Management Decision Making - Research Paper Example

Management Decision Making Introduction Organizational metaphors are held by the people who view the organization from a different perspective within which they tend to perceive the organization. A metaphor is basically a comparison- an implied comparison that we often make. Metaphors however, can also be used for the process of change within the organization itself. Thus metaphors are good way to manage change and conflict within the organization. Employees use metaphors when they potentially speak about their organizations and the rich values and culture that they share with each other regarding the overall culture and attitude of the organization. What is also critical to note that such metaphors often culminate into the to way organization’s attitude shape and how organization is viewed by the external world. What is also significant to note that many of the conflicts that exists within an organization or emerge out are the results of the different metaphors that are held by various employees of the organization? Such conflicts therefore can cause organizations to develop a culture which may not be suitable for the overall strategic growth of the firm. In such situation, it is important that a systematic methodology must be adapted in order to negotiate with such metaphors so that a peaceful organizational environment can be created. This section of the paper will therefore focus on the explanation and discussion of a potential conflict situation within the organization, what metaphors are attached to it and on the basis of that what single methodology may be used from systems of systems methodology. Organizational Problem This organizational problem is related with the resistance showed by the employees towards the changes that organization is proposing to make. Organization has initiated the process of Business Process Reengineering and is looking for improvements in the organizational processes. A group of employees who is contemplating that systematic introduction of technology in the work place may render their jobs as useless and they may be fired by the firm. Considering this situation, the employees are using informal methods such as grapevine etc to spread negative publicity about the project and resultant other employees are also not cooperating with the project management team. The organizational situation that may be undertaken as a representative situation may include a change in the different processes that organization used to perform. This change will result into more efficiency and effectiveness of the existing procedures and will reduce the costs for the organization. However, it is assumed that this change will attract resistance from different stakeholder groups who may oppose to the change as the proposed change may require some jobs becoming redundant. In order to become more explicit about the situation, it is critical to note that this situation will involve a systematic change into the way production process of the organization is managed. Since production process will involve a process re-engineering of different processes it is therefore possible that the new changes may make some of the processes become redundant and may be discarded from the overall processes at all. However on larger scale, this problem may not only be just related with the modifications in the processes that organization adapt but also result into significant conflict within the organization. This conflict can therefore result into organizational conflict between the various stakeholders groups of the organization. What is critical about this process is the fact that organization will make a transition towards a more positive change which will result into making the organization more stable and competitive in the future. As such it becomes important if new metaphors and images are assigned to this potential change which can work in the best interest of all the stakeholders in future. Organizational Metaphors As discussed above that the metaphors are one way of making implicit as well as explicit comparison however, within organizational set up, metaphors are often described as the collective perceptions that are held by the employees regarding their organization. It is therefore generally believed that almost all the theories of management and organizational behavior effectively point towards a particular image of an organization which each employee of the organization must held. Metaphors are therefore just like a persuasion to see images and make comparison regarding organizational values and attitudes and how each individual may view the organization. However, the metaphors can be distorting also as they may not provide the correct answers to our perceptions that we held for our organizations. (Cornelissen et. al, 2008). Metaphors are critical because it allow the employees to structure their responses within the organization. As such the development of goals as well as the subsequent commitments on our goals and how we plan to achieve them for the purpose of the organization as a whole are dependent upon how we construct the metaphors. (Walk, 1996). What is also significant to note that the metaphors unleash unique solutions to the organizational problems also as metaphors provide a better alternative to understand the organization in an entirely different manner. (Palmberg, 2009). There are eight different types of metaphors which are commonly characterized and used within the organizations. These different metaphors are therefore used to analyze the different issues and conflicts that may arise within the organization and require management attention to solve them. Metaphors for the situation The above situation requires that different metaphors may be attached to the given situation. One major and one minor metaphor therefore can be: Flux and Transformation This metaphor can be attributed to the situation as it provides a very vivid image of organization as a place of constant change and flux. The ever changing role of competition and the resulting changes that are brought as a result of this change can be captured through this metaphor. Since the given situation requires that there will be an organizational change it is therefore important that this metaphor must be used in such situation. This metaphor has been defined as a whirlpool in a flowing river and if river is not flowing there will be no whirlpool and as such there will be no organization without the element of constant flux and change. (Morgan, 1998). The ideas such as creative destruction are often associated with this type of metaphor as it often outlines