Organizational Behavior

Jenna Doucet (2010).

Organizational Behavior

One of the most important success factors for an organization is the management’s ability to successfully apply organizational behavior theories and practices. Organizational behavior is about understanding the needs of individuals. Within the modern concept of organizational function, new trends and terms are beginning to emerge to describe how organizations achieve their goals. The concepts of organizational culture, diversity, corporate social responsibility, organizational effectiveness and efficiency, and organizational learning are terms receiving much attention in the corporate world (McShane, 2006).

Many organizations rely on their corporate culture to stay ahead of competition. Pool (2000) proposes that an organization’s culture can positively reinforce the practice of optimal praxis and behaviors within an organization. One of the responsibilities of management is to maintain and establish a positive culture. A good leader establishes a positive and healthy organizational culture by motivating his or her subordinates to perform at a high- level, by promoting open communication, and establishing positive authority. "Management is about human beings. Its task is to make people capable of joint performance, to make their strengths effective and, their weaknesses irrelevant. This is what an organization is about, and the reason which management is the critical, determining factor"(Drucker, 1990, p. 221).

Diversity is another large success driver in a company. Diversity is about more than race and gender; it is about differences in religions, cultural beliefs, capabilities, individual needs, and more. Bazile-Jones (1996) notes, “ In the past, many have considered diversity issues to be the domain of politicians and social engineers who have focused on legal and regulatory solutions to ensure workplace diversity and enhance social welfare” (p. 9). The author argues that today diversity is the prerogative of all organizations. The author also explains that globalization has shifted our entire views on organizations. If Canadian firms and individuals, “ are to achieve sustainable commercial advantage domestically and globally, we must understand how diversity, as one of our intellectual assets, can contribute to long-term organizational health and survival” (p.9). Incorporating diversity as an organizational value can make an organization attractive to others that value diversity, can provide new business opportunities, can create added value to customer support and can foster flexibility and innovation (Bazile-Jones, 1996).

To thrive in the public’s eye, a company must meet certain social responsibility requirements; the organization must consider where it can provide value beyond its products and services (Bateman & Snell, 2007). Consumers and employees want to work for and buy products and services they can feel good about. When an individual works for an organization that does good for the world, he or she is more motivated to perform in the best interest of the company. When a consumer purchases a product or a service from a company that promotes social responsibility, he or she will feel better about their purchase and will want to support the organization with his or her business.

Globalization is not only a driving force in diversity issues but it also plays a big role in an organization’s effectiveness and efficiency. Because more organizations are going global, being efficient and effective for a customer base is critical in staying ahead of the competition. One of the Key ways to take advantage of the global market is to embark in new initiatives through the optimization of how and where products are built. Another area that contributes to effectiveness and efficiency is an organizations willingness to be flexible with their employment and the employee’s willingness to manage his or her own career and develop new competencies. This concept is known as employability (McShane, 2006).

One of the most important aspects in an organization is the interaction of knowledge within the company. Today companies make use of knowledge management to structure their organization’s ability to acquire and share knowledge. An organization depends on human capital; the knowledge held by employees, structural capital; the knowledge attained within an organization’s structure, and relationship capital; the value knowledge gained from an organization’s outside relationships and influences from customers, suppliers and others. An organization that has adapted to a learning approach has the ability to create a flow of information and communication between each source of knowledge (McShane, 2006).

An organization can achieve great success by balancing both internally and externally the components above. Whether the organization is creating value by ensuring employees are striving to reach the organization’s goals, or promoting diversity, and learning to ensure employees are educated with the knowledge to address the needs of each customer.


References

Bateman, T. & Snell, S. (2007). Management: Leading and collaborating in a
competitive world (7th ed.) New York: McGraw-Hill.

Bazile- Jones, R. (1996, June). Diversity in the workplace: why should we care. CMA
Magazine 70(5), 9-12. Retrieved January 27, 2010 from Ebsco-Host database.

Drucker, P. (1990). The New Realities. Mandarin: London. Retrieved January 26, 2010
from Ebsco-Host database.

McShane, L. (2006). Canadian organizational behavior (6th ed.). Canada: McGraw-Hill Ryerson

Pool, S. (2000). The learning organization: motivating employees by integrating TQM
philosophy in a supportive organizational culture. Leadership & Organization
Development Journal. 21(8), 373-378. Retrieved January 27, 2010 from General OneFile via Gale.