SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES

DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY

UNIT CODE: BCP4102

COURSE TITLE: ORGANIZATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY

P.O BOX 342-01000 THIKA

www.mku.ac.ke
EMAIL:[email protected]

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BCP4102: ORGANIZATONAL PSYCHOLOGY

CONTACT HOURS 42

PREREQUISITES: CCU 411

Purpose

The learner should be able t understand the dynamics of organizational behavior

Course expected learning outcomes

By the end of the course unit, the learner should be able to;
 Discuss functional management of successful organizations
 Identify qualities of good leadership
 Explain the role of organizational structure in promoting productivity

Course content
Defining organizational behaviour; managing organizational behavior for quality and results;
releasing every employee potential; individual differences, values and ethics; behavior
modification and self management; individual and group decision making; teams and team work;
organizational communication process; organizational structure and effectiveness; organizational
life cycle and design; organization culture.

Instructional materials and equipment

Text books

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 COURSE OUTLINE
TOPIC ONE: INTRODUCTION TO ORGANIZATION BEHAVIOUR
 Definition of terms
 Scope of organizational discipline
 Why study organizational behaviour
TOPIC TWO: MANAGING ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR

 Definition of terms
 Leadership vs. management
 Needs for leadership
 Power and Leadership
 Approaches to leadership
 Leadership styles
 Continuum of leadership
 Management Grid

TOPIC THREE: RELEASING EVERY EMPLOYEE POTENTIAL

 Definition of terms
 Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
 Types of motivation
 Importance of motivation
 Motivational techniques
 Theories of motivation
TOPIC FOUR: INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
 Definitions of terms
 Personality
 Perception
 Attitude and job satisfaction
 Learning

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TOPIC FIVE: VALUES AND ETHICS
 Definition of terms
 Organizational ethics
 Importance of organizational ethics

TOPIC SIX: BEHAVIOUR MODIFICATION AND SELF MANAGEMENT

 Definition of terms
 Principles of behaviour modification

TOPIC SEVEN: INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP DECISION MAKING

 Definition of terms
 Types of problems and decisions
 The decision making process

TOPIC EIGHT: TEAM AND TEAM WORKS

 Definition of terms
 Types of teams
 Characteristics of effective teams
 Team building/Group formation process
 Benefit of teams

TOPIC NINE: ORGANIZATION COMMUNICATION PROCESS

 Definition of terms
 Types of formal communication in an organization
 Informal communication in an organization

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TOPIC TEN: ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND EFFECTIVENESS
 Definition of terms
 Organizational characteristics
 Components of organizational structures
 Types of organizational structure
 Dimensions of organizational structure
 Organizational effectiveness
 Determinants of organizational effectiveness

TOPIC ELEVEN: ORGANIZATIONAL LIFE CYCLE AND DESIGN

 Definition of terms
 Organization life cycle
 Organization design

TOPIC TWELVE: ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE

 Definition of terms
 Functions of culture
 Characteristics of organizational culture
 Organizational socialization process
 Healthy organizational cultures

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MODE OF ASSESSMENT

The course will be assessed through end of semester examination, home assignments. The end
of semester examinations will carry 70% of the total marks; and the two home assignments will
total marks of 30% totaling to 100%. The pass mark is 40%.

MODULE AUTHOR: PETER NGUGI - 0721225646

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 TOPIC ONE

AN INTRODUCTION TO ORGANIZATION BEHAVIOUR

Objectives

By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:

1. Define Organizational Behaviour;
2. Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of studying Organizational
Behaviour.
3. Describe the scope of Organizational Behaviour as a discipline

DEFINITION OF TERMS
Organization
Organization refers to a system of consciously coordinated activities or forces of two or more
persons. Organizations are a social intervention helping us to achieve things collectively that we
would not achieve alone

Behaviour

Behaviour is defined as what people do which can be observed or measured

Organizational Behaviour

Organizational behavior is also referred as OB. It refers to interdisciplinary field dedicated to

better understanding and managing people at work. The three basic levels of analysis in
Organizational Behaviour are individuals, group and organization. (Kreitner, Kinicki, 2008).
Organizational behavior can also be defined as the scientific study of people in an organizational
setting and involves the understanding and control of the behavioral factors that influence the
performance of people as members of an organizational.

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Organizational behavior means understanding how the behavior of people, management
processes, the organizational context and environmental influences combine to drive
organizational processes and execution of tasks.

Organizational Behaviour is drawn from a various disciplines. These include;

SCOPE AND ORGANIZATION DISCIPLINES

Psychology

Psychology is the science that seeks to measure, explain and sometimes change the behaviour of
human and other animals. Organizational psychologists have contributed to the following
working conditions: learning, perception, personality, emotions, training, leadership
effectiveness, needs and motivational forces, job satisfaction, decision-making processes,
performance appraisals, attitude measurement, employee-selection techniques, work design and
job stress.
Sociology

Sociology studies people in relation to their social environment or culture .It has contributed to
research on organization culture, formal organizations theory & structure, organizational
technology, communications, power and conflict.

Social psychology

Social psychology blends concepts from both psychology and sociology, where it focuses on
peoples influence on one another. Social psychologists have made significant contributions in the
areas of measuring, understanding & changing attitudes, communication patterns and building
trust. They have also made contributions to group behaviour power and conflict

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Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of societies to learn about human beings and their activities.
Anthropologist work on cultures and environment has enabled more understanding in
fundamental values, attitudes, behavioural between people in different countries and within
different organizations
Economics
This studies the behaviour of humans’ beings in the process of producing goods and services and
also in earning and consuming of income. It includes the following: use of resources, scarcity,
cost, decision-making, negotiation and organizational power.
Political Science

Political science has contributed to the field of Organizational behaviour. Stability of

government at national level is one major factor for promotion of international business,
financial investments, expansion and employment. Various government rules and regulations
play a very decisive role in growth of the organization (Kreitner, Kinicki, 2008).

All organizations have to abide by the rules of the government of the day.

Why study organizational Behaviour

Organizations behavior enables an individual in a group to;

 Learn how to interact effectively with others, thrive and survive in organizations
 Gain insights about ones own personality, emotions, values, job satisfaction,
perceptions’ needs and goals.
 It also enables employees in an organization learn how to be a team player, build trust,
manage conflict effectively, learn negotiation skills, communication, leadership among
others.
 Organization behaviour enables a person build skills in areas of self-management,
making ethical decisions, avoiding groupthink, listening, coping with organizational
politics, handling change and managing stress in an organization.

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 SUMMARY

The chapter introduces the learner to the module and defines key terms. The chapter also
identifies various scope and organization disciplines and their relation to organizational
psychology, and also explains the importance of learning organizational psychology.

? SELF EVALUATION QUESTIONS

1. Define the key terms; Organization, Behaviour and Organizational Behaviour
2. Discuss the scope and organizational Disciplines
3. Discuss the Importance of studying Organizational Behaviour

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 TOPIC TWO:

MANAGING ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR

Objectives

By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:

b) Explain the differences between management and leadership
c) Describe the various theories of leadership
d) Describe the various styles of leadership

DEFINITIONS
Leadership
Leadership is an influence process directed at shaping the behaviour of others (Leadership is
shaping the behaviour of others through influence)” David Schwartz: “Leadership is the art of
inspiring subordinates to perform their duties willingly”.

In competency and enthusiasm, a leader becomes one who by example and talent plays a
directing role and commands influence over others. In simple terms leadership could be
described as getting others to follow or getting others to do things willingly. In management,
leadership could be seen as the use of authority in decision-making.

Leadership could be exercised as an attitude of position, or because of personal knowledge and

wisdom, or as a function of personality. Leadership could be looked at from many perspectives
but what is clear is that it is a relationship through which one person influences the behaviour of
others. If for example your friend convinces you to try a new product in the market, he/she is
leading.
Leadership versus management
The question of whether leadership is synonymous with management has long been debated.
While they are similar in some ways, they are very different in others. People can be leaders
without being managers and managers without being in leadership or even both leaders and
managers.

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  A manager usually directs others because of formal authority and power
 A manager is by essence required to perform four functions: planning, organizing,
directing and controlling.
 Leadership is a little of management but not all of it. It involves the ability to influence
others to seek and set goals willingly.
 Leadership binds together and motivates people towards agreed goals.
 A leader needs only to influence his followers on their behaviour in whatever direction he
chooses.
Unlike managers, leaders do not rely on any formal authority, because while a manager can force
people to comply by using formal authority, a leader has no such power. However, people can be
both and effective leadership does increase person’s managerial capabilities.

Needs for leadership

Effective leadership gives direction to the efforts of workers;
 Leadership guides organization efforts towards achievement of organization goals.
 It has been said that without leadership an organization is a muddle of men and machine.
 Leadership is the ability to persuade others to seek defined goals enthusiastically , and
 It is the leader who triggers the power of motivation in people and guide them toward
goals
 Leadership transforms potential into reality
 Leadership is indispensable if an organization is to be successful.
 Workers needs to know how they can contribute to organizational goals
POWER AND LEADERSHIP
The foundation of leadership is power. Leaders have power over their followers and they wield
this power to exert their influence. There are five basic types of power that can be used by
leaders.
1. Legitimate power
This is based on the perception that the leader has the right to exercise influence because of
his/her position and role. It is power created and convened by the organization.
2. Reward power

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This is the power to grant and withhold various types of reward. These rewards may include pay
increase, promotion, praise, recognition etc. The greater and more important the reward, the
more power a leader has.
3. Coercive Power
This is the power to force compliance through psychological, emotional or physical threat. In
industrial organizations, coercion may be oral, through fines, demotion etc. In military
organization coercion could actually be physical.
4. Expert Power
This is power based on knowledge and expertise. The more knowledge one has and the fewer the
people who are aware of it, the more power he has.
5. Referent Power
This is power based on subordination and identification with the leaders – it usually distinguishes
leaders from non-leaders. The leader exerts influence because of charisma and reputation. The
followers wish to be like the leader or to be associated with him/her.

APPROACHES TO LEADERSHIP
There are three basic approaches to studying and describing leadership: trait, behaviours and
Contingency approaches.
a) Leadership traits
This assumes that great leaders possess a set of stable and enduring traits or characteristics that
set them apart from followers. Adherents of this theory attempted to identity these traits so that
they could be used be used. Traits include intelligence, height, self-confidence and attractiveness.
However, traits proved to be ineffective bases for selection of leaders because the known good
leaders had such diverse traits that it was impossible to draw up a list of common traits.
b) Contingency approaches
Contingency approaches to leadership suggested that situational factors must be considered. One
kind of behaviour may work in one setting but not in other. The goal of contingency approaches
is to identity the situational variable that managers need to consider in assessing how different
forms of leadership will be received. There are three popular contingency theories of leadership:
the LPC model, the path-goal model and the participation model.

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The LPC Model
Called the least preferred co-worker, this model was developed by Fred E. Fielders. According to
him, leaders become leaders not only because of their personality but also because of the various
situation that effect a leader’s style. These were:
 Position Power which is the degree to which a position enables a leader to get enough
members to comply with his direction.
 Task structure which is the degree to which tasks are spelled out clearly and people held
responsible i.e. how much each person knows about his/her roles
 Leaders-members retaliation which is the extent to which group members like and trust
their leader and are willing to follow him. From these situation Fielders identified two
types of leadership style.
 Task –oriented whereby a leader gains satisfaction from seeing tasks performed
 People – oriented where the leader aims to achieve good interpersonal relations. Fielders
concluded that “leadership performance” depends both on the organization and the
situation.
 One cannot speak of ineffective leaders but only of leaders who tend to be effective in
one situation and ineffective in other situations. Effective leadership requires both
training and a conducive organizational climate.
 Leadership behaviours as a function of the favourableness of the situation.
Path – Goals Model
The path-goal model is another approach to situation leadership which suggests that the purpose
of leadership in an organization is to clarify for subordinates the paths to desired goals.
According to this model, subordinate characteristics include such things as nature of work, extent
to which jobs are structured and the authority system within the organization. The model is
general and suggests that leaders need to use a lot of common sense. It also assumes that a
leader’s style is flexible and that he can change his style as needed.
Participation Model
This involves a much narrower segment of leadership than the other two models. It addresses the
question of how much subordinates should be allowed to participate in decision-making.

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The model includes five different degrees of participation.
 The manager makes the decision alone with no input from subordinates (Autocratic)
 The manager asks subordinates for information that she or he needs to make the decision
but makes the decision alone.
 The manager shares the situation with selected subordinates and asks for information and
advice. The manager still makes the decision but keeps subordinates actively involved
(C= consultative)
 The manager meets with subordinates as a group to discuss the situation; Information is
freely shared although the manager still makes the decision.
 The manager and subordinates meet as a group and freely share information and the
entire group makes the decision (G- Group). This model suggest that the manager needs
to consider several factors in choosing the degree of participation in decision making
 Is there quality required?
 Do I have enough information to make a high quality decision?
 Is the problem structured?
 Is acceptance by subordinates critical to implementation?
 Do subordinates share the organizational goals to be achieved by making this decision?
 Is conflict among subordinates likely in the preferred solution?
LEADERSHIP STYLES
The method or style of leadership a manager chooses to use greatly influences his effectiveness
as a leader. An appropriate style coupled with proper external motivation techniques can lead to
the achievement of both individual and organizational goals. If the style is appropriate goals
could suffer and workers may feel resentful, aggressive, insecure and dissatisfied. There are three
main styles of leadership

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a) Authoritative
All authority and decision-making is centered in the leader. He makes all decisions and exercises
total control by use of reward and punishment. An autocratic leader requires conformity from his
subordinate and always considers his decision to be superior to those of his subordinate. One
advantage of autocratic leadership is that it allows faster decision-making but it can easily cause
workers to experience dissatisfaction, dependence on the leader or passiveness toward
organization goals.

b) Democratic or participation
This style of leadership seeks to obtain cooperation of workers in achieving organization goals
by allowing them to participate in decision-making. It does not relieve the leader of his decision-
making responsibility or of his power over subordinates, but it requires that he recognize
subordinates as capable of contributing positively to decision making. Participative decision-
making can lead to improved manager-worker relations, higher morale and job satisfaction,
decrease dependence on the better acceptance of group think: time consuming and dilutes
decision due to compromising.

c) Laissez faire style (free reign)

This style does not depend on the leader to provide external motivation but the workers motivate
themselves based on their needs, wants and desires. They are given goals and left on their own to
achieve them. The leaders assume the goals of the role of a group member. This approaches
increase independence and expression and force him to express and force him to function as a
member of the group. The main disadvantage is that without a strong leader, the group could lack
direction or control which may result into frustration for the worker. For laissez faire to work, the
subordinate must be competent, reliable and well versed with the goals of the organization.

CONTINUUM OF LEADERSHIP
In reality, there are not only three leadership styles. The styles are many, ranging from high boss-
centered style to highly employee-centered leadership. According to Tannenbaum and Schmidt
“the leader has flexibility in opting for the most appropriate style”. The choice of the style
depends on three factors:

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a) Forces in the leaders: which include his value system, confidence in own leadership
inclination, feeling of insecurity and uncertainty, and confidence in these subordinates.

b) Forces in subordinate: each employee has different needs, wants, desire, experiences,
training ability, skills etc. It is therefore beneficial for the manager to understand the forces at
work within his employees. A manager could for instance allow participation in decision-making
if employees are competent e.g. well-trained, ready to assume responsibility, have high needs for
independence, able to understand and identify with the goals of the goals of the organization and
having the necessary knowledge. If these are absent then the leader may be forced to lead
autocratically.

c) Forces in the situation

They include environmental pressures such as types of organization, effectiveness of workers
groups, and types of problems and urgency of the problem. For example production workers may
work better under one style while professional may be better under a different style.

THE MANAGERIAL GRID

In considering the leadership orientation that a manager can take, it appears that he/she can be
people-oriented or production-oriented. A people-oriented leader is concerned with the human
aspects of the organization. A production-oriented leader’s main concern is seeing that work is
accomplished. The best managers are both people and production oriented. By combining his
people and production scores a manager will obtain his managerial score according to the grid.
The managerial grid was developed by Blake and Mouton and its objective is to bring about a
managerial style that maximizes concern for both people and production. A low score in either
area is a good indication of poor approach to management. The points on the grid give these
types of management.

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a) Impoverished Management
They have no concern for people and also very little concern for production. Effective
production cannot be achieved because people are lazy, apathetic and indifferent. Mature
relationships are unobtainable.

b) Task Management
They have maximum concern for production and low concern for people. People are seen as
commodities just like machines. The manager aims to plan, direct and control people and
activities.

c) Country Club Management

They have the highest concern for people but little concern for production. This leads to lack of
conflict and good interpersonal relations.

d) Dampened Pendulum (Middle of the Road)

This involves “Be fair and firm”, “push for production but all ways” “give some but all” attitude
of management.

e) Team management
They have the highest concern for both people and production. Production is seen as a function
of the integration of task and human requirements. Better managers are described by point
toward these types of management.

Personal Qualities of a good Leader

 Ability to inspire others
 Ability to understand human behaviour
 Similarly with the group
 Verbal assertiveness
 Willingness to communicate honestly
 Dedication to the goals of the organization
 Ability to inspire through example

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  Willingness to take risk
 Willingness to assume full responsibility for the group
 Ability to tolerate criticism

SUMMARY

The chapter has focused on leadership and management and the various powers used by
leaders in learning of organization and which can negatively or positively influence an
organization. The chapter has also discussed approaches to leadership, leadership styles
and how they influence the effectiveness of a leader. In conclusion, leaders should be
people of good characteristics and character. Finally the chapter has discussed various
qualities of a good leader in day to day life and running of an organization.