the different changes that take place within the organization however, they are made in such a manner that they become a creative source for organization to achieve its objectives. Further, the process of creative destruction brings in more innovation and creativity within the organization which in a longer run can be beneficial for every stakeholder therefore the process itself can be attributed to the metaphor of flux and transformation. The reason as to why this metaphor has been chosen is due to the fact that it characteristically describe the manner in which the overall process of change. It is also important to note that living systems i.e. in this case employees as well as the organization often interact with their environment as a process of their own self evolution. This process therefore creates some uncomfortable feelings also because change creates negation of the status quo. As such it becomes more important that the metaphor of flux and change shall be inculcated within the organization as something positive which can produce better welfare for most of the stakeholders involved in the organization. The Political System Metaphor This metaphor is taken as a minor metaphor outlining the need for recognizing that different people within the organization may fight within the organization for their own personal interests. Due to the difference of opinion between the various members of the organization and their potential self interest, the proposed change may be against their interests. The democratic management of the organization and whether the interests of all the stakeholders can be served by the organization can be a difficult aspect of the overall change management process. As such the loss of formal authority and other sources of power may tempt different members of the organization to resist against the change and potentially threat the whole process of change in order to serve their own interests and put the interests of the organization on the back. This minor metaphor therefore can explicitly identify such situations where organization may find itself facing the conflict situation. Dominance of one over other The metaphor of flux and transformation is considered as the major metaphor because the overall situation demands so. It becomes important that the metaphor assigned must closely resemble with the overall change process and must signify the importance of change and how organization should view it. The analogy of fork in the road can be taken as a serious indication of the roadblocks that may be created and block the overall future growth of the organization. As such for the overall survival of the organization and to secure its future, it is important that change must take place in most swift manner and shall be considered in the best interest of the organization. Thus the overall survival of the organization depends upon the way it manages the change and the process of transformation over the period of time. This metaphor is also related with the overall organizational learning as well as the creativity that takes place within the organization for its necessary survival and out of the need to compete in an ever changing and non-conducive market conditions. Organization as a political system is taken as a minor metaphor because it is a secondary aspect of the change. If change does not take place the special interests of different individuals within the organization may also not come in direct conflict with this change. This metaphor therefore carries relatively lesser significance considering the given situation involved. Mental Model Source: http://picsdigger.com/keyword/mental%20model/ Mental models provide opportunity to understand the deepest desires and motivations of the individuals and as such contribute towards understanding the philosophical and emotional state of a person. Analyzing the organizational problem with the help of above mental model will indicate that the employees showing resistance to the change basically might have formulated some expectations from the organization and such expectations may have been directly transformed into their personal memories causing them to resist the change that may take place as result of the business process reengineering. ii) Systems of System Methodology Systems thinking and its various methodologies are basically an attempt to understand as to how things influence each other. This aspect of system methodology therefore views the system as a whole and how it can be affected by the influence of various elements. This approach therefore is also viewed as an approach for problem solving and how it can basically contribute towards the problem solving within the organization. In order to discuss the above situation with respect to the systems thinking and system methodology it is important that first a comprehensive understanding of the system thinking as a whole. Systems thinking therefore deals with the problems which are clearly defined and elaborated problems however, the problems are constrained with some limitations. As discussed in part A regarding the situation at hand, there are two potential metaphors discussed therefore we may assume that these metaphors may be considered as the potential constraints. The systems of system methodologies were therefore developed in order to create a classification of the various systems methodologies which will be used for the various purposes including their complementary use with respect to the different assumptions that are taken to solve a problem. Systems of System Methodologies or SOSM therefore outline a group of system classifications made according to the various assumptions made for solving the problem. The subsequent section of the discussion therefore will take one SOSM methodology and will apply it to the problems outlined above with proper justification for choosing the methodology. The System Of Systems Methodology Box: Unitary Pluralist Coercive SA, SE, OR Machine How process SAST Coalition What simple CSH Politics prison Why simple VSM Brain How structure SSM, IP Culture What Complex PANDA? Carnival Why complex Soft System Methodology Soft System Methodology or SSM is one of the methodologies of the SOSM defining system thinking to organizational problems and provide solutions to the issues. It is generally believed that soft system methodology is most concerned with the soft problems however, it does not distinguish between soft and hard problems and provide a unique solution to the organizational problems. (Lester, 2008). What is also important to understand that soft system methodology is mostly concerned with a mutual understanding between