Organizational Behavior and Leadership (AMU-MBAO6013 – 01 – June 2022)
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One of the challenges of being a manager is organizational conflict. Several levels of organizational conflict include employee vs. employee, employee vs. manager, manager vs. manager and manager vs. executive. Five approaches to organizational conflict can help defuse a potentially bad situation, and get both sides back to working together on company issues.
Ignoring Issue
Not all conflict needs to be addressed, according to the Reference for Business. If the immediate manager in a situation feels that the issue being raised is trivial and not a threat to company productivity, then one of the acceptable approaches is to just ignore the situation and move on to more important company business. If the issue does not re-surface, then ignoring it was the right approach, but if the issue continues to come up and be disruptive then the issue will need to be dealt with.
Clearing Air
A conflict may result when one party does not feel that his point of view is being properly represented. The conflict can be resolved by allowing that party to voice his opinion and get his point of view into the conversation. Clearing the air also helps when two parties are in conflict, but neither are listening to each other. The issue may be resolved by forcing each party to listen, and they may be able to find a common ground once they understand each point of view.
Compromise
If you feel that each party involved in a conflict has a valid point, then it would be a good idea to have the parties strike a compromise. In a compromise, each side gets a little of what they want and each party has to give in on some of the things they want. When mediating a compromise it is important to be fair with both sides. If one side is being unreasonable, then a compromise may not be possible.
De-Escalation
One approach to organizational conflict is getting the situation to de-escalate before it gets out of hand, according to Conflict 911. Introduce a calm demeanor to the negotiation, and encourage all parties to approach the conflict with respect for each other. Use professional language and disqualify anyone from the negotiation that continues to escalate the situation. As emotions get under control, you may find it easier to negotiate a settlement.
Enforced Resolution
In some cases a conflict may not benefit from negotiation, compromise or de-escalation. When the two sides of a conflict will not negotiate, it may be necessary for a manager or executive to step in and give a resolution to both sides. In some cases the threat of an enforced resolution may inspire both sides to consider compromise. If that does not happen, then a resolution is given to both sides and enforced by the company.
But to compromise, make sure :
1. Truly listen to the other side.
As with so many things in business, successful compromises are dependent on successful listening. Before you can find out where the “middle ground” is, you need to know where the opposing side is. What is it that the other party wants? And why? What points of disagreement does that party have with your side, and what makes him or her feel that way? In some cases, this level of understanding may be all you need to defuse the situation. For example, you may be able to present an entirely new argument or disprove an assumption the opposing party previously held. Other times, your new argument may give you a good starting point to construct a compromise.
2. Understand how important the issue is to you.
Next, figure out how important this issue is to you. For example, if this is a client deal that could either bring your company a million dollars in new revenue or tarnish your reputation, the stakes are high. If instead this is a part-time employee unhappy with his or her work schedule, you probably don’t care nearly as much. This should help you decide how much time and effort to invest in the deal.
How the Skills of the Employees Affect Their Performance in Relation to Work
Your company’s hiring process usually includes questions and tests to measure a candidate’s aptitude and basic skills. As that candidate develops into an employee, those skills become important in determining his ability to perform his job. Employee development uses an employee’s existing skill set and expands on it to help that employee perform his job more efficiently. A manager needs to understand how each employee’s skill affects work performance to develop effective employee development programs.
Planning
An employee skill set creates an understanding of work duties and how to effectively perform daily job tasks. When an employee has an adequate skill set, she is better equipped to plan each day’s activities so that she can reach her production goals. The employee works with her manager to make sure that the employee has the proper skills to execute daily work plans. The manager helps to develop employee development programs to maintain the skill set needed to reach corporate goals.
Comprehension
The comprehension of work duties is tied directly to the employee’s skill set. if the employee has the proper skills in place, then he is able to understand his job and what is expected of him. Employee production drops when there is a gap between what the employee needs to know and his existing skill set. Employee training can help to improve comprehension by filling in the skills that are missing.
Safety
An effective employee needs to have a broad skill set that includes an understanding of corporate safety procedures. The employee also needs to have a comprehensive understanding of the safety guidelines for her individual job as well. An incomplete skill set that does not include safety training makes job performance potentially dangerous. Without the proper safety skills, the employee could injure herself and others.
Advancement
Ambitious employees are constantly looking to improve their skill set so that they may advance within the company. A proactive employee develops an advanced skill set that allows him to become proficient in his current job while attempting to move into a better-paying position. When employees actively seek a more-advanced skill set to move up in the company, the organization benefits through higher productivity and the ability to save on human resources expenses by promoting from within.
Q1) Change Management and Conflict Resolution
It is recommended practise in any organisational change to base decisions solely on visible data. This is to develop a transparent organisation, which is a major aspect in encouraging staff to work together. Because the case shown above involves a significant change in the organisation, a careful selection of data to support the decisions to be made is required. To back up the choice, both qualitative and quantitative data should be acquired, which can include the following:<b style=”background-color: var(–bb-content-background-color); font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; color: inherit;”>
- List of current tasks and deliverables, including the number of man hours required for each employee to fulfil the activity. This can provide a clear indication of the tasks performed by personnel as well as the efforts required, and can be used as a foundation to streamline operations and eliminate activities that do not focus on value when designing the new organisational structure.
- Career development plans for each employee should also be reviewed to determine the employees’ career goals. If one does not exist, managers should collaborate with their staff to create one. This career development plan will aid in establishing and aligning future job assignments and upskilling requirements for individuals with the new organisational structure. This will substantially aid in staff retention and employee acceptance of the changes, assuring the success of the organisational transition.
- Employee satisfaction surveys, for example, are used to measure what employees are and are not happy with. Areas of satisfaction should be leveraged while designing the new organisational structure, while areas of unhappiness should be enhanced. This reorganisation exercise has the potential to improve personnel satisfaction, retention, and, ultimately, performance.
In order to maximise the success of the targeted organisational change. The 8-step Kotter method can be employed. Here is a description of the eight phases and activities that could be undertaken to support this organisational change:
1. Instill a sense of urgency
The reasons for organisational changes must be clearly and freely conveyed to employees in order for them to understand why the change is necessary and what the consequences will be if this change is not implemented.
2. Form a steering alliance.
A steering group comprised of representatives from all levels of the organisation concerned is required to enable the seamless implementation of this organisational reform. These individuals can act as change agents to promote organisational transformation and as subject matter experts (SPOCs) to help disseminate information and obtain input from their teams.
3. Establish a strategic vision and initiatives.
For this organisational transition, a clear vision and mission statement must be developed and distributed to each team.
4. Communicate to gain buy-in
The usage of collaterals such as button badges or posters on the walls to promote the vision and mission of the change is also significant. Through incentive schemes, behaviours that reflect adoption of these new ways are rewarded.
5. Empower Action
Help in removing barriers that would otherwise impede the organization’s change from succeeding. If upskilling or reskilling is required, such programmes should include everyone who may be affected by the organisational change.
6. Create Short-Term Victories
Quick wins are the most effective strategy to gain people’s support. These low-hanging fruits can be used to swiftly demonstrate the value of an organisational transformation. People will be more willing to join and adopt a change if they can see the benefits for themselves. Instead of implementing this organisational change in a large bang, the smallest portions can be implemented first so employees can see the benefits, such as the usage of automation, which can save them time.
7. Moving forward
Move forward with substantial elements of the initiative once you have obtained buy-in from stage 6. This step should be easier with help, especially if the project is significant.
8. Make Change Last
The new organisational structure and manner of functioning should be standard, and the old way should be abandoned. The new policy should be entrenched and made the official way ahead.
- This reply was modified 1 year, 2 months ago by
Choi Jia Ying Jane.
Yes i do agree with you. Based on my experience in handling and leading change management program, our main reference is the visible and factual data only. The best part to ensure that we are on the right path is by benchmarking our initiative with other organisation
2. Diversity in the Workplace
Diversity keeps things fresh, exciting, and moving forward. Interacting with a wide range of people can help stimulate your thinking and present thoughts and viewpoints that you might not have discovered on your own.
