Organizational Structure and Managerial Arrangements in NHST and the UK Army - Case Study Example

This report is being presented in order to contrast and compare the organizational structure and managerial arrangements in two different organisations. The organisations that I have selected in this project are NHST, a media group and the UK army. Both the organisations have contrasting qualities and values and occupy different operational domains. The UK Army One of the most important uses of the army other than winning wars is its indispensable role as a crisis management force. For example the army of the United Kingdom responds to international threat to democracy by dispatching its war ships and marine forces, which can easily access even remote corners of the world. The fact that the UK army bases are located in remote corners of the world, from which the UK military forces can launch pre-emptive attacks on many rogue nations, indicates the importance of the military as a peace keeper, and as a force to quell threats of violence. Since the counter argument that the UK uses its forces for its own benefit is outside the scope of this discussion, it must be maintained that the presence of peace keeping forces derived from advanced countries is playing a major role in crisis management and threat to democracy. When one highlights the difference between the role of the military during the world war years and the recent times, we see that there is a definite shift in military objectives between the two. The military in the world war era worked primarily to annex territories or destroy enemies, primarily because the expected role of the army was to attach territories and economically important locations. Raw power decided crisis management strategies during the world war era simply because the army was expected only to fight and win. Nobody expected any kind of diplomatic initiatives from the military. However, the modern day army is a crisis prevention force. There are many theories that underline the importance of crisis prevention. Many experts believe that "Preventive Diplomacy" is the best possible means to curb potential conflicts. These initiatives will include military options, grassroots infrastructure building, international relations and conflict management. Similarly, the structural preventions theory proposes that a healthy balance of power and influence between nations can go a long way in preventing crisis. This concept is similar to Johan Galtung’s "Warm Peace" theory which proposes that a balance of power is essential to prevent crisis in the international scene. The Integrationist approach on the other hand, stresses the cooperation between nations in a bid to reduce international tensions. Crisis Escalation management Leadership in the army is mainly an inherent quality of the soldier as specified by the early trait theory. It is very interesting and ironic to note that the armies of developed nations do not fight a war for their country. Although their country may benefit from the war, most soldiers are treated like professional combat units that fight a war in some other land, for someone else. This paradox is brought about by the need to contain tensions in the international scene. It may be seen that the armies of the UK, France and US are positioned in different parts of the world in addition to the presence of troops of the UN. While the UN forces are mostly considered as a undependable entity in crisis management issues, due to its highly biased nature the military of the developed nations that are not attached to a world body like the UN is given its due share and worth. Hence the presence of the international military units discourages unwanted elements from creating trouble. For example the presence of the UK forces in Iraq is a major deterrent that prevents civil war and anarchy in the country. (V. I. Lutovinov, Yu. V. MOROZOV, 2001). Perhaps there is no other military force in the world that is managed professionally like the UK Army. The general British affinity to professionalism reflects in the UK army also and the rigors of military life ensure that the resulting soldier is developed comprehensively. Hence it might be seen that the army soldier becomes a better citizen first and then becomes an acclaimed soldier. The association with the Army is a continuous process and former army staff can expect a fruitful life even after they retire form the forces. Relevance The values that are dear to every British individual also reflect in the Army and this is a very big advantage that helps to bridge the gap between a military life and a civilian life. Hence the lessons that the sea cadets learn as part of their training in the Army helps them to carry on with life even after the military service get over. The close application of skills relevant to both the military and the civilian requirement helps them to apply their skills after their stint in the Army. The UK Military considers that it can impart training to people that will remain with them for the rest of their lives and express itself in any field that they are working. This shows an interest on the part of the army to develop people comprehensively so that the effects of the training are visible and lasting. The indications are clear. The army wants to be a force that has multidimensional roles in the society. (Coronado, Christine A 2004). Community building The commitments of the UK military, especially the UK army to the needs of the community cannot be ignored. Since the general trend in the military is to give equal opportunities to all sections of the society, we may see that the army forces also are established on a firm belief that the army should reflect all sections of the society equally well. Hence the role of minorities and women is very important in the Army and it serves to strengthen the social relevance of these discriminated groups. In addition, the services of the army to enhance the life of the sailors who leave the forces are also commendable. It might be seen that the commitments of the Army towards community building helps the former army staff to continue with life after in the best possible manner. The command transition support centre and the Family Fleet and support centres of the UK Army helps its previous sailors to get along with the rigors of civilian life after their service with the army. The British army of today is spread across the world and has many units in different parts of the world. This extensive presence of the army compels it to recruit minorities into its fold so that