? SELF EVALUATION

1. Define key terms; Leadership and Management

2. Discuss differences between leadership and management
3. Mention and explain five basic types of powers that can be used by leaders
4. Discuss three basic approaches to Leadership
5. Discuss methods or styles of Leadership
6. Discuss various types of management
7. Discuss qualities of a good leader

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 TOPIC THREE:

RELEASING EMPLOYEE POTENTIAL

Objectives

By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:

a) Describe the various kinds and types of motivation.
b) List the importance of motivation in organizations
c) List and explain the various techniques of motivation
d) Distinguish between motivation, satisfaction inspiration and manipulation
e) Describe the theories of motivation

DEFINITION OF TERMS

MOTIVATION
Motivation is to give reason, incentive, enthusiasm, or interest that causes a specific action or
certain behavior. Motivation is present in every life function. Simple acts such as eating are
motivated by hunger. Education is motivated by desire for knowledge. Motivators can be
anything from reward to coercion. Motivation is derived from motive. Motive means a drive or
impulse within an individual that prompts him into action. It is a complex force that inspires a
person at work to willingly use his capacity for the accomplishment of certain objectives. It is
something that impels a person into action and continues him in action with enthusiasm.

According to Dale S. Beach, motivation is an inspirational process which impels members of a

team to pull their weight effectively to give their loyalty to the group to properly carry out the
tasks that they have accepted and generally to play an effective role in the job that the group has
undertaken.

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THERE ARE TWO MAIN KINDS OF MOTIVATION: INTRINSIC AND EXTRINSIC.
Extrinsic Motivation
Extrinsic motivation is external. It occurs when external factors compel the person to do
something. These factors include: circumstances, situations, rewards or punishment, both
tangible and intangible that participation in results in an external benefit. Tangible benefits could
include monetary reward or a prize. Intangible benefits could include things like adoration,
recognition, and praise.

Intrinsic Motivation
Intrinsic motivation is internal. It occurs when people are compelled to do something out of
pleasure, importance, or desire. It includes involvement in behavioral patterns, thought process,
action, activity or reaction for its own sake and without an obvious external incentive for doing
so. A good example is a hobby. If you are desirous of mastering public speaking for the sake of
mastery and not any reward, you have experienced intrinsic motivation. In addition to forces that
produce an action, there is a need to have the ability to fulfill the motivation. For example, a
paraplegic may have the desire to get out of a wheelchair and walk, but lacks the ability to do so.

A common place that we see the need to apply motivation is in the work place. In the work force,
we can see motivation plays a key role in leadership success. A person unable to grasp
motivation and apply it will not become or stay as leader. Motivation is what propels life. It
plays a major role in nearly everything we do. Without motivation, we would simply not care
about outcomes, means, accomplishments, education, success, failure, employment, etc.

Difference between motivation, satisfaction, inspiration and manipulation

Motivation refers to the drive and efforts to satisfy a want or goal, whereas satisfaction refers to
the contentment experienced when a want is satisfied. In contrast, inspiration is bringing about a
change in the thinking pattern. On the other hand manipulation is getting the things done from
others in a predetermined manner.

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TYPES OF MOTIVATION
a) Achievement Motivation
It is the drive to pursue and attain goals. An individual with achievement motivation wishes to
achieve objectives and advance up the ladder of success. Here, accomplishment is important for
its own sake and not for the rewards that accompany it.
b) Affiliation Motivation
It is a drive to relate to people on a social basis. Persons with affiliation motivation perform work
better when they are complimented for their favorable attitudes and cooperation.
c) Competence Motivation
It is the drive to be good at something, allowing the individual to perform high quality work.
Competence-motivated people seek job mastery, take pride in developing and using their
problem-solving skills and strive to be creative when confronted with obstacles. They learn from
their experiences.
d) Power Motivation
It is the drive to influence people and change situations. Power-motivated people wish to create
an impact on their organization and are willing to take risks to do so.
e) Attitude Motivation
Attitude motivation is how people think and feel. It is their self confidence, their belief in
themselves, and their attitude to life. It is how they feel about the future and how they react to the
past.
f) Incentive Motivation
It is where a person or a team reaps a reward from an activity. It is “You do this and you get
that”, attitude. It is the types of awards and prizes that drive people to work a little harder.
g) Fear Motivation
Fear motivation coerces a person to act against their will. It is instantaneous and gets the job
done quickly. It is helpful in the short run.

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IMPORTANCE OF MOTIVATION
Motivation is very important for an organization because of the following benefits:

1) Puts human resources into action

Every organization requires physical, financial and human resources to accomplish the goals. It
is through motivation that human resources can be utilized by making full use of it. This can be
done by building willingness in employees to work. This will help the enterprise in securing best
possible utilization of resources.

2) Improves level of efficiency of employees

The level of a subordinate or an employee does not only depend upon his qualifications and
abilities. For getting the best of his work performance, the gap between ability and willingness
has to be filled which helps in improving the level of performance of subordinates.

3) Leads to achievement of organizational goals

Goals can be achieved if co-ordination and co-operation takes place simultaneously – which can
be effectively done through motivation.

4) Builds friendly relationship

Motivation is an important factor which brings employees satisfaction. This can be done by
keeping in mind and framing an incentive plan for the benefit of the employees.

5) Leads to stability of work force

Stability of workforce is very important from the point of view of reputation and goodwill of a
concern. The employees can remain loyal to the enterprise only when they have a feeling of
participation in the management. The skills and efficiency of employees will always be of
advantage to employers as well as employees. This will lead to a good public image in the
market which will attract competent and qualified people into a concern. As it is said, “Old is
gold” which suffices with the role of motivation here, the older the people, the more the
experience and their adjustment into a concern which can be of benefit to the enterprise.

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Motivation is important to an individual as:
 Motivation will help him/her achieve his/her personal goals.
 If an individual is motivated, he/her will have job satisfaction.
 Motivation will help in the self-development of individual.
 An individual would always gain by working with a dynamic team.

Similarly, motivation is important to a business as:

 The more motivated the employees are, the more empowered the team is.
 The more the team work and individual employee contribution, the more profitable
and successful is the business.
 During period of amendments, there will be more adaptability and creativity.
 Motivation will lead to an optimistic and challenging attitude at work place

MOTIVATIONAL FORCES
Negative motivational forces
Some managers believe that they can achieve results from their teams by shouting and swearing
at them or by threatening them with disciplinary action. However, although this fear factor can
indeed produce results, the effects will probably be much more short-term and will mean that
staff members are not focused on achieving business objectives but rather on simply keeping
their jobs! Alternatively, setting unrealistic targets can also have a negative impact – no matter
how hard the team works, they cannot reach the target and therefore can become de-motivated.
Positive motivational forces
There is a wide range of positive ways to motivate a team but it is important to remember that
this should also be implemented fairly.
 Offering rewards and incentives – bear in mind that rewards must be deserved and
recognition should be given only to those who have earned it.
 Encouraging healthy competition – this can be advantageous but can also be detrimental
when pitting staff against each other.

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Identifying individual motivational triggers
Each member of a team can respond in different ways to motivational factors – what drives some
may in fact be what leads to poor performance in others! You can find out what motivates the
team by:
 Simply asking them individually – this shows your personal interest in them and that you
value their input
 Holding team meetings to discuss general opinions – this can also help to improve the
team spirit
 The completing of feedback forms or questionnaires – these should be confidential so
that employees will be open and honest about their feelings towards company policies
and procedures

MOTIVATIONAL TECHNIQUES
Perhaps one of the most effective ways of motivating a team is to ensure that they understand
and appreciate the aims of an organization and are supported by their managers in working
toward the achievement of those aims. There are a range of motivational techniques that can be
used to improve productivity, reduce workplace stress and increase self-confidence: These
include:
 The use of positive imagery
 Team-building activities
 Training
 Enhanced communication
 Targets, rewards and incentives

a) Positive imagery
Posting motivational themes and messages in the form of slogans or quotes can help to positively
empower a team. By enabling them to visualize success, through the words of celebrities or
industry professionals, they are more likely to be able to imagine similar success for themselves
thus motivating them to improve their performance.

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b) Team-building activities
Despite mixed feelings about team-building activities, the fact that they encourage people to
work together outside the office environment can be a definite advantage. They can encourage
healthy competition and give each member of staff the opportunity to be on the winning team.
Improving team relationships can result in increased productivity and morale, and can lead to a
much happier and healthier working environment. Such exercises can also help in the resolution
of pre-existing issues within the team. It is important that all team-building exercises are
carefully balanced to ensure that they do not play to the particular strengths, or weaknesses, of
employees but are designed instead to give everybody a chance of success.

c) Training
People can be taught to become more motivated by showing them how to deconstruct tasks and
challenges, and how to feel less intimidated by their job roles. Demonstrating to them how to
cope in the workplace can lead directly to improved motivation.

d) Enhanced communication
Communication does not only mean talking to your team but also listening to them. It is
important to ensure their understanding of company objectives and their individual job roles but
it is equally important to show them the importance of their feedback to the achievement of
targets and standards.

e) Targets, rewards and incentives

It is generally accepted that having targets to work towards, as long as they are realistic, is one of
the most effective ways of improving performance. Hitting targets improves morale and self
confidence but remember that those who consistently underachieve will end up feeling de-
motivated. Target achievement can be rewarded not only with financial incentives but perhaps
with the offer of increased responsibility or even promotion. Different people are motivated by
different things so it is important to make sure that you offer the right incentives to the right
member of the team.

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THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
There are a number of different views as to what motivates workers. The most commonly held
views or theories are discussed below and have been developed over the last 100 years or so.
Unfortunately these theories do not all reach the same conclusions. There are two different
categories of motivation theories such as content theories, and process theories. Even though
there are different motivation theories, none of them are universally accepted.

Theory of Scientific Management - Frederick Winslow Taylor

Frederick Winslow Taylor (1856 – 1917) put forward the idea that workers are motivated mainly
by pay. His Theory of Scientific Management argued the following:
 Workers do not naturally enjoy work and so need close supervision and control
 Therefore managers should break down production into a series of small tasks
 Workers should then be given appropriate training and tools so they can work as
efficiently as possible on one set task.
 Workers are then paid according to the number of items they produce in a set period of
time- piece-rate pay.
 As a result workers are encouraged to work hard and maximize their productivity.

Taylor’s methods were widely adopted as businesses saw the benefits of increased productivity
levels and lower unit costs. The most notable advocate was Henry Ford who used them to design
the first ever production line, making Ford cars. This was the start of the era of mass production.
Taylor’s approach has close links with the concept of an autocratic management style (managers
take all the decisions and simply give orders to those below them) and Macgregor’s Theory X
approach to workers (workers are viewed as lazy and wish to avoid responsibility). However
workers soon came to dislike Taylor’s approach as they were only given boring, repetitive tasks
to carry out and were being treated little better than human machines. Firms could also afford to
lay off workers as productivity levels increased. This led to an increase in strikes and other forms
of industrial action by dissatisfied workers.

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Elton Mayo
Elton Mayo (1880 – 1949) believed that workers are not just concerned with money but could be
better motivated by having their social needs met whilst at work (something that Taylor ignored).
He introduced the Human Relation School of thought, which focused on managers taking more
of an interest in the workers, treating them as people who have worthwhile opinions and
realizing that workers enjoy interacting together. According to Mayo workers are best motivated
by:
 Better communication between managers and workers.
 Greater manager involvement in employees working lives.
Working in groups or teams
In practice therefore, businesses should re-organize production to encourage greater use of team
working and introduce personnel departments to encourage greater manager involvement in
looking after employees’ interests. His theory most closely fits in with a paternalistic style of
management.

Hierarchy of Needs – Abraham Maslow

Abraham Maslow (1908 – 1970) along with Frederick Herzberg (1923- ) introduced the Neo-
Human Relations School in the 1950’s, which focused on the psychological needs of employees.
Maslow put forward a theory that there are five levels of human needs which employees need to
have fulfilled at work. All of the needs are structured into a hierarchy and only once a lower
level of need has been fully met, would a worker be motivated by the opportunity of having the
next need up in the hierarchy satisfied. For example a person who is dying of hunger will be
motivated to achieve a basic wage in order to buy food before worrying about having a sec+ure
job contract or the respect of others.

A business should therefore offer different incentives to workers in order to help them fulfill
each need in turn and progress up the hierarchy. Managers should also recognize that workers are
not all motivated in the same way and do not all move up the hierarchy at the same pace. They
may therefore have to offer a slightly different set of incentives from worker to worker.
Maslow’s theory argues that individuals are motivated to satisfy a number of different kinds of
needs, some of which are more powerful than others. The term prepotency refers to the idea that

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some needs are felt as being more pressing than others. Maslow argues that until these most
pressing needs are satisfied, other needs have little effect on an individual’s behavior. In other
words, we satisfy the most proponent needs first and then progress to the less pressing ones. As
one need becomes satisfied, and therefore less important to us, other needs loom up and become
motivators of our behavior.

Maslow represents this prepotency of needs as a hierarchy. The most proponent needs are shown
at the bottom of the ladder, with prepotency decreasing as one progress upwards.
 self-actualization – reaching your maximum potential, doing you own best thing
 esteem – respect from others, self-respect, recognition
 belonging – affiliation, acceptance, being part of something
 safety – physical safety, psychological security
 physiological – hunger, thirst, sex, rest

The first needs that anyone must satisfy are physiological. According to Maslow these
physiological needs are the most proponents of all needs”. What this means specifically is that in
the human being who is missing everything in life in an extreme fashion, it is most likely that the
major motivation would be the physiological needs rather than any others. A person who is
lacking food, safety, love and esteem would probably hunger for food more strongly than
anything else”. Once the first level needs are largely satisfied, Maslow maintains, the next level
of needs emerges. Individuals become concerned with the need for safety and security –
protection from physical harm, disaster, illness and security of income, life-style and
relationships. Similarly, once this safety needs have become largely satisfied, individuals become
concerned with belonging – a sense of membership in some group or groups, a need for
affiliation and a feeling of acceptance by others.

When there is a feeling that the individual belongs somewhere, he or she is next motivated by a
desire to be held in esteem. People need to be thought of as worthwhile by others, to be
recognized as people with some value. They also have a strong need to see themselves as
worthwhile people. Without this type of self-concept, one sees oneself as drifting, cut off,
pointless. Much of this dissatisfaction with certain types of job centre’s around the fact that they

29
are perceived, by the people performing them, as demeaning and therefore damaging to their
self-concept.

Finally, Maslow says, when all these needs have been satisfied at least to some extent, people are
motivated by a desire to self-actualize, to achieve whatever they define as their maximum
potential, to do their thing to the best of their ability.

Several points must be made concerning Maslow’s model of motivation. First, it should be made
clear that he does not mean that individuals experience only one type of need at a time. In fact,
we probably experience all levels of needs all the time, only to varying degrees. In many parts of
the world, hunger is a genuine reality but we have all experienced the phenomenon of not being
able to concentrate upon a job because of a growling stomach. Productivity drops prior to lunch
as people transfer their thoughts from their jobs to the upcoming meal. After lunch, food it not
uppermost in people’s minds but perhaps rest is, as a sense of drowsiness sets in.

Similarly, in almost all organizational settings, individuals juggle their needs for security be
(“Can I keep this job?”) with needs for esteem (“If I do what is demanded by the job, how will
my peers see me, and how will I see myself?”) Given a situation where management is
demanding a certain level of performance, but where group norms are to produce below these
levels, all these issues are experienced.

If the individual does not produce to the level demanded by management, he or she may lose the
job (security). But if he or she conforms to management’s norms rather than those of the group,
it may ostracize him or her (belonging) while the individual may see him or herself as a turncoat
(esteem) and may have a feeling of having let the side down (self-esteem.) We do not progress
simply from one level in the hierarchy to another in a straightforward, orderly manner; there is a
constant, but ever-changing pull from all levels and types of needs.

A second point that must be made about Maslow’s hierarchy is that the order in which he has set
up the needs does not necessarily reflect their prepotency for every individual. Some people may
have such a high need for esteem that they are able to subordinate their needs for safety, or their

30
physiological or belonging needs to these. The war hero springs to mind. There is little concern
for safety or physical comfort as the seeker of glory rushes forward into the muzzle of
destruction.

A third and very important point to be made about Maslow’s hierarchical model is the assertion
that once a need is satisfied it is no longer a motivator – until it re-emerges. Food is a poor
motivator after a meal. The point in this is clear for management. Unfortunately, many
organizations and individuals still fail to get the message. Most incentive schemes are based
upon needs that have already been largely satisfied. If management placed emphasis on needs
that have not been satisfied, employees would be more likely to be motivated towards achieving
the goals of the organization. Human behavior is primarily directed towards unsatisfied needs.

Finally, an important aspect of Maslow’s model is that it provides for constant growth of the
individual. There is no point at which everything has been achieved. Having satisfied the lower
needs, one is always striving to do things to the best of one’s ability, and best is always defined
as being slightly better than before.

There has been a great deal of debate over Maslow’s hierarchical concept of motivation. It has a
basic attraction to most people because it seems to be logical, to make sense.

