Influence of Organizational Behavior in the Workplace - Essay Example

ORGANIZATION BEHAVIOR by Student’s name Code+ course name Professor’s name University name City, State Date Table of contents Executive summary The intention of this discussion is to delineate organizational behavior. It is notable that organizational behavior has three prime elements which include; culture, attitude and leadership. This paper will seek to demonstrate the impact begot by organizational behavior in the work place. In addition, this discussion will illumine how the three aspects blend facilitating the inculcation of organizational behavior that would spearhead optimality of an organization’s performance. Introduction Each and every society has a defined setting that defines how people are organized to pursue collective goals. Organization emanated from the United States societal setting, and their emergence has evolved through the years. The growth of the organization setting has been spearheaded by wage dependence fostering greater industrialization levels. This fundamentally means that, the rise of the organization has given rise to many more institutions that have tremendously developed the societal setting. Organizations have a defined behavior that stem from the human interactions on a day to day basis. This implies that, organizational behavior plays a pivotal role in the organization’s effectiveness. This is because; organizational behavior reveals the individual, structural and group interactions within the organization. This is a field that traverses various disciplines among them being; psychology, communication, sociology, and management. Scholars, on the other hand, have it that organization behavior is best explained through the multiple theories focusing on human resource and the Intra organizational structures. The study of human behavior is extraordinarily fundamental in an organization as this will relay useful information to all stakeholders of the company. The organization, the human behavior, how the two elements interact with one another and their connection is the epitome of understanding organizational behavior (Somech & Drach-Zahavy 2004). For instance; in the eventuality that, one decides to undertake a study revolving around an individual in the organization with a keen focus on the chief executive officer, the study will be duped if it negates the impact emanating from the organizational environment. Therefore, it is evident that organizational behavior entails the human resource as well as the surrounding environment in the organizational set up. It is also obvious that employees join and leave the organization on a continuous basis, and this means that the only constant element is the organization’s structure. To affirm these sentiments, through tentative research, scholars have it that, the organization as well as the structures envisaged by management plays a vital role in deducing the behavior entrenched in the organization. The intention of this discussion is to delineate what is organizational behavior as well as indicate what it entails and its impact to the organizational setting and performance. Research analysis by past scholars It is evident that the organizational behavior is a crucial element in the organizational setting. In deducing how organizational behavior influences interactions at the place of work, it would be beneficial to illumine the history of the organization. The organizational setting as earlier depicted dates way back memory lane. Specifically, management has been in existence for a number of centuries. Plato and Aristotle were profound ancient writer who philosophized management in their hay days. However, it was not until the twentieth century that management as a study was deemed to be a serious endeavor as society was finally enlightened. This implies that organization behavior being a sub branch of management is only a few decades old. Years later, results revealed through conclusive research processes indicates that, there are theories put in place trying to deduce management and the best practices that would foster appropriate results. The scientific management theory and the classical organization theory are among the theories forwarded seeking to explain the evolution of management (Simon 2005). In the United States of America, Western Electric is a plant in Chicago that has indulged in a research project to unravel organization behavior. Harvard business school faculty members were deeply involved in the research undertaking. The first substantial experiment involved changing the lighting system where a group of employees worked. The experiment involved lowering the light magnitude and measuring the productivity of the test group in comparison to the other employees whose lights was not interfered. It was evident that as light increased, the experimental employee’s performance level increased, as well. The most baffling part of the experiment was the revelation that, in the event that light was reduced considerably, productivity still increased in both the experiment and the control group. The only feasible conclusion to this research was that light and productivity had no immediate connection unless frightfully dim or poor lighting prevailed. It was at this point that General electric withdrew their financial muscle from this project sighting lack of relevance. This implies that, organization behavior is a complex endeavor that needs detailed scrutiny, as well as thorough research analysis. There are notable elements that profoundly illustrate what organization behavior is all about. 1. Diversity and culture It is quite evident that organization behavior partly emanates from the individuals working or interacting with the organization. This implies that human input has a whopping magnitude on the general behavior of the organization. In addition, it is a matter of pure fact that, organizations perform best when they have a multi cultured human capital. This is a scenario where employees speak different languages and bear different cultural backgrounds. The product of this practice is known as cultural diversity in the work place. In the literal sense, cultural diversity means, different cultures in the same place. The impact of cultural diversity on human behavior has been studied in the recent past. Remarkable scholars of the century have it that, an organization with cultural diversity is exposed to better performance chances than the single cultured organization. The reason behind this thinking is that; in the instance that an organization practice cultural diversity, employees are deemed more innovative. A culturally diverse human resource displays an array of talents or problem solved antics that would be befitting to the organization in a time of need. Also, an organization with a single shared culture exhibits on of two things; an organization living in the yester years or an organization that does not experience growth. Naturally, an organization that has employees all over the world in a literal sense respects humanity and is ready to accept various traditions. It is noteworthy that, the diversity