Group Behavior in Organizations - Essay Example

Group work analysis in Johnson’s and Johnson’s company Introduction Generic organization presupposes an organization which produces tangible goods, since its products can be put in inventories before they are sold. Most customers do not have direct contact with the manufacturers, since wholesalers and retailers act as a link between manufacturers and consumers. My research on a generic organization will revolve around the American company “Johnson and Johnson”. This company has a long history since its establishment in 1886. The company is among the Fortune five hundred list and it is known in production of consumer packed goods, medical devices and multinational pharmaceutical. During its production of goods the company has a history of using group work for effectiveness and efficiency in production. Productivity is the most important component in any organization; members of the group should learn how to work together. For organization’s initiatives and goals to be achieved, group productivity should be enhanced (Kowert, 2002). Any successful supervisor or manager should be in a position to guide his employees in a way that encourages increase in performance. Being a hired consultant in Johnson and Johnson, I found that the organization has four main problems which will be analyzed in this paper. Thesis statement: This paper will analyze in essence the problems in Johnson’s and Johnson’s Company, the effects caused by the problems upon the group’s production, as well as recommendations to be adhered to in order to increase productivity of the groups in the organization as seen below. Role conflicts in organizations Role conflicts occur in organizations due to individuals having many conflicting responsibilities in the organization. Research has depicted that most role conflicts come as a result of multiple obligations being given to varied groups (Kowert, 2002). Through the research carried out in Johnson and Johnson Company, it is clear that mid-level supervisors are given a lot of roles which include working with the employees they supervise. This has led to many role conflicts with the supervisor. This is due to the fact that the supervisor is expected to report underperforming employees and to collaboratively work with the group. Moreover, conflict roles are also caused by employees being asked to perform tasks which contradict at the same time. For instance, an employee can be asked by one supervisor to increase quality control on Johnson’s baby powder. Within no time, another supervisor tells the same employee to increase production on Johnson’s baby powder, thus causing tension and confusion in work place. Impacts of role conflicts to organization’s productivity First, when a member in a group expecting to see certain characteristics from the other member, thus asking him or her to perform duties well. Such duties expected by the member can be doubted by contradictory role making the group member to be disappointed, thus retrieving in his or her role. Hence, reduction in productivity is achieved (Kowert, 2002). Second, resentments in the organizations have been seen due to disappointments by group members. In Johnson’s and Johnson’s company resentments of five members in production of beauty products in 1998 led to a reduction in production by three million units. Third, research has shown that individuals subjected to role conflicts can be overwhelmed, hurt or even be frustrated by the contradiction. For instance, with a member being told to increase quantity by a group leader, then another leader telling the same employee to increase on quality can be frustrating at work place. Fourth, the organizations having such conflicts will not develop or grow since production will not be increased. The conflicts of 2001 in the company can be employed for showing this, since production declined due to group member’s conflicts. Recommendations to solving role conflicts in organizations It is worth noting that role conflicts cannot be avoided in organizations with varied groups in which each member has a set of tasks to perform. It is, therefore, clear that no single method can be used in solving role conflicts. However, to solve the problem of role conflicts, it is recommended that good and open communication is practiced at group level. Open and good communications are only meant to limit the tension of such conflicts (Kowert, 2002). It is also recommended that all members of the group be informed that all individuals have many tasks to carry out in an organization to ensure that no one sees others as if they are idle. Furthermore, leaders of the groups will be in a position to establish expectations of all members of the group. It is expected that each individual is given task which he or she can complete within a given timeframe. All members of the team should not be underloaded or overloaded to avoid antagonism which reduces productivity. Communication problems Among group members, communication problems were clear in organizations. Communication problems can lead to conflicts in an organization. Nevertheless, lack of conflicts in an organization can imply communication problems. Research has indicated that poor communication is a great threat to failure of organizations, since it is worse than economic issues and competition. Some communication conflicts are good. Too much or too little communication is a problem in communication. Little communication in an organization among group members indicates that no one cares about what is happening in the organization (Kowert, 2002). Communicating misunderstanding are inevitable but the message of any communication must reach the receiver in an understood way for decoding to be carried out. Research has shown that in Johnson’s and Johnson’s Company most problems in communication are due to: I. Apathy II. Inadequate training III. Differing backgrounds IV. Channel noise V. Misunderstanding VI. Lack of respect Impacts of communication problems Through communication breakdown in an organization the following can result: a. Reduced productivity b. Individual resignation c. Complaints d. Reduced cooperation e. Withholding information f. Loss of trust g. Sabotage h. Personal attacks i. Reduced creativity j. Reduced risk taking. When communication retards in group work, it indicates that the members are not concerned with organization goals, but with their needs instead. This will automatically lead to reduction in production. For instance, if a member is interested in his salary, he or she will just do shoddy work and expect payment at the end of the month. Due to lack of communication, hardworking members in a group might feel that their input is not valued, thus, withdrawing themselves from the group leading to low production in the organization (Kowert, 2002). This made the manager of Johnson’s and Johnson’s Company to suffer psychology in his office in 2001, since he was not able to settle conflicts arising from the members, thus leading to a decline in production. Group members can spent less time with other members of the group due to inadequate communication, thus, leading to reduction in creativity, as employees in the group do not share ideas. Recommendations to solve communication problems a. Clear instructions should be given out to group leaders to enhance fast completion of projects and to eliminate redo of work due to inadequate instructions