the various stakeholders rather than providing pre-defined answers to the problems? Soft System Methodology therefore not only attempts to provide solution to the problems but also provides a comprehensive understanding of the problem also. This approach therefore offers a great flexibility in problem solving in real world by offering unique and conceptual solutions. The initial approach to solving the problems under this methodology requires conducting interviews and meetings and the overall understanding of the problem after the discussion is represented through pictures. What emerges is a unique comparison between what the world is and what the world should be and a combined approach to problem solving provide a unique solution to the problem. This is what is considered as the beauty of the soft system methodology clubbed under systems of system methodologies to provide clear and concise solution to the problem. What is also interesting to note that approaching problem solving under this methodology always starts with unstructured understanding of the problem and than approach the problem from a unique perspective. (Williams, 2005). Considering the situation identified earlier, soft system methodology with its seven stages and/or two modes can be applied to the problem in following manner: Identification of the problem The first step in Soft System Methodology is the identification of the problematic area which requires the intervention of the management. Since the problematic situation has already been identified in the previous sections therefore it is critical that next step in the process is to develop the rich pictures of what the problem is and how it will look like and going to effect the organization as a whole. This also will require the identification of the key stakeholders and the understanding of how the different groups of stakeholders view the world as a whole. Further, an assessment of the cultural environment of the situation also needs to be given the fact that organization and various stakeholder groups are particularly violent and resistant to the change. It is also important to note that the assessment of the various political structure of the organization. The various power structures within the organization therefore may need to be approached to understand their views about the change and how they perceive the proposed change. Thus the last step to be performed therefore will include comprehensive negotiations with the stakeholders to identify various patterns in their thinking and how they are going to contribute positively towards the successful implementation of the change for the greater good of the organization and its employees. This will also allow to make all stakeholders accountable for the change and subsequent results of the change. Modeling This stage of analysis will involve a comprehensive assessment of the effects of the changes on different stakeholders groups. This will involve assessing the impact on the customers i.e. how they are going to be affected by the proposed changes in the processes, various actors involved the process i.e. the people who will actually perform the activities after the proposed changes, the impact of changes on the owners- the people who actually own the whole transformation process and finally an assessment on the internal and external environment of the firm. This assessment will therefore can be applied to the wholesale changes to be made as well as the changes in the each process therefore making it more conducive for individual as well as customized level of assessment. Finally it is also important that efficiency and efficacy must be developed to perform meta processes for change. Dialogue This step in methodology will involve the examination of the overall change within the real world setting. This step therefore involves the construction of rich pictures of change and attempting to draw meanings out of the pictures for further adjustment purposes. This stage also requires a comprehensive dialogue with key stakeholders in the process in order to develop a common set of beliefs and understanding between all the stakeholders so that subsequent responsibility can be shared and accountabilities can be fixed. It is also important to note that this stage does not necessarily require to formulate a consensus but rather broader acceptability levels are developed. This last step therefore will allow the organization to think out of the box and contemplate upon broader solutions to the problems rather than limiting oneself to few rigid sets of solutions. Action Taking This is probably one of the most critical stages in the process wherein plan of actions are formulated and refined to suit the changes that are going to be made. At this stage, formal management protocols will be defined and an effective check and balance system will be developed to oversee the progress on the proposed change. It is also at this stage that an iterative process will be started which will ensure that the proposed change of process re-engineering will yield the desired strategic results or not. If it is assessed that the results may not be according to the expectations, project can be referred back to the stage one where a further refinement into the problem identification as well as the defining of the problem in much larger context will be performed. This will help the organization to reach at the actual causes of the problem and how it can be overcome with more innovative approach. It is important to note that this stage will also define as to whether the proposed process re-engineering change will be essential for the success of the organization in long run and how and what action steps can be taken to make the change as the one of the most successful organizational moves for the overall benefit of the organization. Conclusion Organizational metaphors are an effective way of building collective norms and value sets of an organization. There are eight different metaphors which can be assigned to different situations as they arise and can help an organization to negotiate with the change and conflict within the organization. Metaphors are also critical because they allow the employees of the organization to develop their overall responses to the various organizational situations and how they i.e. the employees perceive the organization and their own role and image within that organization. The discussion presented above provided a clear and concise description of the how organizational metaphors can be attributed to the organizational problems. Organizational problem in this context was taken as the proposed change in the organizational