Can Culture Be Managed - Assignment Example

Client inserts his/her name Name of institution Tutor’s name Course title Date of submission Quiz: Is the attempt to manage employees’ cultural values and emotions perfectly reasonable or a step too far? Introduction In this essay, I am going to illustrate the fact that management of the employees’ cultural and emotional values is very vital for the success of any organization. However, it can only be effective if the managers have the ability, capacity or skill to enable them identify, assess, understand, make good judgment and manage emotions of one self and those of others. On the other hand, I shall consider the role of social intelligence, which is the ability to understand, manage and act wisely in matters concerning human relations, as a very significant aspect of understanding and effectively managing other people. It is noteworthy that cultural values and emotions differ from one employee to another and thus may raise mixed reactions (Brewis 2006). The first section of my essay considers the importance of social cultural management. On one hand, a strong social, cultural and emotional responsiveness gives one an opportunity to behave well, make good and sound decisions as well as be able to establish and maintain healthy relationships. Therefore, emotional, cultural and social management is a range of organized interpersonal and intrapersonal relationships whose skills determine how well we understand and express ourselves, understand and relate with others and cope with our day-to-day demands, challenges and pressures (Thompson & McHugh 2002). Section two highlights the irrationality involved in managing employees’ cultural and emotional values. The managers may overstep the limit and get lost because of isolation, delusion, arrogance, plain stupidity and obsession through imposing authority instead of leading. The manager may aim at imposing his or her cultural values which may not be in agreement with those of employees. It is really demoralizing when the leader’s head is high above the sky or stuck in his/her backside. In this sense, connection with other people as well as understanding their needs and wishes is lost (Peters & Waterman1982). Finally, the essay sums up the argument by asserting that it takes great know-how in emotional and social skills to handle the employees’ social, cultural and emotional values effectively. Therefore, social and emotional intelligence is very vital in effective employee management (Brewis 2006). Critical observation of cultural and emotional value management According to (Thompson & McHugh 2002), cultural and emotional value management entails the ability to adjust or harness emotions, even negative ones to achieve desired goals. Good leaders display self-control by remaining composed and focused regardless of situations that create pressure or distress. This is a very important trait of successful leaders who are in a position to think clearly and make sound decisions despite the challenges involved in managing cultural and emotional values of workers. Willmott (1993, p.520) acknowledges the fact that adaptability and vision are very critical characteristics of cultural and emotional value management in an organization. For example with the modern development of communication technologies, leaders should be able to adopt and enhance these processes, methods and activities for leadership with ease without overstepping the limit in managing employees’ emotions and cultural values. It is believed that individuals have the ability to inspire themselves so they should given opportunity to do that. It is noteworthy that social awareness is basic as it entails recognizing and understanding other people’s emotions and cultural values. If cultural and emotional values can be nurtured towards mobilizing workers to pursue goals and opportunities which are beyond what is expected of them, it can bear fruits. However, leaders who lack social, cultural and emotional intelligence may attempt to merely change employee’s views and values which can be perceived as manipulative. This kind of scheming control is much resented by employees (Thompson & McHugh 2002). Positive consequences The employees develop strong identification and commitment. By managing employees’ cultural values and emotions, it is easy for an organization to strengthen its social control mechanisms such that the dispersed groups of workers can be held together. Workers are able to commit to and identify with the strong values hence securing employee commitment in the work place. The managers are able to mange how employees perceive the formation of values and identities. The emotional management mechanism will guide them on how to approach relationships within and outside the work environment Willmott (1993, p.523). Ackroyd & Crowdy (1990, p. 5) assert that employees are able to follow the better values offered by the organization by questioning what they already have in terms of cultural identity and value. In this regard, employees tend to be satisfied and they work harder as well as stay for long in a single