Bringing a Change in Behavior by Developing New Skills - Case Study Example

A Case Study on bringing a Change in Behavior by developing new skills (Using MLA Style of referencing) Table of Contents Synopsis of the study.2. Introduction to the study topic. 3. Identification of personal strengths and weaknesses 4. Rationale in identifying the personal traits as strengths and weaknesses. 5. Strategies to develop/convert the weaknesses into strengths. 6. Action plan to implement the change process. 7. Conclusion 8. References. Synopsis of the study: The study on bringing a change in behavior/attitude of people by developing new skills acts like a trumpet call for the modern academia and the industry as well as most of human relations issues are because of the lack of the aforesaid processes. Inorder to conduct the study I have made an attempt to identify various personality traits of a person and categorized them as either weakness or strength of the person by applying suitable criteria to measure. I have taken three weaknesses which are relevant in the organizational context and formulated a suitable action plan to convert the weaknesses into strengths for the employee with reference to a particular time period. Finally I have offered a suitable conclusion which comprises of the brief summary of the proceedings of the paper. Introduction to the study: Modern Human Relations and Organizational Behavior concepts have changed dramatically in the last two years. The sea change in these two concepts is because of variety of reasons. One of the important reasons among them however is Change in the job environment. To day’s job environment is a highly complex maze in which an employee is expected to perform efficiently all the time and at the same time needs to improve with due relevance to the changes taking place constantly. In this scenario it is utterly important for the management and the HR practitioners to identify and design a suitable method to obtain a change. Also at the same time the management has to realize that change happens gradually and is not to be expected in a hurry. Any steps to increase the tempo of the change process can yield results otherwise. Identifying and application of a style of change program which is customized is the need of the day. Change Management- the order of the day: The concept - employment relations bring out the participation of stake holders in building healthy and prospective relationships. In the present day industry to change is the norm of the day. Any organization which has remained static and resisted changes has been phased out. Human Relations Management over the last decade has learnt how to adapt to changing situations and guide the organization towards achievement of its objectives by innovating and changing. Mentoring in childhood can bring the necessary results: The need for academia to work hand in hand with the corporate is highly recommended because the corporate can communicate their needs to the academia and the can incorporate those in the academic curriculum. This process makes the concept interesting for the student as well because the student can understand the practical implications of the subject as well. This entire process is termed presently by the corporate as mentoring which means that the mentor actually is guiding the ward towards the corporate. The concept of creating a placeability for the young wards is of lot of importance in the present day context. Participative management – a suited tool to bring in change: Presently the corporate is thriving on the term participative management. That is the management and the workers are working in unison and the combined synergy is much greater and important than the individual energy the workers or the management exhibit. Even the corporate have learnt the lessons well from their past mistakes by adopting models such as *“Japanization”( Appendix # 1) and other *“zero tolerance measures” (Appendix # 2) they were able to obtain a participatory management model. Better handling of grievances such as compensation management was managed efficiently by adopting global parameters. Concepts such as “performance based pay” were used through flexi time and flexi pay method. Sir Geoffrey Owen, a senior fellow at London School of Economics said in a recent interview the need for participation of academicians in corporate governance issues of corporate. This as he has observed will eliminate the possibility of poor administration of corporate governance. Human Relations Plan: In order to carry out the task of identifying the areas to test I have chosen the following which are measurable, quantifiable and can be evaluated. Inorder to carry out the exercise I have chosen a senior student of Masters program Mr. John. John will be shortly completing his masters in Business Administration and has undergone Myers Briggs test and a few others as a part of the pre placement activity carried out by the college. So, I have his rating readily available to make use of. The traits are: 1. Locus of Control Finding: Externalizer Observations: Observed with a high degree of absenteeism from work and sessions, Dissatisfied with his college and work assigned to him, Not committed to work or assignments given to him, never completes the work in time. (Weak area). 2. Big Five Personality: Finding: Low level of conscientiousness Reasons: Because he sets large number of goals for himself at a time, cannot schedule properly, Thereby becomes irresponsible, undependable. ( weak area ). 3. MBT: Findings: Introverted, Intuitive, Feeling and caring. Reasons: Characteristics show the person is suited for jobs which can be done alone and are highly creative. ( A Strong area ). 