1.10 Organizational Approaches

Organizations behave in specific ways, as do individuals and teams within organizations, depending on their culture, power, politics, structure, and human resources.

Culture of Organizations

Shared beliefs and values shape the culture of organizations. Values are stable beliefs that guide the organization on a type of action. Shared values are the values the employees hold as a unit within the organization. Shared assumptions are unconscious perceptions of expected behaviours that are correct for a specific organization. The success of an organization is partly dependent on culture. They tend to be more successful with a strong culture.  It aids in influencing employee’s decisions and behaviour and is the “glue” that holds the company together through bonds and a sense of belonging.

Its ethics and codes of conduct often influence the culture of an organization. Good behaviour is the essence of ethical values. Improving the ethics and conduct of employees can often lead to a more robust culture. Changing a culture can be successful by implementing the following:

1. Owners and Executive Leaders model values and ethics that are expected of other employees
2. Align artifacts with the culture that is desired
3. Reward employees and recognize employees for modelling the expected culture
4. Build a solid and stable workforce
5. Hire employees who share the same values and ethics as the organization

Power

Power is the capacity of the organization to influence its employees.  Legitimate power is an agreement the members of an organization make to display certain behaviours.  Sometimes this is through a job description or directives given by supervisors. Communication is a form of legitimate power.  Filtering information up and down the hierarchy that is transparent and truthful can influence the company’s behaviour.

Social networks can be powerful.  Each department is interdependent with another department. They are connected. They tend to be more assertive when departments have common goals, spend more time together, and exhibit the same values. Other standard networks can be formed through education, occupation interests, or outside-of-work interests.

Politics

Organizational politics is the influence employees or certain employees have related to influencing other employees. It can be used to improve one’s or the organization’s interests individually. Some employees have more political skills than others.  These individuals tend to gain more personal power and have more impact on the organization. Some organizational politics is considered good, while others may view it as harmful.

An example is a supervisor who uses power to complete an overdue project.  The employees may need to work overtime, feel rushed, and are stressed.  The supervisor sees using their power as a good thing to complete the project, while the employees see the use of power as a bad thing, making them tired and angry.

Structure

The structure of an organization means the division of labour, how the company coordinates and communicates to its employees, and how the workflow is established.  It emphasizes what the priorities are related to money, power, and information. Structure does include hierarchical charts of reporting.  However, it also includes rules and standards, information flow, relationships, and job design. How a company is structured allows executive members to set up expected behaviours of the employees that align with the vison of the company. A company President who has complaints about customer service from the public may re-align the structure and have the Customer Service Manager report directly to them rather than through another Senior Executive.  This allows the President to be involved regularly of customer service decisions.

Human Resources (the employees)

A company structure includes a division of labour and a coordinator of its tasks.  Division of labour is the dividing up of jobs that are assigned to specific employees. This leads to job specialization.  Each job has a specific set of tasks required to complete a product or service. Job specialization increases productivity for the company. Less time is wasted, employees learn the job quickly and training costs are reduced with specialization.  When jobs are divided, everyone must work in harmony or coordinate work tasks. Standardization, good communication and a formal reporting system are the foundations of coordination of tasks.

Communication

Communication is the process of information being transmitted and understood between two or more people. People can only work together effectively when they can communicate effectively. Accurate communication affects how well a company coordinates its efforts (products, services, operations). As well it plays a role in learning. How information comes to the organization and is disseminated helps with decision-making. Who needs to communicate?  Everyone in the organization.

Communication can impact people’s beliefs and values.  “How” something is communicated affects people’s behaviour or can change a person’s behaviour.  As well, communication supports employee’s wellness. Effective communication helps employees manage their work.

There are many communication channels within organizations.  Today’s society relies on computer-based technology, including emails, wikis, podcasts, intranet, videoconferencing, phone, etc.  Sometimes, workers feel “information overload.” Employees need to choose the best communication medium for a specific situation.  If an employee is disciplined, it is important to make the discussion personal.  A videoconference is a better choice than a telephone call to ensure the parties can see and hear each other.

Non-verbal communication includes intonations, facial gestures, hand movements and sometimes even silence. A great deal of information is transferred non-verbally. These cues are subtle signals to other parties who are listening. Often, people understand the non-verbal cues; and yet, sometimes, they can be ambiguous and misunderstood.