organization. However, this is only possible if there is a clear statement of cultural and emotional expectations, communicated to employees through missions and visions of the organization. Management of cultural values and emotions work well when nurtured through dream- building. Values and identities of employees can be done through self-help organizations as selected and instituted in the organization. The control program should consider how the employees interpret or rather perceive the entire process. (Peters & Waterman, 1982) According to Ackroyd & Crowdy (1990, p. 6), it is perfectly reasonable to control employee’s cultural values and emotions. What is important is that the leader must be aware of and accept personal cultural diversity. He/she should have a wider perception of beliefs and values that surround diversity and the challenges that come with the attempt to connect various cultures. It is also important to comprehend cultural differences and other skills determined by culture. Socially and emotionally skilled leaders should are able to empathize by putting themselves in someone else’s shoes, that is the ability to sense other people’s feelings and taking active interest in their concerns. In this way, cultural and emotional values of employees can bear fruits. Good and effective management of the employees’ cultural and emotional values encompasses humanity in terms of attitudes and behaviors. It can be noted that it is beyond technical and academic prowess, as a leader should realize that he/she is in a position to serve and not to be served. Humanity is the core term; management is all about relationships which are built on emotional strengths and behavioral characteristics. Effective leaders are expected to address people’s needs and challenges rather than giving directions and instructions Ackroyd & Crowdy (1990, p. 11) According to Knights & Roberts (1982, p. 61), collaboration and cooperation entails working with others toward shared goals. To be able to achieve this, one has to be morally and socially intelligent to integrate different views, accepting diversity and respecting decisions and the views of others. Change is inevitable, as the leader controls employees’ cultural and emotional values, he/she must bear in mind that adapting new tactics enhances productivity. Building bonds will cultivate instrumental relationships. A leader who is socially and emotionally skilled understands the kind of people or groups he is dealing with and identifies ways of establishing relationships which are healthy in the sense that such relationships are meant for mutual benefits. It is also prudent to foster personal friendships in the work place. This is what good management of employees’ emotional and cultural values brings up in an organization (Brewis 2006) Negative consequences The state of an underachieving organization or a non-performing organization is often traced to poor cultural and emotional management of employees by those bestowed with that responsibility Knights& Roberts ( 1982, p.51) Controlling employees’ cultural and emotional values is irrational and employees tend to feel that their personal space is being invaded by managers. This kills employees’ morale and develops a negative attitude towards their work which may hamper productivity a great deal. This kind of low efficiency is likely to spread among all employees hence bringing the organization down. The results of controlling employees’ include poor job satisfaction and negatively perceived fairness (Rosen1988). According to Jaffee (2001, p. 56), employees in such a control situation view management in their organizations as unfair and disrespectful towards them. In this way, employees have reason to worry about their job security as well as their future if they fail to cope with the cultural and emotional drifts that the managers impose on them. Cultural interruptions in the name of adjustments is harmful to employees’ self-esteem hence job dissatisfaction. According to (Parker 2000), it is precise that how we feel about ourselves and others can intensely affect our ability to concentrate, remember, think and express ourselves. Employees whose emotional and cultural values are over controlled detach from the work and also develop troublesome behaviors as a way of showing insurgence. Their sense of belonging is lost since they feel that the management is not supportive, it is uncaring and it is stepping on their personal space. Self awareness is usually low as well as low social aptitude and the drive to deliver the best in the work place (Rosen 1988). According to Ogbonna & Wilkinson (2003,p. 1170), most managers are not in a position to examine their emotions, know their interests, values, strengths and weaknesses. They never realize how their feelings affect the employees’ performance. The employees are bound to feel that the managers are not open to honest feedback, criticism and new perspectives in regards to cultural and emotional values. They therefore dispute their competence because they are not able to acknowledge independence in thought. Jaffee (2001,p. 55) argues that leaders