Organisational behaviour is a study of business organisations and how the separate component parts come together to work to attain optimal results and attain synergistic effects. This is often done by evaluating the different business units in an organisation and how they work together under a specific leadership in order to ensure that the people, assets and resources of the organisation works to attain the highest and best results. Organisational behaviour aims at bringing together components of an organisation to ensure effective work and efficient utilisation of resources at the lowest possible cost.
The purpose of this paper is to analyze and review the various aspects of organisational behaviour. This will entail the review and assessment of the concepts of management, leadership, motivational theories and strategies for group work and team dynamics.
Management
Management is a broad word that has many definitions and implications. One popular definition of management is that it is “the coordination of resources through the process of planning, organising, directing and controlling in order to attain stated objectives”. Management involves forecasting and assessing things in the business environment in order to position a firm in the best way to attain the highest and best results. Management is about putting together and utilising a firm’s resources in order to achieve the best and most appropriate results in the area and markets within which the firm operates.
There are many approaches and perspectives of management. This is mainly due to the history of the evolution of management and the perceptions of the main theorists of management. There are several types of theories of classical management including (a) Scientific Management (b) Administrative (c) Bureaucratic. There are other classes of theories of more modern concepts of management including (a) Rational/Legal (b) Human Relational (c) Internal Process (d) Open Systems. The section below will discuss two examples of each – classic and modern theories of management.
Taylorism – Classic Approach of Management
Frederick Taylor’s view of management is that workers were to be organised to attain the highest and best results from their operations and activities. Therefore, work was to be broken down to separate components and workers were to be made to do each part in order to assemble a product or produce a service. This way, each group of workers get specific tasks for which they are paid and as they continue to work in different units, they build competencies, specialize and achieve better results. This is meant to ensure that workers are paid in return for the best results and an organisation can attain the highest levels of profitability.
Weber’s Theory of Bureaucracy – Classical Approach of Management
Weber’s view was that management was based on authority and how it is exercised through the rank and file of an organisation. Therefore, three types of authority could be identified including traditional authority, charismatic authority and rational/legal authority. In his view, Weber argued that the best level of authority could be attained if there was a rational or legal authority whereby people were made heads or managers of an organisation based on their independently verifiable skills, education, accomplishments and competencies. This way, objective rules could be made and instituted in order to get workers to produce and follow orders in order to meet production objectives and goals. This creates hierarchies and official power can be identified and utilised in order to make the best of technology and attain results.
Human Relations Theory – A Modern/Social Approach to Management
The Hawthorne Studies by Elton Mayo indicated that human beings increase output when they realize they are being observed. This indicates that paying attention to the needs of workers provides the basis for the improvement and enhancement of productivity and results in an organisation. This theory formed the basis for the understanding that management must look at the social needs of workers rather than a mere view of instructions and rules that get them to work to achieve specific results. Human needs are important.
Theory X & Y by Douglas McGregor – A Modern/Social Approach to Management
Douglas McGregor identified that there are two components of management – the human side and the production side. The human side, portrayed by Theory Y managers examine the concerns for workers and what they need or desire. On the other hand, Theory X managers only focus on results and production. There is no sensitivity to the needs of workers. Thus, management is best if there is a blend of the two theories in order to attain the interest of both the employer and employee.
Leadership
Leadership refers to the process of moving people from one point to another. This is the process whereby a vision is established and people are guided and assisted to work to attain the vision. Leadership refers to the process whereby a person gets his followers to move in a direction that is predetermined and attain specific results with them. Leadership differs from management on the grounds that a leader has the flexibility to define a vision and mission which followers work with in order to attain a specific goal, this is a flexibility that most managers do not have.
Therefore, in most firms, leaders are viewed as strategic authorities and this includes directors and senior executives who set the vision, mission and strategy for the organisation. On the other hand, managers are tasked with the process of implementing strategy by setting limits and working within the scope of the vision and mission set by the strategic leaders.
There are various styles of leadership. This includes autocratic, democratic and laissez faire leadership. Autocratic leadership refers to a form of leadership where the leader makes decisions without consulting or the inclusion of the followers. Autocratic leaders exercise their autonomy in isolation. And this is done without much care or concern for people who follow him. In organisations, this happens where leaders just make rules and impose them upon workers.
Democratic leaders on the other hand include and ensure the participation of employees. This is a process whereby the inputs of employees are taken through surveys and other data collection measures and processes. Democratic leaders often go by what others say and they put things into voting.
