Ineffective Work Place & Organizational Work - Essay Example

Organizational work Introduction Organizational work is usually accomplished with the use of sequential arrangements which form the organizational routine. They are significant in determining organizational behavior and performance. In most cases, organizational duties are carried out in repeated processes which define the roles of the workers. Managers have an obligation of supervising and ensuring that the routine work is done satisfactorily in order for the organizational performance to be maintained. According to Mayer, Richard E (1991 p. 16), “Routines are a continuous flow of interconnected ideas events and results”. Through ideas, procedures are developed, which culminate in to events and eventually give results. From the results, more ideas are developed for more procedures, making the process an endless circle. This is the process that generates change within an organization. However, in some instances, this process may not generate the desired change. There are times when the results culminate in events which are disastrous. This necessitates careful observation and supervision of the processes which are routine in the organization in order to avoid unwarranted circumstances. In health care, ineffective work place routine may be detrimental to human life and therefore it is necessary that these procedures be clearly understood by the health care managers. Study of Work Place Routines In order for work place routine to be effective in achieving the objectives of the organization, it is important for health care managers to study and confirm their effectiveness. Performance of health care routines is usually the obligation of informed and skilled people. They are people who care about the outcome of their activities. Their actions are usually governed by institutional or organizational regulations as well as personal perspective and profession. In their research, Trisha Greenhalgh, Christopher Voisey and Nadia Robb (2007 p. 946) view routine as an important aspect of health care. It enhances learning especially where foreign patients are involved. According to the research they conducted, it was routine for patients to be brought in accompanied by interpreters. This is significant in ensuring that staff and the medical personnel understand the patient. The research also established that interpreters had developed a way of overcoming the challenges in regard to many patients who are used to making appointments for service. This was accomplished through exchanging telephone numbers that were used for booking appointments Health care routines require a strong ethical background with a strong will to act positively. However, the procedures may at times be challenging to the health care personnel, necessitating guidance and thorough inspection. In order for the managers to be competitive in offering guidance to the work force, they should be well informed in regard to all the procedures that comprise the daily routine. Due to their multiplicity, it is usually difficult for a manager to grasp all at once. It is therefore necessary to ensure that managers study adequately in order to offer the appropriate guidance (Watzlawick Paul, Weakland J., Fisch Richard 1980 pp. 67-71). Studying of work place routine involves continuous learning especially when the nature of the problem to be solved and the outcome of the procedures vary from one situation to the other. The health care profession is usually faced with the challenge of dealing with related cases which respond differently to procedures. A particular procedure can not be applied in all the situations and end up in similar results. Health care managers are therefore required to restrain from assuming that the routine is common sense (Mayer, Richard E 1991 pp. 16-21). They should be keen to learn through experience in order for them to understand the variations in implementation of the procedures. This allows them to be informed advisors. On the other hand, flexibility in the manner through which procedures are organized in routine is essential in order to give the system a chance for improvements. This necessitates studies by health care mangers in order for them to be in a position to identify new ideas which can be incorporated in to the organization to boost performance, and remove the obsolete ones which may hamper performance. The gradual learning process allows health care managers to learn from situations which arise in the system. It is usually difficult to learn everything at once (Martha S. Feldman 2000 pp. 611-625). With advancement in technology, performance in the health care profession derives multiple advantages which are essential in the improvement of performance. The managers are usually the ones who are informed in regard to new technology to be applied in the profession. Before they introduce such technology in to the routine practices of the organizations, it is usually important for them to study its application in the process in order for them to be in a position to get other workers oriented after its introduction. This is because a change in the routine may cause confusion especially if there is no proper guidance. For example it would be awkward if a modern x-ray machine is introduced in the system and no one including the managers is aware of how to operate it and yet it is supposed to be incorporated in to the routine work. Struggling together with the workers to establish the working of such equipment is not wise for managers. They should be able to study in advance and understand its position in the system such that when it is delivered, they are the ones to explain to the rest how it is going to assist. More over, they should continue studying in order to establish its performance rather than placing it in the system and never revisiting the issue (Michael D. Cohen Paul Bacdayan 1994 pp. 554-568). The duties of all the