Role of Haraam Practices on Behavior and Performance of Employees - Case Study Example

of your Essay Sub Paper Due Organizational Behavior – Fall Individual Work [5 Points] A written report of your analysis to one case that I will post shortly in the blackboard Provide first a coherent, concise, and well-organized analysis (1 page maximum) and then answer the questions (3 pages maximum). Case Analysis The case is a perfect example of many Organization Behavior theories at play namely Human Resources management, Communication (or lack of), Conflict, Negotiation, and Motivation. It is case based on a company which attributes its success to the high efficiency of its employees, still, when a star employee who has been associated with the company for four years has a sudden change in behavior as she indulges in absenteeism and low productivity, no action is taken by either the HR department or her supervisor to understand the possible problems she might be facing in her personal life. This is also a case about lack of a communication network in place. While the employee is refraining from discussing the root cause of her problems, the supervisor and the colleagues do not seem to be probing at all. Instead her shortcomings are observed in detail, but both the parties seem not being able to reach a common ground. This lack of communication, coupled with Maryam encouraging workplace conflicts with her employees, has a negative influence on not only the organizational environment in general, but is very distracting for Maryam’s colleagues too, who have to deal with her everyday tantrums. This case is also about the importance of keeping the employees motivated at work. Maryam being pre-occupied with her personal problems is not motivated to work. Her behavior shows all the symptoms of lack of motivation, which were not identified at an early stage by her supervisor, therefore no timely action was taken to motivate her to back to working hard. (Rashid, 2014) Questions 1. Can Haleema terminate Maryam without running into legal problems? This is dependent on the company’s policy about the termination of the employee. If it was made clear to Maryam Qureishi, at the time of hiring, (that is when she signed the employment contract) that upon issuance of three warnings, her employment can be terminated by the organization without any further probe, then no, Haleema will not run into legal problems. Also, the case indicates that prior to termination; they should send Maryam to the employee assistance program (EAP), if this was a stated clause in the employment contract, then Haleema can run into legal problems for terminating Maryam. Therefore, it is suggested that before letting Maryam go, the employment contract must be referred back to, to avoid any legal repercussions later on. 2. Should Haleema have acted sooner? If so how? As stated before too, the case is a classic example of lack of communication, among many other Organization behavior topics. Evidence from case shows that when things took a disturbing turn on February 23rd, in their discussion afterwards, ‘she (Maryam) did not elaborate, and Haleema did not probe.’ This clearly shows the lack of communication especially at the informal level between the supervisor and the employee. Communication is at the heart of the collaborative negotiation style, which could have been an ideal solution to this problem. Also, while the shortcomings were noticed in detail, on Maryam’s part, no efforts of relationship building can be seen from either party. By staying completely detached with the problems Maryam was facing, Haleema failed to gauge the severity of the situation on time. There is a fair chance that all this could have been avoided, had a two-way communication process been developed and implemented by Haleema sooner. 3. How you can make Maryam motivated from your own opinion? Clearly Maryam was a motivated employee as the evidence from the case suggests so: ‘...whose performance report was outstanding at the start of her job. She always arrives on time, does her job efficiently and gives timely results. All the management was very satisfied with her...’ To make Maryam motivated again, there exists a need for her peers and supervisor to gauge the root cause of her changed behavior. If there was a serious problem that she was facing in her personal life, what more could have been adding to her frustration would be uninterested peers and supervisor. Both listening and providing timely feedback form the basis of an effective communication process, which would be a required step to bring about motivation in Maryam. Once, the root cause is identified, however, the efforts made by her peers, that is, doing additional work in her absence must be conveyed in subtle terms to her. This will not only restore her trust in her peers but also motivate her to improve her working relationship with them. 4. Do you think Maryam behavior negatively affected her Colleagues? Yes, Maryam’s negative behavior did affect her colleagues and their behavior towards her. Her behavior and unsatisfactory performance, was not only a source of distraction for other employees and added workload, but the consistent fights in the workplace must have ruined the organizational environment. And for many employees, for who a peaceful working environment must have been what Herzberg defined as Hygiene factors, (Hygiene factors are those that must be maintained at adequate levels. They are related more to the environment in which an employee is working rather than the nature of the work itself), these frequent fights may have caused dissatisfaction and disgruntlement. 5. How Nikhat should deal with this matter? Nikhat seemed to be as detached from the situation, if not more, than Haleema. She needs to start taking more interest and prompt action to her sub-ordinates’ doings. By discussing with Haleema, she should establish an informal communication between Haleema and Maryam; so that they can have a better understanding of Maryam’s situation, that is, what it was that drove a star employee to problems like low productivity and absenteeism. Also, not only through Haleema, she should herself have a one-to-one session with Maryam regarding her performance, and this should have been done way before issuance of the final warning. These one-to-one sessions will not only bridge the communication gap but also make Maryam realize that she is important to the organization, thereby also motivating her behavior. Bibliography Rashid, M. Z. (2014). Role of “haraam” practices on behavior and performance of employees:a case study of business organization. Emerald Emerging Markets Case Studies, 1-3. Read More