Differences among Theories
The sociotechnical systems theory believes that organizations are efficient when employees have the proper tools and resources to create goods and services that are valued by the customers. This theory states that if employees have proper tools then the organization will be more effective in the long run. Overall, sociotechnical systems theory sets to redesign jobs in order to optimize operation within an organization (Bateman & Snell, 2013, p. 35).
Quantitative management uses mathematical models of the problems within an organization in order to help managers make decisions. These include statistics and network modeling. Organizations use these models to help them with quality control, marketing and human resources (Bateman & Snell, 2013, p. 35).
Organizational behavior studies the behavior of employees in a group and throughout organizational processes. It studies and identifies the activities that promote employee effectiveness. In other words, organizational behavior helps organizations explain the behavior and understand what makes employees effective at their jobs (Bateman & Snell, 2013, p. 36). This theory is based off of psychology and sociology rather than math or facts.
Lastly, systems theory states that an organization is a system that is responsible for transforming inputs into outputs. Furthermore, systems theory believes that an organization is one system that is composed of a series of subsystems. Therefore, organizations take inputs (raw material and human resources) and transform them into outputs (good and services). This is considered an open-system, where a company is dependent on their input in order to produce their outputs (Bateman & Snell, 2013 p. 36).
Environments
Microenvironment consist of general elements that influence an organization from the external environment. These elements consist of laws and regulations, the economy, technology, demographics, and social values (Bateman & Snell, 2013, p. 42). Quantitative management is relevant in this environment. Quantitative management can use statistics to see where an organization stands with its competitors. Also, it can also be used to understand what demographics the company appeals to the most.
The competitive environment consist of an organizations rivalry. This includes all of the organizations competitors and any threats the industry has of new entrants, substitutes and complementary products (Bateman & Snell, 2013, p. 48). No theories apply to this environment. Most of the theories are used for the internal environment and the competitive environment focuses mainly on the external environment. None of these theories fully apply to the competitive environment. Quantitative management might be able to be applied to this environment, however, it may not be as useful as it would be in other environments.
The internal environment includes internal factors within an organization that impact the success of an organization. These are factors that a company does have control over (Bateman & Snell, 2013, p. 49). Several theories apply to this environment. First, systems theory applies. A company does have control over the inputs it has, and therefore, the outputs it produces. Also, sociotechnical theory applies to this environment as well. A company has control over the tools and resources they give to their employees. Lastly, a company does have control over organizational behavior. Organizations have the ability to study the behavior of their employees in order to find out what makes them perform at their highest ability. Studying organizational behavior can increase productivity within an organization and making them more competitive in the outside world.
References
Bateman, T., Snell, S. (2013). Management. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