Dual-Factor Theory – Frederick Herzberg

Frederick Herzberg (1923- ) had close links with Maslow and believed in a two-factor theory of
motivation. He argued that there were certain factors that a business could introduce that would
directly motivate employees to work harder (Motivators). However there were also factors that
would de-motivate an employee if not present but would not in themselves actually motivate
employees to work harder (Hygiene factors) Motivators are more concerned with the actual job
itself. For instance how interesting the work is and how much opportunity it gives for extra
responsibility, recognition and promotion. Hygiene factors are factors which ‘surround the job’
rather than the job itself. For example a worker will only turn up to work if a business has
provided a reasonable level of pay and safe working conditions but these factors will not make
him work harder at his job once he is there. Importantly Herzberg viewed pay as a hygiene factor

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which is in direct contrast to Taylor who viewed pay and piece-rate in particular Herzberg
believed that businesses should motivate employees by adopting a democratic approach to
management and by improving the nature and content of the actual job through certain methods.
Some of the methods managers could use to achieve this are:

 Job enlargement – workers being given a greater variety of tasks to perform (not
necessarily more challenging) which should make the work more interesting.
 Job enrichment - involves workers being given a wider range of more complex,
interesting and challenging tasks surrounding a complete unit of work. This should give
greater sense of achievement.
 Empowerment - means delegating more power to employees to make their own
decisions over areas of their working life.
There are two types of motivators, one type which results in satisfaction with the job, and the
other which merely prevents dissatisfaction. The two types are quite separate and distinct from
one another. Herzberg called the factors which result in job satisfaction motivators and those that
simply prevented dissatisfaction hygienes.
The factors that lead to job satisfaction (the motivators) are:
 achievement
 recognition
 work itself
 responsibility
 advancement
 The factors which may prevent dissatisfaction (the hygienes) are:
 company policy and administration
 working conditions
 supervision
 interpersonal relations
 money
 status
 security

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Hygienes, if applied effectively, can at best prevent dissatisfaction: if applied poorly, they can
result in negative feelings about the job. Motivators are those things that allow for psychological
growth and development on the job. They are closely related to the concept of self-actualization,
involving a challenge, an opportunity to extend oneself to the fullest, to taste the pleasure of
accomplishment, and to be recognized as having done something worthwhile.

Hygienes are simply factors that describe the conditions of work rather than the work itself.
Herzberg’s point is that if you want to motivate people, you have to be concerned with the job
itself and not simply with the surroundings. In a medical sense, growth, healing and development
occur as natural internal processes. They are the result of proper diet, exercise, sleep etc.
Hygienic procedures simply prevent disease from occurring. They do not promote growth per se.
Herzberg says that we should focus our attention on the individuals in jobs, not on the things that
we surround them with. He maintains that we tend to think that growth and development will
occur if we provide good working conditions, status, security and administration, whereas in fact
what stimulates growth (and motivation to grow and develop) are opportunities for achievement,
recognition, responsibility and advancement.

Herzberg goes further than Maslow, cutting the hierarchy off near the top and maintaining that
motivation results only from some elements of esteem needs and self-actualization.

The Need for Achievement – David McClelland

The one single motivating factor which has received the most attention in terms of research is the
need for achievement (n-ach). As a result, we know more about n-ach than any other
motivational factor. Much of this knowledge is due the work of David McClelland of Harvard.
Individuals with a high n-ach have a number of distinctive characteristics which separate them
from their peers. First of all, they like situations where they can take personal responsibility for
finding solutions to problems. This allows them to gain personal satisfaction from their
achievements. They do not like situations where success or failure results from chance. The
important thing is that the outcome should be the result of their own skills and effort.

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A second characteristic of high n-ach people is that they like to set moderately high goals for
themselves. These goals are neither so low that they can be achieved with little challenge, nor so
high that they are impossible. High n-ach individuals prefer goals that require all-out effort and
the exercise of all their abilities. Once again, the achievement of this type of objective results in
greater personal satisfaction. This phenomenon can be observed in very young children. A child
may be given a game of ring toss, told that he or she scores whenever a ring lands over the peg
and then left alone to play the game.

A third distinctive characteristic of high achievers is that they want concrete feedback on their
performance. Only certain types of jobs provide this kind of feedback, however, and so some
kinds of jobs are unattractive to high achievers. For instance, teachers receive only imprecise,
hazy feedback as to the effectiveness of their efforts while production managers have a daily
output chart to look at with either joy or disappointment. There are some additional minor
characteristics possessed by high achievers. They tend to enjoy travel, are willing to give up a
bird in the hand for two in the bush and prefer experts to friends as working partners. The image
is clear; the high achiever is a personality type suited admirably to certain jobs and not others. It
would be wrong to treat all individuals as high achievers and attempt to motivate them by
offering them challenging jobs, rapid and objective feedback on performance and personal
responsibility for success or failure.

Expectancy Theory of motivation – Victor Vroom

Victor Vroom has challenged the assertion of the human religionists that job satisfaction leads to
increased productivity. (This theory has been called the contented cow approach to
management.) The assumption is that if management keeps employees happy, they will respond
by increasing productivity. Herzberg, in a delightful film of motivation, highlights the fallacy of
this assumption with an interview between a manager and a secretary. The secretary is
complaining about the job, and the manager lists all the things that have been done for the
secretary – increases salary, new typewriter, better hours, status and so on – at the end of which
she looks straight at him and asks, So what have to done for me lately? The point may be made
that satisfied needs do not motivate people. Hygienes simply keep employees quiet for a time.
For an individual to be motivated to perform a certain task, he or she must expect that

34
completion of the task will lead to achievement of his or her goals. The task is not necessarily the
goal itself but is often the means of goal attainment. Vroom defines motivation as: “A process
governing choices, made by persons or lower organisms, among alternative forms of voluntary
behavior” In organizational terms, this concept of motivation pictures an individual, occupying a
role, faced with a set of alternative voluntary behaviors, all of which have some associated
outcomes attached to them. If the individual chooses behavior 1, outcome A results; if 2 then B
results and so on.

However, Vroom makes the point that task goals (productivity, quality standards or similar
goals attached to jobs) are often means to an end, rather than the end in itself. There is a second
level of outcomes which reflect the real goals of individuals and these may be attained, in
varying degrees, through task behavior.

SUMMARY

The chapter has discussed motivation, various kinds of motivation and what role motivation
plays in an organization and at individual level. In addition, the chapter has explained theories of
motivation by various theorists who include, Frederick Winslow, Elton Mayo, Maslow, Victor
Vroom among others and their influence in an organization.

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? SELF EVALUATION

1. Define key terms; Motivation, Satisfaction, Inspiration and Manipulation

2. Discuss two kinds of Motivation
3. Mention and explain types of Motivation
4. Discuss the importance of Motivation in an organization, an individual and to a
business
5. Mention and explain types of motivation forces
6. Discuss motivational Techniques
7. Describe theories of Motivation

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TOPIC FOUR:

INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES

Objectives
By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:

Define and describe;

a) Personality
b) Values
c) Perception
d) Attitudes and jobs satisfaction
e) Learning

INTRODUCTION
People are an organization’s most valuable and most expensive resource but they are the most
difficult element of organization to manage. Individuals are almost infinitely different; they act
differently in different circumstances and are in many ways entirely unpredictable. Organizations
are interested in the way which people behave at work for them to perform effectively in pursuit
of the organizations goals. It is important first to understand what makes people behave in the
way they do by looking into the following determinants:

A. PERSONALITY
Personality is the sum total of ways in which an individual reacts to and interacts with others.
Personality describes the growth and development of a person’s whole psychological system.
Gordon Allport defines personality as “the dynamic organizations within the individual of these
psycho-physical systems that determine his unique adjustment to his environment”.
Determinants of Personality
Heredity
Heredity refers to those factors that are determined at conception e.g. physical structure, facial
attractiveness, gender, temperaments, muscle composition and reflexes, energy levels and
biological rhythms. All these are characteristics that are influenced by biological parents either
completely or substantially.
37
Environment
Environmental factors play a role in shaping personalities .They include; the norms among
family, friendship and social groups. These factors determine what an individual experiences in
life.
Situation
This influences the effects of heredity and environment on personality. An individual personality
while generally stable and consistent does change in different situations. Different demands in
different situations call forth different aspects of one’s personality.
Personality Traits and Types
Traits are the building blocks of personality. Traits are inferred predispositions that direct the
behaviour of an individual in consistent and characteristic ways. Traits produce consistencies in
behaviour because they are enduring attributes, and they are general or broad in scope. Those
characteristics describe an individual’s behaviour. The more consistent the characteristics, the
more frequently it occurs in diverse situations, the more important, that trait is in describing the
individual. According to Myers-Briggs, Type Indicator personality has been classified as
follows:
 Extroverted vs. Introverted
Extroverted individuals are outgoing, sociable and assertive while introverts are quiet
and shy.
 Sensing vs. Intuitive
Sensing types are practical and prefer routine and order, focusing on details while
intuitive rely on unconscious processes and look at the “Big picture”.
 Thinking vs. feeling
Thinking types use reason and logic to handle problems while feeling types rely on their
personal values and emotions.
 Judging vs. perceiving
Judging types want to control and prefer the world to be ordered and structured while
perceiving types are flexible and spontaneous.

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MAJOR PERSONALITY ATTRIBUTES INFLUENCING ORGANIZATION
BEHAVIOUR
Core self evaluation
This is the degree to which individuals like or dislike themselves: whether they see themselves as
capable and effective and whether they feel they are in control of their environment or powerless
over it. An individual’s core self evaluation is determined by:
 Self esteem, which is the individuals degree of liking or disliking themselves and the
degree to which they feel worthy or unworthy as a person.
 Locus of control, which is the degree to which people believe that they are masters of
their own fate.
 Internals: Individuals who believe that they control what happens to them.
 Extends: Individuals who believe that what happens to them is controlled by outside
factors such as luck or chance.
Machiavellianism
Machiavellianism is named after Niccolo Machiavelli who wrote on how to gain and use power.
Machiavellianism is the degree to which an individual is pragmatic, maintains emotional
distance and believes that the end justifies the means.

Narcissism
This is the tendency to be arrogant, have a grandiose sense of self importance, require excessive
admiration and have sense of entitlement. Narcissistic individuals are not effective especially
when dealing with people.

Self-monitoring
This refers to an individual’s ability to adjust his/ her behaviour to external or situational factors.
Individual’s high in self monitoring show considerable adaptability in adjusting their behaviour
to external situational factors.

Risk taking
People differ in their willingness to take chances. This propensity to assume or avoid risk has
been shown to have an impact on how long it takes managers to make a decision and how much

39
information they require before making their choice. High risk taking managers are said to make
more rapid decision compared to low risk taking managers.

Type A personality
A person with Type A personality is aggressively involved in a chronic incessant struggle to
achieve more and more in less and less time and if necessary against the opposing efforts of
other things or other people. Type A does operate under moderate to high levels of stress. They
subject themselves to more or less continuous time pressure, creating for themselves a life of
deadlines.

Proactive personality
These are people who identify opportunities , show initiative ,take caution and persevere until
meaningful change occurs .They create positive change in their environment , regardless or even
in spite of constraints or obstacles.

B. VALUES
Values represent basic convictions that “a specific mode of conduct or end state of existence is
personally or socially preferable to an opposite or converse mode of conduct or end state of
existence.
 Values contain a judgmental element in that they carry an individual idea as to
what is right, good or desirable.
 In organization behaviour it is important to study values because they lay the
foundation for the understanding of attitudes, perceptions and motivation
Sources of value systems
 The values people hold are essentially established in their early years from
parents, teachers, friends and relatives. However, as one grows up, he gets
exposed to other value systems and this alters some of his/her values.
 Values can be reactive, tribalistic, egocentric, conformity, manipulate socio-
centric, existential etc.

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C. PERCEPTION AND INDIVIDUAL DECISION –MAKING
Perception is a process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory impressions in
order to give meaning to their environment. Factors that influence perception:
 These factors can reside in the perceiver, in the object or target being perceived or
in the context of the situation in which the perception is made.
 When an individual looks at a target and attempts to interpret what he/she sees
that interpretation is heavily influenced by the personal characteristic of the
individual perceiver .Personal characteristic that affect perception include
person’s attitudes, personality motives , interests, past experience and
expectations.
 Characteristic of the target being observed can effect what is perceived e.g. loud
people are more likely to be noticed in a group than quiet ones.
Factors in the perceiver
 Attitudes
 Motives
 Interest
 Experience
 Expectations
Factors in the situation
 Time
 Work setting
 Social setting
PERCEPTION
Factors in the target
 Novelty
 Motion
 Sounds
 Size
 Background
 Proximity

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  Similarity
The context in which objects are seen is important .The time at which an object or event is seen
can influence attention as locations, light, heat and any number of situational factors.
Reasons as to why people see things differently.
 Their physical senses vary e.g. colour blindness, less than perfect vision, poor hearing,
and imperfect sense of smell.
 Healthy differences.
 Their general intelligence levels vary.
 Nature and effects of past experiences are different for individuals.
 Individual values and attitudes cause people to see things differently
 Personality differs and thus individuals tend to adopt particular stances towards outside
events.
 Individuals’ aspirations and goals also differ widely and these affect the relative
importance attached to outside events.
 Status also effect on perception.
 The situation or context in which perception take place can have a major bearing on the
behaviour of the perceiver.
 The perceptual process can also be affected by the number of parties involved.

D. ATTITUDES AND JOB SATISFACTION

An attitude is a mental state of readiness; learned and organised over time through experience,
exerting a specific influence on a person’s response to people, objects and situations. Attitudes
are determinants of behaviour, because they are linked with perception, personality and
motivation.

Some attitudes are persistent and enduring and yet attitudes are subject to change. Attitudes are
intrinsic parts of a person’s personality. One theory states that people “seek congruence between
their beliefs and feelings towards objects,” and suggests that the modification of attitude depends
on changing either the feelings or beliefs. The theory proposes that affect, cognition and

42
behaviour determine attitudes and those attitudes in turn determine affect, cognition and
behaviour.

Components of Attitude:
a) The Affect, the emotional, or ‘feeling’ component of an attitude is learned from parents,
teachers and peer group members. Emotions can be positive, negative or neutral e.g.
 Expressions of emotions, either positive like a customer representative.
 Negative, like a bill collector or a police officer.
 Neutral, Like an academic administration or public.
 Servant is all important to work behaviour.

b) The Cognitive component of an attitude consists of the person’s perceptions, opinions and
beliefs. It refers to the thought processes with special emphasis on rationality and logic. An
important element of cognition is the evaluation beliefs held by a person. Evaluative beliefs are
manifested as the favourable or unfavourable impressions someone holds towards an object or
person.

c) The Behavioural component of an attitude refers to the tendency of a person to act towards
someone or something in a certain way. A person can act in a friendly, warm, aggressive, hostile
or apathetic way. The three components of attitudes can be presented in terms of the work
environment factors such as job design, company policies and fringe benefits. These stimuli
trigger affect (emotional), cognitive (thought) and behavioural processes. In essence, the stimuli
result in the formation of attitudes, which then lead to one or more responses – affective,
cognitive or behavioural.

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Functions of Attitude
1. The Adjustment Function
Helps people adjust to their work environment. When the employees in an organization are well
treated by the boss, they will develop a positive attitude toward supervision and the organization.
When the boss treats the employees negatively, the opposite is true.

2. The Ego-Defensive Function

Attitudes help employees to defend their self-image. Example: An older manager whose
decisions are continually challenged by a younger sub-ordinate manager may feel that he is
brash, cocky, immature and inexperienced; although the older manager may be ineffective and
have poor strategies.

3. The Value Expressive

Attitudes provide people with a basis for expressing their values. Example: A manager who
believes strongly in the work ethic will tend to voice attitudes toward specific individuals or
work practices as a means of reflecting this value.

4. Knowledge Value
Attitude helps supply standards and names of reference that allow people to organize and explain
the world around them. Example: A union organizer may have a negative attitude toward
management.
Changing Attitudes
Attitudes have various attitudes for managers namely:
 Attitudes are learned.
 Attitudes define one’s predispositions toward given aspects of the world
 Attitudes provide the emotional basis of one’s interpersonal relations and
identification with others.
 Attitudes are organized and are close to the core personality.
Managers are often faced with the task of changing attitudes because existing attitudes hinder job
performance. Many variables affect attitude change but they can be described in three general
factors:

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  Trust in the sender
 The message itself
 The situation

The greater the prestige of the communicator the greater the attitude change. Liking the
communicator produces attitude change. The strength of the employee’s commitment to an
attitude is important. Attitudes that have been publicly expressed are more difficult to change
because the person has shown commitment and changing is admitting a mistake. How much you
are affected by attempts to change your attitude depends in part on the situation. Studies indicate
that people distracted while they listen to a message show more attitude change because the
distraction interferes with silent counter arguing. People are also more susceptible to attempts
to change attitudes when in pleasant surroundings.

E. JOB SATISFACTION
Job satisfaction is a pleasurable or positive emotional state resulting from the appraisal of one’s
job or job experience. It is a result of employee’s perception of how well their job provides those
things which are reviewed as important.
Dimensions of job satisfaction
 Job satisfaction is an emotional response to a job satisfaction.
 Job satisfaction is often determined by how well outcomes meet or exceed
expectations.
 Job satisfaction represents several related attitude namely: work itself, pay,
promotion opportunity, supervision and co-workers.

SOURCES OF JOB SATISFACTION

Job satisfaction is an attitude that individuals have about their jobs. It results from their
perception of their jobs:
1) Pay – the amount received and the perceived equity of pay is a significant factor in job
satisfaction. Money not only helps people to attain their basic needs, but it is instrumental in
providing upper-level need satisfaction.

45
2) Job – the extent to which job tasks are considered interesting and provide opportunities for
learning and for accepting responsibility. Tasks should be challenging, not boring.

3) Promotion opportunities – the availability of opportunities for advancement. Promotional

opportunities seem to have a varying effect on job satisfaction. This is because promotions take a
number of different forms and have a variety of accompanying rewards.