On the other hand, laissez-faire leadership is viewed as a form of contingent leadership where the leader goes with the things that come up in practice. They take decisions and make choices on the basis of what happens and what emerges. And this is one where there are no rigid or tough laws that must be followed at all times.
Motivational Theories
Motivation is what incites and excites a person to do one thing at a given point in time instead of another. Motivation is about what preoccupies the mind of a person and gives a person a desire to commit a high level of attention and interest in operating and working within an organisational context to attain results. In the organisational context, motivation provides the basis for workers to commit their time, resources and attention to production in order to contribute to the firm’s goals and results.
Intrinsic motivation refers to the things that are driven by internal rewards. This include the various things that are inspired by people who believe something will be internally rewarding rather than what will be given from the outside. These are internal desires and expectations that are met through the work in the organisation. Extrinsic motivation on the other hand refers to things that happen which are driven by external rewards like money, fame, praise and other things. Extrinsic motivation refers to what a person will get by accomplishing certain tasks. There could be promotion, salary and other things that come a person’s way after accomplishing something. On the other hand an example of intrinsic motivation include a sense of self-accomplishment and enjoyment of specific tasks that are carried out on the job.
Motivational Theories
There are different motivational theories that are used to explain the way and manner in which people get charged and desirous to do certain tasks. One of them is the Maslow Hierarchy of Needs. This theory argues that the human being has different needs, desires and aspirations at different points in time. And as one need is met in the hierarchy, humans strive for another. They are grouped in ascending order as follows
(1) The basic physiological needs,
(2) Safety needs,
(3) Social belonging needs,
(4) Esteem needs and
(5) Self-actualization. At each level, the requirements for igniting motivation are unique with the needs at the lower stages, very little rewards can meet motivational needs.
McClellan’s Acquired Needs Theory identifies that some needs are as a result of life experiences. We have different needs based on certain stages and aspects of life that we have. Thus, there is the need for a sense of achievement and affiliation and power and control. These are all needs that inspires people to move to take up certain actions and do things in order to achieve specific ends. They affect the way people think and the way they do things in order to achieve results and goals and this can be tied to a firm’s results and operations.
Teamwork in Organisations
Group dynamics refers to a system of behaviours and psychological processes that occur when people work together in an organisation. It refers to the interaction within a social group and between one group and another. This provides a way of defining the nature and features of the group and how it works to ensure that it contributes to the overall development and results of the organisation.
Teamwork on the other hand refers to the combined action of a group of people put together to perform a specific task. Team work is about coming together for a specific goal or end. Teams are often of a temporary nature and they are formed to achieve a specific goal. When that goal is achieved, the team is disbanded. Thus, a typical example is the case of a project team that is dissolved right after the project. On the other hand, groups are permanent in nature and in the process of group dynamic studies how they work together for the long-term betterment of an organisation.
The tools for effective teamwork include
Trust,
Conflict resolution,
Accountability,
Commitment and
Results.
These are things that have to be streamlined and evaluated in order to ensure that the team and its parties work together for the attainment of results. They all come together to form the main building blocks for communication and interaction in order to work together for the attainment of effective results.
Trust refers to a situation where parties work together and stand up for each other’s goals and needs. Conflicts come up, but they ought to be resolved in order to make the team functional. Group members must be accountable individually and collectively. On the other hand, commitment of members must be sought at all times and results must be reviewed and evaluated individually and collectively.
There are many types of teams. This include departmental teams which work within a specific scope and framework of the organisation. There are problem solving teams that are formed to solve specific cases and issues. Also, cross-functional teams are formed to include members with different skills and expertise meant to work to achieve specific goals and ends.
Tuckman identifies that there are five main stages of team development and this includes:
Forming
Storming
Norming
Performing and
Dorming
The steps towards forming effective teams begin with forming a clear and common goal for the team members. This way, they know what to focus on and will work to achieve that end. After that, the commitment of each team member and motivation is necessary to ensure that they all give off their best. Communication is important throughout the team building process and this must be complemented by a good and positive leadership.
Technology has revolutionized the way teams can work together. It works mainly in the form of better communication. This involves the fact that teams can communicate with each other more regularly and keep data that could otherwise not be kept and gathered. Technology provides fast and accurate information that can be verified and reviewed by the team members from time to time. This also serves as evidence and provides the basis for hard work and for focus and interactivity. It also helps to apply new innovations in order to get people to provide and share information in the workplace and other interactions in groups and teams.
Works Cited
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Barto, Andrew, G. “Intrinsic Motivation and Reinforcement Learning.” Intrinsically Motivated Learning in Natural and Artificial Systems (2012): 17-47.
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