BBA313 Organisational Behaviour Module

CAVENDISH UNIVERSITY ZAMBIA
BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
(BBA)
Organisational Behaviour (BBA313)

Module
1
TABLE OF CONTENTS
UNIT ONE
1. Introduction
1.1. Introduction to the Field of Organisational Behaviour

1.1.1. Definitions
1.1.2. Historical background of Organisational Behaviour
1.1.3. Contributing fields to Organisational Behaviour
1.1.4. The Organisational Behaviour Concept
1.1.5. Why Study Organisational Behaviour
1.1.6. Organisational Behaviour trends
1.1.7. Five Anchors of Organisational Behaviour
1.2. Assessment: Revision Questions
UNIT TWO
2. Foundations of Individual Behaviour

2.1. Individual Behaviour in Organisations
2.2. Personality
2.2.1. Personality and Organisational Behaviour
2.2.2. Determinants of Personality: Nature and Nurture
2.2.3. The Big Five Model of Personality
2.2.4. Myers Briggs Type Indicator
2.2.5. Other Personality Traits
2.3. Perception and Attribution
2.3.1. Selective Attention
2.3.2. Factors Influencing Perception
2.3.3. Social Identity Theory
2.3.4. Attribution Theory
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UNIT THREE
3. Foundations of Team Dynamics

3.1. Nature of teams,
3.2. Types of Teams: informal and formal groups, purpose of teams, cross-
cultural teams
3.3. Why Rely on Team
3.4. Organisational and Team Environments: team building, team identity, team
loyalty, multi-disciplinary teams.
3.5. Team Development Teams and team building: stages in team development,
3.6. Team Norms and Roles: team roles, Belbin’s theory
3.7. Team Cohesiveness: commitment to shared beliefs
3.8. Social loafing
3.9. Summary
3.10. Assessment: Questions
UNIT FOUR
4. Approaches to Management
4.1. Nature of Management
4.2. Managers
4.3. Development of Management Thought
4.4. Nature of Managerial work
4.5. Basic Functions of Management
4.6. Human Resource Management
4.7. Assessment: Revision Question
UNIT FIVE
5.1. Nature of Leadership
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5.2. Leadership in formal organisation
5.3. Leadership in informal organisation
5.4. Leaders in organisation
5.5. Determining what makes “effective leadership”
5.6. Qualities of Leadership (traits)
5.7. Leadership styles
5.8. Leadership and Management
UNIT SIX
6. Organisational structure and Environments

6.1. Nature of Organisations
6.2. Basic components of an organisation
6.3. Organisational Structure
6.4. Formal and informal Organisation
6.5. Division of Labour
6.6. Elements of Organisational Structure, Span of Control, decentralisation and
centralisation, Formalisation, Departmentalisation
UNIT SEVEN
7. Organisation Culture and Change

7.1. Nature of Organisation
7.2. Classification of Organisational Culture
7.3. Culture and Organisational Performance
7.4. Changing and Strengthening Organisation Culture
7.5. Organisational Socialisation
UNIT EIGHT
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8. Motivation
8.1. Nature of Motivation
8.2. Maslow’s theory: Maslow’s hierarchy of Needs
8.3. Two Factor Theory Fundamentals
8.4. McClelland Theory of Needs
8.5. Vroom and Expectancy Theory, Maccoby, McCrae and Costa-personality
dimensions.
8.6. Motivation and Job Satisfaction: Rewards and incentives, motivation and
managers, rewards monetary and non-monetary.
8.7. Motivation and Organisational Performance
ƒ Suggested Solutions to Revision Questions

ƒ Bibliography
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MODULE DESCRIPTOR
ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR (BBA220)
This unit provides an introduction to the nature of organisations in relation to

management practices. The unit examines the internal nature of organisations from both a
theoretical and practical viewpoint. The unit is intended to develop an understanding of
the behaviour of people within organisations and the significance of organisational design
and characteristics. It also aims to provide the basis for, and to underpin further study in
specialist areas of business.
Summary of learning outcomes

To achieve this unit a learner must:
1. Explore organisational structure and culture.
2. Examine different approaches to management and leadership and theories of
organisation.
3. Examine the relationship between motivational theories.
4. Demonstrate an understanding of working with others, teamwork, groups and
group dynamics.
CONTENTS
1. Introduction
Introduction to the Field of Organisational Behaviour

