Change, Conflict and Innovation in Organizations - Coursework Example

Managing People and Organizations: Reflective Essay Customer Inserts His/her Name Customer Inserts Grade Course Customer Inserts Tutor’s Name 27/05/ 2011 Motivation According to the lecture notes, performance is a product of ability, motivation and external factors. I support the author’s argument though I feel that the author left inclusion of internal factors which are also important when it comes to performance. There is a contradiction among these theories because all of them seek to address one aspect of managing people and organization, motivation. Therefore, I feel that all these theories should be integrated into one theory so as to achieve one direction towards motivation in order to eliminate the contradictions. In my view about motivation, the Hierarchy of needs and Equity theories has a better ground for discussing factors that lead to motivation. There is lack of an explicit practical support that when employees’ needs are met, they will be motivated. However, I did not know that there is a relationship between the needs discussed in the different theories. For instance, that self- esteem and self- actualization needs are considered as the motivators in Hierarchy of needs theory. In addition, while needs attainment are prime motivating factors, equality in employees is also key and applicable when meeting needs (Warner and Witzel 2004). Strategic Organizational Structure and Design Organizational structures influence the decisions and behaviors of people within an entity. They also enhance creativity, innovations and preparation for the future. Strategies are implemented and goals achieved through the use of organizational structure. An organization establishes strategies based on its structures such as technology, environment and structural size. According to Hitt et al (2009 309) organizational structures specifies the firm’s formal reporting relationships, procedures, controls, authority and decision making. An organizational structure defines the work to be done and how it will be done based on strategies and entity’s objectives. The article and the lecture notes depict one idea, that organizational structures are the basis upon which the strategies are established. The type of environment, technology and the size of the organization define its structure. I understand that decisions and behaviors within an organization are linked to the structure of the organization. Earlier on, I thought that n organizational structure is the buildings and the premises within the organizations. However, I now understand that people, technology, work and size form the organizational structure. In addition, an organization structure aids in defining the future of an organization in terms of size, technology, implementation of strategies and realization of objectives (Graubner 2006). Change, conflict and Innovation in Organizations There are internal and external factors that influence change and people react differently to a change process. Employees resist change because they cannot control it. The Lewin’s model of change is in my view the most effective form of managing and achieving change. Change and innovation are different. However, these two contradict because the steps used to achieve change and innovations are same as well as factors needed to achieve them. Rahim (2010 p43) adds that there is a difference between conflict resolution and conflict management, while the latter (conflict management) is the most appropriate and effective way of dealing with conflicts. Through experience the conflict management styles are quite effective when it comes to decisions involving resolving a conflict and leaving the disputants contented with the end or the solution. I disagree with Rahim who argues that conflict is better managed than resolved. In my opinion, resolving and managing are similar since their uniform aim is to eliminate the conflict. Accordingly, it is important to draw a difference between changes that can lead to conflict and those which cannot lead to conflict. However, in this case the author has failed to do so. Establishing Goals, Plans and Strategies It is true that goals, plans, mission and vision are all interrelated. The levels and types of goals may not be straight forward they depict that goals are only for management. This is seen where they are termed as operational, tactical and strategic and consequently ranked in managerial group excluding employees. According to what I know is that the organization has its own goals as well as the employees and the management. The article analysis of the Porter’s Five Model is quite relevant to that offered in class. The Porter’s Five Forces include: risk of potential new entrants, bargaining power of buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, threat posed by substitutes products and rivalry among competitors (Kurtz and MacKenzie 2009). In addition, the Porter’s competitive strategies as provided in the articles are quite relevant and useful for an organization to utilize. These competitive strategies include: differentiation, focus and cost leadership. According to what I knew, I thought when establishing goals and plans, an organization should only consider the use of a SWOT analysis. However, I now understand that, while SWOT analysis is a useful tool, Porter’s Five Forces Model and competitive strategies are also important factors for consideration. SWOT analysis relates to