among the employees eventually forms a culture in the organization that will depict diversity. Years into the future, if studies are conducted in such an organization, it would be evident that, the diverse human behavior will in one way or another, affect the culture inculcated in the organization. It is also evident that humanity tends to copy best practices or norms born in different individuals. In the event that an organization has different cultures, the general organization behavior will illumine the cultural diverse population working for an organization (Millward 2007). Management is of the essence in the discussion of how cultural diversity affects the organization behavior. This is because; management has the mandate to contain or disregard unwarranted cultures. In the recent past, organizations have been trying to adopt a resilient management framework that can put up with any culture so long as it enhances the company’s performance in the foreseeable future. Countries like the United States, Australia as well as the United Kingdom are rated as developed countries. The developed nations have a liberal tendency. This emanates from the fact that, cultural diversity roots way back to the societal setting. Gone are the days when humanity had inhabitable differences that paved way to some decidedly dark times shadowing the past. Given the occurrences such as slavery when there was outright discrimination, today’s, there is a unusually elaborate clause envisaged in constitutions that declare it illegal to discriminate regardless of race, creed color or any other basis whatsoever. In the natural sense, an organization that employs regardless of culture will experience different human behaviors. Of utmost importance to the organization are productivity and enhanced performance. According to researchers, a culturally diverse populace is deemed to perform better and create a conducive organization behavior that will soon be inculcated in the organization practices forming culture. Additionally, it is no dispute that organizational behavior has everything to do with the overall performance of the organization. It is prudent that the organization’s management steers the company towards a conducive behavior that will permit excellent performance to be entrenched in the organization, in the long haul. 2. Personality, attitude and perception Personality has everything to do with an organization’s behavior. This is because; personality is deeply entrenched in one’s self and behavior depicts the personality of an individual. Personality can be detached and passed from one individual to the next. It is hence the responsibility of the human resource management to source employees with a flexible personality that is ready to be changed. This is because; inflexible personalities are fatal in the long run given the fact that the organization setting is dynamic. In addition, an individual’s personality immensely determines how one will interact with other employees as well as management in the course of doing business together. It is vital to have management and employees communicate in a level platform because, in the event that an employee has a proud personality, information dissemination will be compromised. The individual’s personality will affect the organizations behavior. For instance, in the event that the management bears an understanding personality, the employees will tune to that mode of personality entrenching a workable environment. On the contrary, an ignorant personality would also be passed on to the employees if the management is ignorant to the needs of management. This implies that personality of an individual will eventually affect the overall behavior of an organization. In the modern trend, organization behavior has an absolute magnitude to the overall performance or productivity of the employees. Employees are deemed to perform best in the instance that an appropriate organization behavior is inculcated into the organization's culture. For instance, if employees bear a remarkable personality collectively, it will be easy for management and other stakeholders to disseminate information with ease. In light of these sentiments, it is prudent for an organization to insist on a workable personality as this will resonate to an amicable organization behavior paving the way for excellent performance and productivity (Dessler 2000). Attitude is an indispensable element that determines the outcome of an endeavor. Psychologists define attitude as a like or dislike towards a certain element, person or object in one’s life. Contemporary psychology deems attitude a vital element, distinctive as well as indispensable. This implies that attitude is a complex aspect of humanity that entails how individuals relate to the surrounding environment. In layman’s language, attitude is the concept of mood which prevalently in use signifying the teenage rebellion. Attitude determines the perspective borne by an individual as it is fundamental in determining the functions of an individual. Researchers and reputable psychologists have tried to illumine why individuals hold attitudes which affect their performance level or at times inhibit their overall performance. Attitude has different forms as some individuals might bear; instrumental attitudes, utilitarian or adjunctive attitude, ego defensive attitude, knowledgeable attitude or a value expressive attitude. This implies that there are different attitudes, and each attitude has its own pros and cons. However, it is worth noting that, for attitude to be changed, appeals must be submitted to the individual enlightening the individual on the alleged downfall aligned to the attitude. Attitude formation emanates from how individuals evaluate their colleagues, their dwelling circumstances as well as the environment of the work place. It is fundamental for the organization through management to inculcate amicable conditions that will enhance positive attitudes to the employees. Unlike the personality of an individual, attitude changes only as a function of experience. This is to imply that the work environment has a significant role to play in the attitude of management, as well as the employees. Various theories such as the consistency theory have been forwarded from the academia experts opining that attitude is essential in the workplace (Morris & Sashkin 2006). It is inalienable that attitude is a significant component to the success of an organization as it determines how well individuals perceive their situations as well as work environment. In the long run, attitude affects the entire organization’s behavior towards current and new situations. However, management needs to be educated about attitude and how it affects the organization both in behavior and performance. Needless to state, attitude is a complex doctrine and needs time to understand as a change to the better would enhance attainment of the desired organizational performance. Perception is a congruent element emanating from both attitude and personality of an individual. It explains how individuals perceive or view information relayed to them. Perception is a doctrine that evaluates how individuals synthesize analyze and conclude with regard to a situation, circumstance or endeavor facing their day to day lives. It is inherent that management has the responsibility to inculcate a formidable mind set or perception in the employees to ensure that they decipher new information in the right way. This will ensure that the organizational behavior is steered towards the right direction ensuring that optimal performance from every stakeholder is attained hence spearheading organizational excellence. 