Your expectations become reality.

The confirmation strengthens your belief.

Other-imposed prophecies occur when others’ expectations influence your behavior. Your supervisor
repeatedly tells you that you are not competent. Over time you start believing that you are not
competent.

Selective Perception – the day that a world class violinist played at the metro station and was hardly
recognized.
Stereotypes persist because of a process called selective perception. Selective perception simply means
that we pay selective attention to parts of the environment while ignoring other parts. When we
observe our environment, we see what we want to see and ignore information that may seem out of
place. Here is an interesting example of how selective perception alters our perception to be shaped by
the context: As part of a social experiment, in 2007 the Washington Post newspaper arranged Joshua
Bell, the inter- nationally acclaimed violin virtuoso, to perform in a corner of the Metro station in
Washington DC. The violin he was playing was worth $3.5 million, and tickets for Bell’s concerts usually
cost around $100. During the rush hour in which he played for 45 minutes, only one person recognized
him, only a few realized that they were hearing extraordinary music, and he made only $32 in tips
(Weingarten, 2007). When you see someone playing at the metro station, would you expect them to be
extraordinary?

Our background, expectations, and beliefs will shape which events we notice and which events we
ignore. For example, the functional background of executives affects the changes they perceive in their
environment (Waller, Huber, & Glick, 1995). Executives with a background in sales and marketing see
the changes in the demand for their product, while executives with a background in information
technology may more readily perceive the changes in the technology the company is using. Selective
perception may perpetuate stereotypes, because we are less likely to notice events that go against our
beliefs. A person who believes that men drive better than women may be more likely to notice women
driving poorly than men driving poorly. As a result, a stereotype is maintained because information to
the contrary may not reach their brain.

First impressions are lasting. A job interview is one situation in which first impressions formed during the
first few minutes may have consequences for your relationship with your future boss or colleagues.

Figure 3.6 First impressions are lasting. A job interview is one situation in which first impressions formed
during the first few minutes may have consequences for your relationship with your future boss or
colleagues. World Relief Spokane – Job Interviews – CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.

Let’s say we noticed information that goes against our beliefs. What then? Unfortunately, this is no
guarantee that we will modify our beliefs and prejudices. First, when we see examples that go against
our stereotypes, we tend to come up with subcategories. For example, when people who believe that
women are more cooperative see a female who is assertive, they may classify this person as a “career
woman.” Therefore, the example to the contrary does not violate the stereotype, and instead is
explained as an exception to the rule (Higgins & Bargh, 1987). Second, we may simply discount the
information. In one study, people who were either in favor of or opposed to the death penalty were
shown two studies, one showing benefits from the death penalty and the other discounting any
benefits. People rejected the study that went against their belief as methodologically inferior and
actually reinforced the belief in their original position even more (Lord, Ross, & Lepper, 1979). In other
words, trying to debunk people’s beliefs or previously established opinions with data may not
necessarily help.

One other perceptual tendency that may affect work behaviour is that of first impressions. The first
impressions we form of people tend to have a lasting impact. In fact, first impressions, once formed, are
surprisingly resilient to contrary information. Even if people are told that the first impressions were
caused by inaccurate information, people hold onto them to a certain degree.

The reason is that, once we form first impressions, they become independent of the evidence that
created them (Ross, Lepper, & Hubbard, 1975). Any information we receive to the contrary does not
serve the purpose of altering the original impression. Imagine the first day you met your colleague Anne.
She treated you in a rude manner and when you asked for her help, she brushed you off. You may form
the belief that she is a rude and unhelpful person. Later, you may hear that her mother is very sick and
she is very stressed. In reality, she may have been unusually stressed on the day you met her. If you had
met her on a different day, you could have thought that she is a really nice person who is unusually
stressed these days. But chances are your impression that she is rude and unhelpful will not change
even when you hear about her mother. Instead, this new piece of information will be added to the first
one: She is rude, unhelpful, and her mother is sick. Being aware of this tendency and consciously
opening your mind to new information may protect you against some of the downsides of this bias. Also,
it would be to your advantage to pay careful attention to the first impressions you create, particularly
during job interviews.

Read this guide to understand what ” first impressions” mean.

image

Attributions

Fundamental Attribution Error: Don't Be Quick To Judge Your Team Members - TechTello

Picture source: techtello

Woman shouting

An attribution error breaks collaboration, and makes communication ineffective. It can cost someone
their job. Picture source: techtello.com

Think of the countless times you labeled someone at work as “lazy, boring, incompetent, stupid,
irritating, biased, reckless, rude…”

The lens with which you see others makes all the difference – are you quick to judge or adopt an
attitude to understand?