Historical background of Organisational Behaviour
Contributing fields to Organisational Behaviour
The Organisational Behaviour Concept
Why Study Organisational Behaviour
Organisational Behaviour trends
Five Anchors of Organisational Behaviour
Assessment: Revision Questions
6
2. Foundations of Individual Behaviour
Individual Behaviour in Organisations
Personality
Personality and Organisational Behaviour
Determinants of Personality: Nature and Nurture
The Big Five Model of Personality
Myers Briggs Type Indicator
Other Personality Traits
Perception and Attribution
Selective Attention
Factors Influencing Perception
Social Identity Theory
Attribution Theory
3. Foundations of Group Behaviour

The Nature of Groups: groups and teams, informal and formal groups, purpose of
teams
Teams and team building: selecting team members, team roles, Belbin’s theory,
stages in team development, team building, team identity, team loyalty, commitment
to shared beliefs, multi-disciplinary teams.
Team dynamics: groups norms, decision-making behaviour, dysfunctional teams, and
cohesiveness.
Impact of technology on team functioning: technology, communication, change,
networks and virtual teams, global and cross-cultural teams.
4. Approaches to Leadership
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Frames of references for leadership activities: opportunist, diplomat, technician,
achiever, strategist, magician, pluralistic, transformational, change.
Leadership in organisations, managers and leaders, leadership traits, management
style, contingency approach, leadership and organisational culture.
Leadership and successful change in organisations: pluralistic, transformational,
communications, conflict.
Development of management though: Scientific management, classical
administration, bureaucracy, human relations approach, systems approach,
contingency approach
Functions of management: planning, organising, commanding, co-ordinating,
controlling.
Managerial roles: interpersonal, informational and decisional.
Nature of Managerial authority: power, authority, responsibility, delegation,
conflict.
The Human Resource function: a stakeholder perspective. Personnel management
roles, personnel policies, strategies and operating plans, strategic goals for
personnel.
6. Organisational Structure and environments

Basic components of an organisation, types of organisation and associated
structures-formal and informal organisations (functional, product-based,
geographically based,
Organisational networks and linkages: internal and external networks structures,
flexible working.
7. Organisational Culture and Change
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Organisational culture: classification of organisation culture, power culture, role
culture, task culture, person culture, cultural norms and symbols, values and
beliefs, and development of organisational culture.
Authority and power: Organisation charts, spans of control
8. The Nature of Motivation

Motivation theories: Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, Hertzberg’s Motivation-
Hygiene theory, Vroom and Expectancy theories, Maccoby, McCrae and Costa-
personality dimensions.
Motivation and performance: Rewards and incentives, motivation and managers,
rewards monetary and non-monetary.
Outcomes and Assessment criteria

Outcomes Assessment criteria for pass. To achieve
each outcome a learner must demonstrate
the ability to
1. Explore organisational structure and • Compare and contrast different
culture organisational structures and
culture.
• Analyse the relationship between an
organisation’s structure and culture
and the effects on business
performance
• Analyse the factors which influence
individual behaviour at work
2. Examine different approaches to • Analyse how organisational theory
management and leadership and theories of underpins principles and practices
organisation of organising and of management
9
• Compare the different approaches
to management and theories of
organisation used by two
organisations
3. Examine the relationship between • Discuss different leadership styles
motivational theories and the effectiveness of these
leadership approaches
• Explain the different motivational
theories and their applications
within the workplace
• Assess the relationship between
motivation theory and the practices
of management
4. Demonstrate an understanding of • Describe the nature of groups and
working with others, teamwork, groups and group behaviour within
group dynamics organisations
• Investigate the factors that lead to
effective teamwork and the
influences that threaten success
• Evaluate the impact of technology
on team functioning within a given
organisation.
Guidance
Delivery. Case studies, role plays and learner-centred learning can all be used to enhance
delivery and student learning opportunities exist to link the delivery and assessment of
the unit with the human resource management or management units.
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Assessment
Evidence of outcomes could be by written or verbal presentations. Evidence at outcome
level can be self-contained assignment integrating all outcomes, possibly with a thematic
approach. Investigations can use actual organisations or case study material.
Link
This unit links with Unit 21: Human Resource Management, Unit 22: Managing Human
Resource, Unit 23: Human Resources Development and Unit 24: Employee Relations.
Support materials (Check the Bibliography: Last page)
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UNIT ONE
1. INTRODUCTION
Unit 1.0
This Unit introduces you to the field of Organisational Behaviour (OB). It outlines the
main reasons why you should know more about OB and highlights some of the
organisational trends influencing the study of OB. It describes the fundamental
perspectives behind the study of organisational and the introduces the concepts that
organisations are knowledge and learning systems
What will you learn?