Recognizing diversity in your daily life can assist you in seeing the world in new and unusual ways. Diversity is a crucial component of every organisation, and it is critical to understand how it affects the workforce. Understanding diversity can help us operate better in groups or teams and provides insight into an organization’s behaviour.
Here are some of the Strategies to embracing diversity in the workplace.
- Start a dialogue
Embracing diversity is a complex topic for leadership to start. However, the very fact that you are a leader in the business means the system works for you; any biases have worked in your favour. Bring your leadership together and explicitly explain the benefits of diversity and how it impacts their teams. You need to set the tone and message for the broader business. Encourage your leaders to speak with their teams, emphasising listening. You won’t solve the problems overnight, but an open and frank dialogue will let you know where your organisation needs to improve
2. Embrace transparency<div>
It’s essential to be completely transparent with your staff about where the company is with diversity and inclusion and what steps are underway to improve the situation. Failure to do so will leave staff feeling that not enough is being done, or worse, misaligned activities are not remedied. In addition, your leadership team is critical in driving diversity, equity and inclusion and should be well enough informed to keep their teams abreast of organisational activities, goals and performance.
3. Be on the lookout for bias in decision making
Whilst unconscious bias can affect any group, some are disproportionately harmed, such as people with disabilities, people of colour and members of the LGBTQ community. Discrimination against groups such as these take many forms other than hiring; it can affect performance management, succession planning, the delegation of duties and recognition. The decisions types above show that unconscious biases can make or break careers, so leaders must create a culture where diverse viewpoints are encouraged. Therefore leaders must be purposeful in seeking out people who have opposing views, delegate equitably, and proactively identify development opportunities for all staff.
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In my opinion, diversity play a crucial part in all organisation as the more diverse the demographic in the organisation, more creative idea and program can be generated. As we look nowdays, women start to take up leadership role which give new perspective in leading the organisation.
i agree with u.. As employees will have different backgrounds and characteristics, it also means that their skills, experiences and abilities are likely to be different as well which can mean you have a very well-rounded team. This is also great from a learning perspective as they will have access to these different perspectives and so will enable them to widen their experience and learning. This also means that your employees are more likely to come together and combine to come up with more innovative and creative ideas, because your teams won’t be homogenous.
3. Individual and Group Behavioral Theories Applied to the Workplace
INTP personalities, in my opinion, will be most suited in remote location/virtual team workplace circumstances. Working from home necessitates an independent and loyal personality. Because there will be no supervision like in a regular job. Individual must be organised, self-sufficient, and faithful in carrying out their assigned tasks.
Because we may not receive appropriate direction or coaching from our superiors most of the time when working electronically, the individual must be an abstract thinker, rational, and objective focused. Although INTP personalities are introverted, they can mingle with a limited group of familiar teammates that share common aims, interests, or connections. These are the people who can make decisions based on logic, objectives, and analysed evidence rather than personal feelings. They are also creative thinkers.
How does the balance between individuality and conformity affect individuals in a team environment? How much structure do you feel is appropriate for a successful team?
The team will benefit from a balance of individuality and conformity that is neither extreme individualism nor severe uniformity. It is necessary since it will lead to team success. For example, if everyone has an opportunity to speak up, it generates ideas and solutions that will help the team succeed. The balance of originality and conformity allows individuals to speak freely, and everyone shows respect by listening and paying attention, resulting in a psychologically comfortable environment inside the team.
For the case working remotely, I think the best structure would be horizontal organisation structure due to the nature of mostly working individually, this gives employees more responsibility.
Considering the Big Five personality assessment model (OCEAN), to what extent do you believe these traits would be impacted if the work environment were to be changed to a strictly-structured physical workplace setting?
- openness
The majority of high organisational performers are bored by workplace routine and the organization’s low level of creativity enhancement. Complex organisations offer few opportunities for new ideas to be implemented. When there are hierarchical systems in the workplace, it limits employees’ innovation while keeping them comfortable.
- Conscientiousness
High performers in the organisation tend to organise their adventures properly. Well-structured organisations comprised of conscientious individuals work well due to the organization’s preparedness as the organisation is efficiently organised and guides the goal achievement-based Workplace. Individuals are focused on achieving the organisational aim.
- Extraversion
- Agreeableness
Extraversion is characterised by excitability, friendliness, talkativeness, aggressiveness, and a high level of emotional expressiveness (or extroversion). People that are extraverted are outgoing and thrive in social situations. When they are in the presence of others, they become energised and happy.
Low extraversion (or introversion) people are more reserved in social circumstances and have less energy to expend. Introverts frequently need time alone and in silence to “recharge” after engaging in social activities.
Individuals with the highest level of agreeability in the organisation are always ready to carry out activities and ensure peaceful coexistence. Individuals in the organisation exhibit a great level of patience and are more concerned with the organisation than with personal interests. Individuals with low agreeableness scores are prone to conflicts and self-interest.
- Neuroticism
Individuals with high levels of neuroticism are typically gloomy in organisations, with a lot of sadness, negative feelings, and psychology. When negative emotions are activated, they perform poorly and are more likely to develop anxiety, aggressiveness, and depression. Individuals who suffer from neuroticism are frequently fragile and weak under stressful situations. Neuroticism influences others around us as well as people’s perceptions of the world.
- This reply was modified 1 year, 2 months ago by Choi Jia Ying Jane.
i agreed with u. other than that group behavior and individual behavior differ in numerous ways. Individual behavior is often more rational in the sense that a person can think things through independently. By contrast, in groups, behavior often becomes emotional, as people react to each other and try to fit in.
4. Leadership and Management
Among the interviewers, I would choose the CEO as the person who I will best to work with. He seem to be a supportive leader, friendly and shows concerns for the employee. It will be less stressful and employees would likely to be more willing to share ideas and opinion to the leader.
What combination of leadership style, role, and trait would be best for the following business situations?
- A company with routine and unskilled job functions: An leadership would be suitable for this job function as the job would be routine and bored it is that some of the employees would loaf on the job due to lack of motivation. Hence, high would be required so to ensure the work efficiency.
- A company with dangerous job functions (toxic waste handling or heavy equipment operation) : Bureaucratic leaders work “by the book,” ensuring that their employees adhere to strict processes. This is an excellent choice for a job that involves significant safety risks (such as dealing with machines, dangerous substances, or at heights) or huge sums of money (such as cash handling).
- Company preparing to disrupt an existing market with ground-breaking technology: Democratic leadership would be suitable in this. Although a democratic leader makes the final decision, the leader would invites team members to participate in the decision-making process. This not only increases job satisfaction by involving employees or team members in the process, but it also helps people grow their talents. Employees and team members believe they have control over their own destiny and are driven to work hard for reasons other than monetary gain. Because participation requires time, this method may take longer than an autocratic approach, but the end result is frequently superior. It works well in situations where collaboration is essential and quality takes precedence above speed to market or productivity.
- A company preparing for an IPO: Transformational leadership would be suitable for company preparing for IPO due to the leaders are extremely visible and often communicate. They don’t always take the lead since they prefer to delegate control to their teams. While their enthusiasm is contagious, they may require the help of “detail people.” Many businesses require both transactional and revolutionary leadership. Transactional leaders (or managers) ensure that routine activities are accomplished on schedule, whereas transformational leaders direct initiatives that generate new value.
- This reply was modified 1 year, 2 months ago by Choi Jia Ying Jane.
Agree with you, I chose the to work with CEO too. We have the same preferences. In my opinion, the CEO is using Coach-Style Leadership. This type of leadership focuses on identifying and nurturing individual strengths.
Being a good manager requires strong interpersonal skills, as communication is crucial, as one must manage different types of resources: people, money, and time in order to achieve specific goals.