they can deal for the UK forces in alien lands. Another fact that has prompted the UK army to recruit minorities and women is the spirit of society building. The new role allows the army to develop citizens so that they can be effectively deployed in private firms after their retirement. This role has necessitated the army to invite more participation from the minorities becaUKe community development is not an isolated process. The advancements of the army in the technological front and the superiority that it enjoys in the world are also reasons that have made it attractive for minorities and women. The role and contribution of women to the military is manifold and it is believed that they also have a very big role in the future operations of the military. Experts predict that even in the army, the pattern of leadership requirements will change in the future. The military leadership of the future will also need to be techno-savvy in addition to possessing man management skills. The future wars will not happen in the battlefield and already trial runs of unmanned aircrafts and fighter robots are being conducted in the US. In this scenario, the leadership must be knowledgeable enough to deploy the adequate resources in the battlefield. In addition, the role of technology in espionage and counter moves are very important. Experts believe that the requirements expected of leader in the future would be faster response times, faster decision making capacity, and the ability to gather and process knowledge. [Johnson II, 2003]. The immense pressure that will be applied on future leaders requires that they be trained at a very early stage in their lives. This requires new training methodologies and approaches since the average youngster is very much different from the youngsters of the past NHST NHST is a media firm that has a wide variety of business interests. Hence the management and organisational structure within the company will be very different from the UK army. With regard to the army, the organisational culture within the company is fairly decentralised and the hierarchy is less formal when compared to the army. Similarly, the organisation is focussed on enhancing its ROI and does not carry so many social responsibilities as the army does. The leadership in the company is more based on The behavioral approach theory This theory states that a manager becomes popular depending on his behavioral approaches. For e.g. a manager might be production oriented or people oriented. A manager who is production oriented gives more importance to specific tasks and gives much importance to completing a task properly. A people oriented manager on the other hand, gives more importance to people and considers them more important than the tasks. The behavioral approach also involves the close study of the manager in specific situations to evaluate what his styles of performance are. Fiedlers Contingency Theory This theory is based on the belief that the performance of the leader is based on his personality as well as his response to a particular situation. It becomes verifiable when we observe that certain leaders are effective in certain situations but are not in other conflicting situations. This theory also incorporates some elements of the behavioral approach and states that motivational factors depend on the personality of the manager. For a people oriented manager, the subordinate who does not work well is a positive motivation but for a task-oriented manager, the same worker is no motivation at all. In both the situations the effectiveness of the manager will depend on his personality given that the situation is constant (the co-worker is bad). Similarly, there can be variations in situations also. The situation is said to be good when there is a good leader-subordinate relation, a highly structured tasks, which is clear and unambiguous and the power of the leader is reasonably high. Motivation can play a great role in changing the attitudes of the employee, which may be detrimental to the organization. Motivation can be in the form of psychological tools or more mundane materialistic rewards that may cajole the employee to deliver his best. Most motivational techniques are found to be effective in de-linking the person from his personal traits that is unacceptable to the firm. Motivation in NHST is determined by perks and other benefits whereas in the army, motivation is often based on intangible and chivalrous qualities. In the army, teamwork is very important and no activity is done by one person alone. Similarly, team work is also important at NHST, but is not as pronounced as in the army. An organization is characterized by group interaction and mutual respect. Hence, the importance of a team and the effort that is invested in the team building process is very important to ensure the growth of a good organization. Without a good team that is able to perform on its own, a great organization never comes into existence. Organizations work on synergy and delegation. It is the feeling of oneness with the company, which is called as feeling of ownership that enhances the sincerity of a worker to an organization. Organizations cannot work in a manner where the employees are not given due importance in the affairs of the organization. Nor can an organization work where the manager has to concentrate on each and every aspect of its daily operation. In mature organizations, employees, irrespective of their position and responsibility learn continuously and each learning experience is used to further enhance the productivity of the company. Unless there is a positive feeling towards the organization, such inputs will rarely come from the employee. Hence the role of a manager is to find or develop people so that they are able to maintain the organization in accordance with the mission and vision of the firm. Works Cited V. I. Lutovinov, Yu. V. MOROZOV. (2001). Conflict Prevention and Settlement with Peacekeeping Forces. Military Thought. Garden, Tim. (1996). Alliances & the Management of Conflict in the 21st Century. Retrieved May 31, 2007, from http://www.tgarden.demon.co.uk/writings/articles/older/artall.html Coronado, Christine A. (2004). An Analysis of the Effectiveness of the U.S. Army Recruiter Incentive Program to Motivate Recruiters: A Survey of Enlisted Recruiters. Naval Postgraduate School: Monterey CA. Johnson II, Douglas V. (2000). Future leadership, old issues, new methods, Strategic studies institute. Retrieved May 31, 2007, from http://www.carlisle.army.mil/ssi/pubs/2000/futrledr/futrledr.htm Read More