How your co-worker reacts to a situation is shaped by their own temperament, past experiences and the
current circumstances. Their behaviour in one area does not reflect who they are as a person, what they
value and even how they would be in another aspect of their work.

A missed delivery deadline does not make someone incompetent, mistake is not a sign of negligence
and declining meeting invite is not an act of rudeness.

Yet, we assume that’s all there is to this story.

Snap judgments without careful consideration rules our workplaces and our lives. We are quick to stamp
people as “this is who they are” without taking a moment to step back and analyse the situational
factors that contribute to their behaviour.

The less we know about someone, the easier it’s for us to label them and then stick with those
assumptions.

This cognitive bias called fundamental attribution error or attribution bias makes us attribute a person’s
behaviour to their character without taking into account the limitations and constraints within which the
person might be operating.
We jump to the conclusion that their behaviour is a reflection of “who they are” without taking time to
analyse the situation that makes them behave in a certain way.

An attribution is the causal explanation we give for an observed behaviour. If you believe that a
behaviour is due to the internal characteristics of an actor, you are making an internal attribution. For
example, let’s say your classmate Erin complained a lot when completing a finance assignment. If you
think that she complained because she is a negative person, you are making an internal attribution. An
external attribution is explaining someone’s behaviour by referring to the situation. If you believe that
Erin complained because the finance homework was difficult, you are making an external
attribution.image

3.5 Using Science to Match Candidates to Jobs: The Case of Kronos

Figure 3.7

You are interviewing a candidate for a position as a cashier in a supermarket. You need someone polite,
courteous, patient, and dependable. The candidate you are talking to seems nice. But how do you know
who is the right person for the job? Will the job candidate like the job or get bored? Will they have a lot
of accidents on the job or be fired for misconduct? Don’t you wish you knew before hiring? One
company approaches this problem scientifically, saving the business time and money on hiring hourly
wage employees.

Retail employers do a lot of hiring, given their growth and high turnover rate. According to one estimate,
replacing an employee who leaves in retail costs companies around $4,000. High turnover also
endangers customer service. Therefore, retail employers have an incentive to screen people carefully so
that they hire people with the best chance of being successful and happy on the job. Unicru, an
employee selection company, developed software that quickly became a market leader in screening
hourly workers (Frauenheim, 2006; Rafter, 2005). The company was acquired by Massachusetts-based
Kronos Inc. (NASDAQ: KRON) in 2006 and is currently owned by a private equity firm.

The idea behind the software is simple: if you have a lot of employees and keep track of your data over
time, you have access to an enormous resource. By analyzing this data, you can specify the profile of the
“ideal” employee. The software captures the profile of the potential high performers, and applicants are
screened to assess their fit with this particular profile. More importantly, the profile is continually
updated as new employees are hired. As the database gets larger, the software does a better job of
identifying the right people for the job.

If you applied for a job in retail, you may have already been a part of this database: the users of this
system include giants such as Universal Studios, Costco Wholesale Corporation, Burger King, and other
retailers and chain restaurants. In companies such as Albertsons or Blockbuster, applicants use a kiosk in
the store to answer a list of questions and to enter their background, salary history, and other
information. In other companies, such as some in the trucking industry, candidates enter the data
through the website of the company they are applying to. The software screens people on basic criteria
such as availability in scheduling as well as personality traits.

Candidates are asked to agree or disagree with statements such as “I often make last-minute plans” or “I
work best when I am on a team.” After the candidates complete the questions, hiring managers are sent
a report complete with a colour-coded suggested course of action. Red means the candidate does not fit
the job, yellow means proceed with caution, and green means the candidate can be hired on the spot.
Interestingly, the company contends that faking answers is not easy because it is difficult for candidates
to predict the desired profile. For example, according to their research, being a successful salesman has
less to do with being an extraverted and sociable person and more to do with a passion for the
company’s product.

Matching candidates to jobs has long been viewed as a key way of ensuring high performance and low
turnover in the workplace, and advances in computer technology are making it easier and more efficient
to assess candidate–job fit. Companies using such technology are cutting down the time it takes to hire
people, and it is estimated that using such technologies lowers their turnover by 10%–30% (Berta, 2002;
Frazier, 2005; Haaland, 2006; Overholt, 2002).image