A Manager’s Four Main Functions
Planning function refers to setting goals, creating strategies, and preparation of plans that make different activities work coherently and effectively.
Organising function concerns tasks identification and division, assignment of tasks to individuals, setting reporting and decision- making systems.
Leading function relates to motivating workers and directing others’ actions, choosing communication canals and solving conflicts.
Controlling function refers to controlling others’ work outcomes and checking whether everything is being done as planned; and when necessary undertaking corrective actions.
Management roles
They can be divided into 3 main categories: interpersonal roles, informational roles and decisional roles. The concept was developed by Henry Mintzberg and is called Mintzberg’s Managerial Roles.
Management skills
There are 3 types of management skills developed by Robert Katz: Technical skills (application of specialised knowledge, know-how, e.g. think of mechanical engineer, vet, pharmacist), human skills (easiness to work in a team, understand others’ behaviors and motives, stimulate others’ actions, ability to communicate and get along with people), conceptual skills (mental capability to analyse problems, manage complexity of an issue, decide on solutions and evaluation of possibilities).
Effective or successful managers?
It was investigated in Luthans’ Study of Managerial Activities that effective managers spend most of their time on communication activities (44%) and on human resource management activities (26%). In contrast, successful managers spend almost half of their working time on networking activities (48%) and communication activities (28%). It is understandable that average managers work most of the time on traditional management (32%) and on communication activities (29%).
i agree with your opinion. because Having good interpersonal skills <b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; color: inherit;”>promotes approachability, likability and comfort. Managers who possess strong interpersonal skills motivate their staff to challenge themselves and do a better job. Most importantly, they make workers feel as if they can go to their bosses with any problems or concerns.
Attitudes
Attitudes are evaluations, judgments, opinions about people/objects/states/events. There are 3 main components of attitudes:
cognitive
affective
behavioral
Cognitive refers to just describing things how we see them, e.g. “I have a job”. Affective is related to emotions and feelings, e.g. when one says: “I am so happy with my job”. Behavioral refers to intentions, actions, e.g. when one says “I will never resign from my job” or “I am looking for another job”. All components are related, cognitive and affective aspects of attitudes are inseparable. As one sees attitudes and behaviors are connected, certain attitude leads always/sometimes/often/never to certain behavior.
At this point, the notion of cognitive dissonance appears – it is the reverse effect – when attitude follows behavior. It is explained as inconsistency between attitudes or between behavior and attitude (e.g. advising others to drive slowly when you drive fast yourself). What influences dissonance is: its importance, influence of one’s values, rewards of dissonance.
Major Job Attitudes
Job satisfaction: a positive feeling about one’s job according to an evaluation of its characteristics.
Job involvement (level of identification with the job, caring for and participation in it and considering it as important for “self”).
Another notion in this part is psychological empowerment – it expresses the belief in the level of one’s influence on his work setting, abilities, his work importance and locus of control.
Organisational commitment (employee’s identification with the company’s goals, corporate culture, strategy, mission, values, vision and willingness to preserve his belonging to the organization)
Affective – emotional connection with the company and its values
Continuance – perceived financial benefit resulting from staying rather leaving a firm/company
Normative – feeling obliged to stay in a company because of moral/ethical matters
Perceived organisational support (POS) – level of employee’s conviction and belief that the organisation supports him, appreciates his work and cares for his comfort, security, and happiness.
Employee engagement – employee’s enthusiasm for the work he does, satisfaction with it and his commitment to his work.
Yes, to add, there are 5 examples of positive attitudes
We can cultivate a positive mentality through the way we think and act. Here are some examples of a positive attitude in action:
1. Changing your perspective
Your perspective has a powerful influence on your life and happiness. Ordinary things you do day to day can either be an opportunity or a burden.
Let’s say you’re cooking dinner for your family tonight. At first, this may seem like a chore. You think to yourself, “I have to make dinner.” But what if you reframed that thought? Instead of saying “I have to,” start saying “ I get to.”
In other words, think of this moment as a privilege worth cherishing. You have a family that you get to spend time with.
2. Smiling and being kind to others
Positive people typically make friends and get along with others easily. People are drawn to them because of their consistently friendly demeanor and integrity.
For example, a leader with a positive mental attitude smiles and treats their employees with respect even if they’ve had a bad day. Their kindness to others is independent of the circumstances they currently find themselves in.
3. Practicing self-compassion
Being kind to yourself is just as important as showing others kindness.
Engaging in self-care practices that enhance your holistic well-being is how you take care of yourself. For example, start practicing positive self-talk each morning using positive affirmations. Phrases like “ I am confident” or “I am proud of myself” build your self-esteem and influence your subconscious mind.
4. Not taking things personally
Having a positive attitude means not taking things personally. Other people’s words and actions are only a reflection of who they are. As soon as you take something to heart, you give that person power over you.
As Eleanor Roosevelt elegantly put it, “No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.”
For instance, let’s say you greet a colleague in the office, and you’re met with a hostile attitude. Instead of being offended and holding a grudge, you decide not to take it personally. Maybe your colleague was having a bad day or received some bad news. Their attitude was simply a reflection of how they were feeling.
5. Being happy for others’ success
Someone with a positive mindset isn’t in competition with other people. They understand that they’re on their own unique journey, and someone else’s success doesn’t undermine their own.
For example, if your friend found their dream job before you, celebrate their accomplishment in a sincere way. Their win should make you feel motivated, not jealous.
Job satisfaction
Job satisfaction can be measured in two ways:
Single global rating method (survey participants answer one question: How satisfied are you with your job?)
Summary of job facets (makes an employee evaluate each element of a job), possible facets can be salary, communication with co- workers and with supervisor, amount of days off, etc.
The first, “one-question” method is fast and inexpensive. The second one (summary of job facets) is more accurate, allows the identification of the core problems and makes it easier to create possible solutions.
What makes employees satisfied with their job?
The fact that they enjoy their work
Interesting jobs that provide training, variety, independence and control
Most people prefer challenging over easy and various over routine
In general, most of the time is the nature of job that makes one satisfied with work. However, also personality is an important factor influencing job satisfaction. It is essential to have positive core self-evaluations (which are one’s evaluations of his possibilities, abilities, and strengths).
Once a person achieves a level of payment that allows for him comfortable living, the relationship between pay and job satisfaction does not exist any longer.
One more thing is high job satisfaction is also linked to performance, which in turn is linked to higher profits. Those employees who feel happy and content in their roles are much more likely to approach the tasks that they need to carry out with enthusiasm and dedication.
Nature of personality
Before going deeper into the subject, we define the term personality as one’s total sum of behaviors, reactions, and interactions with others. In organisations, HRM departments use personality tests to measure and forecast the behavior of prospective employee.
The common method of measuring personality is self-report survey – one evaluates himself on different variables. The other means of personality measurement is the observer-rating survey, which is a more independent assessment – a person observes and rates personality of another person (employee, prospective employee, etc). Claimed to be more successful in the context of organisations.
Personality results from heredity and interactions with an environment. People’s personalities can change over the course of time. Moreover, the notion of personality traits appears at this point – these traits are enduring, rather unchanging attributes that characterise behavior. If one is often shy and/or aggressive and performs these behaviors often, we can call shyness and/or aggression his personality traits.
Models which organise traits
There are two main models which recognise and organise traits:
The Myers- Briggs Type Indicator
Big Five Model
The Myers- Briggs Type Indicator the most common personality-assessment tool. It’s a test which consists of 100 questions related to behaviors, feelings, and attitudes in different situations. After doing the test, a person can be classified to the following groups:
Extroverted or introverted – extraverted types are gregarious, social, assertive, outgoing
Sensing or intuitive – sensing types like routine, are practical-oriented, pay attention to details
Thinking or feeling – thinking types are logical and analytical when facing problems
Judging or perceiving – judging types like the ordered, structured world, need for control
Disadvantages of the model: a person must be classified either to one type or another –cannot be in-between the types, and do not reflect job performance.