When you have read and thought about this chapter, you will be able to:
1. Define Organisational Behaviour and give three reason for studying this field of
inquiry
2. Identify specific ways that organisations acquire and share knowledge
3. Explain the meaning and nature of OB
4. Discuss how globalisation influences OB
5. Identify the five anchors on which OB is based
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The People-Organisation Relationship
Many people come to the workplace with a positive outlook ready to do their best
according to their ability. It is observed that where people fail to perform their duty and
live up to their ideal, the problem can be sought in how staff perceives they are treated by
management. Laurie Mullins believes that many problems in the people-organisation
relationship arise not so much from what management does, but the manner in which it is
done. It is regularly not the intent but the manner of implementation that remain the root
cause of staff of unrest and dissatisfaction.1
An example would be an organisation where the staff may agree on the need to introduce
new technology to retain the competitive efficiency of the organisation, but feel
resentment about the lack of pre-planning, consultation, retraining programmes,
participation in working out new working practices and wages rates. It is a big
responsibility for leaders/managers to be aware of the factors that will affect the workers
and their future behaviour which may affect the organisation.
1.1. INTRODUCTION TO THE FIELD OF ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR
1.1.1. DEFINITIONS
Organisational Behaviour is a field of study that investigates the impact that individuals,
groups and structures have on behaviour within organisations, for the purpose of applying
such knowledge toward improving an organisation’s effectiveness (Robbins S.P., 1993).
It is the study of what people think, feel and do in and around organisations. It is
concerned with the study of the behaviour of people within an organisational setting. This
involves understanding, predicting and control of human behaviour.2 Therefore,
Organisational Behaviour maybe termed as the study of many factors that have an impact
on how individuals and groups respond to and act in organisations and how organisations
1 Muller R., Management and Organisational Behaviour, Harlow: Prentice Hall, 2002, P.29
2 Steven L. McShane et al., Organisational Behaviour, McGraw Hill : New York, 2005, P.16
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manage their environment. (George M. Jennifer, 1998). In other words, Organisational
Behaviour (OB) is the study and application of knowledge about how people, individuals,
and groups act in organizations and it does this by taking a s y s t e m a p p r o a c h . That
is, it interprets people-organization relationships in terms of the whole person, whole
group, whole organisation, and whole social system. Its purpose is to build better
relationships by achieving human objectives, organizational objectives, and social
objectives
Organisational Behaviour scholars systematically study individual, team and structural

characteristics that influence behaviour within organisations. By saying that OB is the
field of study we mean that scholars have been accumulating a distinct knowledge about
behaviour within organisations
1.1.2 HISTORICAL BACKGROUP OF OB