3.6 Conclusion

In this chapter we have reviewed major individual differences that affect employee attitudes and
behaviours. Our values and personality explain our preferences and the situations we feel comfortable
with. Personality may influence our behaviour, but the importance of the context in which behaviour
occurs should not be neglected. Many organizations use personality tests in employee selection, but the
use of such tests is controversial because of problems such as faking and the low predictive value of
personality for job performance. Perception is how we interpret our environment. It is a major influence
over our behaviour, but many systematic biases colour our perception and lead to misunderstandings.
3.7 Exercises

imageimageimage

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IntroductionEthiopian Airlines formerly Ethiopian Air Lines (EAL) often referred to as simply Ethiopian,
isEthiopia'sflag carrierand is wholly owned by thecountry's government. EAL was founded on21
December 1945 and commenced operations on 8 April 1946, expanding to internationalflights in 1951.
The firm became a share company in 1965 and changed its name from EthiopianAir Lines to Ethiopian
Airlines. The airline has been a member of theInternational Air TransportAssociation(IATA) since 1959
and of theAfrican Airlines Association(AFRAA) since 1968. Itshub and headquarters are atBole
International AirportinAddis Ababa, Ethiopia from where itserves a network of 125 passenger
destinations—20 of them domestic—and 44 freighterdestinations. The airline has secondary hubs
inTogoandMalawi. Ethiopian flies to moredestinations in Africa than any other carrier does. It is one of
the fastest-growing companies inthe industry and is the largest on the African continent.The concept of
good governance emerged as a development agenda by World Bank twenty yearsago. The 1989 World
Bank study, “Sub-Saharan Africa – from Crisis to Sustainable Growth” ,indicated good governance as a
public service that is efficient, a judicial system that is reliable,and an administration that is accountable
to the public. In its 1992 report entitled “Governanceand Development”, the Bank defined good
governance as “the manner in which power isexercised in the management of a country’s economic and
social resources for development”.Given that, Ethiopian Airlines is Public Enterprise under the National
Government control. Thepublic sector plays a major role in society. In most jurisdictions, public
expenditure forms asignificant part of gross domestic product (GDP), and public sector including
Ethiopian Airlinesentities are substantial employers and major capital market participants. The public
sectordetermines, usually through a political process, the outcomes it wants to achieve, the
legal,ethical, and other standards and norms, and the different types of intervention required to
achievethese objectives. Potential interventions include enacting legislation or regulations;
deliveringservices; redistributing income through mechanisms such as taxation or social security
payments;and the control of assets or entities, such as state owned enterprises. Governments also have
arole in promoting fairness, peace and order, and sound international relations.Good governance in the
public sector encourages better-informed and longer-term decisionmaking as well as the efficient use of
resources. It strengthens accountability for the stewardshipof those resources. Good governance is
characterized by robust scrutiny, which places importantpressures on improving public sector
performance and tackling corruption. Good governance canimprove organizational leadership,
management, and oversight, resulting in more effectiveinterventions and, ultimately, better outcomes.
People’s lives are thereby improved. Somescholars have argued that the enhanced performance of
governmental agencies in any nation is aproduct of good governance, accountability, transparency and
trust, which in turn brings aboutthe improvement in the living standard of the people. The implication of
this position is thatwhere good governance is absent, accountability of governmental agencies and
Structure

The aviation industry may be divided along three lines: commercial, general, and military.

Commercial Aviation
Commercial aviation includes the airlines, air taxi and charter operations, airplane rental, and aerial
applications. Commercial aviation is further broken down according to the size of the company. Mainline
national carriers are airlines that earn between $100 million and $1 billion per year. Regional carriers
have revenues of less than $100 million each year. Mainline carriers use large passenger jets (more than
90 seats) and regional carriers use smaller piston, turboprop, and regional aircraft (up to 90 seats). Other
commercial uses for aircraft include forest fire containment, crop dusting, and aerial signage.
Helicopters are used for police, emergency, rescue, and passenger services, and for traffic reporting. In
2018, there were 19,624 airports in the United States, including 5,090 public, 14,249 private, and 278
military airports.

General Aviation

General aviation encompasses personal and instructional flights and business and executive aircraft.
General aviation also includes smaller crafts, such as ultralights. Most of the airplane activity in the
United States occurs in general aviation. General aviation aircraft fly about 25 million hours,
approximately two times the commercial airline flight hours. There are nearly 3,000 general aviation
airports in the United States, but general aviation craft fly into and out of most of the country's
approximately 19,624 airports. Airports range in size from a single unpaved landing strip to complex
sites of 20,000 acres or more.

Military Aviation

All branches of the U.S. armed forces, but especially the U.S. Air Force, rely on planes and helicopters
and employ soldiers and civilians to pilot, manage, and maintain their vehicles and equipment. Many
commercial pilots receive training and experience in the military before going to work for civilian
airlines. Many military air vehicles, which often incorporate advanced technology, are designed for
combat or the transport of cargo and personnel. In December 2018 the Congressional Budget Office
estimated that, in 2018 dollars, it would cost about $15 billion annually to replace aircraft in the U.S. Air
Force fleet during the 2020s. This figure was projected to increase during the 2020s, reaching $23
billion, but decline to $15 billion during the 2040s.