Big Five Model personality-assessment tool which recognises 5 aspects:
Extraversion: reflect one’s level of comfort with relationships
Agreeableness -> describing someone who is warm, cooperative, easily reaches compromises and is trusting.
Conscientiousness -> describing someone who is organised, determined, responsible and reliable.
Emotional stability -> handling stress measure. Negative emotional stability relates to people who get angry/nervous/upset easily, irritated quickly, feel insecure, and lack confidence.
Openness to experience -> describes curiosity of world or some of its aspects, creativity, interest in innovations, novelties.
Studies have demonstrated the relationship between personality dimensions and job performance. Critique: the Big Five model does not represent all relevant traits that a personality can have.
Analyzing the employees’ personality during the screening process is very important now to see either it is suit and fit with their position role as to ensure the sustainability and the productivity of the company in a long-term growth.
Q1
I would follow the 5 steps of data collection and analyzing which are:
Step 1: Strategy.
Step 2: Identify key areas.
Step 3: Data targeting.
Step 4: Collecting and analyzing.
Step 5: Action Items.
The data that I would like to collect will be the data or information of the roles and responsibility of each department. This are to determine the basic need of the functional department in the organization. It will also determine the responsibility of that department in the organization. It will be a assess whether there are the duplication of roles and responsibility. This can be excess through the job scope or description.
The centralization of Finance and HR
I will plan for the merger. Planning is essential to avoid any unpredictable cause during merger. Then will choose the cultural agenda. The new structure may follow one side culture more closely or may create a blend of cultures. The bottom line is to define the cultural agenda. Then will find the pain points combining 2 teams as together. Perform SWOT for the team. Then I will diagnose the similarities / differences of team. Merger will sure anticipate and expect some hick up along the way. Find way to solve along the way through open communication. During the merger, involve employees in the roll-out and vision for newly form team. Communication is important thus all information must be channel down effectively. Monitor the progress along the way. Provide training to close the gaps. When the 2 department is successfully merged, celebrate with the team as motivation.
The de-centralization of the heretofore separate product departments
The job scope, roles and responsibility will need to be clearly define and make known to the staff so that they are able to know their roles and responsibility. I would also define and determine each workers strength and weakness so that we will be able to allocate the proper manpower at the proper place. Training will be allocated too. Set the KPI for the newly set department in term of short, medium and long so their can progress. Monitor along the way
Q2
The benefits of having a diverse workforce utilizing:
· Inspire creativity and drive innovation in view of multi-cultural perspectives
· Makes business more competitive and profitable with local market knowledge
· Higher quality and targeted marketing with cultural sensitivity, insight, and local knowledge
· Allows an organization to attract, develop and retain talent
· Offer a broader and more adaptable range of products and services with diverse knowledge
· Team members are more competitive and perform better
· Personal and professional to have a better prospect
The challenges of having a diverse workforce utilizing:
· Integration across multicultural teams can be difficult due to prejudice or negative cultural stereotypes
· Professional communication can be miss understand
· Working employment may have problem in term of employment act, cost and requirement
· Different way of professional etiquette understanding
· Working style conflicting
Way to foster an inclusive organization:
· Be transparent and open. Everyone in the company from all level (management and non-management) should practice transparent and openness in the daily work routine.
· Use inclusive language will make everybody feel like home. This should be practice as daily communication tools to avoid any miscommunication and understanding if there is language barrier.
· Be an ally to all workers. This will show there is no different between them.
· Learn about others and the surround that surrounding us. This will close the gap between us.
· Help to speak up for those less represented so their voices also can be heard. This will help them for be more comfortable knowing their voices been acknowledged.
· Must be able to accept critical feedback. Only with these, we can know our lacking and find way to improve it.
There is way to ensure that is well maintained and enhanced by:
· Build an empathy working environment. Leaders must be able to relate to everyone by be able to put themselves in the shoes. This is important to show we care
· Held inclusive meeting and communication. This will ensure all voices had been heard and suitable decision can be made.
· All feedback must be in the term of honestly so feedback can be made in the clear, specific, and timely manner
· All conflict must be resolve fairly by making sure that all multiple viewpoints, comments, and options are heard and evaluated before making final decision.
Q3
ISTJ – Introversion, Sensing, Thinking & Judgement are best best suited for this remote location/virtual team workplace situation. They tend to be reserved, practical and quiet. All these suits them for the virtual team’s workplace situation. They are also independent, value loyalty and emphasis on traditions.
To balance up between individual that work from home with the other members in the physical team environment, they can be motivator to others in the team. If one individual organizes his stuff in a detailed and orderly manner, others in the team could feel that and follow suit as well. This also will promote learning culture among each other.
Running through regular meetings, discussion and chat session will keep the team members intact and up to date with company development. It will help to promote sense belonging, trust and respect among the team members.
For appropriate successful team, it is best to have a flat structure of short chain of command. It will balance up between leadership and cross functional teams that can yield a higher productivity and align with company mission and vision.
Considering the Big Five personality assessment model (OCEAN), the whole working environment will be deeply impacted. So, we must ensure we have the openness in term of mind set, learning and adapting with new challenges and information at this era. Never stop to learn and upkeep your skills and knowledge so that we will be able to adapt to the changes.
Q4
I would best work the CEO as his style was the transformational leadership. It makes you feel belonging and want to work as once for him. He builds you as you success he also success. He sees the best inside of you. This leadership will promote creativity and make you happy to contribute.
A company with routine and unskilled job functions.
This will require mix leadership (transactional + transformational). Maintain the routine with transformational while for unskilled function use transactional so effect can be fast acquired.
A company with dangerous job functions (toxic waste handling or heavy equipment operation).
Only transactional leadership best for it as there is no room for mistake.
A company preparing to disrupt an existing market with ground-breaking technology.
Transactional leadership as this is a major breakthrough activity. No room for info leaking that cause early leak of information.
A company preparing for an IPO.
IPO mean to the share market. Transactional leadership is proper as all individual and department is focus to the time line for listing.Q1
I would follow the 5 steps of data collection and analyzing which are:
Step 1: Strategy.
Step 2: Identify key areas.
Step 3: Data targeting.
Step 4: Collecting and analyzing.
Step 5: Action Items.
The data that I would like to collect will be the data or information of the roles and responsibility of each department. This are to determine the basic need of the functional department in the organization. It will also determine the responsibility of that department in the organization. It will be a assess whether there are the duplication of roles and responsibility. This can be excess through the job scope or description.
The centralization of Finance and HR
I will plan for the merger. Planning is essential to avoid any unpredictable cause during merger. Then will choose the cultural agenda. The new structure may follow one side culture more closely or may create a blend of cultures. The bottom line is to define the cultural agenda. Then will find the pain points combining 2 teams as together. Perform SWOT for the team. Then I will diagnose the similarities / differences of team. Merger will sure anticipate and expect some hick up along the way. Find way to solve along the way through open communication. During the merger, involve employees in the roll-out and vision for newly form team. Communication is important thus all information must be channel down effectively. Monitor the progress along the way. Provide training to close the gaps. When the 2 department is successfully merged, celebrate with the team as motivation.The de-centralization of the heretofore separate product departments
The job scope, roles and responsibility will need to be clearly define and make known to the staff so that they are able to know their roles and responsibility. I would also define and determine each workers strength and weakness so that we will be able to allocate the proper manpower at the proper place. Training will be allocated too. Set the KPI for the newly set department in term of short, medium and long so their can progress. Monitor along the way
Q2
The benefits of having a diverse workforce utilizing:
• Inspire creativity and drive innovation in view of multi-cultural perspectives
• Makes business more competitive and profitable with local market knowledge
• Higher quality and targeted marketing with cultural sensitivity, insight, and local knowledge
• Allows an organization to attract, develop and retain talent
• Offer a broader and more adaptable range of products and services with diverse knowledge
• Team members are more competitive and perform better
• Personal and professional to have a better prospect
The challenges of having a diverse workforce utilizing:
• Integration across multicultural teams can be difficult due to prejudice or negative cultural stereotypes
• Professional communication can be miss understand
• Working employment may have problem in term of employment act, cost and requirement
• Different way of professional etiquette understanding
• Working style conflicting
Way to foster an inclusive organization:
• Be transparent and open. Everyone in the company from all level (management and non-management) should practice transparent and openness in the daily work routine.