Organisational Behaviour emerged as a distinct field around the 1940s.3 However, its
origins can traced much further back in time. The Greek philosopher Plato wrote about
the essence of leadership. Aristotle addressed the topic of persuasive communication. The
writings of a Chinese philosopher Confucius in 500 B.C began to influence contemporary
thinking about ethics and leadership. Furthermore, the writings of 16th century Italian
philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli laid the foundation for contemporary work on
organizational power and politics. In 1776, Adam Smith advocated a new form of
organizational structure based on the division of labour. One hundred years later, German
sociologist Max Weber wrote about rational organizations and initiated discussion of
charismatic leadership. Soon after, Frederick Winslow Taylor introduced the systematic
use of goal setting and rewards to motivate employees. In the 1920's, Australian-born
Harvard professor Elton Mayo and his colleagues conducted productivity studies at
Western Electric's Hawthorne plant in the United States. They reported that an informal
organisation-employees casually interacting with others-operates alongside the formal
organisation.
3 Steven L. McShane et al., Organisational Behaviour, McGraw Hill: New York, 2005, P.16
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Though it traces its roots back to Max Weber and earlier, organizational studies is
generally considered to have begun as an academic discipline with the advent of
scientific management in the 1890s, with Taylorism representing the peak of this
movement. Proponents of scientific management held that rationalizing the organization
with precise sets of instructions and time-motion studies would lead to increased
productivity. Studies of different compensation systems were carried out.
After the First World War, the focus of organisational studies shifted to analysis of how
human factors and psychology affected organizations, a transformation propelled by the
identification of the Hawthorne Effect. This Human Relations Movement focused on
teams, motivation, and the actualization of the goals of individuals within organizations.4
Prominent early scholars included Chester Barnard, Henri Fayol, Mary Parker Follett,
Frederick Herzberg, Abraham Maslow, David McClelland, and Victor Vroom
The Second World War further shifted the field, as the invention of large-scale logistics
and operations research led to a renewed interest in rationalist approaches to the study of
organizations. Interest grew in theory and methods native to the sciences, including
systems theory, the study of organizations with a complexity theory perspective and
complexity strategy. Influential work was done by Herbert Alexander Simon and James
G. March and the so-called "Carnegie School" of organizational behavior. OB has been
around for a long time; it just wasn’t organised into a unified discipline until after the
World War II.5
1.1.3 CONTRIBUTING FIELDS TO OB

Organisational Behaviour is an applied behavioural science that built upon contributions
from various behavioural disciplines. The central ones are psychology, sociology, social
psychology, anthropology and political science and other disciplines.
Psychology
4 http\\en.wikipedia.org/wik/org_studies
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Many of the contribution in OB have come from psychology, the study of human
behaviour. This probes into feelings, thoughts and behaviours of individuals as well as
groups. It is in psychology that great studies to explain and predict individual behaviour
have been done. Psychologists have forwarded helpful theories and findings on
personality, attitudes, learning, motivation and stress. All these studies help us to
understand work-related phenomena like performance, job satisfaction, commitment,
absenteeism, and turnover and worker well-being. It also helps us to understand and
study processes like performance appraisal, goal setting, job designing, and reward
systems in Organisational Behaviour.
Sociology
Sociology studies the structure and function of the social foundations of a society. This
encompasses society’s political, economic, educational and religious bases. Sociologists
go on to study the structure and function of work organisations and their effect on
individual and group behaviours. This study is a great contribution to Organisational
Behaviour.
Social Psychology
This is a branch of psychology that blends concepts from both psychology and sociology.
It focuses on the influence of people on one another. Social Psychologists make
significant contributions in areas of measuring, understanding and changing attitudes, and
communication patterns and give ample information on ways in which group activities
can satisfy individual needs. It throws light on issues of group decision-making
processes.
Anthropology
Anthropologists study societies and learn about human beings and their activities. Their
research on cultures and environments has helped organisational behaviourists to
understand differences in fundamental values, attitudes and behaviour between people in
different societies and countries.
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Political Science
Political Science covers the behaviours of individuals and groups within a political
environment. The special topics here are structuring of conflict, allocation of power, and
how people manipulate power for individual’s self-interest. Organisations are political
entities that require us to have a political perspective in order to grasp and predict the
behaviour of people and improve our organisations.
Economics
Economics as a discipline helps organisational behaviour researchers to understand how
competition for scarce resources both within and between organisations leads
organisations to try to increase their efficiency and productivity.
1.1.4 THE OB CONCEPT