4) Supervisor – the abilities of the supervisor to demonstrate interest in and concern about
employees is crucial to job satisfaction. A participative climate created by the supervision has a
more substantial effect on worker satisfaction than it does in participation a specific decision.

5) Working conditions – the extent which co-workers are friendly, competent and supportive.
The nature of work groups will have an effect on job satisfaction. Friendly co-operative co-
workers are a modest source of job satisfaction to individual employees. Working conditions are
another factor that has a modest effect on job satisfaction e.g. clean and attractive surroundings
for instance will enable the personnel to find it easier to carry out their jobs.

E. LEARNING
Learning is the process by which a relatively enduring change in behaviour occurs as a result of
practice. The changes in behaviour that characterize learning may be adaptive and promote
effectiveness or they may be non-adaptive and ineffective.

Learning is a fundamental process underlying behaviour. Most behaviour within organisations is

learned behaviour. Perceptions, attitudes, goals and emotional reactions are all learned. Skills can
be learned. Learning is therefore a process in which certain changes in behaviour occur. Learning
is a process by which human beings become aware of themselves and their environment and the
need to adopt the one to the other in order to survive, grow and prosper. Learning is a process by
which people acquire knowledge, understanding skills and values and apply them to solve
problems throughout their daily life.

46
There are four basics concepts to be considered in learning:
1. A Person’s Drive
A drive is an aroused condition resulting from deprivation in some specific stimulation:
a) Primary drives like hunger etc. are unlearned.
b) Secondary drives like anxiety about attending a performance review feedback session etc. are
learned. Once a drive has been learned, it triggers behaviour.
2. The Stimulus
A stimulus is a cue that sets the stage for a response or a series of responses.
Examples:
A supervisor’s request is a stimulus to complete a job; The time on the clock is a stimulus to get
up and go to a committee meeting.
3. The Response
A response is the behavioural result of stimulation. It is any activity of the person, whether the
stimulus is identifiable or the activity is observable. Responses in organisations may be oral,
written or attitudinal. Attitudinal responses are often difficult to detect.

4. The Reinforcer
A reinforcer is any object or event that increases or sustains the strength of a response. Common
reinforcers used in organisations are: praise from a supervisor, transfer to a desirable job, or a
merit increase in pay. The learning process cannot be directly observed. It must be inferred from
change in behaviour.
Results of learning
Learning usually implies change and tends to manifest itself through behaviour. It involves some
stimulus or experience. Learning is also influenced by personal characteristics and is also by
others (teachers, role models, managers etc.). It requires feedback and is aided by success.
People can also learn their mistakes or failures.

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Factors affecting learning
Human learning is a complex process involving numerous internal and external factors.
Internal Factors
 Health
 Intellectual capacity
 Motivation
 Special aptitudes
 Temperament
 Personal values
 Past experiences
External factors
 Ability of teacher’s role
 Learning consent
 Teaching methods
 Feedback of results
 Learning Aids
 Learning context
THEORIES OF LEARNING:
1. Classical conditioning
Russian physiologist Ivan Pavlov stumbled onto one of the most important principles of learning
and behaviour. He was investigating the digestive process in dogs by putting food in their
mouths and measuring the flow of saliva. He found that after repeated testing, the dogs would
salivate in anticipation of the food, even before he put it in their mouth. He soon discovered that
if he rang a bell just before the food was presented each time, the dogs would eventually salivate
at the mere sound of the bell. Pavlov had discovered a basic form of learning called classical
conditioning in which an organism comes to associate one stimulus with another.
2. Operant Conditioning
This is a type of learning associated with B. F. Skinner. It is concerned with the learning that
occurs as a consequence of behaviour. Behaviours that can be controlled by altering the
consequences (reinforcers and punishments) that follow them are referred to as operants. Most
workplace behaviours are operants e.g. performing job-related tasks, reaching a budget report,

48
coming to work on time etc. Each step in the right direction is rewarded with a small
advancement in the right direction. Each step in the wrong direction is punished with a demerit.
Different organisations have different methods of carrying out reward and punishment. Operants
are distinguished by virtue of being controlled by their consequences.
3. Observational Learning
This theory was proposed by Albert Bandura. This learning occurs when an individual observes
a model’s behaviour and attempts to duplicate that behaviour. It is useful in training programmes
designed to improve interpersonal skills, supervisory practices, goal-setting processes etc.
Learning is therefore strongly involved in the development and direction of the behaviours of
individuals in organisation settings.

To learn in an observational manner someone must notice something someone else is doing,
remember it or record it in their mind, and finally replicate the behavior. The behavior may or
may not happen again. The choice to continue exhibiting the behavior depends on the outcome
(positive or negative, reward etc). The only things that limit this type of learning are the
intelligence level and the level of ability to copy the person well that the learner possesses.

SUMMARY

The key aspects discussed in this chapter are various determinants of people behaviour and their
influence in an organization, some of the determinants discussed include; personality, values,
perception, attitude, job satisfaction and finally learning. In addition, the chapter has discussed
major attributes’ that influence organizational behaviour and more so, theories of learning by
various theorists who include Ian Pavlov, B.F Skinner and Albert Bandura.

49
? SELF EVALUATION

1. Definition of key terms; Personality, Values, Perception, Attitudes, Job

Satisfaction and Learning.
2. Discuss determinants of personality
3. Discuss major personality attributes influencing organizational Behavior
4. Discuss sources of value system
5. Discuss factors that influence perception
6. Discuss components and function of attitude
7. Describe sources of Job satisfaction
8. Discuss four basic concepts considered in learning
9. Name and explain theories of learning

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TOPIC FIVE:

VALUES AND ETHICS

Objectives
By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:
1. Define what ethics and values
2. Describe the Importance of ethics and values in an organization

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Organizational Ethics

Organizational Ethics is the ethics of an organization, and it is how an organization ethically

responds to an internal or external stimulus. Organizational ethics is interdependent with the
organizational culture. Although, it is akin to both organizational behavior (OB) and business
ethics on the micro and macro levels, organizational ethics is neither OB, nor is it solely
business ethics (which includes corporate governance and corporate ethics).

Organizational ethics express the values of an organization to its employees and/or other entities
irrespective of governmental and/or regulatory laws.

Values

Desired ways of behaving or those things that are important, or valued by someone

Ethics

Study of moral issues and choices

Value system

The organization ones belief about preferred ways of behaving and desired end-states

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Basic elements of an ethical organization

There are at least four elements which exist in organizations that make ethical behavior
conducive within an organization. The four elements necessary to quantify an organization's
ethics are:

1. Written code of ethics and standards

2. Ethics training to executives, managers, and employees
3. Availability for advice on ethical situations (i.e. advice lines or offices)
4. Systems for confidential reporting.

Good leaders strive to create a better and more ethical organization. Restoring an ethical climate
in organization is critical, as it is a key component in solving the many other organizational
development and ethical behavior issues facing the organization.

IMPORTANCE OF ETHICS

Most of us would agree that it is ethics in practice that makes sense; just having it carefully
drafted and redrafted in books may not serve the purpose. Of course all of us want businesses to
be fair, clean and beneficial to the society. For that to happen, organizations need to abide by
ethics or rule of law, engage themselves in fair practices and competition; all of which will
benefit the consumer, the society and organization.

Primarily it is the individual, the consumer, the employee or the human social unit of the society
who benefits from ethics. In addition ethics is important because of the following:

1. Satisfying Basic Human Needs: Being fair, honest and ethical is one the basic human
needs. Every employee desires to be such himself and to work for an organization that is
fair and ethical in its practices.
2. Creating Credibility: An organization that is believed to be driven by moral values is
respected in the society even by those who may have no information about the working
and the businesses or an organization. Infosys, for example is perceived as an
organization for good corporate governance and social responsibility initiatives. This

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 perception is held far and wide even by those who do not even know what business the
organization is into.
3. Uniting People and Leadership: An organization driven by values is revered by its
employees also. They are the common thread that brings the employees and the decision
makers on a common platform. This goes a long way in aligning behaviors within the
organization towards achievement of one common goal or mission.
4. Improving Decision Making: A man’s destiny is the total sum of all the decisions that
he/she takes in course of his life. The same holds true for organizations. Decisions are
driven by values. For example an organization that does not value competition will be
fierce in its operations aiming to wipe out its competitors and establish a monopoly in the
market.
5. Long Term Gains: Organizations guided by ethics and values are profitable in the long
run, though in the short run they may seem to lose money. Tata group, one of the largest
business conglomerates in India was seen on the verge of decline at the beginning of
1990’s, which soon turned out to be otherwise. The same company’s Tata NANO car was
predicted as a failure, and failed to do well but the same is picking up fast now.
6. Securing the Society: Often ethics succeeds law in safeguarding the society. The law
machinery is often found acting as a mute spectator, unable to save the society and the
environment. Technology, for example is growing at such a fast pace that the by the time
law comes up with a regulation we have a newer technology with new threats replacing
the older one. Lawyers and public interest litigations may not help a great deal but ethics
can.

Ethics tries to create a sense of right and wrong in the organizations and often when the law fails,
it is the ethics that may stop organizations from harming the society or environment.

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 SUMMARY

Organizational ethics is very important in any organization. The chapter discusses values, and
importance of organizational ethics

? SELF EVALUATION

1. Definition of key terms; Organizational Ethics, Values, Ethics and Value System.
2. Describe basic elements of an ethical organization
3. Discuss the importance of ethics

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TOPIC SIX:

BEHAVIOUR MODIFICATION AND SELF MANAGEMENT

Objectives
By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:

1. Define the term behavior Modification, behaviour management and self management.
2. Discuss Principles of Behaviour Modification

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Behaviour Modification

Behavior modification is a type of treatment which focuses on altering maladaptive behavior, to

teach patients more adaptive behavior and to break bad habits.

It is a good idea to always consult with several experts before pursuing behavior modification to
determine whether or not it is appropriate for a patient, and to learn about different approaches to
see if there is one which may be more suitable for a client than another. This type of therapy is
offered by a variety of mental health professionals.

Self Management

self-management refers to methods, skills, and strategies by which individuals can effectively
direct their own activities toward the achievement of objectives, and includes goal setting,
decision making, focusing, planning, scheduling, task tracking, self-evaluation, self-intervention,
self-development

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Behaviour Management

Behavior management is a type of behavior therapy that aims to control negative actions by
preserving a level of order and direction. This approach to dealing with behavior change is
largely practiced by those working in the field of education, specifically those who work with
special needs children. Behavior management is employed to better help individuals or groups
make positive, healthy behavioral choices.

Principles of Behavior Modification

Behavior modification is a prime example of the application of the laboratory. Numerous

experiments on learning and their implications to behavior modification have been done. Some
of these researchers developed theories and recommendations for behavior modification for
example, Bandura (1969), Craighead, Kazdin Mohaney (1981), Houston (1976), Skinner (1938),
Waston and Rayner (1920), and Wolpe (1958, 1973).

Below are some of principles derived from their work.

i) Principle of positive reinforcement – To improve or increase an individual’s

performance of a certain activity, arrange for an immediate reward after each correct
immediate benefit to the individual. It may not be learned at all if benefits are delayed.

ii) Principle of Shaping Behavior also known as Successive Approximations Principle -

To teach a person to act in a manner in which he/she has seldom or never behaved,
reward successive steps to the final behavior. Reward successive improvements instead
of waiting for perfect behavior. Shaping means rewarding actions that are closer and
closer approximations to a desired response. If a response is complicated, it may never
occur and therefore will not be rewarded. If I want to reward a retarded child for saying
“ball” I may begin by rewarding the child for saying anything that starts with a b sound.

iii) Principle of Social Reinforcement – showing recognition or approval of another person.

Praise, attention, support and even flattery encourage friendly or socially acceptable
behavior among people.

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iv) Time out – is a procedure that usually involves removing the individual from a situation
in which reinforcement for undesired behavior occurs. Time out prevents reward from
following an undesirable response: it is a variation of non-reinforcement. Time out
includes isolation, seclusion, imprisonment, and detention.

v) Principle of non-reinforcement – an action that is not followed by reward will occur

less frequently and eventually suffer extinction.

vi) Principle of Extinction – if a response is not followed by reward after it has been
repeated many times, it will go away. To stop an individual from acting in a particular
way, you may arrange conditions that he/she receives no rewards following the undesired
act. Behaviour not followed by reinforcement tends to be extinguishes (forgotten).
Extinction and non-reinforcement are one and the same principle.

vii) The Incompatible Alternative Principle involves rewarding alternative behavior. To

stop an individual acting in a particular way, you reward an alternatives action that is
inconsistent with or cannot be performed at the same time as the undesired act for
example, telling lies versus telling the truth. The alternative behavior may be a
distraction because the two behaviors cannot be performed at the same time.

viii) Principle of Punishment – If a response is followed by discomfort or an

undesirable effect, the response will be suppressed (but not necessarily extinguished).
For example, caning and/or scolding children when their behavior is socially
unacceptable (stealing, fighting etc).

ix) Principle of Modeling and Imitation – To teach in individual a new way of behaving
allow him/her to observe another person (preferably a prestigious and knowledgeable
person performing the desired behavior. Note that adequate or inadequate models can
influence a variety of behavior which may be good or bad. They are acquired through
observational learning.

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x) Satiation Principle – To stop a person from acting in a particular way, you allow
him/her to continue performing the undesired act until he/she gets tired of it. This
method is called satiation principle because the individual may become satiated with the
consequences of continuing his/her actions as a result of fatigue or boredom for example,
asking a noise maker to come to school on Saturday afternoon and shout for one hour.
The satiation principle should not be used when behaviour is harmful that is, when it is
clear that a continuation of the behavior will result in someone being hurt. For example,
allowing a bully to continue beating smaller children might eventually cure the bully of
his habit, but a number of innocent children would be hurt. Satiation principle cannot be
allowed for cigarette smoking because smoking involves some long-range health hazards.

xi) Principle of Negative Reinforcement – This is ending an aversive situation when

individual does the accepted behaviors. For example, detaining students in class until
they do their homework.

xii) Principle of Aversive Conditioning – when a positive stimulus (e.g. drinking alcohol) is
repeatedly paired with an aversive stimulus (e.g. electric shock), the result is that the
positive stimulus will come to elicit the response formerly elicited by the aversive
stimulus (avoidance behavior). Aversive conditioning is also known as Avoidance
Principle – In teaching a person the situation to be avoided (or some simultaneously
present to the person the situation to be avoided (or some representation of it) and some
aversive condition (or its representation). For example, to teach dangers of over-speeding
show drivers the situation to be avoided (speeding and unlawful driving) with aversive
conditions (accident victims). This may influence drivers to avoid over speeding.

xiii) Fear Reduction Principle also known as Systematic Desensitization – To help

a person overcome his/her fear of a particular situation, gradually increase his/her
exposure to the feared situation while he/she is otherwise comfortable, relaxed, secure or
rewarded. Pair comfort with fear and gradually expose the client to the feared situation.
Fear must be faced, but it can be faced gradually in small steps while the person is

58
 engaged in pleasant activities. The stronger the fear, the more gradually it must be
presented and the longer it will take to overcome it. To overcome fear one has got to
learn to relax because a person cannot be anxious and relaxed at the same time. The
incompatibility of anxiety and relaxation is often used by professional counselors to
reduce anxieties of their clients. Parents and teachers can also use incompatible activities
to help children overcome their fears or anxieties.

xiv) Principle of Assertiveness or Assertion Training – To help an individual learn

to interact with others so that he/she knows what to say (content) to elicit a desired
response (consequence) and how and when (timing) to do so. It involves making one to
express one-self clearly and precisely and demanding one’s rights. The person is taught
skills so that he/she can stand for his/her rights and be precise and non-aggressive when
interacting with others or when making demands.

SUMMARY

The key aspects discussed are behaviour modification and self management. As discussed in the
chapter, principles of behaviour modification were postulated by various theorist who include;
Bandura (1969), Craighead, Kazdin Mohaney (1981), Houston (1976), Skinner (1938), Waston
and Rayner (1920), and Wolpe (1958, 1973) who explain how behaviour is acquired and how an
individual can deal with maladaptive behaviour in order to live a well adjusted life.

59
? SELF EVALUATION

i) Definition of key terms; Behaviour Modification, self Management and Behaviour

Management.
ii) Describe principles of Behaviour Modification
iii) Name various behavioural theorists and their contribution to behaviour
modification

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 TOPIC SEVEN:

INDIVIDUAL AND GROUP DECISION MAKING

Objectives

By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:

1. Make a decision given a problem
2. Describe the various types of problems
3. Describe the various tools of decision making

INTRODUCTION

Decisions are the organizational mechanisms through which an attempt is made to achieve a
desired state. It can therefore be said to be an organizational response to a problem. Each
decision is the outcome of a dynamic process that is influenced by a multitude of forces. People
at all levels of the enterprise must constantly make decisions and solve problems.

Decision making and problem solving are important parts of a manager job. Decision may be of
different nature e.g. how profit should be invested; which employee should be assigned a
particular task etc.

A. Types of Decisions
Managers will make different types of decision under different circumstance and the information
available when making a decision will vary.

Programmed Decisions
Programmed decisions are those that are made in accordance with some habit, rule or procedure.
Every organization has written or unwritten policies that simplify decision making in recurring
situation. Programmed decisions are used for dealing with complex as well as with

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uncomplicated issues. If a problem recurs and if its component elements can be defined,
predicted and analyzed, then it may be a candidate for programmed decision making.
Programmed decision limits the decision maker’s freedom because the organization rather than
the individuals decide what to do.