• Use inclusive language will make everybody feel like home. This should be practice as daily communication tools to avoid any miscommunication and understanding if there is language barrier.
• Be an ally to all workers. This will show there is no different between them.
• Learn about others and the surround that surrounding us. This will close the gap between us.
• Help to speak up for those less represented so their voices also can be heard. This will help them for be more comfortable knowing their voices been acknowledged.
• Must be able to accept critical feedback. Only with these, we can know our lacking and find way to improve it.There is way to ensure that is well maintained and enhanced by:
• Build an empathy working environment. Leaders must be able to relate to everyone by be able to put themselves in the shoes. This is important to show we care
• Held inclusive meeting and communication. This will ensure all voices had been heard and suitable decision can be made.
• All feedback must be in the term of honestly so feedback can be made in the clear, specific, and timely manner
• All conflict must be resolve fairly by making sure that all multiple viewpoints, comments, and options are heard and evaluated before making final decision.Q3
ISTJ – Introversion, Sensing, Thinking & Judgement are best best suited for this remote location/virtual team workplace situation. They tend to be reserved, practical and quiet. All these suits them for the virtual team’s workplace situation. They are also independent, value loyalty and emphasis on traditions.
To balance up between individual that work from home with the other members in the physical team environment, they can be motivator to others in the team. If one individual organizes his stuff in a detailed and orderly manner, others in the team could feel that and follow suit as well. This also will promote learning culture among each other.
Running through regular meetings, discussion and chat session will keep the team members intact and up to date with company development. It will help to promote sense belonging, trust and respect among the team members.
For appropriate successful team, it is best to have a flat structure of short chain of command. It will balance up between leadership and cross functional teams that can yield a higher productivity and align with company mission and vision.
Considering the Big Five personality assessment model (OCEAN), the whole working environment will be deeply impacted. So, we must ensure we have the openness in term of mind set, learning and adapting with new challenges and information at this era. Never stop to learn and upkeep your skills and knowledge so that we will be able to adapt to the changes.Q4
I would best work the CEO as his style was the transformational leadership. It makes you feel belonging and want to work as once for him. He builds you as you success he also success. He sees the best inside of you. This leadership will promote creativity and make you happy to contribute.
A company with routine and unskilled job functions.
This will require mix leadership (transactional + transformational). Maintain the routine with transformational while for unskilled function use transactional so effect can be fast acquired.
A company with dangerous job functions (toxic waste handling or heavy equipment operation).
Only transactional leadership best for it as there is no room for mistake.
A company preparing to disrupt an existing market with ground-breaking technology.
Transactional leadership as this is a major breakthrough activity. No room for info leaking that cause early leak of information.
A company preparing for an IPO.
IPO mean to the share market. Transactional leadership is proper as all individual and department is focus to the time line for listing.Agree with you on ISTJ part, I chose that personality too. ISTJ – would best represent a personality for this remote location/virtual teams workplace situation.
As people with ISTJ personality type tend to be reserved, practical and quiet, this suit the virtual teams workplace situation. They are independent and value loyalty in themselves and others, and emphasis on traditions.
Q1) Change Management and Conflict Resolution
According to the scenario, it is suggested that the consultant should adopt McKinsey 7S model which is often used as a tool for strategic planning to resolve the issue on change management and conflict resolution. The are seven important component such as structure, strategy, system, shared values, skill, style, and staff. In order for the organisation to succeed, each of these components must be in line with one another and strengthened.
The model may be used to determine which 7-S components require realignment to increase performance or to maintain alignment and performance during other adjustments. These adjustments might include reorganisation, new procedures, a merging of organisations, new systems, and a change in the leadership.
To use the McKinsey 7-S Model in the situation (Centralised Finance& HR department; de-centralization of the heretofore separate product departments), do the following steps:
1.) Figure out whether the shared values align with current organisational structure, strategy, and operating procedures. Focus on the challenging components, including your strategy, organisation, and systems. Determine what needs to be changed.
2.) Next, consider the “soft” components, such as personnel, shared values, talents, and (leadership) style. Are the needed hard components supported by them? Do they lend each other a hand? What needs to change if not?
3.) Company needs to employ an iterative (and sometimes time-consuming) approach of making alterations and then re-analyzing how it influences other parts and their alignment as consultant should modify and align the elements. Better performance will pay off in the long run.
Following question is check list question to collect information as to ensure sound data-driven decisions.
Strategy:
What is the plan?
How do we plan to accomplish our goals?
How do we handle the strain of competition?
How are changes in client requests handled?
How are strategies changed in light of environmental concerns?
Structure:
How is the business/team split up?
What is its structure?
How are activities coordinated amongst the different departments?
How do the members of the squad arrange and position themselves?
Decentralized or centralised decision-making? Given what we’re doing, is this what should be happening?
What channels of communication are there? Is it express or implied?
Systems:
What are the key operating systems for the company? Think about communication and document storage systems, as well as financial and HR systems.
What controls are there, and how are they monitored and assessed?
What internal procedures and laws does the team follow to stay on task?
Common Values:
What are the guiding principles of your company?
What kind of business culture does it have?
How robust are the principles?
What core principles did the business or team establish itself on?
Style:
How democratic is the management and leadership approach?
How successful is such management?
Are workers or team members more likely to cooperate or compete?
Are there actual teams working inside the company, or are they only fictitious groups?
Staff:
What roles or areas of expertise does the team have represented?
Which posts need filling?
Exist any gaps in the necessary competencies?
Skills:
What are the team’s or company’s strongest skill sets?
Do you see any skill gaps?
What accomplishments is the business/team renowned for?
Do the present workers/team members possess the necessary skills?
How are talents evaluated and monitored?
There may be discrepancy between one or more of these seven components if anything inside the team or organisation is not functioning. Consultant may try to align these components after identified these discrepancies to make sure they’re all supporting the same objectives and values of the organisation.
Analyzing organisation’s current situation in relation to these components is important in and of itself. But for it to be genuinely successful, consultant also need to figure out what is need for each factor’s future state to be. This will assist consultant in making adjustments and enhancing performance so that all seven criteria are in alignment across the organisation.
Reference: Mind tools. (2022). McKinsey 7-S Framework. Retrieved from https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newSTR_91.htm<w:sdtpr></w:sdtpr>
2. Diversity in the Workplace
Having a diverse workplace has benefits such as:
– Brings fresh skill sets into the organisation, which aids in innovation. Due to the numerous backgrounds of the employees, creativity is increased. Due to the workers’ varied worldviews, they might adopt fresh perspectives and a variety of approaches to monitoring various organisational variables based on their moral experiences. Additionally, diversity increases productivity since it allows for the inclusion of additional ideas and abilities, which raises the organization’s potential for production. Market prospects for the businesses increased as more people choose to patronise those businesses that value diversity and treat all workers fairly. Additionally, variety enhances the company’s reputation and draws in bright and prospective personnel.
– From one another’s cultures and beliefs, employees might learn positive principles. People benefit much from learning from one another. Employees in IS have a variety of experiences depending on their age and cultural background. Younger employees are often more motivated to expand their expertise than older workers who are used to the status quo.
The difficulties of having a diverse workplace include the following:
– Differences of opinion lead to conflicts that negatively affect work force diversity. Due to language hurdles and various communication styles within the business, communication problems develop as a result of diversity in the workplace. Younger workers, for instance, like modern forms of communication like emails, whereas elderly employees favour phone conversations.