4. Stress Type : Finding : B Reason & Finding : Stressed by external and internal factors, in need of help, A weak area 5. Management Attitude: Findings: Theory X attitude. Reasons: Dislikes Work, Tries to avoid work constantly, Needs to be coerced to work sometimes, always looking for directions ( a weak area ) 6. Job Attitude : Finding: Negative attitude, likes to start a business of his own. Observations: Dislikes Work, Tries to avoid work constantly, Needs to be coerced to work sometimes, always looking for directions (a weak area) 7. Personal Value: Findings: Positive Observations: Has a high degree of regard for self, believes in Himself. ( a strong area) 8. Team Role preferred : Findings: plant Observation: Innovative, prefers new roles all the time in the team ( A strong area) 9. Work Ethic : Findings: 80 % Observation: High degree of work ethics ( A strong area ). 10. Power Motive: Findings: Likes to exercise coercive power Observation: Likes to use punishment or threaten people to get work done ( A Weak area ). 11. Management Style preferred: Findings: Autocratic. Observations: Likes to take opinions from other people but exercises his own decision in the end. (A weak area) 12. Working style Preferred: Findings: X – Style Observations: Likes fast paced, cannot relax, commit mistakes in work because of too much pace, treat work like work alone. ( A weak area). 13. Communication style: Findings: ineffective. Observation: Prefers written communication to oral, limited to a few lines always, ( A weak point). 14. Emotional Intelligence Quotient: Findings: 4.5 Suggestions: Less than 5 means a weak area needing concern. 15. Emotional Stability: Findings: Negative Observation: Negative emotional stability means a weak area in need of concern. 16. Body synergy Levels: Findings: Positive Observations: Good and positive body postures and a balanced eye contact levels show maturity and a feel good attitude ( a strong area ). 17. Leadership attitude preferred: Findings: Listening & caring Observations: Listening, caring attitude means concern for the employees and other colleagues. (A strong point). 18. Intelligence Quotient: Findings: 4.7 Observation: A man of normal intelligence, low analyzing capability, cannot interpret things quickly. ( a weak area) 19. Cognitive ability: Findings: Low Observation: Cannot interpret correctly. 20. Self Esteem: Findings: High Observation: Shows confidence in self. ( a Strong area). Study Rationale: The study and the choice of criteria selected for the study and the conclusions drawn made on the evidence of the observations are on the basis of importance of the tools in organizations, Importance of tools in personality life, importance of tools in organizational development and personal development. The study is essential in the present day context because it helps in understanding personalities based on various determinants. Also by categorizing these traits into weak areas or strong areas management can take decisions regarding the selection of training programs required for them and can make sure to convert some of these weak areas into areas of strength which can help organizations to develop and nourish intelligence capital. Strategies to bring a change in Behavior by re- training: The Three areas I chosen for change are Locus of control, Management attitude and emotional stability. The observations for the above three areas are absenteeism form work, discontent, neglecting work and assignments, autocratic style of management and low emotional stability. By bringing a substantial change in the above three can turn this person from average performer to a real performer in the organizations. By doing so the man can become an asset to the organization and can be successful in real life. In order to bring in a suitable change in the three focus areas I have chosen on the job training as a method to change the attitude. 1. Focus on Change of Locus of Control, management style and emotional stability: The observations in locus of control are, high degree of absenteeism, dissatisfaction towards work, Negligence in completing the assignments in time, similarly the observations of management style are dissatisfaction towards work and low emotional stability. These attitudes appear primarily because on an employee’s inability to understand the companies mission, vision and his own job. Employee’s attitude can be changed through participative management. That is the company’s vision, mission and the job description and nature of duties and role to be performed by the employee are to be made clear to the employee through proper communication. Time Schedule: 4 Weeks comprising of the following activities. Week -1 : day 1: Overview of the activities of the company. Week -1: day 2: Orientation program towards vision and mission Week -1: day 3: Orientation towards Job responsibilities. Day -4- day 6: Orientation sessions and practice sessions towards reporting activities to be performed. Week -2 day -1 – day 3: Attending a work shop on communication skills and techniques. Wee-2 day 34- day -6: Training lab sessions on communication skills Week-3 Day 1- day 7: Orientation on Job responsibilities and duties to be performed. To facilitate better orientation towards work. Involves understanding and practice of job role through role plays and essay write- ups. Week 4 day-1 day 6: Training of other employees with similar problems in similar areas. Helps the employee realize he is an important person in the organization. Conclusion: The study on bringing a change in behavior/attitude of people by developing new skills is of lot of relevance in the present day industry. In order to conduct the study I have chosen a person whose personal behavior data was obtained after applying MBT and other tools. Weak areas were identified and a suitable action plan was suggested as remedial measures to correct the employee’s behavior. References 1. Acas Report by Denvir A, Broughton , A Gifford, April 2007. 2. Training & Evaluation, Training & Development, ICFAI Press Publication, 2002, p.85-105 3. Ashwathappa.K, Organizational Behavior, 2002, Excel Publication, p.125-150. 4. Personality & Attitude, Organizational Behavior, ICFAI Press Publication, 2002, p.140-155 Read More