Organizational Behavior - Essay Example

MT302 Organizational Behavior Unit Ten Final Project Question Think of a present/past work environment you have been in (or use an example from your course materials), and then assess organizational behavior practices you observed that fostered the effect of positive change(s) within the organization. Cite relevant examples from your personal experience and utilize additional relevant examples from outside sources and/or the course materials to complete this question. (Course Outcome 1)A work environment that I found particularly positive was when I worked in a small company with less than fifteen employees.

The company was small and everyone was close. Aside from good working relationships, the company encouraged employees to develop close interpersonal relationships by holding activities that required family participation. The company observed a “Family Day” wherein employees can bring spouse and children. This created a positive vibe in everyone since the company believed that employees work hard for their family’s future. Because of this culture, employees were more open, honest, caring and committed to the company.

Case ( 1996 ) argues that culture plays an important role in influencing the behavior of employees, so much that it is given much attention in the workplace. The culture of Family Day in my former workplace created a shared meaning that provides positive reinforcement to the employees in a non-monetary way. The employees cherish and nurture their working experience which tremendously manifested in terms of productivity. Once an employee finds his work and organization meaningful, he goes for the extra mile as a token of appreciation to the company.

This rubs down on the customer service exemplified by the crew which customers can’t help notice.Question 2: Demonstrate how theories of motivation from this course, if applied in an organization, could increase employee performance. Cite relevant examples from outside sources and/or your course materials to complete this question. (Course Outcome 2) The motivation-hygiene theory by Herzberg is one theory of motivation when properly applied in the workplace could increase employee performance.

Although this theory has many criticisms, managers can use this by giving more job responsibilities to their employees since this theory assumes that people like responsibility. Also, management can think twice before drawing up additional incentive plans or benefits since these things do not necessarily enhance performance. Rather, management can and should plan carefully what motivates the employee – recognition, promotion or additional responsibility. This motivation theory works well especially in this times since management must creatively plan for incentives that are not material related.

Question 3: Think of causes of stress in your current/former workplace. Describe the symptoms of and possible coping strategies to those stresses. Cite relevant examples from your personal experience, outside sources, and/or your course materials to complete this question. (Course Outcome 3)Robbins cited that organizational leadership can be a source of stress. When managers or leaders of an organization are dogmatic, authoritative or have unrealistic expectations, they create a stressful environment.

Unfortunately, what these managers often fail to understand that human or interpersonal skills is necessary in becoming a good manager. Having conceptual and technical skills are not enough according to Mintzberg when he defined managerial roles. Managers must know how to influence their employees which is actually known as motivation. According to the International Labor Organization ( ILO), stress filled work can “contribute to the development of a desire among workers to reduce tension by drinking, using drugs and other harmful substances” ( ILO 2001).

Therefore, employees showing symptoms of alcohol or substance abuse must be addressed by the human resource manager or the immediate supervisor so the root cause of the problem can be identified. Sickness, absences and tardiness could also be symptoms of stress since employees physical condition cannot handle the stress. A stress filled working environment can be modified by the management by offering stress management sessions to employees.Question 4: Think of your current/former workplace.

Evaluate an ethical dilemma(s), that is (or has) challenged your workplace in the context of what the social responsibilities are of management and employees for resolving that ethical challenge. If there are no ethical dilemmas in your workplace you may choose a current event. Cite relevant examples from your personal experiences, outside sources, and/or your course materials to complete this question. (Course Outcome 4)The ethical challenge was electronic surveillance. This is an ethical dilemma since employees have also the right to privacy.

However, companies practice monitoring their employees’ activities since the management is making sure that the employees do not spend their paid hours on non work-related activities such as surfing and reading personal e-mails. On a personal level, this is threatening but it must be remembered that one’s actions must be subdued by the organizational goal. Also, the time spent on browsing sites or cyber loafing is unproductive time which contradicts an organizations main purpose: increased productivity.

The only resolution for this dilemma is for the corporation to define their boundaries/ parameters in monitoring the online activities of its employees. I believe that this could be wisely done by orienting the employees of the policies and procedures. Training could also greatly help the employees in preparing them to adapt to the new program which is technical in nature.Please begin typing your answer here.Question 5: Summarize a situation when a miscommunication led to decrease in employee effectiveness in your present/former workplace.

Cite relevant examples from your personal experiences, outside sources, and/or your course materials to complete this question. (Course Outcome 5)The situation happened when our department had to adopt a new system developed by the MIS department. The goal of the re-engineering was to improve efficiency in providing service to the clients. We were manually checking the documents and encoding the data which was not only cumbersome but also inefficient. However, miscommunication slowed down the implementation since the MIS department overlooked in the planning stage the proper orientation needed by the users.

According to Robbins, one crucial function of communication is “fostering motivation by clarifying to the employees what is to be done ( among other things)”. Since the users of the new program was not given proper orientation, there were a lot of complaints from both sides. The given scenario illustrates just how important communication is.ReferencesReferences Case. J. “Corporate Culture”, INC. November 1996.Drafke, M. W. (2006).  The human side of organizations (9th ed.).  Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2007).  Organizational Behavior (12th ed.).  Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.What is Workplace Stress? International Labor Organization ( 2001). Retrieved from http://www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/safework/stress/whatis.htm.