-The decision-making process is slowed down by diversity because different employee viewpoints need time to be reconciled inside the business. As a result, it takes longer to reach a conclusion.
-The company may also encounter prejudice and harassment at work as types of workplace discrimination.
Maintaining and enhancing diversity while promoting an inclusive workplace:
Even while we should aim to make our judgements as fair as possible, the truth is that we all have biases that influence them. This guideline applies to everyone, even managers, who have biases that impact how they judge their staff members. The following are steps to promote an inclusive association and strategies to ensure its maintenance and improvement:
1. Assessment of Workforce Diversity
The business is required to provide the results of an employee satisfaction survey that took the population’s diversity into account. This will provide management understanding of the goals and difficulties that representatives face inside an organisation.
2. Sensitivity instruction
Employees must be considerate of one another’s traits, passions, and social and cultural norms. This will increase their self-assurance and foster respect for one another, enabling them to live in harmony.
Reference: Western Governors University. (2019, June 4). Barriers and benefits of diversity in the workplace. Retrieved from https://www.wgu.edu/blog/barriers-benefits-diversity-workplace1906.html
3.) Individual and Group Behavioral Theories Applied to the Workplace
What four-letter code, according to the Myers-Briggs Indicator methodology, would most accurately represent the personality most suited to this remote location/virtual team work situation? Why?
Based on the scenario, The Performer, ESFP four letter code in Myers-Briggs Indicator is more suitable personality for remote location workplace situation. The ESFP personality type is characterised by excellent interpersonal abilities, a sympathetic ear, the capacity to learn new skills, and a hands-on approach. They are impulsive, depend on common sense, and like the limelight. During remote working, a group of workers without a shared workplace is best led by a strong, likeable personality that can cross geographical boundaries. Given their adaptability, realistic outlook, willingness to collaborate with others, and ability to make work pleasurable. In a remote team, ESFPs would be the best team leaders out of all the personality types.
How does the bаlаnсe between individuаlity аnd соnfоrmity аffeсt individuаls in а teаm envirоnment? Hоw muсh struсture dо yоu feel is аррrорriаte fоr а suссessful teаm?
Both individuality and uniformity are essential, and their combined usage would help people succeed in the workplace. The employees must operate within the constraints required to maintain the conformance. Enhancing individuality leads to a growing brand for the business and consistent productivity across the organisation.
Despite being boosted by elements like the various communication styles and techniques of solution delivery, improving uniqueness should be founded on the important laws and regulations of the firm. The contemporary organisations adhere to certain standards, such as effective communication, acceptable working hours, and dress rules. The restrictions, which differ from organisation to organisation, should limit the flexibility of the workers while yet being acceptable to the consumers.
The organization’s workers would demand that the rules alter. However, compliance with corporate cultures would be required up to adoption of reforms or suffering the repercussions of their conduct. Even after taking into account other organisational aspects like the laws that affect how the workforce operates, individuality continues to be the major emphasis of organisational success.
How much structure do you feel is appropriate for a successful team?
Impact of the Big Five Assessment Model (OCEAN) on the strictly structural workplace：
Working in a distant or strictly organised physical job, OPENNESS is a valuable quality. These individuals are very adaptable, have a broad variety of interests, are courteous, creative, loyal, and open to accepting ideas. They are also highly lively and pleasant.
People of the CONSCIOUSNESS type like a physically rigorous and regulated job. These folks are goal-oriented individuals. They are very diligent, incredibly organised, attentive to details, never compromise on discipline, and concentrate on production while paying close attention to deadlines. These are the individuals that like everything to be accessible right now, thus they do not favour the idea of a remote office. The actual workplace is thus what these individuals love to have.
People that are EXTRAVERSIONS are highly sociable and like interacting with others. These folks dislike being alone themselves. These folks are not suited to working from home or in a rigidly organised physical environment. These individuals make other employees who are working in the rigorous physical environment uncomfortable, which hinders their ability to function as well. These are the folks who are most suited for field work, such as sales, etc.
In any kind of employment, those that are agreeable are greatest to be around. They have a great deal of love, trustworthiness, and empathy for others. They will be very helpful, thoughtful, and kind in a structured environment, and they are willing to put aside their personal interests to make the team flourish.
Whether it is going to be a rigorously organised physical workplace or any other working settings, NEUROTICISM features who provided detrimental influence. These are the individuals that often experience mood swings, instability, unhappiness, and are very susceptible to stress. Such characteristics will always cause tension in the workplace.
Reference:
Courtney E. Ackerman, M. (2017, June 23). Big Five Personality Traits: The OCEAN Model Explained. Retrieved from Positive Psychology: https://positivepsychology.com/big-five-personality-theory/
Ghose, R. (2021, February 19). Build Your Ideal Remote Team with Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. Retrieved from https://distantjob.com/blog/build-your-ideal-remote-team-with-myers-briggs-type-indicator/
4.) Leadership and Management
Based on scenario, I would choose to work best with the CEO as I prefer leader that are pleasant, genuine, thoughtful, and enthusiastic. The CEO seem like know to value his employees by provide support for them. Working with this kind of leader, I will always feel motivated. A great boss is someone who motivates their staff to perform at their highest level. He needs to be able to spot and emphasise the greatest traits in their staff members as well as identify areas for development, constructively communicate those possibilities, and contribute to creating an improvement strategy.
What combination of leadership style, role, and trait would be best for the following business situations?
1. A company with routine and unskilled job functions
This type of company situation should adopt autocratic leadership as it is a sort of transactional leadership where the leader has significant power over the followers. Even if the recommendations are in the best interests of the team or company, team members are given very little chance to make them. However, this strategy may be helpful for certain monotonous and unskilled jobs where the advantages of control outweigh the drawbacks.
2. A company with dangerous job functions (toxic waste handling or heavy equipment operation)
This type of company situation needs bureaucratic leaders to follow tight procedures, making sure that their staff members do the same. This is a great option for a profession that involves a lot of money or major safety concerns (such working with machinery, hazardous materials, or at heights) (such as cash handling).
3. A company preparing to disrupt an existing market with ground-breaking technology.
This company situation needs a participative or democratic leadership style. A democratic leader encourages other team members to participate in the decision-making process even if he or she will ultimately make the choice. By including team members or workers in the process, this not only boosts job satisfaction but also helps individuals grow their talents. Employees and team members are inspired to work hard for reasons other than financial gain because they feel in control of their own destiny. This method may take longer than an autocratic approach since engagement requires time, but the results are typically better. It works well in circumstances when communication and quality are more important than productivity or speed to market
4. A company preparing for an IPO
A company preparing for an IPO suitable to adopt transformational leadership style. By presenting a shared future vision to his or her team, this kind of leadership inspires and drives them. Transformative leaders communicate regularly and are very visible. Since they want to delegate power to their teams, they don’t always take the initiative. Both transactional and revolutionary leadership are necessary in many businesses. While their fervour is infectious, they may need the help of “detail people.” While transformational leaders supervise initiatives that generate new value, transactional leaders (or managers) ensure that routine chores are accomplished on time.
Reference: CuofanoGennaro. (2022July29). FourWeekMBA. https://fourweekmba.com/organizational-structure/
- This reply was modified 1 year, 2 months ago by LAU KOH SIN.
Agreed on the McKinsey part, this steps are very helpful in making a data-driven based decision as it empowers companies to hone in on key insights based on a multitude of functions, operations, and departmental activities.
- This reply was modified 1 year, 2 months ago by
Q1. Change Management and Conflict Resolution
There are 5 steps that I would follow to ensure the best decision is made based on data-driven approach: –
1. Know the mission that the organization need to achieve.
A well-rounded data analyst should know the business well and possess sharp organizational acumen. Ask yourself what the problems are in your given industry and competitive market. Identify and understand them thoroughly. Establishing this foundational knowledge will equip you to make better inferences with your data later on. Before you begin collecting data, you should start by identifying the business questions that you want to answer to achieve your organizational goals. By determining the precise questions, you need to know to inform your strategy, you’ll be able to streamline the data collection process and avoid wasting resources.