However, the policies, rules and procedure which will take time needed to work out new
solutions to every problem; this then allows the decision maker to devote attention to other
important activities.
Non- programmed Decisions
This are those that deal with unusual or unique problem; problems which have not come up often
enough to be covered by a policy or it is something so important that it deserves special
treatment , it must be handled by a non –programmed decision e.g. decisions on:
 Allocation of resources
 Society relation
 Falling product lines
Most management training programs try to improve a manager ability to make non-programmed
decision – usually by trying to teach them to make decision reasonably.
B. Tools for Decision Making
The following is a summary of decision and the traditional and modern tools used. Types of
decision Traditional tools
Types of decision Traditional tools Modern tools
Programmed Habit Operational research
(Routine respective decision) Clerical routine Mathematic analysis
Standard operating Computer, electronic
Procedure Data processing
Non- programmed one- shot Judgment Heuristic problem solving.
special decisions Credibility, Constructing heuristic
Institutional rule of thumb computer
Selection and training of programs
executives (knowledge based intelligence
referred to as “Expert”)

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C. THE DECISION MAKING PROCESS
There are basic steps followed in the decision-making process.

Step1: Define the problem as an idea to be acted upon

This step involves an accurate assessment of the problem so that management does not treat
mere symptoms. This step should result in a statement of the desired results. Problems are of
three types – opportunity, crisis or routine. Crisis and routine problems present themselves and
must be attended to by managers because they demand immediate attention. Opportunities
however must be discovered; they are eventually lost by an inattentive manager.

Step 2: Develop alternative solution

Alternatives are potential solutions to the problem; possible courses of action, only one of which
may ultimately be chosen. There is need to have as many alternative as possible.

Step 3: Gather information pertinent to alternative

Once alternatives have been identified the next step in decision making is to collect information.
The main information for decision making are existing rules, procedure, available facts, research,
feasibility studies, simulation, opinion of advisers, experience, public and forecast.

Step 4: consider constraints and evaluate problems

At this step the manger eliminates some alternatives because of constraints. Constraints may
come from various sources e.g. custom organization charters, limited money and personnel,
organization policies, procedure, rules, higher level managers , laws and political consideration,
the public competitors actions, labour unions , the education of potential employees, society and
economy. The most common methods of evaluation include: risk analysis, cost benefit analysis
decision trees

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Step 5: Alternative Selection
This step involves the selection of an alternative from those that have been proposed and not
eliminated. It is the most difficult step and managers should take into account the effects of the
decision.

Step 6: Follow –up

Involves implementation of the decision reached in step 5 above. It requires that the appropriate
action be carried out. It may involve appropriating funds, assigning personnel, hiring new
personnel, searching for work space, or purchase of equipment, real estate supplies or inventory

SUMMARY

Every organization makes decisions that enable it to achieve a desired behaviour. In this chapter,
it has discuss types of decisions in an organization, tools for decisions making which are
categorized as either traditional or modern tools. For an organization to achieve effective
decision it has to have good decision making process.

? SELF EVALUATION

1. What are the various types of decisions in an organization?

2. Describe organization decision making process
3. Describe various forms of decision making tools

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 TOPIC EIGHT:

TEAMS AND TEAM WORK

Objectives

By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:

1. Characteristics of effective teams

2. Describe team Building process
3. Define the term team and mention various kinds of teams

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Team

A team can be defined as a group with contemporary skills who hold themselves mutually
accountable for common purpose, goals and approach (Kreitner, Kinicki, 2008)

Katzenbach and Smith define a team as a small number of people (between 2 and 25) with
complementary skills who are committed to a common purpose, performance goals, and
approach for which they hold themselves mutually accountable. A team is a collection of
individuals organized to accomplish a common purpose, who are interdependent, and who can be
identified by themselves and observers as a team.

TYPES OF TEAMS

There are six major types of teams: informal, traditional, problem solving, leadership, self-
directed, and virtual. Table 1 describes some of the characteristics of these six types of teams.

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Informal Teams

Informal teams are generally formed for social purposes. They can help to facilitate employee
pursuits of common concerns, such as improving work conditions. More frequently however,
these teams form out of a set of common concerns and interests, which may or may not be the
same as the organizations. Leaders of these teams generally emerge from the membership and
are not appointed by anyone in the organization.

Traditional teams

Traditional teams are the organizational groups commonly thought of as departments or

functional areas. Leaders or managers of these teams are appointed by the organization and have
legitimate power in the team. The team is expected to produce a product, deliver a service, or
perform a function that the organization has assigned. Thus leaders may differ with those
appointed by the organization.

Problem solving teams

Problem-solving teams or task forces are formed when a problem arises that cannot be solved
within the standard organizational structure. These teams are generally cross-functional; that is,
the membership come from different areas of the organization and are charged with finding a
solution to the problem.

Leadership teams

Leadership teams are generally composed of management brought together to span the
boundaries between different functions in the organization. In order for a product to be delivered
to market, the heads of finance, production, and marketing must interact and come up with a
common strategy for the product. At top management levels, teams are used in developing goals
and a strategic direction for the firm as a whole.

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Self-directed teams

Self-directed teams are given autonomy over deciding how a job will be done. These teams are
provided with a goal by the organization, and then determine how to achieve that goal.
Frequently there is no assigned manager or leader and very few, if any, status differences among
the team members.

These teams are commonly allowed to choose new team members, decide on work assignments,
and may be given responsibility for evaluating team members. They must meet quality standards
and interact with both buyers and suppliers, but otherwise have great freedom in determining
what the team does. Teams form around a particular project and a leader emerges for that project.
The team is responsible for carrying out the project, for recruiting team members, and for
evaluating them.

Virtual teams

Technology is impacting how teams meet and function. Collaborative software and conferencing
systems have improved the ability for employees to meet, conduct business, share documents,
and make decisions without ever being in the same location. While the basic dynamics of other
types of teams may still be relevant, the dynamics and management of virtual teams can be very
different. Issues can arise with a lack of facial or auditory clues; participants must be taken at
their word, even when video-conferencing tools are used.

Accountability is impacted by taking a team virtual. Each member is accountable for their tasks
and to the team as a whole usually with minimal supervision. Key factors in the success of a
virtual team are effective formation of the team, trust and collaboration between members, and
excellent communication.

CHARACTERISTICS OF EFFECTIVE TEAMS

Some characteristics of effective teams are clear direction and responsibilities, knowledgeable
members, reasonable operating procedures, good interpersonal relationships, shared success and
failures, and good external relationships.

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Clear direction

Clear direction means that the team is given a clear and distinct goal. The team may be
empowered to determine how to achieve that goal, but management, when forming the team,
generally sets the goal. A clear direction also means that team outcomes are measurable.

Clear responsibilities

Clear responsibilities means that each team member understands what is expected of her or him
within the team. The roles must be clear and interesting to the team members. Each team
member needs to be able to rely on all the other members to carry out their roles so that the team
can function effectively. Otherwise, one or two team members come to feel that they are doing
all the work. This is one of the reasons so many individuals are initially reluctant to join teams.

Knowledgeable members

An effective team will be comprised of individuals who have the skills and knowledge necessary
to complete the team's task. Cooperation is essential at an early stage in inventorying the skills
and knowledge each member brings to the team, and working to determine how to utilize those
skills to accomplish the team task.

Reasonable operating procedures

All teams need a set of rules by which they operate. Sports teams for example, operate according
to a clearly laid-out set of rules about how the game is played. Similarly, work teams need a set
of procedures to guide meetings, decision making, planning, division of tasks, and progress
evaluation. Setting, and sticking to, procedures helps team members become comfortable relying
on one another.

Interpersonal relationships

Teams are composed of diverse individuals, each of whom comes to the team with his or her
own set of values. Understanding and celebrating this diversity helps to make a stronger, more
effective team.

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Sharing success and failures

Everyone wants to feel appreciated. Within a team, members should be willing to express their
appreciation, as well their criticisms, of others' efforts. Similarly, the organization must be
willing to reward the team for successful completion of a task and hold all members responsible
for failure.

External relationships

In the process of building a strong team, groups external to the team are frequently ignored. In
order for the team to successfully complete its task, it cannot operate in isolation from the rest of
the organization. Teams need help from people within the organization who control important
resources. Establishing clear lines of communication with these people early on will facilitate the
completion of the team's task.

GROUP FORMATION PROCESS

The most successful teams go through five stages of development.

Forming

Forming is the stage when team members become acquainted with one another. They also assess
the group task and the ground rules that will apply to that task. At this stage everyone is typically
very polite and willing to go along with suggestions made by other team members. Team
members try to avoid making enemies and are frequently more patient with one another than
they might be later in the process.

Storming

As the novelty of being a member of the team wears off, conflict emerges. Members of the team
emerge who want to exert greater influence over the process. Leadership struggles begin, as do
interpersonal conflicts. Conflicts erupt over the task requirements and the best way to achieve
that task. This is the stage at which listening and finding mutually acceptable resolutions to the

69
conflict is most important. The team can either emerge united and ready to take on the assigned
task, or divided, with some members taking a passive role.

Norming

In the norming stage team members make an effort to discover what standards of performance
are acceptable. What do deadlines really mean? How high a level of quality is necessary? Does
every member have to be at every meeting? What about developing sub-teams? If the team can
establish harmonious relationships at this stage, they are ready to move on to the performing
stage. Some teams, however, disband at this stage.

Performing

At this stage the team is ready to be productive and work on the task assigned. Team members'
roles have been established and clarified. Group interaction should be relatively smooth as the
team applies some of the problem-solving skills it learned in earlier stages to the task at hand. If
the team has reached this stage without successfully working through the problems and issues of
the earlier stages, it may disband or regress and work through those issues.

Adjournment

At some point almost all teams are disbanded, whether their task is completed or a team member
leaves. On the one hand this can be a happy stage, with members congratulating one another on a
job well done. On the other hand adjournment means the disruption of working arrangements
that may have become comfortable and efficient, and possibly the end of friendships.

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ORGANIZATIONAL BENEFITS OF TEAMS

The major impetus for organizations to embrace the team concept is the effort to improve
productivity and quality. Teams are a key component of many total quality management
programs. The QS 9000 program, which suppliers to the major automobile manufacturers have
embraced, relies on the team approach to ensure quality while maintaining a low-cost approach
to manufacturing.

In addition to improved productivity and quality, some of an organization's major benefits from
the use of teams are improved quality of work life for employees, reduced absenteeism and
turnover, increased innovation, and improved organizational adaptability and flexibility.
Effective implementation of teams can also improve office politics by improving the
communication and trust between the team members.

Improved quality of work life

Effective teams frequently improve the quality of work life for the employees. An effective team
is generally one in which members are empowered to make decisions about how to get work
done. Giving team members authority and control over the work processes reduces the amount of
external control and increases the sense of ownership and accountability for the work being
done. This helps to create a satisfying and rewarding work environment.

Lower absenteeism and turnover

A satisfying and rewarding work environment helps to lower absenteeism and turnover. Teams
are particularly effective in this area. Membership in a work team gives an employee a sense of
belonging, interaction with others on a regular basis, and recognition of achievements. All of
these help to eliminate a sense of isolation within the organization. Team members identify with
and feel pride in the work they are doing and come to rely on one another being there. At some
companies, employees are evaluated based on their contribution to their team's efforts.

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Increased innovation

W.L. Gore & Associates is an excellent example of a firm that utilizes the team concept and has
a strong record of innovation. Gore is a multinational company structured around the concept of
small plants (no more than 250 employees) where everyone works in teams. Everyone is allowed
to experiment with the products and develop new uses. The result is that Gore has a continuous
stream of patent applications and has been successful in developing new products in areas as
diverse as clothing, surgical supplies, and coatings for industrial use.

Organizational adaptation and flexibility

During the 1980s Ford was able to reduce its automobile design cycle by implementing Team
Taurus. Through the early involvement of employees from planning, designing, engineering, and
manufacturing, the company was able to eliminate some of the bottlenecks that had delayed the
design process. The involvement of suppliers and assembly workers helped to decrease the
number of parts involved and lower costs. Reducing the time from design to manufacture helped
Ford to be more responsive to market changes and increase its market share in the 1980s and
'90s.

Teams are not appropriate for all organizations or in all types of businesses. Behavioral scientists
are still working to determine exactly when teams will be most effective, what motivates team
members, what types of business can best benefit from the implementation of teams, and so on.
The study of the philosophy and psychology of teamwork is still in its infancy. While effective
teams can produce extraordinary results, studies have found that an estimated 50 percent of self-
directed work teams culminate in failure.

The introduction of effective and stable new technologies has greatly affected teams and
teamwork. Collaborative software and other multimedia options are providing businesses with
tools to conduct teamwork regardless of location or time. New issues of accountability, team
structure, and team selection are arising for management to deal with and coordinate within the
businesses overall goals and objectives.

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But as more and more businesses introduce the team concept, the wrinkles in the process are
being ironed out and team popularity is growing. An increasing number of organizations are
using teams to improve productivity and quality, and to solve a range of managerial problems.

Improved quality of work life and a reduction in absenteeism and turnover all contribute to a
positive impact on the bottom line. Involving employees in teams helps the organization remain
open to change and new ideas. As long as teams are seen as a means of improving the
organization's ability to meet competitive challenges, teams will be part of the business world.

SUMMARY

The chapter discusses teams and various types of teams and characteristics of effective teams.
Any group goes through group formation process that has various stages for it to function
effectively and successfully. Teams formed in an organization are not only beneficial to an
organization but also to individual themselves.

? SELF EVALUATION

1. Define the key terms; A team.

2. Mention and describe various types of teams
3. What are the characteristics of effective teams?
4. Describe group formation process
5. What are the benefits of teams in an organization?

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 TOPIC NINE

ORGANIZATION COMMUNICATION PROCESS

Objectives
By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:

1. Define the term communication

2. Describe formal and informal types of communication in an organization

DEFINITION OF TERMS

COMMUNICATION
Communication is the exchange and flow of information and ideas from one person to another; it
involves a sender transmitting an idea, information, or feeling to a receiver (Pearson, 1983).

Effective communication occurs only if the receiver understands the exact information or idea
that the sender intended to transmit. Many of the problems that occur in an organization are the
either the direct result of people failing to communicate and/or processes, which leads to
confusion and can cause good plans to fail.

ELEMENTS OF COMMUNICATION

The process of communication has the following elements:

Sender

This is anyone who wants to communicate something to someone. The sender has a thought or
idea which must be put into a language by the receiver and sender (this is called encoding).

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Message

The information the sender wants to communicate.

Channel (Vehicle / media)

The link between the sender and the receiver of the message i.e. the mode of transmission of the
message e.g. letter, telephone or gesture. Choice of the channel is affected by the following
factors

 Urgency – when the message is very urgent a telephone call may be the more appropriate
 Importance- important message are better communication face to face
 Needs for documentation-
 Delicacy of the message
 Cost involved- if sender is constrained by cost the mass media may be the most
appropriate
 Future reference- when future reference is required then written message must be based
 Noise – Anything whether in sender, channel or receiver that, hinders communication e.g.
a noisy or confined, environment may affect thinking by clogging the mind, ambiguous
symbols and may distort meaning.

Receiver

The person the sender wants to reach with the message. Once the receiver gets the message he/
she must decode it. This is the process by which the receiver interprets the message and attaches
meaning to it. If communication has to be complete (Understood) the receiver and the sender
must attach the same meaning to the message.

Feedback

The action taken by the message receiver once the message has been convened. It is only through
feedback that the sender can know whether the process was successful.

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TYPES OF FORMAL COMMUNICATIONS IN AN ORGANIZATION
1) Downward Communication:
Any communication which originates from a higher level of hierarchy and is diverted toward the
lower levels is called downward communication. This essentially consists of policies, orders,
directives, etc. Downward communications are needed:

i) To instruct the employees about the work methods and jobs;

ii) To provide information about the rules, procedures and practices to the employees
iii) To provide the subordinates with feedback on their performance.

An important requirement of effective downward communication is that it needs to be translated

into more operational and practical terms as it passes down the levels of hierarchy. Unless this
translation makes the message relevant for the receiver, it defeats its intended purpose. For
example, if the corporate objectives which are phrased in very generic terms are presented to the
worker without specifying his targets, they would convey no message to him to act upon.

2) Upward Communication:
Both management and employees often neglect the role of upward communication in an
organization. However, many of the decisions regarding the policies and targets, made at the
upper levels of hierarchy, depend heavily on the information received through the upward
channels of communication. The upward communication is useful:

i) To provide feedback to the management about the implemented programmes and

policies;
ii) To provide information about output, quality of products, etc.
iii) To collect the job relevant feelings and reactions of the employees;
iv) To receive the complaints and grievances of the employees.

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For smooth and unhindered upward communication some of the salient pre-requisites are:
i) The management must ensure an open and uninhibited organizational climate which
creates a feeling among the employees that the management is interested in their views
and problems;

ii) the employees from whom such communications originate, must feel responsible
enough to send only those messages which are relevant and meaningful, both in terms of
content and format, within the organizational framework; and

iii) the functionaries at the intermediary levels (e.g. supervisors, departmental heads, etc.)
through whom such communications pas, must become a link and not a block, in the
communication channel. This is especially so in the case of ‘negative’ message (e.g.
grievances, complaints, reports of failure etc.) which may be interpreted by their
supervisors’ as indications of their own ineffectiveness.