understanding an organization’s Strengths and Weaknesses, which are its internal factors and Threats and Opportunities which are an organizational external factors (Griffin 2007). Managerial Decision Making Day in day out, management and employees within an organizations encounter situations requiring them to make decisions either promptly or at a deferred time period. In these situations, these people may either make rational and irrational decisions. There are various steps that management and employees can follow in decision making process. All in all, they will be faced with obstacles and biasness that halt the decision making process. Group decision making can be the most difficult since members have different opinions, views and insights based on their perception as well as values. However, through experience I support the author’s idea that in groups’ decision making, diverse and more information is acquired though the process is slow. There are different tools that aid in decision making such as Decision Tree Model, The Gantt Chart, and Pay-Off Table among others. In my previous understanding, the Decision Tree Model was the most viable and effective tool to aid of decision making, and particularly in those situations that can be quantifiable such as in managerial accounting. According to Liebler and McConnell (2004 p152) managers can make use of historical records, past performance information and their own experiences to make decisions. However, in my opinion, decision making can be more effective when managers as well as the employees make use of decision- making tools and techniques together with the organization’s historical records, past performance information and individual experiences and perceptions on a particular issue. Emotions and Moods Emotions are deep feelings while moods are shallow feelings towards something or someone. Stein (2007 p54) claims that emotions and moods can affect worker’s performance and productivity. Emotions are strongly intertwined to conflict, creativity, motivation, leadership, negotiations, and quality of services offered, attitudes and behaviors within an organization. Moods vary depending on the day of the week and the time of the day. Accordingly the use of emotional intelligence is very important. This requires an individual to know how he or she is feeling, manage the feelings, motivate oneself, understand other people’s feelings and handle them appropriately. Women display emotions and moods more often and in many ways to men. According to my life experiences, it is true that men are not socially required to display their emotions; and if they do, it is a sign of weakness. In addition, women display emotions more often than men emotions, can read and understand other people’s emotions and are quite comfortable in displaying emotions. Emotions can result from age, stress, personality, weather and time of the day. In the middle of the day and at the end of the week, people’s moods are positive; while at the beginning of the week people have negative moods. This mood variation is highly experienced in employees in workplaces and students in schools. Pioneering Ideas in Management and its Environment The nature of management is with time changing. In the current business environment, management focuses on change and innovations, globalization, diversity and quality of operations and overall improvement. Borkowski (2010 p6) adds that management is ideally based on two schools of thought: Classical and Behavioral. The Classical proponents emphasized more on organizational operations, while Behavioral focus more on employees and see them as the most important assets of an organization In my opinion, it is important to upheld employees as the most valuable assets that an organization has. One critical consideration is the fact that, unlike machines and other tools that can be repaired, employees cannot be repaired. For an organization to function effectively, it is important to define an organizational culture. According to Alvesson (2002 p3) Organizational culture is understood as a system of common symbols and meanings derived from shared values, beliefs and norms. People’s ideas, views and events occurring in an organization are influenced and shaped by the organizational culture. Hence, an organization culture defines the management style, organizational behavior, operations and the relationship between employees and management in an organization. References Alvesson, M 2002, Understanding Organizational Culture, SAGE. Borkowski, N 2010, Organizational Behavior in Health Care. Jones & Bartlett Learning. Graubner, M 2006, Task, Firm Size, and Organizational Structure in Management Consulting: An Empirical Analysis from a Contingency Perspective, DUV. Griffin, R.W 2007, Fundamentals of Management, 5th Edition, Cengage Learning. Hitt, M.A., Duane, R.I & Hoskisson, R.E 2009, Strategic Management: Competitiveness and Globalization: Concepts and Cases, Cengage Learning. Kurtz, D.L., MacKenzie, H.F. & Snow, K 2009, Contemporary Marketing, 2nd Edition, Cengage Learning. Liebler, J.G & McConnell, C.R 2004, Management Principles for Health Professionals, 4th Ed, Jones & Bartlett Learning. Rahim, M.A 2010, Managing Conflicts in Organizations, Transaction Publishers, 4th Edition. Stein, S.J 2007, Make Your Workplace Great: The 7 Keys to an Emotional intelligent Organization, John Wiley and Sons. Warner, M & Witzel M 2004, Managing in Virtual Organizations, Cengage Learning. Read More