2. Identify data sources.
Put together the sources from which you’ll be extracting your data. You might be coordinating information from different databases, web-driven feedback forms, and even social media.
Coordinating your various sources seems simple, but finding common variables among each dataset can present a tremendously difficult problem. It can be easy to settle for the immediate goal of utilizing the data for your current purpose alone, but it’s wise to determine whether or not this data could also be used for additional projects in the future. If so, you should strive to develop a strategy to present the data in a way that’s accessible in other scenarios as well.
3. Clean and organize data.
Surprisingly, 80 percent of a data analyst’s time is devoted to cleaning and organizing data, and only 20 percent is spent actually performing analysis. This so-called “80/20 rule” illustrates the importance of having clean, orderly information before you can attempt to interpret what it might mean for your organization. The term “data cleaning” refers to the process of preparing raw data for analysis by removing or correcting data that is incorrect, incomplete, or irrelevant. To do so, start by building tables to organize and catalog what you’ve found. Create a data dictionary—a table that catalogs each of your variables and translates them into what they mean to you in the context of this particular project. This information could include data type and other processing factors, as well.
4. Perform statistical analysis.
Once you’ve thoroughly cleaned the data, you can begin to analyze the information using statistical models. At this stage, you will start to build models to test your data and answer the business questions you identified earlier in the process. Testing different models such as linear regressions, decision trees, random forest modeling, and others can help you determine which method is best suited to your data set. Here, you will also need to decide how to present the information in order to answer the question at hand. There are three different ways to demonstrate your findings:
Descriptive Information: Just the facts.
Inferential Information: The facts, plus an interpretation of what those facts indicate in the context of a particular project.
Predictive Information: An inference based upon facts and advice for further action based on your reasoning.
Clarifying how the information will be most effectively presented will help you remain organized when it comes time to interpret the data.
5. Draw conclusions.
The last step in data-driven decision making is coming to a conclusion. Ask yourself, “What new information did you learn from the collection of statistics?” Despite pressure to discover something entirely new, a great place to start is by asking yourself questions to which you already know—or think you know—the answer.
Many companies make frequent assumptions about their products or market. For example, they might believe, “A market for this product exists,” or, “This is what our customers want.” But before seeking out new information, first put existing assumptions to the test. Proving these assumptions are correct will give you a foundation to work from. Alternatively, disproving these assumptions will allow you to eliminate any false claims that have, perhaps unknowingly, been negatively impacting your company. Keep in mind that an exceptional data-driven decision usually generates more questions than answers.
The conclusions drawn from your analysis will ultimately help your organization make more informed decisions and drive strategy moving forward. It is important to remember, though, that these findings can be virtually useless if they are not presented effectively. Thus, data analysts must become skilled in the art of data storytelling to communicate their findings with key stakeholders as effectively as possible.
Data-Driven Decisions and Organizational Success to centralize the Finance and HR and de-centralization of the heretofore separate product departments
Incidentally, the majority of the steps listed above do not generate statistics. The majority of these steps to effectively utilize data instead encourage novice data analysts to become well-rounded in their role. This process helps professionals become capable of not only analyzing, but understanding data from a holistic perspective and providing insight based upon the data as well.
Joel Schwartz, a nonteaching affiliate of Northeastern adds, that it’s worth asking, ‘Who isn’t utilizing data-driven decision making in my industry?’ because the most successful companies almost always are. He continues:
Consider Netflix, for example. The company started as a mail-based DVD sharing business and, based on a data-driven decision, grew to internet streaming—becoming one of the most successful companies today. Without data, Netflix would not have had the basis to make such an immense and impactful decision. Moreover, without that decision, the company would not have flourished at the rate or in the direction it did.
Amazon is another poignant example. What started as an online bookstore has blossomed into a massive online hub for just about any product a person could want or need. What drove them to make such enormous decisions? Data. It’s no surprise that such major (and successful) rebranding moves were made based on data collection and the inferences made as a result.
Without the data-driven approach to decision making, Netflix would still be mailing you an outdated mode of movie content and Amazon would be a simple online bookstore. The bottom line is that this data-driven approach is putting all other methods out of business. The world is becoming data-driven, and to not make data-driven decisions would be foolish.
Q2. Diversity in the Workplace
There are many benefits to workplace diversity, and many studies that prove the positive impact that diversity will bring to the organization: –
1. Increased innovation.
It’s been proven that diversity in your workplace will lead to increased innovation among your team. More diversity in leadership roles creates an environment where more diverse ideas are heard and welcomed. When you have diversity in your organization, people bring their own background and experiences to brainstorming. Others can then use their background and experiences to build on new ideas. People are likely to have different ideas based on their backgrounds, and thus more options come forth. This all leads to more innovation and better performance on a team.
2. Enhanced productivity.
The wider variety of skills and abilities associated with workplace diversity directly contributes to productivity. Organizations that have more diversity in their office boast higher productivity, as different workers have different skills, abilities, and areas of work that they enjoy. With a more diverse organization, recruitment becomes easier, due to potential employees feeling that they have a place and great future at your organization. When managers have an easier time recruiting employees, productivity for the whole organization goes up. And with better recruitment, the best and the brightest are more likely to join your team, increasing productivity for your organization.
Additionally, organizations that boast a more diverse leadership team find that employees are more forthcoming with suggestions, more creative, and have added insight to offer, which leads to more productive work sessions and better results overall. To put it plainly; the greater the variety of employees you have, the greater number of ideas and perspectives they will bring, which is better for your business.
3. Improved company culture.
Employees that see diversity in the workplace around them have an overall more positive opinion of their company. Two-thirds of job seekers say that diversity in an organization is an important factor for them. When organizations work to meet those expectations, employees are more satisfied. A lack of diversity in a job can unintentionally create a hostile environment and contribute to higher turnover. When employees feel like they don’t fit in, they’re not likely to stick around. The current employment rates give a lot of opportunities to workers; by creating a diverse and inclusive company culture, employees will be drawn to your company and want to stay, which will only serve to continue the cycle of positive culture.
Workplaces that encourage women and other minorities to take leadership roles create a more positive environment for future employees. When employees have managers that they relate to and trust, everyone benefits. Companies that have successful workplace diversity create programs and groups for supporting diversity. A tighter, more invested community in your workplace makes everyone feel more excited about their place in the office.
Steps to take to foster an inclusive organization: –
1. Educate Your Leaders.
your organization’s executives and managers will be instrumental to your D&I efforts. “At the end of the day, it’s the leader who’s on the front line with our employees,” says Dianne Campbell, vice president of global diversity and inclusion at American Express in Washington, D.C. “It’s the experience that the leader is creating that is going to make or break” your D&I initiatives
The company have to always focused on inclusion and know this is something that’s important. However, the HR practitioners, we take for granted when we say to leaders that they need to be inclusive that they know what we mean.
2. Form an Inclusion Council.
Consider forming a council comprising a dedicated group of eight to 12 influential leaders who are one or two levels below the CEO. Carefully select them for their passion and commitment to inclusion.
“You need people who are going to make the time to roll up their sleeves” and do the work, says Jennifer Brown, author of Inclusion: Diversity, the New Workplace & the Will to Change (Purpose Driven Publishing, 2017) and president and CEO of Jennifer Brown Consulting in New York City. They need to be “a channel for communication” between the rank and file and the C-suite, and that includes advocating for inclusiveness in discussions with top executives when necessary.
Ideally, councils should be involved in goal-setting around hiring, retaining and advancing a diverse workforce and in addressing any employee engagement problems among underrepresented employee groups, Brown says. Most councils meet quarterly to review organizational feedback, troubleshoot challenges, and, most importantly, carry messages about their work to their senior peers and the C-suite, she says.