processes through process re-engineering to bring in more efficiency within the process and to achieve low cost objectives of the firm. Having assigned metaphors, the organizational situation was than discussed under the systems of systems methodology and further the situation was discussed within the context of soft systems methodology. The discussion indicated an step by step process of identifying and evaluating the problems besides undertaking a comprehensive process of negotiations with all the stakeholders and formulating plan of action to bring in positive changes within the organization. It is also discussed that it is not necessary that once a problem is identified than it can lead to the correct solution however; it is an iterative process and require comprehensive definition and identification of problem for its solution. Part B As discussed in first part that organizations often need to remain in constant change and flux in order to better equip them with the latest knowledge in order to remain competitive. Though it is argued that very few organizations actually can claim to be the learning organizations however, most of the organizations know the value that is delivered through a learning environment. There are different factors which can actually contribute towards the development of an environment which can be truly creative in nature. These factors effectively determine as to what are some of the ingredients required for the development of learning environment. From individual learning to group learning, it is important that organization must inculcate an element of creativity and innovation within its ranks to ensure that it will remain profitable and competitive over the period of time. This also means that the learning environment has to be developed with the help and supervision of top management of the firm. Without the active participation as well as the support of higher management, to acquire such a learning environment is almost next to impossible. recent economic crisis have became one of the significant events the history of modern world as the crisis have not only hurt the developed world but also other developing and emerging countries also. The region of Middle East & North Africa was also affected by the economic crisis and countries like UAE and various of its independent States such as Dubai went on to the verge of default. Learning Organization The basic and fundamental characteristics of a learning organization is that it values the learning and at individual as well as organization wide level, it always strive hard to adapt unique and creative ways to achieve the results. This basic characteristic of learning organization therefore makes it unique in the sense that it offers it a unique position in the market to dominate the process of change. (Garavan,1997). Though many organizations attempt to become learning organizations however, very few understand as to what actually derives the innovation and creativity within the organization. Understanding the key drivers of the creativity and innovation within the organization and how organization can basically derive the value from learning. It is also a general assumption that learning is potentially an individual process and the learning as a process has the beginning as well as the end therefore organization do not focus on diversity of organizational learning. Social theory of learning therefore also proposes that in order to learn effectively and become more creative the participation is necessary. This therefore directly puts organizational learning into a diversified context which emphasis on collective learning within the organization. Collective learning organization therefore allows organizations to develop unique values and systems which are their own and hard to replicate. This invariably provides them opportunity to craft their own competitive advantage and sustain it as long as it remains open to learning. It is only through way this organization become the actual product of what people think and learn. MENA and its Organizations MENA is a name given to region of Middle East and North Africa and covers the countries from Morocco to Iran. During the current financial crisis MENA as a region also experienced the impact of the crisis as credit to private sector shrunk during this period. It is important to understand that the extension of consumer credit in the Region increased to a great deal because of the mushroom growth of financial institutions and banks in the region. Regions like Dubai faced the chances of default and only were later on rescued by other Emirates. Further, there has been a mass exodus of expats from the region due to sharp decline in the economic activity. Though the effects have been felt in few countries however generally other countries such as Qatar and Bahrain did well even during the recessionary periods and credit crunch experienced after 2007. Organizations working in the region are often labeled as MENA Organizations and possess relatively unique characteristics due to large number of expatriates working in these organizations. As such these organizations are quite rich in diversity and rely on external human resource base to effectively run them. Since MENA region is rich in oil therefore most of the organizations are concentrated in this sector however, alternative sectors such as telecommunication etc are also emerging. This diversity in the business sector of the region also makes it unique in the sense that the region’s reliance on just few sectors is decreasing. This also means that more and more people will be getting opportunities to work in a diversified range of businesses rather than just rely on few sectors like oil etc. specially the development of financial sector within the region is promising and contributing towards creating a rich and diversified culture within MENA Organizations. What is unique in MENA Organizations is the fact that there are very few women working in these organizations and as such these organizations are male dominated. This male dominance within the organizations may not make these organizations truly diverse in nature and may lack the true characteristic of international organizations. Organizational Culture SWOT Analysis of MENA Organizational Culture Strengths 1. Strong support from Government. 2. Diversified and rich human resource bases. 3. Culture of high compensation. Employees prefer to work because of no or low taxes. 4. A range of benefits are offered to the employees for their work. Weaknesses 1. Reliance on expats thus culture cannot be considered as indigenous. 