health care personnel are best understood by the managers who are trained in the routine work. They should understand the basics of work processes in order to offer the appropriate guidance especially on matters relating to the organizational logistics. They should be able to interpret changes in the workers’ roles or any other organizational change which is designed to improve performance. Due to the nature of humans, health care workers may not be pleased by modifications in the work place routine. Managers who have studied the routines are capable of offering a sound explanation to the employees in regard to the changes, and their necessity in the process. Such managers can use the skills acquired in the work place studies to convince the employees on the positive impact of changes in the work place. This can serve to satisfy their feelings and hence improve their performance. It also helps the management to retain qualified staff. The managers are usually knowledgeable enough to inform every member of the work force on the nature of changes, whom they are going to affect and the reason behind it. This creates harmony and collaboration amongst the workers. Conversely, failure to give every body the full details of the modifications in the routine may raise questions amongst the workers who may even turn out in to a rebellious workforce (Maurizio Zollo; Jeffrey J. Reuer; Harbir Singh 2002 pp. 701-713). Studies are significant in equipping the healthcare managers with skills to manage work place group work. They are capable of organizing the workers in to working teams and allocate each team a task whose results are aimed at improving the performance of the business. Such teams tend to be stable and are able to achieve collective learning. It also common to find workers who hold their seniors in high esteem and they are always confident that the guidance that they can offer is profound. Learning allows managers to be capable of building confidence amongst the workers in this way. Conducting the routine processes with confidence boosts the workplace performance. The influence of the managers on the workers is largely dependent on their workplace knowledge (Markus C. Beker 2004 673-677). They should be able to relate events that happened in the past within the organization to particular problems which face the organization at the present. This makes it easy for problems to be solved in the work place. People respect managers who are problem solvers. This capability is acquired through continuous learning. Without it, managers may be unable to influence work place performance. Work place studies are significant for managers when they choose the workers to undertake particular responsibilities. They are able to create the necessary combination of health care professionals in order to get the best performance. They are able to motivate the workforce through informing the professionals on their confidence in combining outstanding capabilities for particular projects. The workers feel safer when the management has confidence in them and therefore the overall performance is improved. Work place studies help managers to identify some unusual routines in the organization. It is easy for them to identify conflicting goals amongst professionals which may be a major drawback in work place performance. They are also capable of identifying some barriers to awareness and therefore they can quickly respond by creating opportunities for the healthcare workers to learn. They also understand the importance of incentives in the work place, as well as the threats that are posed to the workers’ performance by rigid management systems. They acquire the capability of developing the desired interactions amongst workers as well as ways of getting feedback from the workers (Amy C. Edmondson; Richard M. Bohmer; Gary P. Pisano 2001 pp.685-716). Conclusion The health care profession is usually faced with many challenges due to the uniqueness of the patient cases reported on a daily basis. Most of the practices are routine and require a health worker to be acquainted with them in order to perform effectively. However, managers have the mandate of offering guidance in all aspects of work place performance. They need a wide range of information in order for them to offer desirable guidance. Most of this information is acquired through work place studies. They should be able to improve the work place collaboration through the skills acquired in these studies in order to enhance knowledge transfer amongst the workers and also to develop an approach of solving problems collectively. Bibliography 1. Amy C. Edmondson; Richard M. Bohmer; Gary P. Pisano 2001. Disrupted Routines: Team Learning and New Technology Implementation in Hospitals, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 46, No. 4. pp. 685-716. 2. Feldman M. S. 2000. Organizational Routines as a Source of Continuous Change. Organization Science, Vol. 11, No. 6. pp. 611-629 3. Greenhalgh T. Voisey C. And Robb N. 2007. Interpreted Consultations as ‘Business as Usual’? An Analysis of Organizational Routines in General Practices, Sociology of Health & Illness, Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Vol. 29 No. 6, 931–954. 4. Markus C. and Beker 2004. Organizational Routines: A Review of the Literature, Industrial Corporate Change, vol. 13, 6, pp.643-677. 5. Michael D. Paul B. C. 1994. Organizational Routines Are Stored as Procedural Memory: Evidence from a Laboratory Study. Organization Science, University of Michigan. Vol. 5, No. 4. pp. 554-568. 6. Paul W.; John W. H.; Richard F. 1980. Change: Principles of Problem Formation and Problem Resolution, W. W. Norton & Company Publishers. 7. Richard M. E. 1991. Thinking, Problem Solving, Cognition, Worth Publishers. 8. Zollo M; Reuer J. J; Singh S. 2002. Inter-organizational Routines and Performance in Strategic Alliances. Organization Science, Vol. 13, No. 6. pp.701-713. Read More