BUSM2301 - ORGANISATIONS

ASSIGNMENT 1

Course Code BUSM2301

Course Name Organisations

Lecturer Giang Hoang

Semester Semester B

Campus SGS

Student name + ID Luong Minh Anh - s3927404

Word Count 1001

The speaker, Mark Durand, is interested in the boat race competitions between the two oldest universities:
Cambridge and Oxford. Therefore, "Cambridge Idea: The Boat Race: A Perfect Crew?" media is the
result of Mark Durand's two years of ethnographic research with the Cambridge University Boat Club, in
which he explores the causes of the boat club's team achievements and failures, as an ethnographer, by
living with the rowers full-time throughout training sessions and daily. Furthermore, he considers how to
increase the overall performance under the existing system, in which rowers only see others as
competitors who can steal one of their eight positions in the boat. However, to an extent, the speaker also
wants to criticize the organization's present political and economic structure by providing an analytical
sample of the Cambridge University Boat Club, where he highlighted the many sorts of traits that we can
meet in society. "Businesses need to trade off some technical competence to gain social intelligence to be
able to get more out of a team as a whole," he said in the video (Cambridge University, 2009). The
consensus in cooperation is difficult to achieve in organizations since there are diverse characteristics that
are extremely brilliant but tough to work with as a team. The goal of organizations is to unite every
individual through communications (including dialogue, discussions, sharing opinions & experiences,
etc.) to synthesize diverse points of view and opinions for future organizational goals. "Communication
plays a role in product development, customer relations, employee management – virtually every facet of
a business' operations" (Richards 2019).

Through the media, the interpretive paradigm is strongly defined, encompassing sociological and
philosophical approaches that seek to explore and comprehend social reality, generally through the sights
of individuals actively engaged in the social practice (Burrell & Morgan, 1974, p 28). In other words,
interpretivism applies qualitative research methods, rather than quantitative data, that centralize
individuals' perspectives (cultures, beliefs, reasoning, etc.) to achieve social interaction comprehension
(Nickerson 2022). Moreover, the paradigm comprises two elements: order and regulation, which develop
due to sense-making, interaction, and the construction of meaningful roles. Aside from what Mark

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Durand intended, these are a few features that may have mirrored the interpretivism paradigm in the
media.
The first feature of the media-visible paradigm is "knowledge is subjectivist," in which the reality is
perceived and shaped by individuals' perspectives since people with different cultures, beliefs, or
healthiness experience it differently. Therefore, to learn and grasp social reality, we must adapt, engage,
and experience diverse points of view. By walking in other people's shoes to understand their experiences,
Mark readily observes and analyzes the distinctive interiority of rowers through their experiences, skills,
and interactions with other rowers or competitors. The second feature of the media-visible paradigm is
that there is no societal structure within the club, which means there is no coach or manager. When
individuals internalization of role expectations, this results in meeting the expectations. Nevertheless, he
saw that rowers seemed more competitive than united since about forty were contending for the eight
spots in the boat. A team also had a mix of diverse personalities, competencies, career aspirations, and
leadership behaviors. A few were egotistic since they had strong opinions about their abilities compared
to everyone else. "The only way to have the boat go fast is to collaborate perfectly with the same people
that they're competing with," he remarked (Cambridge University, 2009). Mark acknowledges that
collaboration, consensus, and the reconciliation of diverse abilities and experiences contribute to
organizational stability and success. As "when everyone works together towards a common goal, each
person can use his or her experience and skills to contribute to its success" (Indeed 2021).

Ineffective communication within the Cambridge University Boat Club is primarily due to a lack of an
open attitude toward group discussion, which is not an instinctive human ability. This is an issue that the
speaker did not explore or discuss in the media. He mentioned how ineffectual the rowers are while
working as a team during the competition. However, he made no mention of the management or team
communication, which he may have overlooked, or the team did not have coaches who could bring the
team together. Rowers are employees in the organization, whereas coaches are comparable to managers
or leaders. Managers are responsible for more efficiently and productively organizing, planning,
overseeing, and directing their people, projects, and organizations (Indeed Editorial Team 2021).
Furthermore, managers should be aware that knowing how to communicate is their highest priority since
communication is a management tool that is used to enhance interactions among individuals and to create
an atmosphere advantageous to the organization's internal development (Miller 2012). In my perspective,
the significance of this blind spot is Mark wants to emphasize the need for and role of leaders or
managers in businesses, who integrate diverse characteristics into one unified through effective
communication (including dialogue, discussions, sharing opinions & experiences, etc.), where corporate
objectives may be successfully achieved. Internalizing standards, values, shared beliefs, and behaviors
among different individuals is an effective way of molding human behavior in organizations (Johneades
2016). The speaker recommends that organizations walk in other people's shoes to own broader
perspectives and interpret the unique interiority of people. Also, cooperation for the mutual growth of the
organization, in which each member lowers their ego to accept their own faults and the strength of others.
Working in a group dynamic will allow rowers to feel more responsibility for their own tasks while still
improving relationships within the organization and encouraging self-improvement.

In summary, "Cambridge Idea: The Boat Race: A Perfect Crew?" has proved the interpretive paradigm
since the model interprets from the speaker's, Mark Durand's, direct involvement, giving the video
credibility. However, as it is an explanatory framework from one point of view of the speaker, the video's

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drawback is that the researcher has a tendency toward one side and subjectivity while tackling the topic.
Furthermore, different people will have different perspectives on a situation; thus, some may agree with
the speaker while others may not.

References
Burrell, G & Morgan, G (1979), ‘Sociological Paradigms and Organisational Analysis’, 1st edn,
Routledge, London, viewed 20 July 2022,
<https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.rmit.edu.au/10.4324/9781315242804>.
Cambridge University (1 October 2009), ‘Cambridge Ideas - The Boat Race: A Perfect Crew?’, Youtube,
viewed 20 July 2022, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXLg9nsuo9I>.
Indeed (2021), ‘Why Is Collaboration Important? (Plus Tips)’, Indeed, viewed 20 July 2022,
<https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/why-is-collaboration-important>.
Indeed Editorial Team (2021), ‘What Is the Role of Managers and What Are Their Key Skills?’, Indeed,
viewed 20 July, <https://uk.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/role-of-managers>.
Johneades (2016), ‘What Happens to a Leaderless Team?’, LEARNLOFT, viewed 20 July,
<https://learnloft.com/2016/04/12/what-happens-to-a-leaderless-team/#:~:text=Leaders%20build
%20the%20values%20and,erode%20with%20a%20leader's%20presence>.
Miller, K. (2012). ‘Organizational Communication: Approaches and Processes”, Thomson-Wadsworth,
6th edn, Belmont CA, viewed 20 July 2022.
Nickerson, C (2022), ‘Interpretivism Paradigm & Research Philosophy’, SimplySociology, viewed 20
July 2022, <https://simplysociology.com/interpretivism-paradigm.html>.
Richards, L (2019), ‘How Effective Communication Will Help an Organization’, CHRON, viewed 20
July 2022, <https://smallbusiness.chron.com/effective-communication-organization-1400.html>.