2. No or less participation by the women make them male dominated culture. 3. Lack of collective share building of the organizations because of Expats. Opportunities 1. Opportunity to develop the indigenous culture within the organizations. 2. Opportunity to tap into the international base of qualified employees to raise their efficiency. Threats 1. Expats can leave due to adverse economic situations in countries like UAE. 2. MENA organizations may not be able to develop their own unique culture and may continue to rely on external human resource base. Senge Disciplines Senge’s work is based on making the organizations to become learning organizations through system thinking. According to Senge, an organization is a learning organization if it can focus on the developing a philosophy of developing knowledge and understanding of the current world of the business. This also means that the learning organizations are contextual in nature and as such the dimensions of organizational learning keep on changing as the organizational situation demands. Senge therefore emphasize on the development of a fluid organization keeps on learning and changing according to the economic environment that it faces. What is also significant about this approach is the fact that it potentially opposes the pre-defined Western philosophy which relies on the pre-conceived notions of the learning and use short term objectives as the only objectives of the management to achieve. Learning organizations therefore have to manage themselves as organizations which are ready to change and operate without any pre-conceived notions of pre-defined sets of learning. Viewing within this perspective, MENA organizations may not be truly the learning organizations as the overall environment of the organizations. Most of the expats are attracted to such organizations because of the compensation that is paid to them rather than join these organizations as a place of learning. Over the period of time, MENA organizations therefore have relied on the expats as the major source of change within them and failed to come up with their own unique model. Senge’s Five Disciplines Personal Mastery This discipline advocates that the organizations learn through their individual employees and their personal mastery. Personal Mastery is therefore considered as a continues drive to achieve the personal mastery and it is through this way organizations learn. As discussed above that the MENA organizations have a rich base of expats who bring with them different values and beliefs along with their individual goals and objectives. This aspect of the MENA organizations therefore allow them to grow and learn out of the individual experiences of the individual employees rather the relying heavily on formal learning and development process. Shared Vision Employees tend to develop a common image of the future they want to seek for themselves therefore there emerges a common set of values and visions within the organization. This shared vision therefore result into the commitment within the organization rather than just compliance with the some policies. This aspect of organizational learning therefore provides them an opportunity to develop a collective image which is driven from within the organization. MENA organizations have the advantage of developing a shared vision because they offer a ray of hope to the expats because they join these organizations with pre-defined goals and objectives of the overall future that they wish to tailor for themselves. This collective vision of the expats therefore allows MENA organizations to become a breeding ground for the development of a collective vision for better future for the employees. Mental Models Mental models are basically the set of assumptions and rich pictures that we construct for ourselves in order to develop our unique vision of the world which we want to see. Mental models therefore can also be considered as the organizational metaphors because they help the employees to relate their individual understanding and vision of the world with the organization as a whole. Employees in MENA organizations join these organizations with a pre-conceived notion that they will have a secured future if they work in such organizations. This collective vision and mental models therefore allow employees to align their own individual assumptions with the overall organizational objectives. Learning therefore takes place as a result of the individual effort to align the individual assumptions and preconceived notions with that of the collective mental models of the organization and organizations grow and broaden their knowledge base. Team Learning Team learning is how the individual thinking descends and collective team thinking emerges as a result of the individual’s efforts to combine their energies to create greater impact. This also allows the development of a genuine thinking within the organization and develops a very clear line of action while tackling any problem. MENA organizations may lack in the team learning because of the diversity within these organizations. The diversity of the employees may not enforce the team learning because of the cultural hurdles and individual thinking which has already been shaped over the period of time and ingrained through years of cultural learning. System Thinking System thinking is basically the last and fifth discipline which integrates all the above factors within the very fabric of the organization. This is where all the individual thinking merges and organizations take off to become a learning organization and grow as a learning organization. It may be difficult for MENA organizations to develop comprehensive system thinking within them because of the inability of organizations to develop their own indigenous culture. The success of MENA organizations depends upon the economic situation in the region and as soon as economic conditions start to worsen, it may be difficult for the organizations to develop their own unique culture and survive as going concern entities. System thinking can only be integrated into MENA organizations once they become able to retain and develop their own unique culture which is indigenous and rely less on external human resource base. Conclusion In the current economic situation, it may be difficult for MENA organizations to develop themselves as the growing and learning organizations. This is because of the fact that they rely heavily on the expats as the only human resource base therefore as soon as the economic conditions change, the expats may find the region less attractive to work and thus leave the organization. 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