3) Horizontal Communication:
Messages exchanged among employees who are at the same level in the organizational hierarchy
is called horizontal communication. Such communication is important for effective
organizational functioning in two ways:
i) It facilitates coordination of work at the inter-departmental level.
ii) It permits exchange of jobs, related experiences and knowledge. It must, however, be
noted that the horizontal communication to be useful, requires going beyond the petty
feelings of one-upmanship, jealousies, favoritism etc.

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INFORMAL COMMUNICATION IN ORGANISATIONS

Informal communication arises out of all those channels that fall outside the formal channels and
it is also known as grapevine. It is established around the societal affiliation of members of the
organization. Informal communication does not follow authority lines as in the case of formal
communication. Informal communication includes e-mail, texts, and telephone conversations etc.

Informal communication takes place due to the individual needs of the members of an
organization and subsists in every organization. Normally, such communication is oral and may
be expressed even by simple glance, sign or silence. Informal communication, is implicit,
spontaneous multidimensional and diverse. It often works in group of people, i.e. when one
person has some information of interest; he passes it on to his informal group and so on.

An organization can make efficient use of informal channels to fortify the formal channels of
communication. It acts as a valuable purpose in expressing certain information that cannot be
channeled via the official channels. It satisfies the people desires to identify what is happening in
the organization and offers an opportunity to express dreads, worries and complaints. Informal
communication also facilitates to ameliorate managerial decisions as more people are involved .

In spite on many advantages, informal communication has certain disadvantages. Informal

communication contains facts, deceptions, rumors and unclear data. The informal channels of
communication may transmit completely imprecise information that may harm rather than help
an organization. In addition, it is impossible to fix the responsibility for its origin or flow of
information. However, for the efficient working of any organization both formal and informal
communications are required.

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BARRIERS TO COMMUNICATION
Communication barriers can arise from sender, channel, and receiver or from the surrounding.

a) Lack of planning to communicate – good communication is not by chance. Clear thinking

must precede talking or writing. Often people talk or write clear thinking and without a clear
purpose for their work.

b) Unclarified assumptions most messages have an underlying assumption. for a message to be

clearly understood both the sender and the receiver must understand then underlying .

c) Semantic distortion (language) where worlds are not clearly understood because they are
ambiguous. Beside some words have several meaning and when used in a message they may
mean different things to different people.

d) Poor expression (Language) caused by poor chosen words, omission, lack of coherence
awkward sentence structure and unfamiliar jargon.

e) Loss of transmission – as the message is passed around people insert their own words or they
paraphrase the message and it distorts the original message

f) Poor retention – few people retain things for a long period. People forget too fast.

g) Poor listening – human minds keeps wandering and as a message is being passed people keep
pending their own things. Some use the opportunity b to make impression on other and such
people give ideas and comments totally unrelated to the message

h) Hasty (premature) evaluation people have a common tendency to judge approve or disapprove
what is being said rather than trying to understand the speaker.

i) Distrust, threat and fear in an organization plagued by fear and distrust communication is
difficult as each message is viewed aseptically.

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j) Insufficient period for adjustment to change the essence of communication is to effect change.
Change usually disrupts the way people have been carrying on their work and usually people
need outcome time to adjust to change.

k) Noise- noise or interruption from without the communication e.g. giving instructions in a
noisy environment, disease, weather etc

SUMMARY

This chapter discusses communication in an organization. As discussed in the chapter

organization adopts various communication methods both formal and informal. Communication
can be hindered through various methods which can interfere with communication channels.

? SELF EVALUATION

1. Definition of key terms; communication, and effective communication.

2. Describe elements of communication
3. Name and explain formal and informal communication and their importance in an
organization.
4. What are the barriers to communication

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 TOPIC TEN:

ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AND EFFECTIVENESS

Objectives

By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:

1. Define the term organizational structure and effectiveness

2. Describe organizational characteristics
3. Describe components of organization structure
4. Describe types of organization structure and determinants of organizational effectiveness

DEFINITIONS OF TERMS

An Organization

An organization refers to a system of consciously coordinated activities or forces of two or more

persons

Organizational Chart

Organizational Chart is a graphic representation of formal authority and division of labor

relationships.

Organization structure

Organization structure may be defined as the established pattern of relationships among the
components of the organization. Organization structure in this sense refers to the network of
relationships among individuals and positions in an organization. Organizational culture can be
defined as the arrangement and inter-relationships of the component parts and positions of an
organization.

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SIGNIFICANCE OF ORGANIZATION STRUCTURE
The organization structure contributes to the efficient functioning of organization in the
following ways.
Clear-cut Authority Relationships:
Organization structure allocates authority and responsibility. It specifies who is to direct whom
and who is accountable for what results. The structure helps an organization member to know
what is his role and how does it relate to other roles.

Pattern of Communication:
Organization structure provides the patterns of communication and coordination. By grouping
activities and people, structure facilitates communication between people centred on their job
activities. People who have joint problems to solve often need to share information.

Location of Decision Centres: Organization structure determines the location of centres of

decision making in the organization. A departmental store, for instance may follow a structure
that leaves pricing, sales promotion and other matters largely up to individual departments to
ensure that various departmental conditions are considered.

Proper Balancing: Organization structure creates the proper balance and emphasizes on
coordination of group activities. Those more critical aspects for the success of the enterprise may
be given higher priority in the organization. Research in a pharmaceutical company, for instance,
might be singled out for reporting to the general manager or the managing director of the
company. Activities of comparable importance might be given, roughly equal levels in the
structure to give them equal emphasis.

Stimulating Creativity: Sound organisation structure stimulates creative thinking and initiative
among organizational members by providing well defined patterns of authority. Everybody
knows the area where he specialises and where his efforts will be appreciated.

Encouraging Growth: An organization structure provides the framework within which an

enterprise functions. If it is flexible, it will help in meeting challenges and creating opportunities

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for growth. A sound organization structure facilitates growth of the enterprise by increasing its
capacity to handle increased level of activity.

Making use of Technological Improvements: A sound organization structure which is

adaptable to change can make the best possible use of latest technology. It will modify the
existing pattern of authority responsibility relationships in the wake of technological
improvements. In short, existence of good organization structure is essential for better
management. Properly designed organization can help in improving team work and productivity
by providing a framework within which the people can work together most effectively.
Therefore, an organization structure should be developed according to the needs of the people in
the organization.

ORGANISATIONAL CHARACTERISTICS

Organizational characteristics refer to the general conditions that exist within an organization.
Various organizational characteristics influence organizational effectiveness. The major
characteristics are as follow:

Structure: An organizational structure defines how job tasks are formally divided, grouped and
coordinated. For organizational effectiveness, six elements need to be addressed while designing
organizational structure. These are: work specialization, departmentation, chain of command,
span of control, centralization and decentralization, and formalization.

Technology: The term technology refers to how an organization transfers its inputs into outputs.
Every organization has at least one technology for converting financial, human and physical
resources into products or services. The choice of technology and its use influences
organizational effectiveness.

Size: In a narrow sense organizational size refers to the number of people in an organization.
But, if we take a broader view, size refers to the physical capacity of the organization, the
personnel available to the organization, the organizational inputs or outputs and the discretionary

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resources available to an organization. It is the size which influences the structure which in turn
influences organizational effectiveness.

COMPONENTS OF ORGANISATION STRUCTURE

Organization structure influences the division of the tasks, grouping of activities, coordinating
the activities and the overall accomplishment of the tasks. Since organization structure relates to
relatively stable relationship and process of the organization, all influencing factors must be
analyzed for designing the organization structure.

According to Robbins, organization structure stipulates how tasks are to be allocated, who
reports to whom, and the formal coordinating mechanisms and interaction patterns that will be
followed. John Ivancevich and Michael Matteson have also expressed the same view and
advocated that manager are required to take following four decisions for designing
organizational structure :
· Divisions of overall task into smaller jobs.
· Distribution of authority among the jobs.
· Bases by which the individual jobs are to be grouped together; and
· The appropriate size of group reporting to each superior.

Division of Labour
Adam Smith emphasized on the division of labour in his celebrated work, Wealth of Nation. In
the early twentieth century, Henry Ford used assembly line operations for manufacturing
automobiles. He assigned a specific repetitive task to each worker. The whole tasks were broken
into number of smaller steps or activities. Each step was required to be completed by separate
individual. Thus, the individual attained specialization in performing that particular activity. The
manufacturing sector has been using the work specialization extensively all over the world. The
division of labour which results in work specialization provide following benefits to the
organisation.

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  The performance of specialized job enhances the work efficiency. Hence, the
employees’ skills can be used in the most efficient way.
 Since the work cycles of the job are very short, the workers can attain perfection
on that job quickly.
 It enhances productivity in the organization.
 The workers can be trained easily to perform the repetitive work.
 The training costs are reduced.
 It is easier to match workers with the specific job skills.
 Despite these benefits, the division of labour has been criticised on the following
ground.
 It can not be used for all types of jobs.
 It may lead to monotony and boredom.

It focuses on physical performance of the job and underestimates the behavioural aspects of the
workers. The positive features of division of labour overshow the negative features. Hence, the
work specialization has been widely used as an important means for enhancing productivity in
the organisation.

Delegation of Authority
Delegation is the process that a manager follows in dividing the work assigned to him so that he
performs that part, which because of his position he can perform effectively. Delegation is
legitimate authorization to a manager or employee to act in specified ways. It enables him to
function independently without reference to the supervisor but within the limits set by the
supervisor and the normal framework of organizational objectives, policies, rules and
procedures. Thus, delegation involves: a) entrustment of work to another for performance, b)
grant of power, right or authority to be exercised to perform the work, c) creation of an
obligation on the part of the person accepting delegation.

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Delegation of authority is one of the most important elements in the process of organization.
Organizations are characterized by a network of activities and roles. Delegation is the process
through which the interrelationships are created among individuals in their different roles in the
organization.

Delegation is necessary because it is physically impossible for a single man to look after the
affairs of a large organization. The success of a manager lies in his ability to multiply himself
through other people. The organizations of today are not only large but also complex in
character. No manager can claim to have all the skills and expertise to perform all the diverse
kinds of jobs. Again, large scale business activities are not confined to one place. It may have
several branches and units at several places. Delegation becomes a necessity for running these
branches.

An organization is continuity. Managers may go and come but the organization continues.
Delegation provides continuity of operations in the organization. The process of delegation helps
managerial development in an organization. Thus, delegations is important for any organization
because it reduces the burden of the managers and leaves him free to look after important matters
of the organization. It is a method by which subordinates can be developed and trained to take up
higher responsibilities. It provides continuity to the organization and creates a healthy
organizational climate by creating better understanding among the employees.

The major benefits of delegation are:

 Delegation leads to professionalism.
 Managerial decisions may involve creativeness and innovativeness.
 The competitive environment may be created in the organization.
 The mangers may take quick decisions.

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The limitations of delegation of authority are:
 The managers may resist delegating authority.
 The managers may require training for taking decisions and the costs of training
may be higher.
 Every person may not be able to take high level of decision in the effective way.
 The administrative costs may also increase.
Despite these limitations, delegation of authority enhances efficiency in the organization.

Departmentation
The division of labour divides the jobs into smaller activities. In order to coordinate these
activities, they are grouped together. The basis by which these activities are grouped together are
known as departmentalisation. It may be defined as the process of forming departments or
grouping activities of an organization into a number of separate units for the purpose of efficient
functioning. This term vary a great deal between different organizations. For example, in
business undertaking, terms are division, department and section; in Government these are called
branch, department and section; in military, regiment, battalion groups and company.

The impact of departmentation is a delineation of executive responsibilities and a grouping of

operating activities. Every level in the hierarchy below the apex is departmentalised and each
succeeding lower level involves further departmental differentiation.

The major benefits of departmentalisation are:

Specialisation: Departmentation leads to the benefits of specialization as various organizational

activities are grouped according to their relation with the specific functions or objectives. Every
departmental manager specializes in the tasks assigned to him.

Administrative control: Departmentation helps in effective managerial control because the

standards of performance for each and every department can be laid down precisely. Every
department has a specific objective. This also facilitates keeping expenditure within limits.

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Fixation of responsibility: Since organization work is divided into manageable units, and
authority and responsibility are precisely defined, it is easier to fix the accountability of different
managers for the performance of various tasks.

Freedom or autonomy: The departments created through departmentation are semi-autonomous

units. Their heads are given a sufficient degree of authority to run their departments. This
increases the efficiency of the departments.

Development of managers: Departmentation helps in the development of managerial personnel

by providing them opportunities to take independent decisions and initiative. The executives can
develop themselves for promotion to higher jobs.

Span of Control
The departmentation reflects the types of jobs which are grouped together. Different persons are
involved in performing these jobs. They are required to be supervised closely. Span of control
refers to the number of individuals a manager can effectively supervise. Thus, it is expected that
the span of control, that is, the number of subordinates directly reporting to a superior should be
limited so as to make supervision and control effective. This is because executives have limited
time and ability. It is sometimes suggested that the span of control should neither be too wide nor
too narrow. In other words, the number of subordinates should not be too large or too small. The
number of subordinates cannot be easily determined because the nature of jobs and capacity of
individuals vary from one organization to another. Moreover, the actual span of supervision
affects the organization in different ways.

A wide span results in fewer levels of supervision and facilitates communication. It permits only
general supervision due to the limited availability of time. Narrow span, on the other hand,
requires multiple levels of supervision and hence longer time for communication. It is more
expensive and complicates the process of communication. A narrow span, however enables
managers to exercise close supervision and control. Although there are certain limits to the span
of control, the tendency in recent years has been to avoid specifying absolute number because it

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has been recognized that the ideal span depends on a number of factors. Some of the important
factors are discussed below:

Nature of the Work: If the work is simple and repetitive, the span of control can be wider.
However, if the work requires close supervision the span of control must be narrow.

Ability of the Manager: Some managers are more capable of supervising large number of
people than others. Thus for a manager who possesses qualities of leadership, decision-making
ability and communication skill in greater degree the span of control may be wider.

Efficiency of the Organization: Organizations with efficient working systems and competent
personnel can have larger span of control.

Staff Assistants: When staffs assistants are employed contact between supervisors and
subordinates can be reduced and the span broadened.

Time Available for Supervision: The span of control should be narrowed at the higher levels
because top managers have less time available for supervision. They have to devote the major
part of their work time in planning, organizing, directing and controlling.

Ability of the Subordinates: Fresh entrants to jobs take more of a supervisor’s time than trained
persons who have acquired experience in the job. Subordinates who have good judgement,
initiative, and a sense of obligation seek less guidance form the supervisor.

Degree of Decentralisation: An executive who personally takes many decisions is able to

supervise fewer people than an executive who merely provides encouragement and occasional
direction. It should be clear that the size of the span of control is related to numerous variables,
and no single limit is likely to apply in all cases. A variety of factors can influence the resulting
number of employees comprising the optimum span of control in any particular organization.

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The span of control also influences the creation of tall and flat structure. Let us learn the concept
of tall and flat structure.

Tall and Flat Structure

A tall organizational structure would have many hierarchical levels there is a long distance
between the top most manager and the bottom most manager. There are large number of job
titles and a career path to the employee. Fewer numbers of subordinates a particular manager is
required to guide, the organizational structure would be taller. Contrarily, a flat structure would
have wide span of management.

The number of hierarchy would be less. Larger the number of subordinates a particular manager
is required to guide the organizational structure would be flatter. Choosing an appropriate span
of management is important for two reasons. First, it affects efficiency. Too wide a span may
mean that managers are over extended and subordinates are receiving too little guidance or
control. When this happens, managers may be pressured to ignore or condone serious errors. In
contrast, too narrow a span may mean that managers are underutilized. Thus, the extent of
division of work, the nature of delegation of authority, the process of departmentation and the
requirement of effective supervision i.e., span of control influence the designing of organization
structure.

TYPES OF ORGANISATION STRUCTURE

Different types of Organization structure can be created on the basis of arrangement of activities.
Accordingly, three broad types of structural forms are:
 Functional Structure
 Divisional Structure, and
 Adaptive Structure
.
Functional Structure
When units and sub-units of activities are created in organization on the basis of functions, it is
known as functional structure. Thus, in any industrial organization, specialized functions like
manufacturing, marketing, finance and personnel constitute as separate units of the organization.

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All activities connected with each such function are placed in the same unit. As the volume of
activity increases, sub-units are created at lower levels in each unit and the number of person’s
under each manager at various levels get added. This results in the interrelated positions taking
the shape of a pyramid.

The main advantage of the functional structure of organization is that there is functional
specialization in each unit, which leads to operational efficiency of people engaged, and the
organization as a whole derives the benefit of specialized operations. The heads of the functional
units are in direct touch with the chief executive who can sort out inter-functional problems, if
any, and also coordinate the interrelated functions.

The chief executive is also able to be in direct touch with lower level subordinates and thereby
have full knowledge of the state of affairs in the organization. However, while the functional
arrangement may be well suited to small and medium size organizations, it is incapable of
handling the problems of an organization as it grows in size and complexity. Problems of
subunits at lower levels do not receive adequate attention of higher level managers while some of
the activities tend to be over-emphasized.

Functional units become unwisely and difficult to manage when there are diverse kinds of
activities performed in large number of sub-units. Personal contact between superiors and
subordinates become rare, and flow of communication is slow leading to problems of
coordination and control.

Divisional Structure
The divisional organization structure is more suited to every large enterprise particularly those
which deal in multiple products to serve more than one distinctive markets. The organization is
then divided into smaller business units which are entrusted with the business related to different
products or different market territories. In other words, independent divisions (product divisions
or market division), are created under the overall control of the head office. Each divisional
manager is given autonomy to run all functions relating to the product or market segment or
regional market. Thus, each division may have a number of supporting functions to undertake. A

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divisional structure may consist of two or more product divisions or market or territorial
divisions as depicted

In a divisional structure each division contributes planned profits to the organisation, but
otherwise operates as an independent business. The functional units are headed by managers
while the final authority vests in the divisional manager, who coordinates and controls the
activities of the various functional units in the division. The top management of the organisation,
besides providing funds, determines the organization goals and formulates policies.