by the leader. b. For effective communication within a group in an organization so as to avoid communication problems: c. It is recommended that effective communication techniques are applied in any communication for team effectiveness to be realized. d. It is also recommended that one checks on communication protocols and structures within the group as he or she addresses others to avoid communication breakdown. e. Leaders and facilitators should also plan for communication before they address their juniors. f. Clarification on matters misunderstood by audience in the group should be carried out to avoid devastation of productivity in a group. g. It is advisable that meetings are carefully planned in advance through the use of agendas and minutes of previous meetings to avoid confusions in the group. Lack of cohesiveness in groups containing diverse members Group cohesion refers to coming together in form of a unit in order to carry out group activities with dedication and professionalism. It was discovered that lack of cohesion within the groups was due to the groups being too large to enable some members to be recognized, thus making them to be withdrawn. The groups had diverse members in terms of language differences, varied cultures and varied interpretations. This made the groups to take longer in decision making, thus making the organization to take longer in reaching its peak in performance. Impacts of lack of cohesiveness Without group cohesiveness, a group will be mired in lack of motivation, role ambiguity and conflict leading to reduction in output of the organization. For example, when an employee’s work is not recognized, he will not work hard, thus leading to reduction in production. Research has also indicated that lack of cohesion can lead to attraction of unqualified performers to an organization; hence, low quality production is the result. For instance, if you are a qualified person in a certain field, when a vacancy opens in an organization whose members do not work together, you will opt for such a place, but people who are not qualified will get positions in such organizations. Formations of subgroups due to lack of cohesion make some members withhold their inputs, since they feel their inputs are not recognized and used in raising the whole group’s credibility. For instance, when a member discovers that he or she can concur with certain person in work they form a sub-group to improve their productivity, since there is no cohesion for all members. Recommendations to solving the problem of lack of cohesion by diverse groups For the organization to achieve cohesion from its diverse members, it is recommended that the following points are adhered to: a. Communication should be used as a tool to unite all employees in an organization, starting with the small groups. All employees should be valued as individuals and given jobs at personal level. Leaders managing groups should know that all employees are different, that is why they make a difference in work place. b. Team members who exceed expectations should be recognized and rewarded for jobs well done. Through such rewards, the members will be motivated, thus working hard for the benefit of the organization, and the productivity will increase. c. Detailed analysis should be carried out at group level in order to examine the needs of varied group members so as to avoid divergence of goals in the group. d. Qualitative and quantitative data should be kept on all areas, as regular review, audit and evaluation progress are being checked to ensure that all group members know the ultimate goal of group’s activities. e. Impact of diversity should be identified and shown to all members of the group for them to see the need of cohesion. f. Cost benefit analysis should be conducted whereby the cost incurred in implementing diversity and the benefits derived from diversity are calculated and shown to group members for action to be taken by them on realizing that cohesion is vital for organization’s objectives to be met. g. Comparison of organization’s performance and diversity should be carried out and clear information given to group members for them to make the right decisions. h. The leaders should be in a position to study group members well in order to understand their needs, skills, strengths and weaknesses, thus balancing the group for broad mixed abilities. This will facilitate accurate and quick production. Excessive intergroup conflict Employees working within production department of Johnson’s and Johnson’s Company had been experiencing great conflicts within the organization. Nevertheless, group conflicts are normal in any group, since there is no way in which people interact on regular basis without emergence of conflicts. Effects of intergroup conflicts Excess conflicts should be solved immediately in any group due to the negative effects on overall productivity. However, research has shown that sometimes conflicts in organizations can lead to positive effects, since giving solutions to such conflicts leads to improved productivity. Relationships among group members can be strained by conflicts, especially when such conflicts are personalized by members. Productivity of an organization can be hindered by such strained relationships (Kowert, 2002). Recommendations on solving excess intergroup conflicts a. When group work related tasks are personalized by group members, it is advisable that the group members are encouraged on the importance of team work through communication. b. Since situational needs will not cease to arise in a real-world, it is expected that leaders need to adapt to situational needs at group level to avoid members’ withdrawing from the group, thus maintaining productivity even in times of conflicts. c. Group members should also be prepared by leaders to cover the weaknesses of other members to ensure that productivity is not reduced when some members have stressing issues. This will ensure that last minute-rush is avoided. d. To resolve such disputes in an organization’s group, it is recommended that the intergroup conflict is diagnosed to allow for effective solutions. e. It is wise to break the conflict in to layers so as to diagnose the main cause of the dispute for effective results to be achieved in organization’s production. f. For disputes to be reduced in a group, it is a must that the organization makes changes in communication so as to encourage success in business. g. Importance of teamwork should be reinforced for all employees to work towards a common goal. Employees need to be informed of their personal contribution towards the success of the company. Conclusion The paper has analytically shown that group work is facing a lot of challenges as it has been shown in the case of Johnson’s and Johnson’s company. The challenges discussed by this paper do affect organization’s productivity. This does not imply that group work should be avoided by organizations due to effectiveness and efficiency associated with it in any organization. The paper has, therefore, given recommendations which are handy in solving the existing problems of productivity caused by issues of group work. Group work should be employed by any organization without any fear, since its problems have solutions as discussed in this paper. References Kowert, P. (2002). Groupthink or deadlock: When do leaders learn from their advisors? Albany: Blackwell Publishing. Read More