Conflict, Decision Making and Organizational Design - Coursework Example

Conflict, Decision Making & Organizational Design Number: Introduction If there is a matter that fundamentally affects organizational growth, stability and success, then it is that of decision making, conflict management and organizational design. Simply put, decision making refers to a mental process that results in the designation of a specific course of action as the most tenable and/or viable option, among a host of other alternatives, on the one hand. On the other hand, conflict management refers to the ratification of strategies aimed at limiting negative aspects of conflicts and to enhance the positive aspects of conflicts to a level higher than or equal to the instance where conflict takes place. The magnitude of decision making is underscored by the fact that it produces the ultimate choice, with its output taking the form of an action or just an opinion of choice. In turn, the import of conflict management is that it encompasses the other two roles which are conflict management and decision making. Strayer University serves as the epitome of constructive use of proper conflict, decision making and organizational design. Although it was only in 1986 when Strayer’s Business College was accorded full university status, yet its accreditation by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education and the large pool of the students’ body numbering 51,000 confirm the dynamism it enjoys. Above all, that Strayer University attributes its success to proper application of decision making, conflict management and organizational design is a matter that underscores the importance of these features in organizational management. How One Can Apply Negotiation Strategies to Address Potential Conflicts in the Workplace In order to address potential conflicts in the workplace, it is highly needful that the potential or actual negotiators or the leadership of the organization takes time and effort to understand the opportunity to negotiate. This will portend, the stakeholders taking an effort to understand the nature and magnitude of conflict that is in the offing. It is also through the understanding of the opportunity to negotiate that every individual must have a clear goal in kind and appreciate the oncoming negotiations as having the key to the realization of a sustainable solution. The import of this stage is that it helps in differentiating negotiable conflicts from the nonnegotiable ones. Similarly, it is the understanding of the opportunity to negotiate that efforts can be concerted to annul the conflict peacefully without the convention of the negotiations. Buono (2007) recommends that it is also imperative that the party in charge also identifies the goals of the negotiation, should it become obvious that the conflict will progress to the negotiation stage. Nevertheless, at this stage, the main goal will be to stave off the looming conflict. This stage will still be important since effective negotiators must be able to visualize the best and viable outcome and work diligently to achieve it. There will also be the need to define the maximum and minimum limits of expectations, in this light. In this case, staving off this possible workplace conflict is the maximum limit of expectation. In the event that the threat of the possible workplace conflict persists, so that negotiations become inevitable, it will be expedient that the concerned party chooses the most suitable negotiation strategy. The options that may be available for consideration may be the cooperative strategy, analytical and competitive strategy. From the juncture above, it will be important that the party or the organization seeking to arbitrate the conflict creates a climate that will be positive for the talks. This measure cannot be sidestepped, given that in the presence of conflicts, the planning team must designate a place where talks can take place openly, productively and without any element that would cause duress. While at it, it will be necessary that the concerned team or the moderators work on their negotiation skills, in preparation for the oncoming negotiations. The logic behind this is that there can be no negotiations on conflicts without proper, structural and strategic plans. Preparations will be in order in this case since it will help the parties involved to work on sufficient strength to convince different interest groups that will be in the negotiation; and to gain sufficient strength to brook an acceptable agreement. If time and resources allow, the party involved will also have to consider the input of outside negotiators. This consideration will become mandatory immediately efforts to quell the looming workplace tension have officially proven futile. Determining How Evidence-Based Management Could Be Applied To the Work Environment That Has Been Researched Evidence-based management (EBM) is totally applicable to Strayer University’s situation since it entails the factoring of the best available scientific evidence in decision making. This is because; the best available evidence portends the incorporation of scientific studies with the highest degree of internal validity and reliability into Strayer University’s decision making. This will ensure that all the 90 campuses making up the university make decisions that are choate. Secondly, EBM is relevant to Strayer University’s situation, since EBM factors organizational metrics, facts and characteristics into consideration during decision making. Using evidence and its sources such as entrance interviews will help the university’s administration know why over 9,000 students have preferred it to any other universities. The university may then considering enhancing these desirable features and laboring to face out the undesirables accosting other universities. Again, EBM factors greatly, stakeholders’ concerns and values, during decision making. This is bound to highly benefit Strayer University since stakeholders’ actions, interventions and decisions will have both direct and indirect consequences on the institution. For instance, implementing career building exercises will enable the university’s employees to nurture the skills and feel closely-knit to Strayer University’s vision, goals and mission. This will abate any threats of employee turnover (Beard, 2000). Finally, EBM encourages the practitioner expertise, judgment and critical reflection. While the presence of evidence in itself does not directly lead the management on what to do, Strayer University’s, through managerial skills and experience, the university will be able to determine whether this evidence can be incorporated into its synergy. Blocks, Stages and Methods of Creative Decision Making To Determine the Best Approach the Employer Should Follow When Making Managerial Decisions Blocks of decision making may take a multifaceted mien. An employer may encounter perceptual blocks such as tacit assumption, stereotyping, inability to visualize the problem at hand, from another person’s perspective and the inability to understand a problem from different angles and levels. All these may impede effective decision making and lead an employer to craft biased recruitment and employment policies. Environmental and cultural blocks such as taboos, the inhibiting strength of tradition, and the inability to severe reason and logic from fantast, humor and artistic thinking may also inhabit the realization of sound decision making. Just like all the aforementioned blocks, cultural and environmental blocks deny decision making processes of independent thinking and dynamism. According to Tyner (2012), value-based blocks in turn may take the form of status quo bias, being risk-averse, negative judgment and destructive criticism and fantasies. All these forms of blocks are bound to undermine objectivity and independent thinking, during decision making and recruitment. At the same time, all these forms of value-based blocks are inimical to organizational dynamism and progress. In order to arrive at creative decision making, it is needful that the management or the manager prepares. During the preparation stage, the manager acquaints himself more with the problem, its elements and how they interrelate. Secondly, the management must observe the incubation stage where multiple paths to a solution are explored and eliminated, until the most viable options are left. Thirdly, it is expedient that the management goes through the illumination stage where the most viable alternative is singled out, either through dexterous mental engagement, or through spontaneous enlightenment. Lastly, it is important that the management greatly respects the verification stage. The verification stage involves ascertaining the prospects of the designated solution meriting the status it has been given. This may have the management going back to brainstorming on the nature of the problem and the prospects of other candidate solutions that had been done away with. This verification may also have the management determining whether the candidate solution meets the constraints related to the problem and how well the candidate solution can perform well in meeting the fundamental objectives which had been determined as part of the solution. Environmental and Strategic Factors That Affect Organizational Design of the Company That Has Been Researched It is indisputable that the world in which Strayer University operates will affect its organizational design. At the moment, Strayer University is located in Maryland, Washington, D.C and other parts of the United States. This means that the university’s business environment is very stable, given that in America, the population’s desire for education is consistent and very well understood. Because of this, there has been little need for this institution to re-modify its strategies frequently. Nevertheless, it is a fact that Strayer University’s environment is variegated, since America is a variegation of different races and ethno-cultural backgrounds and groups such as the Latin Americans, the African Americans and white Americans. This in turn makes it necessary for Strayer University to use functional hierarchy as a form of organizational design. The observation of functional hierarchy as a form of organizational design will help every office remain accountable (to a higher authority). Accountability in turn breeds transparency and assuages the extent of underperformance, complacency and mediocrity. The immediately foregoing is true, given that there will be need for the university to have a formal and guided process through which the flow and interrelationship of information, departments and people is conducted. The need for functional hierarchy is underscored by the bureaucratic flow of power, duties and information from managerial echelons, to lower divisions. However, when it comes to interpersonal relationships among students, the university must maintain a horizontal design, in relation to the flow of information, authority and other values. The observation of this organizational design will help the university’s students remain united, despite the socio-cultural and class differences that may persist among these students (Volkema, 2010). References Beard, M. (2000). Organizational Development. Employee Assistance Quarterly, 16 (1/2), 117- 140. Buono, A. F. (2007). Managing Organizational Behavior. Personnel Psychology, 40 (1), 171- 175. Tyner, L. (2012). Strategies for Managing University and Small Business Patent Portfolios in View of Recent Fundamental Changes in the Law. IP Litigator, 18 (5), 7-11. Volkema, R. J. (2010). Unifying Principles of Organizational Behavior. Journal of the Academy of Business Education, 11 (2), 70-92. Read More