The divisional structure is characterized by decentralization of authority. Thus, it enables

managers to take decisions promptly and resolve problems appropriate to the respective
divisions. It also provides opportunity to the divisional managers to take initiative in matters
within their jurisdiction. But such a structure involves heavy financial costs due to the
duplication of supporting functional units for the divisions. Moreover, it requires adequate
number of capable managers to take charge of the respective divisions and their functional units.

Adaptive Structure
Organization structure is often designed to cope with the unique nature of undertaking and the
situation. This type of structure is known as adaptive structure. There are two types in structures.
i) Project Organization, and
ii) Matrix Organization

Project Organization: When an enterprise undertakes any specialized, time-bound work

involving one-time operations for a fairly long period, the project organization is found most
suitable. In this situation the existing organization creates a special unit so as to engage in a
project work without disturbing its regular business. This becomes necessary where it is not
possible to cope with the special task or project. Within the existing system, the project may
consist of developing a new project, installing a plant, building an office complex, etc. A project
Organization is headed by a project manager in charge, who holds a middle management rank
and reports directly to the chief executive. Other managers and personnel in the project

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organization are drawn from the functional departments of the parent organization. On
completion of the project they return to their parent departments.

The main advantage of such a structural arrangement is that it leaves regular business
undisturbed. It is exclusively concerned with the task of completing the project work on time and
in conformity with the standards of performance relevant to its goal. There is better management
and control over the project activities as the project manager enjoys necessary authority and is
alone responsible for the results. But project organisation may create problems as well.
Functional managers often resent the exercise of authority by the project manager in the
functional areas and hence conflict arises. The stability of the functional departments is disturbed
by transfer of personnel to project work from time to time. Shifting of personnel from project to
project disrupts their developments in the specialized fields.

Matrix Organization: This is another type of adaptive structure which aims at combining the
advantages of autonomous project organization, and, functional specialization. In the matrix
organization structure, there are functional departments with specialized personnel who are
deputed to work full time in different projects sometimes in more than one project under the
overall guidance and direction of project managers. When a project work is completed, the
individuals attached to it go back to their respective functional department to be assigned again
to some other project. This arrangement is found suitable where the organization is engaged in
contractual project activities and there are many project managers, as in a large construction
company or engineering firm. Matrix organization provides a flexible structure ideally suited to
the requirements of changing conditions. It facilitates pooling of specialized and technical
personnel from different functional departments, who can be deputed to a number of projects.
They acquire valuable experience of handling varied and complex problems in project work.
There is speedy exchange of information and decision making as they work under the
coordinating authority of project managers.

The major drawback of matrix organization is that the personnel drawn from specialized
functional departments are subjected to dual authority, that of the functional heads and the
project managers. The principle of unity of command is thereby sacrificed. This generates

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stresses and strains in project management, because there is simultaneous engagement of the
same individual in a number of projects.

DIMENSIONS OF ORGANISATION STRUCTURE

Robins has identified three dimensions of organization structure, i.e., formalization,
centralization and complexity.

Formalization: It refers to the extent to which the activities, rules, procedures, instructions, etc.
are specified and written. This primarily means that the degree to which the activities of the
organization are standardized. High division of labour i.e., specialization, high level of
delegation of authority, high degree of departmentation and wide span of control lead to high
degree of formalization. The major benefits of formalization are as follow:
 Standardized activities reduce the variability in the organization.
 It promotes coordination. All activities are defined and specified which facilitate the
process of coordination.
 There is least scope of discretion. The decision is taken on the basis of standard rules and
procedures; hence the scope of personal discretion is reduced.
 Operating costs are reduced.
 The standard activities reduce the conflict and ambiguity.
 Formalization is criticized on the following ground:
 It prevents creativity and flexibility in the organization.
 It may be difficult for the organization to change the rules.
 The formulation and implementation of new rules may face great resistance by the
employees.
Despite these limitations formalization has been widely used in the organization. The formalized
structure helps in smooth functioning of the organization. Well defined jobs and relationships
enhance the efficiency of the organization.

Centralization: There are some organizations, where top management makes all the decisions
and middle and lower level managers merely implement the decisions taken by the top
management. At the other extreme, there are some organizations in which decisions are made at

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all levels of management. The first case fits into the centralized structure where as the second
one is highly decentralized. One of the fourteen principles of Henry Fayol happens to be
centralization. According to him, decreasing the role of subordinates in decision-making is
centralization; increasing their role is decentralisation. Fayol believed that managers should
retain final responsibility but at the same time give their subordinates enough authority to do
their jobs properly. The problem is to find the proper degree of centralization in each case. Thus,
centralization refers to the degree to which decision making is centralized in the organization.

In centralization little delegation of authority is the rule; power and discretion are concentrated in
a few executives. Control and decision-making reside at the top levels of management. However,
absolute centralization is untenable because it would mean that subordinates have no duties,
power or authority. Centralization may be essential in small organization to survive in a highly
competitive world. But as the organization becomes more complex in terms of increasing size,
interdependence of work-flow, complexity of tasks and spatial physical barriers within and
among groups, a function requisite for efficiency is to move decision-making centres to the
operating level. Thus, the larger the size of an organization, the more urgent is the need for
decentralization. This does not mean that decentralization is good and centralization is bad.

On the other hand, decentralization is the systematic effort to delegate to the lowest levels all
authority except that which can be exercised at central points. It is the pushing down of authority
and power of decision-making to the lower levels of organization. The centres of decision-
making are dispersed throughout the organization. The essence of decentralization is the
transference of authority from a higher level to a lower level. It is a fundamental principles of
democratic management where each individual is respected for his inherent worth and
constitution. As you know, decentralization is a correlate of delegation; to the extent that
authority is not delegated, it is centralized. Absolute centralization decreases the role of
subordinate managers which in turn encourages decentralization. Absolute decentralization is
also not possible because managers cannot delegate all their authority.

Complexity: It refers to the differences among the jobs and units. It reflects the degree of
differentiation existing within the organization. A variety of jobs and units create more complex

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organization structure. The management of complex structure may be difficult. Based on the
complexity of activities, there may be horizontal differentiation, vertical differentiation and
spatial differentiation. Let us learn them briefly. Horizontal differentiation refers to the number
of different units at the same level. This means if the number of activities which require more
specialized skills, the organization will tend to be more complex. Specialization and
departmentation are good examples of such differentiation. Another differentiation i.e., vertical
differentiation refers to the number of levels in the organization. It reflects the depth of the
hierarchy in the organization. This means that increase in hierarchical level enhances complexity
in the organization.

In such organization, coordination and communication become difficult. The process of

interaction is influenced by span of control which determines the number of persons effectively
supervised by a manager. In the wide span, the managers have more persons to be supervised and
in the narrow span they have fewer people to be supervised. The supervision depends on number
of other factors as well. The third types of differentiation i.e., spatial differentiation refers to the
degree to which location of units and the personnel are dispersed. As you must be aware these
days activities of the organization are located in different areas. The multiple location increases
the complexity of the organization.

Coordination and interaction also become difficult in such organization. An increase in above
types of differentiation may lead to increase in complexity in the organization. Thus, the
complexity of the organization determines the amount of coordination, communication and
control. John Invancevich and Michael Matteson have analyzed that the high formalization
reflects high specialization, delegated authority, functional departments and wide span of control.
The high centralization reflects the high specialization, centralized authority, functional
departments and wide span of control. The high complexity reflects high specialization,
delegated authority, territorial, customer and product departments and narrow spans of control.
The low formalization, centralization and complexity reflect the opposite characteristics.

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ORGANISATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS

The study of organizational structure is necessary to understand organizational effectiveness. In

simple terms better the structure of an organization more effective would be the organization and
vice versa. You must be aware that some organizations perform better and grow more rapidly
than other. On the extreme side some organizations perform badly and within a short period of
time go out of business. How can we measure effectiveness? In order to measure the
effectiveness let us analyze following components of organizational effectiveness.

The different components of organizational effectiveness can be found from the answer to the
following questions.
 Are the employees satisfied with the organization?
 Are the customers satisfied with the organization?
 Is the organization profitable?
 Is the organization growing in terms of profit, revenue, number of
products, expansion into new locations, line of products etc?
 Is the organization productive i.e., creating goods and services of high
value at minimum cost?
 Is the organization innovative or stale?

DETERMINANTS OF ORGANISATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS

Managerial Policies and Practices
Managerial policies and practices integrate the entire organization, maintain balance among the
interest groups in the organization, and accommodate them with the external environment.
Managerial policies and practices have a direct bearing on the Organizational effectiveness. The
major managerial policies and practices are as follow:

Strategy: A strategy is a plan for interacting with the competitive environment to achieve
organizational goals. Goals define where does the organization want to go and strategies define
how will the organization reach there. In other words, strategy is the determination of basic long
term goals of the organization, the adoption of the courses of action and the allocation of

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resources necessary to achieve them. The strategy is the most important factor of an organization
which decides the future course of action for the organization. New strategy is often selected
based upon environmental needs, and then the top management attempts to redesign the
organization to achieve those ends.

Leadership: It is the process of influencing members towards the achievement of organizational

goals. It is said that managers are people who do things right and leaders are people who do the
right thing. Leaders facilitate the identification of organizational goals. They initiate the
development of vision for their organization.

Decision-making: Decision-making is choosing among alternatives. It has close relationship

with all traditional management functions. The decision that management makes has a profound
impact on the success of an organization.

Rewards: Organizational success to a large extent depends on how is management able to gain
support of its team by way of compensating them for the efforts they are making for the
achievement of organizational goals. It is primarily meant to sustain employee morale and
improve or maintain productivity.

Communication: It is the linkages among members of the organization whereby they exchange
information. The organizational structure has to provide for a perfect communication among
different members of the organization. Organizational communication is the grease that enables
any organizational change.

Environmental Characteristics
Organizational effectiveness is influenced to a great degree by the external environmental
characteristics. It is dependent on how is the external environment predictable, complex and
hostile to the organization and its activity. The major characteristics are as follow:

Predictability: Predictability refers to how certain or uncertain an organization may be towards

supply of various resources; human, raw material etc. It is an element of external environment.

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Complexity: Environment complexity refers to the heterogeneity and range of activities which
are relevant to an organization’s operations. How many diverse groups from external
environment the organizations have to deal with.

Hostility: A hostile environment is one in which the underpinning of the organization is

threatened. How is an organization viewed by the people at large. You may recall the case of
Union Carbide after the Bhopal gas leakage about the hostility of environment.

Employee characteristics
The characteristics of the human resource could make or break an organization. It is employee
characteristics, which is reflected in the success, or failure of an organization. The major
characteristics are as follow:

Goals: Goals define where the organization wants to go. Goals are intentions that an individual
or an organization would like to achieve in the course of their working. Goals provide a
directional nature to people’s behaviour and guide their thoughts and actions.

Skills: Skill is the ability to engage in a set of behaviour that are functionally related to one
another and that lead to a desired performance in a given area. The skill can be technical,
managerial, behavioural etc.

Motives: A motive is an inner state of a person that energizes activates, or moves and directs
towards the achievement of a pre defined goal. The motivated employees have high motives to
perform better and achieve the targets.

Attitudes: Attitudes are evaluative statements- either favourable or unfavourable concerning

objects, events, or people. Attitudes influence job behaviour and hence organizational
effectiveness.

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Values: Values represent basic convictions or a specific mode of conduct. It generally influences
an individual’s attitude and behaviour. The value that a person holds influences his or her
motivation and subsequently behaviour.

Benefits of organizational effectiveness:

· Structures and behaviours are aligned with business needs.
· Disruption to business is minimized which reduces operational risk.
· Employee morale is sustained which maintains productivity.
· The right employees and talent are retained.
· Employees objectives and rewards are aligned to business goals.

SUMMARY

This chapter discusses on organizational structure and its importance in an organization. It also
discusses on organizational components and characteristics of an organization structure. The
chapter has also discusses on types of organization structures and their impact in an organization.
In conclusion, the chapter has discusses determinants of organizational effectiveness and benefits
of organizational effectiveness to an organization.

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? SELF EVALUATION

1. Definition of key terms; an organization, organizational chart and organizational

structure.
2. Describe the significance of organizational structure
3. What are some of the conditions that exist in an organization?
4. Describe components of organizational structure
5. Differentiate project organization and matrix organization
6. Name and describe components of organizational effectiveness
7. What are the determinants of organizational effectiveness?

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 TOPIC ELEVEN:

ORGANIZATIONAL LIFE CYCLE AND DESIGN

Objectives
By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:
1. Define the term organizational life cycle and design
2. Describe organizational life cycle
3. Describe Classical Form of Organization

INTRODUCTION

The organizational life cycle is the life cycle of an organization from its creation to its
termination. (Richard L.Daft, 2007). There are five level/stages in any organization.

1. Birth
2. Growth
3. Maturity
4. Decline
5. Death

ORGANISATIONAL LIFE CYCLE: GROWTH, MATURITY, DECLINE AND DEATH

Organizations exhibit a similar, though not identical, life-cycle pattern of changes to living
organisms. They grow, mature, decline, and eventually pass away. However, there are some
differences that require attention. Firstly, the duration of each stage is less precise than that of
typical organisms. In human beings, physiological growth reaches its climax at about the age of
25 whereas the growth phase of an organization can vary to a great extent. Secondly, the
mechanics upon which changes are based are different. Living organisms are typical biological
machines with their own physics and chemistry, while organizations are not. According to
Boulding (1956), organizations are at a higher level of complexity than living organisms.

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Genetic factors and available resources both influence growth in organisms. Organisms develop
from fertilization to maturity through a programmed or predetermined genetic code, a process
termed ‘ontogenic development’ (Ayres, 1994). Apart from this, it is also necessary that the
organism acquire sufficient necessary resources from the environment to sustain its life and
remain viable.

Although the concept of ontogenic development may not be directly applicable to the growth of
real organizations due to the difference in basic constituents and mechanisms (i.e. biological vs.
socio-technical), there is a similar idea upon which the description of growth in organizations
can be based. Greiner (1972) proposed a growth model that explained the growth in business
organizations as a predetermined series of evolution and revolution (Figure 11.2, “The five
phases of organizational growth (adapted from Greiner, 1972).”).

In order to grow, the organization is supposed to pass through a series of identifiable phases or
stages of development and crisis, which is similar, to some degree, to the concept of ontogenic
development. Thus, it is interesting to see that systems at different levels of complexity
(Boulding, 1956) can exhibit a similar pattern of change. This is also consistent with General
System Theory, which attempts to unify the bodies of knowledge in various disciplines
(Bertalanffy, 1973).

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The five phases of organizational growth (adapted from Greiner, 1972).

Greiner’s model suggests how organizations grow, but the basic reasons behind the growth
process and its mechanics remain unclear. As mentioned previously, growth in a living organism
is a result of the interplay between the ontogenic factor and the environment. Here, positive
feedback plays a vital role in explaining changes in a living system. Although both positive and
negative feedback work in concert in any living system, in order to grow (or to effect other
changes in a system), the net type of feedback must be positive (Skyttner, 2001).

In organisms, starting at birth, the importation of materials and energy from the environment not
only sustains life but also contributes to growth. As they keep growing, so does their ability to
acquire resources. This means that the more they grow, the more capacity in resources
acquisition they have and the more resources they can access. This growth and the increase in
resource acquisition capabilities provide a positive feedback loop, which continues until the
organism matures. The positive feedback loop will be active again when the organism starts to
decline, which will be mentioned later.

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An analogy can be made between the process of growth in a business organization and that in an
organism (provided that the business organization pursues a growth strategy). If the resources in
a niche or a domain are abundant, a business organization in that niche is likely to run at a profit
(provided that the relevant costs are under control). An increase in profit results in an
improvement in return on investment (ROI), which tends to attract more funds from the
investors. The firm can use these funds to reinvest for expansion, to gain more market control,
and make even more profit. This positive feedback will continue until limiting factors (e.g. an
increase in competition or the depletion of resources within a particular niche) take effect.

A living system cannot perpetually maintain growth, nor can it ensure its survival and viability
forever. After its growth, the system matures, declines, and eventually ends. This can be
explained by using the concept of ‘homeokinesis’ (Cardon, et al., 1972; Van Gigch, 1978, 1991;
Skyttner, 2001). It has already been argued that one of the most important characteristics of any
living system is that it has to be in a homeostatic, or dynamic, equilibrium condition to remain
viable. Nonetheless, the fact that a living system deteriorates over time and eventually expires
indicates that there is a limit to this. Rather than maintaining its dynamic equilibrium, it is argued
that a living system is really in a state of disequilibrium, a state of evolution termed
‘homeokinesis’. Rather than being a living system’s normal state, homeostasis is the ideal or
climax state that the system is trying to achieve, but that is never actually achievable.

Homeostasis can be described in homeokinetic terms as a ‘homeokinetic plateau’ (Figure 11.3,

“Control requires that the system be maintained within the bounds of the homokinetic plateau.
“Adapted from Van Gigch (1991).”) – the region within which negative feedback dominates in
the living system. In human physiology, after age 25 (the physiological climax state), the body
starts to deteriorate but can still function. After achieving maturity, it seems that a living system
has more factors and contingencies to deal with, and that require more energy and effort to keep
under control. Beyond the ‘upper threshold’ (see Figure 11.3, “Control requires that the system
be maintained within the bounds of the homokinetic plateau. Adapted from Van Gigch (1991).”),
it is apparent that the system is again operating in a positive feedback region, and is
deteriorating. Even though the living system is trying its best to maintain its viability, this effort,
nonetheless, cannot counterbalance or defeat the entropically increasing trend. The system

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gradually and continuously loses its integration and proper functioning, which eventually results
in the system’s expiry.