Airports

Large airports have often been compared to cities. Each has its own police force, fire department and
emergency rescue service, retail stores and restaurants, maintenance crews, warehouses for cargo, and
even its own transportation system. A large airport may employ thousands of people. Many airports are
managed by fixed-base operators (FBO). The FBO is often responsible for the entire operation of the
airport, including its management, fueling, hangar, and repair facilities. A feature at many airports is the
control tower. Air traffic controllers regulate the flow of traffic into and out of the airport. Additional air
traffic control centers are spaced along the airways, linking the entire system. Other important features
of larger, international airports and airports located near the country's borders are the customs and
immigration departments. More than 100 airlines make use of these airports.

Airlines

The typical organizational structure of an airline includes operations, maintenance, marketing, and
finance divisions. The operations division manages the day-to-day activities of the airline, overseeing the
pilots and flight attendants, the flight dispatchers, flight scheduling, and ground crews. The maintenance
division handles the avionics and mechanics of the airplane, performing daily inspections, and routine
repairs and maintenance, such as filling the tires with air and fueling. The marketing department sells
the airline's services as well as creates new programs, services, and advertisements to attract customers.
It also takes ticket reservations and purchases. The finance division is concerned with maintaining a
smooth cash flow to ensure the airline's continued success. Other areas of an airline may include an
interior design staff to develop the passenger areas of a plane and clothing designers to design the
uniforms of the pilots, flight attendants, check-in personnel, and others.

Cargo

Airlines carry more than just people. Transportation of cargo, from single packages to shipments such as
25-ton printing presses, complete oil well towers, and heavy construction equipment, is an important
source of income. The use of airplanes to transport fresh fruits, vegetables, and seafood has had a great
impact on the variety of foods available for people to eat. Other industries, such as the auto industry,
transport parts and components by air so that they arrive at their factories just when they are needed.
An added source of revenues is transportation of mail and packages, which may contribute as much as
15 percent to a major carrier's earnings. There are now many companies that specialize in mail
transport, some with their own fleets of airplanes. A typical airplane carries a variety of cargo, along
with its passengers and crew. Air cargo airlines were increasingly busy from 2003 through 2008,
according to a report by the Bureau of Transportation. The total air cargo revenue grew steadily in that
time span, from 56.4 million ton-miles in 2003 to 68.5 million ton-miles in 2007. Business started to
decline in 2008 and 2009, reaching a low of 54.8 million ton-miles, but has rebounded since. Air cargo
revenue for 2014 exceeded 65.0 million ton-miles, and continued increasing through the end of the
decade, reaching 79.8 million ton-miles in 2018, an increase of about 5 percent from 2017.

Aircraft Manufacturers

An important component of the airline industry is the aircraft manufacturer. The major carrier aircraft
manufacturers in the United States are Boeing Aircraft Company and Lockheed Martin. They also build
aircraft, weapons, vehicles, and components for the military and the U.S. space program. Much of their
work involves the research and development of new technologies. Many features of the modern
airplane were first developed for the military or the space program and were later adapted for
commercial aircraft. A typical aircraft manufacturer employs people from nearly every field, from
physicists, biologists, engineers, technicians, and mathematicians to accountants, lawyers, writers, and
artists, as well as traditional manufacturing personnel. Many other manufacturers provide essential
aircraft components and electronics.

A number of manufacturers concentrate on supplying aircraft to the general aviation industry. Major
general aviation manufacturers include Piper Aircraft, Cessna Aircraft Company, Raytheon Company,
Bombardier, and Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation. Still other manufacturers build helicopters. The
growing popularity of ultralight aircraft, many of which are built by the purchaser from a kit, has created
more manufacturing opportunities. The popularity of skydiving also has increased the need for such
equipment as parachutes and safety harnesses.

Federal Aviation Administration

The Federal Aviation Administration oversees the airline industry, performing a number of important
functions. Aircraft and airports must meet rigid specifications for safety, performance, noise, and
pollution standards. Routine inspections of each aircraft alert airlines to faults in their aircraft and keep
unsafe airplanes from the sky. The FAA establishes training and licensing requirement for pilots,
instructors, and other workers. The FAA also hires, trains, and assigns air traffic controllers to manage
the traffic flow above airports and across the country. Most of the current air traffic control system in
the United States has been in place since the 1960s. As its computers and other components have aged,
and even become obsolete, the FAA has begun to rebuild the system, sponsoring research and
development into new components that will be able to regulate air traffic for many years to come. The
FAA also governs the design, construction, and operations of airports. Everyone who flies remains
subject to the FAA's rules and regulations.