sometimes lack emotional awareness which basically allows leaders to be alert over their emotions, feelings and how they affect their performance, thinking and the impact on their goals and values. We ask ourselves how such leaders can make accurate self-assessment in regards to the emotional and cultural values of the workers. Leaders with these personal behavioral attributes are not able to handle their strengths and weaknesses. This indicates that the attempt to control employees’ cultural and emotional values is surely a step too far. It is a disgrace to the employees so some extent (Ogbonna & Wilkinson, 2003, p.1153). Conclusion Peters & Waterman (1982), argue that a manager can be very open and tolerant, as well as insightful, about her or his diversity-related shortcomings, but lack knowledge of cultural differences and the emotionality of others. This is often the case. Ironically, these individuals tend to be perceived as narrow-minded even after their best efforts to appear otherwise. Behaving as though you know what you do not know about cultural differences can be more disabling than acknowledging that you do not know much about other cultures. Assuming that the diversity education goes beyond book knowledge, classroom learning and seminars we may increase our awareness and perhaps even change our attitude, but there is seldom sufficient practice to hone what you have learned. Even the campus’ most acclaimed cultural diversity professor is likely to be ineffective in facilitating real life intercultural conflict. Being the best researcher and classroom teacher for diversity on campus cannot offset practical cultural competence training without facilitation skills (Parker 2000). Knights & Roberts (1982,p. 50) argue that modern organizations are basically concerned with improved performance, thus to achieve this, effective leaders are not judged by how smart they are or by their training and expertise, but most importantly, how well they handle themselves as well as the employees. For example, it needs highly emotional and social intelligent leaders to appease warring individuals or groups within the workplace by first listening to them, making sound and fair decisions based on the conflict management skills learned (Waddell et. al, 2011) When one is socially and emotionally intelligent, he/she is able to self-understand him or herself and be in a position to manage emotions and deal wisely and effectively with others. This influences personal attributes such as perseverance, problem solving orientations, assertiveness, responsibility, self-control and all skills related to getting along with others. These emotional competence attributes are of very great importance as they enhance building of trust among the people being led which in return increases productivity Ackroyd & Crowdy( 1990, p.4) In my own opinion, management of employees’ cultural and emotional values should always be service oriented by anticipating, recognizing and meeting the needs of people. The leaders should sense what they need, develop and strengthen their abilities in order to be able to influence cultural and emotional diversity positively without raising manipulative issues. (Waddell et. al 2011) highlights that these leaders must also cultivate opportunities through various people. As a leader skilled in social awareness, an art gained through social and emotional intelligence, will be able to build and earn trust from the people he leads by showing interest in them. Such a leader can easily exhibit strengths and can inspire belief in others as well as qualities which produce charismatic effect as a result of effective cultural and emotional management Willmott (1993, p.516) References Ackroyd, S & Crowdy, P 1990, ‘Can culture be managed? Working with “raw” material: the Case of the English slaughter men’ Personnel Review, vol.5, no.19, pp 3-12. Brewis, J 2006, ‘Culture’ in Knights D. & WiIlmott H. (eds.) (2006) Introducing Organizational Behaviour and Management, Thompson, London. Jaffee, D 2001, ‘The rise of the factory system’ Organization Theory, McGraw Hill, pp 42-63, Boston. Knights, D & Roberts, J 1982, ‘The Power of Organization or the Organization of Power?’ Organization Studies, vol.1, no. 3, pp. 47-63. Ogbonna, E & Wilkinson, B 2003, ‘The false promise of organizational culture Change: a case study of middle managers in grocery retailing’ Journal of Management Studies vol.5, no.40, and pp.1151-1178. Parker, M 2000, Organizational Culture and Identity, Sage, London. Peters, T & Waterman, R 1982. In Search of Excellence: lessons from America's Best-run companies, Harper & Row, Sydney. Rosen, M 1988, ‘You asked for it: Christmas at the boss’s expense’ Journal of Management Studies vol.5, no.25, and pp.463-480. Thompson, P & McHugh, D 2002, Work Organizations: A Critical Introduction Third Edition, Waddell, D, Jones, G & George, J 2011, Contemporary Management 2e, McGraw-Hill, Australia, Chapter Three. Willmott, H 1993, ‘Strength is ignorance, slavery is freedom: managing culture in modern Organizations’ Journal of Management Studies vol.4, no.30, pp.515-552. Read More