Although we argue that the concept of homeokinesis and net positive feedback can also be
applied to the explanation of deterioration and demise in organizations, as noted earlier it is very
difficult to make a direct homology between changes in organisms and changes in organizations.
Rather than being biological machines, which can be described and explained, to a large extent if
not (arguably) completely, in terms of physics and chemistry, organizations are much more
complex socio-technical systems comprising ensembles of people, artefacts, and technology
working together in an organized manner.

Control requires that the system be maintained within the bounds of the homokinetic
plateau. Adapted from Van Gigch (1991).

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As mentioned earlier, after its maturity, the organism gradually and continuously loses its ability
to keep its integration and organization under control (to counterbalance the entropically
increasing trend) and this finally leads to its demise. While this phenomenon is normal in
biological systems, even though organizations in general may experience decline and death (as
many empires and civilizations did in history), it appears that the entropic process in
organizations is less definite and more complicated than that in organisms. Kiel (1991) suggests
that this dissimilarity can be explained in terms of systems’ differences in their abilities to extract
and utilize energy, and the capacity to reorganize as a result of unexpected and chaotic
contextual factors. This suggests that biological systems are less resilient and capable than social
systems with respect to natural decline.

This may be reflected in the difference in timing and duration of each of their developmental
phases. For example, while the duration of each phase in the life cycle, and the life expectancy,
are relatively definite for a particular type of organism, such duration is very difficult, if not
impossible, to specify for organizations. A small business may, on average, last from several
months to a number of years whereas, in contrast, the Roman Catholic Church has lasted for
centuries (Scott, 1998). It may be that the size and form of the organization are influential factors
in this respect, a proposition that still requires further empirical investigation.

ORGANISATIONAL DESIGN

Organizational design refers to the process of coordinating the structural elements of

organizations in the most appropriate manner. There are three distinct schools; the classical, the
neoclassical and the contemporary. The classical school represented by Max Weber, F.W.Taylor
and Henry Fayol; the proponents of formal hierarchy, clear set of rules and specialization of
labour. The neo-classical represented by organizational scholar such as McGregor, Argyris and
Likert. They emphasize on employee satisfaction along with economic effectiveness and call for
the designing of flat hierarchical structure with a high degree of decentralization. The proponents
of contemporary design emphasize on the environmental factors in which the organizations are
operating.

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Classical Form of Organization

The Simple Structure: A simple structure has low departmentalization, wide span of control,
concentration of authority in a single person, and little or no formalization. Simple structure is
normally flat type of organization having two or three vertical levels, a loose body of employees
and one individual in whom the decision-making authority is centralized(usually practiced in
small organizations having owner manager or family owned businesses). The advantage of
simple structure is in its simplicity. It is fast, flexible, inexpensive to maintain and accountability
is absolutely clear. However, it is very difficult to maintain especially when the organizations
grow larger.

The Bureaucracy: The most common form of organization is the classical bureaucratic
structure. The structure is inflexible, impersonal and highly standardized. You may observe some
of the organizations we come across very frequently. The banks, where we deposit our money
and withdraw cash as and when we need them. The stores from where we buy large number of
items of daily use. The income tax office, we need to file our income tax returns every year. If
you observe these organizations closely, we may find that they are all having highly routinised
work system carried out through specialization, formally written rules and regulations,
centralized authority, narrow span of control and all decision have to follow the chain of
command. Max Weber (1947), considered it as an ideal form of organization. The bureaucracy,
though not very ideal form of organization in modern times but still holds ground. The strength
of bureaucracy lies in its ability to perform standardized functions highly efficiently. However,
obsessive observance of rules and regulations is said to be its major weakness.

The Matrix Structure: Mathematically, matrix is an array of horizontal rows and vertical
columns. In order to understand the Matrix Structure, we first need to understand the Functional
Organization, a form of departmentalization in which every member of the organization engaged
in a functional area i.e., employee engaged in marketing or production is grouped into one unit.
The matrix organization is defined as type of organization in which each employee has two
bosses or (under dual authority). They have to report to both functional and divisional manager

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and also to a project or group manager. This type of structure is most popular in the advertising
agencies, hospitals, Research and Development laboratory and universities. The matrix structure
allows for flexible use of organizations human resources, pooling and sharing of specialized
resources but the major problem is with regard to coordination of task and stress caused by two
bosses.

Alternate Design
Robins has classified the structural designs into three broad types; the team structure, the virtual
organization, and the boundary less organization.

The Team Structure: The team structure uses the team as the central device to coordinate work
activities. Robins defines work team as a group whose individual efforts result in a performance
greater than the sum of the individual inputs. The primary characteristics of the team structure
are that it breaks down departmental barriers and decentralizes decision making to the level of
the work team. One of the prerequisites of the team structure is that the employees have to be
both generalists as well as specialists. In India some of the well known multinationals like
Xerox, Motorola and the IT giant H.P uses cross functional teams.

The Virtual Organization

In the age of specialization no organization can survive without outsourcing. The core activity
remains with the main organization whereas parts are performed by others. The virtual
organization (also known as network or modular organization) goes a step ahead by outsourcing
major function. In structural terms the virtual organization is highly centralized, with little or no
departmentation. When large organizations use virtual structure, they frequently use it to
outsource manufacturing activities.

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The Boundary less Organization
The credit for coining the term boundary less organization goes to Mr. Jack Welch of General
Electrics (GE). He wanted GE to become boundary less organization. The type of organization,
which seeks to eliminate the chain of command, have limitless span of control and replace
departments with empowered teams. By removing vertical boundaries, management flattens the
hierarchy, status, and ranks are minimized. G.E. has been using cross-hierarchical teams,
participative decision making practices and 360-degree performance appraisal system to break
vertical boundaries. It is the networked computers (with the help of internet and intra-net), which
makes the boundary less organization possible by allowing people to communicate across inter-
organizational and intra-organizational boundaries. Electronic Mail for example permits
hundreds of employee to share information simultaneously and allows ranks and file workers to
communicate directly with senior executives.

Organizational and Mechanistic Designs

There are two extreme models of organizational design i.e., mechanistic model and organic
model. Let us learn them briefly. Robins has identified following characteristics of mechanistic
and organic model of organizational design:

Mechanistic Model: The major features of mechanistic model are as follow:

o Extensive departmentalization
o High formalization
o A limited information network; and
o Centralization

The activities are grouped together based on the strategies of the departmentation like functional,
division, adaptive; etc. There are standardized policies, procedures, rules and decision making
styles. The flow of information is very limited. The decision making style is highly centralized.
Thus, the mechanistic model endeavors to achieve efficiency because of its structural
characteristics.
Organic Model: The major features of organic model are as follow:

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 o cross hierarchical and cross functional teams
o low formalization
o comprehensive information network
o high participation in decision making

In the organic model teams emerge from different hierarchy and functional areas. The tasks,
rules, procedures and decision making are in a fluid situation and changeable.. There exists
decentralization of decision making where participation is sought from the larger group. This
model focuses on flexibility and adaptability. It encourages greater utilization of human
resources.

SUMMARY

The chapter has discussed organizational life cycle by Richard, L Daft which include Birth,
growth, maturity, decline and death. In addition it had explained organizational design and their
impact and effect in an organization

? SELF EVALUATION

1. Describe organizational life cycle and level according to (Richard daft, 2007)
2. What is organizational design?
3. Describe bureaucracy and matrix structures

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 TOPIC TWELVE:

ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND MANAGING ACROSS CULTURES

Objectives
By the end of this topic the learner should be able to:
1. Define the term culture and organizational culture
2. Discuss organizational culture

DEFINITION OF TERMS

Culture

This refers to set of beliefs and values about what is desirable and undesirable in a community of
people and a set of formal or informal practices to support the values.

Ethnocentrism

This is the believe that one’s native country, culture, language and modes of behaviour are
superior to all others.

Cultural Intelligence

This is the ability to accurately interpret ambiguous cross-cultural situations.

Organizational Socialization Process

Organizational Socialization process is defined as a process by which a person learns the values,
norms and required behaviours which permit him to participate as a member of the organization.

Organizational socialization is a key mechanism used by organizations to embed their

organizational cultures. Organizational socialization turns outsiders into fully functioning
insiders by promoting and reinforcing the organization’s core values and beliefs (Kreitner,
Kinicki, 2008).

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Organizational culture

Organizational culture is the collective behavior of humans who are part of an organization and
the meanings that the people attach to their actions. Culture includes the organization values,
visions, norms, working language, systems, symbols, beliefs and habits. It is also the pattern of
such collective behaviors and assumptions that are taught to new organizational members as a
way of perceiving, and even thinking and feeling. Organizational culture affects the way people
and groups interact with each other, with clients, and with stakeholders (Kreitner, Kinicki, 2008).

Ravasi and Schultz, (2006), state that organizational culture is a set of shared mental assumptions
that guide interpretation and action in organizations by defining appropriate behavior for various
situations. At the same time although a company may have "own unique culture", in larger
organizations, there is a diverse and sometimes conflicting cultures that co-exist due to different
characteristics of the management team. The organizational culture may also have negative and
positive aspects.

Schein (2009), Deal & Kennedy (2000), Kotter (1992) and many others state that organizations
often have very differing cultures as well as subcultures.

Organizational culture refers to culture in any type of organization be it school, university, not-
for-profit groups, government agencies or business entities. In business, terms such as corporate
culture and company culture are sometimes used to refer to a similar concept.

Functions of cultures

a) Creates distinction between one organization and others.

b) Conveys a sense of identity for organizations members.
c) Facilities the generation of commitment to something larger than one’s individual
interest.
d) Enhances the stability of social system.

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Cultural Influence on organization

Culture influences organizational behavior in two ways. Employees bring their societal culture
to work with them in the form of customs and language. Organizational culture is a by-product
of societal culture; in turn affects the individual values/ethics, attitudes, assumptions and
expectations. Societal culture is shaped by the environment factors.

CHARACTERISTICS OF ORGANIZATION CULTURE

a. Innovation and risk taking
This is the degree to which employees are encouraged to be innovative and take risk.
b. Attention to detail
This is the degree to which employees are expected to exhibit precision, analysis and
attention to detail.
c. Outcome orientation
This is the degree to which management focuses on result or outcomes rather than on the
techniques and processes used to achieve those outcomes.
d. People orientation
This is the degree to which management decisions take into consideration the effect of
outcomes on people within organization.
e. Team orientation
This is the degree to which work activities are organized around teams rather than
individuals.
f. Aggressiveness
This is the degree to which people are aggressive and competitive rather than easy going
g. Stability
This is the degree to which organizational activities emphasize maintaining the status quo
in contrast to growth.
h. Norms
These are standards shared by members of the group, including guidelines on how much
work to do.

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 i. Dominant values
These are those values that the organizations advocates and expects from the participants
in an organization e.g. high quality work, low absenteeism and high efficiency.
j. Rules
These are strict guidelines related to getting along in the organization.

A Three Phase Model of Organizational Socialization

Organizational behaviour researcher Daniel Feldman has proposed a three-phase model or

organizational that promotes deeper understanding of this important process. The three phases
are: Anticipatory Socialization Phase, Encounter phase and change and acquisition phase. Each
phase has its associated perceptual and social processes. The model also specifies behavioural
and effective outcomes that can be used to judge how well an individual has been socialized.
The three phases sequence may take from a few weeks to a year to complete depending on
individual differences and the complexity of the situation (Kreitner, Kinicki, 2008).

Phase 1: Anticipatory Socialization

Anticipatory Socialization phase occurs before an individual actually joins an organization. It is

represented by the information people have learned about different careers, occupations,
professions and organizations. For example, anticipatory socialization particularly explains the
different perceptions you might have about working in the US Government versus a high-
technology company like Microsoft. An organization current employee is a powerful source of
anticipatory socialization.

Unrealistic expectations about the nature of the work pay and promotions are often formulated
during phase 1. Employees with unrealistic expectations are more likely to quit their jobs in the
future, organizations may want to use realistic job previews. Realistic job previews involves
giving recruits a realistic ideal of what lies ahead by presenting both positive and negative
aspects of the job. Realistic Job Interview may be verbal, non-verbal or written.

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Phase 2: Encounter

This second phase begins when the employment contract has been signed. During the encounter
phase, employees come to learn what the organization is really like. It is a time for reconciling
unmet expectations and making sense of a new environment. Many companies use a
combination of orientation and training programmes to socialize employees during the encounter
phase using techniques such as on boarding. On boarding programme helps employees’ to
integrate, assimilate and transition to new jobs by making them familiar with corporate policies,
procedures, and cultural by clarifying work role expectations and responsibilities.

Phase 3: Change and Acquisition

The change and acquisition phase requires employees to master important tasks and roles and to
adjust to their work groups values and norms.

Healthy organizational cultures

Organizations should strive for what is considered a "healthy" organizational culture in order to
increase productivity, growth, efficiency and reduce counterproductive behavior and turnover of
employees. A variety of characteristics describe a healthy culture, including:

 Acceptance and appreciation for diversity

 Regard for and fair treatment of each employee as well as respect for each employee’s
contribution to the company
 Employee pride and enthusiasm for the organization and the work performed
 Equal opportunity for each employee to realize their full potential within the company
 Strong communication with all employees regarding policies and company issues
 Strong company leaders with a strong sense of direction and purpose
 Ability to compete in industry innovation and customer service, as well as price
 Lower than average turnover rates (perpetuated by a healthy culture)
 Investment in learning, training, and employee knowledge

Additionally, performance oriented cultures have been shown to possess statistically better
financial growth. Such cultures possess high employee involvement, strong internal

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communications and an acceptance and encouragement of a healthy level of risk-taking in order
to achieve innovation. Additionally, organizational cultures that explicitly emphasize factors
related to the demands placed on them by industry technology and growth will be better
performers in their industries.

SUMMARY

First, the chapter discusses on culture, culture intelligence, and organizational socialization
process. Secondly, it discuses on functions of cultures and various characteristics of an
organization, and it’s impact to an organization. According to Fieldman, there are three phase
model of organizational socialization which is explained in the chapter. Finally, the chapter also
covers on healthy organizational cultures in an organization, which are important in any
organization.

? SELF EVALUATION

1. Definition of key terms; culture, ethnocentrism, cultural intelligence and

organizational socialization process.
2. What are the functions of cultures in an organization?
3. Mention and explain characteristics of organization culture
4. Daniel Feldman came up with three phase model of organizational socialization,
name and explain the phases

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REFERENCE

1. Jones, Ishmael (2008), The Human Factor: Inside the CIA's Dysfunctional Intelligence
Culture New York.
2. Kreitner, R. Kinicki, A. (2008) Organizational Behaviour. 8th
Edition.Newyork:McGraw- Hill
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Healthcare Research and Quality; August 2008
4. Robert. A. Baron and Jerald GreenBerg 1989, Behaviour Organizations Third Edition
5. Robbins, Stephen P.; Judge, Timothy A. (2007), Essentials of Organizational behavior
(9th ed.)
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(9th Ed.)
7. Pearson, J. (1983). Interpersonal Communication. Glenview, Illinois: Scott, Foreman and
Company.
8. Stephen P.Robbinson 2007, Organization Behaviour, 12th edition
9. Stephen L.Mc Shone and Mary Ann Von Glinow, Organization Behaviour, 3rd edition
10. Simon, J. & Mares, W. (1983), Working Together. New York.
11. Simon, J. & Mares, W. (1983), Working Together. New York.
12. W.Graham Astrley and Paramjit S.Sachdeva, Structural Sources ofIntraorganizational
Power: A theoretical Synthesis Academy of management review January 1984 p.104
13. W.Graham Astrley and Paramjit S.Sachdeva, Structural Sources of Intraorganizational
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14. Internet

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 SAMPLE QUESTIONS

DEPARTMENT OF COUNSELLING PSYCHOLOGY

BACHELOR OF CONSELLING PSYCHOLOGY
UNIT CODE: CCU 411
COURSE TITLE: ORGANIZATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY
INSTRUCTION: SECTION A – ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS
SECTION B ANSWER ANY TWO QUESTIONS
TIME 2 HOURS

SECTION A
Q1
a) Define the following terms (10marks)
i. Organization
ii. Organizational Behavour
iii. Cultural Intelligence
iv. Ethnocentrism
v. Organizational Ethics

b) List and explain disciplines of organizational behaviour (5 marks)

c) Explain five characteristics of effective teams (5 marks)
d) Explain determinants of personality (5 marks)
e) Explain sources of satisfaction (5marks)

SECTION B: ANSWER ANY TWO QUESTIONS

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Q2
a) Discuss principles of behavior modification (10 marks)
b) Discuss formal and informal communication in an organization (10marks)
Q3
a) Differentiate between leadership and management (4marks)
b) Discuss types of leadership styles (6 marks)
c) Discuss the types of powers that leaders can use in an organization (10 marks)
Q4
a) Define the term motivation (2 marks)
b) Discuss four importance of motivation (8 marks)
c) Discuss Abraham Maslow Hierarchy of Needs (10 marks)
Q5
a) Discuss organizational life cycle by Richard Daft (10 marks)
b) Discuss the characteristics of a healthy culture in an organization ( 10 marks)

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