3. Celebrate Employee Differences.
One of the most important ways to show employees that you respect their backgrounds and traditions is to invite them to share those characteristics in the workplace. For example, the HR team at Bak USA, a manufacturer of mobile computers based in Buffalo, N.Y., holds potluck parties to celebrate the 14 nationalities represented among its 100 employees. Many employees are new to the U.S., and the events are a way to showcase the foods of their home countries, says Eva Bak, vice president of people.
The company promotes inclusiveness in other ways, too, with:
· A meditation or prayer room. The need for a reflection space came to Bak’s attention after she started giving up her office for 15 minutes every Friday so Muslim employees could use it to pray. It wasn’t an inconvenience to her, she says, and the gesture meant so much to those individuals. Creating a permanent space, however, provided “that inclusion piece where people felt they could bring their ‘full selves’ to work,” she says.
· An enhanced HR presence for more-isolated employees. The company created a small HR office to serve production team employees who work on a different floor than the HR team and who often work different hours from the rest of the organization. It’s also a place where those workers can have private conversations with their managers.
Q3. Individual and Group Behavioural Theories Applied to the Workplace
Using the Myers-Briggs Indicator methodology, what four letter code would best represent a personality best suited for this remote location/virtual team workplace situation? Why?
The best personality suited for remote location working will be ISTJ (introversion, sensing, thinking, judgement) is a four-letter code representing one of the 16 personality types found on the Myers – Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI). People with an ISTJ personality type tend to be reserved, practical and quiet. They enjoy order and organization I all areas of their lives including their home, work, family and projects. ISTJs value loyalty in themselves and others, and place an emphasis on traditions.
STJ are Dutiful doers who appreciate clarity, love routines, and believe in values like honour, hard work, and social responsibility. They’re quiet, reserved, and reliable. The Queen of England is an archetypal ISTJ.
This personality type is incredibly well organized, which is a major asset in a remote working environment,” says psychologist and business coach Rosie Peacock, CEO of Conscious Enterprise. “They don’t need much management or checking up on, just email them a to-do list at the start of the week, and you can trust them to quietly get on with it. They’d also be the perfect type to organize and streamline any shared space online, from Dropbox to Google Docs.”
How does the balance between individuality and conformity affect individuals in a team environment?
Every employee carries an individual personality to work with them. Even when performing work in a professional capacity, the person’s natural temperament and traits come to the forefront and reflect their attitude towards work.
Organisational individualism takes into consideration the unique personality and skill set of the employee. It leverages on the right opportunity to find the right match for them in the organisation. Organisations that have adopted individualism as part of their culture tend to have higher employee engagement. This is because they accept the uniqueness of the individual as an asset rather than a burden.
Conformity in the workplace refers to following workplace rules as well as adhering to traditional or socially expected methods of doing business and using familiar processes. Examples of conformity are readily observable in almost every industry and every aspect of employment. Industry and employment trends have an impact on some workplace practices; still, some companies and their employees stick to the traditional way of doing business and interacting with others.
Today’s employees should not be merely seen as members of the team. They want to be seen as individuals and recognized for who they are, what they contribute and how they perform. Suppressing individuality altogether will not let you be in the good books of your employees.
The key is to find the right spot at which individuality integrates seamlessly with teamwork and collaboration. As a result, it will make the whole workplace vibrant and powerful. If the company’s strategic goals are aligned with smaller personal goals, you can access high productivity along with nurturing the well-being for your own employees.
This can only happen when you let your employees’ step outside their comfort zone, speak their heart, interact at an inanimate level and sketch the future they envision for the organisation.
How much structure do you feel is appropriate for a successful team? Considering the Big Five personality assessment model (OCEAN), to what extent do you believe these traits would be impacted if the work environment were to be changed to a strictly-structured physical workplace setting?
Researchers have found that there is a science to personality. Every single person–regardless of gender, age or nationality — is made up of 5 basic traits.
Openness
• Openness is when someone is curious and openminded to new experiences and knowledge. People who rate high in openness are inventive and curious. People who rate low in openness are consistent and cautious
Conscientiousness
• Conscientiousness describes how organized and dependable you are. People who rate high in conscientiousness are efficient and organized. People who rate low in conscientiousness are more easy-going and laid back.
Extroversion
• Extroversion describes how you interact with people. People who rate high in extroversion are outgoing and energetic. People who rate low in extroversion are more solitary and reserved.
Agreeableness
• Agreeableness is how you feel toward others. People who rate high in agreeableness are friendly and compassionate. People who rate low in agreeableness are more analytical and detached.
Neuroticism
• Neuroticism is how you deal with emotions. People who rate high in neuroticism are sensitive and tend to be more nervous. People who rate low in neuroticism tend to be more secure and stable.
Structured work is most common in larger organizations. It involves clear, specific tasks that are expected to be done in a certain order, at a certain time. The work is well-documented and scheduled. There should never be a question about a person is assigned to work on. Expectations are easily understood, and employees can expect consistent feedback from management.
A blend of structured and unstructured work can help you find a sweet spot of accelerated productivity and ingenuity. This can be accomplished by using an efficient operational system of record. The right work management tool will help bring structure where isn’t any, while still allowing for flexibility and creativity. It will bring order to some of the work chaos, without stifling those employees who prefer an unstructured environment.
In my opinion the trait that will be happy on the strictly structured workplace would be those who are Conscientiousness, since they prefer to have an organized workplace instead of everything being scattered around. Also for Neuroticism, they will prefer a strictly structured workplace since they are nervous about the uncertainty and will be nervous and affect their work. To have certainty is good for them.
Those who will find it difficult would be those with Openness and Extroversion. Since all these personality traits are flamboyant hence, they will not be able to take on repetitive task but instead work well if they are challenge on a daily basis as that is their natural character to learn and interact with people.
Q4. Leadership and Management
I would work best with the CEO. Based on the information provided in the scenario, I am in the opinion that the CEO is practicing the Servant Leadership style. The servant leadership style in where the leader role is to “serve” the employees by removing the obstacles and creating the opportunities for the employees to excel and achieve their objectives and goals. The employee however would need to be proactive in determining their goals that they want to achieve and how they would like to complete their task. I believe the CEO will provide a greater autonomy for his employees to complete the given task and this is directly increase creativity and innovation in the workplace. Based on the information provided in the scenario, the CEO sounds like a person that would value out of the box ideas and solutions.
1. A company with routine and unskilled job functions
For such an organization, the leadership style that is suitable is autocratic. Given the name of the job of being unskilled, we must imagine the competency levels of the workforce that would be hired. Such employees are not expected to make their own decision or come out with solutions on their own. Hence, they would require clear direction on what needs to be done and how to do it.
2. A company with dangerous job functions (toxic waste handling or heavy equipment operation)
For such an organization, the leadership style that is suitable is bureaucratic. When handling toxic waste for example there is rules and regulations that needs to be followed and no short cuts can be taken. Periodic maintenance heavy equipment is also mandatory to be done even when the machines are not broken down. All this requires a leader that instills disciple or by the book to follow all the require rules and procedures.
3. A company preparing to disrupt an existing market with ground-breaking technology
For such an organization, the leadership style that is suitable is transformational. Transformational leaders have big vision thinking. This type of leadership also promotes creativity and innovation in the organization by advocating openness in the workplace allowing being to share their thoughts and opinions freely. They also need to motivate their employees to think outside the box and come out with solutions that other have not thought of.
4. A company preparing for an IPO
For such an organization, the leadership style that is suitable is task oriented. As when a company is preparing for an IPO there is a lot of paperwork that needs to be completed as well as regulations that needs to comply with. The task that goes into preparation needs to be completed as per stipulated by the regulatory bodies. Any errors might led to the delay in the listing of the company or being rejected by the regulatory body.
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