3. Leadership and motivation Leading is a crucial endeavor in an organization or institution. Leadership entails an excruciating undertaking to foster growth and development in an organization. The leadership team in an organization comprises of the management team who work hand in hand with the other stakeholders to develop the organization through attaining the set goals. It is the mandate of the organizational leaders to endeavor to ensure that the organization has a conducive work environment that will guarantee results. Leadership entails providing direction to the whole organization in an aim to ensure that the organization does not stray from the initial objectives. In addition, leadership is bestowed the responsibility of inculcating a recommendable organizational culture that will reap desired results in the after math. Leadership is the responsible authority with the environment in place, and this includes organization behavior. It is evident that, since leadership has a significant role in the organization and its affairs, it is a pivotal element in creating the desired organizational behavior. Additionally, management or leadership has the role to streamline organizational behavior discarding the unwarranted elements that may erupt in the cause of operations within the organizational environment (Ohly & Fritz 2007). Motivation has been extensively defined as the process of arousing and maintaining the desire to attain a certain goal. As suggested by the definition, motivation in essence has three fundamental elements. The first is arousal, which has everything to do with the energy behind actions of an individual. Secondly, there is the direction which spearheads the choice of the behavior of an individual. Thirdly, there is the element of maintenance which revolves around the zeal to persist in an effort to meet the desired goal. To put motivation into a perspective, it is eminent to use the common analogy of car driving. Arousal is indicated through starting the vehicles engine, direction through the steering wheel manipulation and maintenance is exhibited by the driver’s zeal to stay on course. However, it is not prudent that motivation is as uncomplicated as explained in the effortless driving analogy or theorem. This is because; people can be motivated by an array of factors and it is essential to establish the workable mix to negate any internal conflicts. The basic definition of motivation entails meeting the basic needs of an individual. Scholars like Abraham Maslow have had their fair share of input towards explaining what motivation entails. The idea propagated by Maslow through the hierarchy of need theory sought to imply that until the basic needs of an individual are satisfactorily met, the individual will be dysfunctional. There are other theories that have been forwarded which include the equity theory, the Alderfer’s ERG theory, as well as the expectancy theory. The main agenda behind motivation is to ensure that maximum results are obtained from the workforce. Management has an excruciating ordeal that involves determining what is motivational to the employees amid the prevalent circumstances. An outstanding research group sought to evaluate whether financial resources comprised an incentive to the employee. A 9 man group was sought to be the experiment, and their reward system was changed to a piece rate system. Over time, it was noted that the employees neither over produced nor under produced compared to the other employees in the organization. This experiment was undertaken in Australia, and the researchers concluded that financial incentives are not the only motivation needed to arouse performance. Motivation has been the topic of discussion in various platforms indicating that it is a vital element. This is because; it affects the formulation of organizational behavior as well as the overall performance of the organization (Hiriyappa 2009). The management in any organization has to bear in mind the magnitude emanating from organizational behavior. There are numerous instances where the performance of an organization has been enhanced through focusing on organizational behavior. The three illumined elements have a considerable magnitude as they interrelate. In addition, the human resource has to ensure that they source adequate staff members who will bear amicable behavior thrusting the organization into the next level. The human resource team has to ascertain that, the job description suits the employee as well as the pay grade to minimize the eventuality of staff turnover (Hebb 2009). 4. Conclusion and recommendations In conclusion, it is evident that organizational behavior has a remarkable influence in the place of work. It is the duty of management of an organization to entrench a cordial relation with the employees that will in turn pave way for the desired organization culture. Among the key issues that address the organizational culture include, motivation and leadership, attitude and perception and cultural diversity. The three issues bear a significant magnitude to ensuring that the proper organizational behavior is envisaged in the organizational structure forming a desirable culture in the workplace. Academia specialists will continue to propagate theories as to the best practices with regard to organizational behavior. However, it is up to management to endeavor to ensure that workable mechanisms are in place that will foster excellence and quality performance in the organization. APPENDIXES: 1 Reference list Dessler, G, 2000, Organization theory: integrating structure and behavior. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall. Hebb, D, 2009, The organization of behavior; a neuropsychological theory.. New York: Wiley. Hiriyappa, B, 2009, Organizational behavior. New Delhi: New Age International. Millward, N, 2007, Organizational Behaviour. Sociology, 4(2), 267-267. Morris, W, & Sashkin, M, 2006, Organization behavior in action: skill building experiences. St. Paul: West Pub. Co.. Ohly, S, & Fritz, C, 2007, Challenging The Status Quo: What Motivates Proactive Behaviour?. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 80(4), 623-629. Simon, H, 2005, Administrative behavior: a study of decision-making processes in administrative organization (3d ed.). New York: Free Press. Somech, A, & Drach-Zahavy, A, 2004, Exploring Organizational Citizenship Behaviour From An Organizational Perspective: The Relationship Between Organizational Learning And Organizational Citizenship Behaviour. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 77(3), 281-298. Read More