Common definitions of Organisational Behaviour are generally along the lines of: the
study of understanding of individual and group behaviour, and patterns of structure in
order to help improve organisational performance and effectiveness. It is important to
emphasize that in most cases the term ‘Organisational Behaviour’ is strictly a misnomer;
rarely do all members of an organisation, except perhaps very small organisations,
behave collectively in such a way as to represent the behaviour of the organisation as a
whole. In practice we are referring to the behaviour of individuals or sections or groups
of people within the organisation. For instance, when we talk about a ‘caring
organisation’ we are really talking about the philosophy, attitudes and actions of top
managers, and/or departmental managers or possibly an individual manager.
Nevertheless, the wording ‘organisational behaviour’ has become widely accepted and is
found in textbooks and literature on the subject. The Organisational Behaviour is a
convenient form of shorthand to refer to the large number of interrelated influence and
patterns of bahaviour of people within organisations.6
6 Laurie J. Mullins, Management and Organisational Behaviour, 7th ed, Prentice Hall: Harlow,2002, P.4
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1.1.5. WHY STUDY ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR
Each one of us has an inherent need to understand and predict the world in which we live.
Much of our time is spent working in or around organisations, so the concepts offered by
Organisation Behaviour will help you to partially satisfy that innate drive. It’s nice to
understand and predict organisational events, but most of us want to influence the
environment in which we live. Whether you are marketing specialist or computer
engineer, OB knowledge will help you to influence organisational events by
understanding and applying concept in motivation, communication, conflict, team
dynamics and other topics. OB knowledge is for everyone not just managers. We all need
to understand organisational behaviour and master the practices that influence
organisational events. Indeed, organisations will continue to have managers but their
roles have changed. More important, the rest of us are now expected to manage
ourselves. As one forward-thinking Organisational Behaviour scholar wrote many years
ago “everyone is a manager”.
1.1.6. ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR TRENDS
Globalisation
Globalisation refers to economic, social and cultural connectivity with people in other
parts of the world. It is all about the on-going process of increasing interdependence with
each other around the planet, whether through trading goods and services, sharing
knowledge or interacting with people from different culture and locations around the
globe. Organisations globalize when they extend their activities to other parts of the
world, actively participate in other markets and compete against organizations located in
other countries.
Globalisation influences several aspects of Organisational Behaviour-some good, some

not so good. Globalization is applauded for increasing organizational efficiency and
providing a broader net to attract valuable knowledge and skills. It potentially opens up
new career opportunities and provides a greater appreciation of diverse needs and
perspectives.
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However, globalization also presents new challenges. The debate about whether
globalization makes developing countries wealthier or poorer adds a new ethical
dimension to corporate decisions. Firms also need to adjust their organizational structures
and forms of communication to assist their global reach. Globalisation adds more
diversity to the workforce, which affects the organisation’s culture and introduces new
forms of values-conflicts among employees.
Globalization is also identified as one of the main sources of increased competitive

pressures, mergers and market volatility. These environmental conditions, in turn, reduce
job security, increase work intensification and demand more work flexibility from
employees. Lastly, globalization influences the study of Organisational Behaviour. We
cannot assume that OB practices are equally effective around the world, so scholars are
paying more attention to the cross-cultural differences. Global investigations have
become increasingly necessary as we discover the complex effects of values and other
differences across cultures.
Information Technology and OB

Within organizations information technology blurs the temporal and spatial boundaries
between individuals and organizations that employ them. It redesigns jobs, reshapes the
dynamics of organization power and politics, and creates new standards for competitive
advantages through knowledge management. Information technology also generates new
communication patterns unheard of a decade or two ago. While attending a meeting some
employees now carry on parallel conversations. They talk to the group verbally while
communicating wirelessly through a personal digital assistance (PDA) to specific
individuals in the same room.
Two other emerging work activities attributed to information technology are

telecommuting and virtual teams. Telecommuting (also known as teleworking) is an
alternative work arrangement where employees work at home or a remote site, usually
with a computer connected to the office. Virtual teams are cross-functional teams that
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operate across space, time and organizational boundaries with members who
communicate mainly through information technology.
The Changing Workforce

Organisations around the world are increasingly moving towards a multicultural
workforce because of the increasing demographic diversity caused by different factors.
There are secondary and primary dimensions of workforce diversity. The primary
categories include gender, ethnicity, age, race, sexual orientation, and mental/physical
qualities and these represent personal characteristics that influence an individual’s
socialization and self-identity. The secondary dimensions are those features that we learn
or have some control over throughout our lives, such as education, marital status,
religion, and work experience. Another form of diversity is the increasing representation
of women in the workforce. Women now represent nearly 50 percent of the paid
workforce, compared to just 20 percent a few decades ago.
Diversity in workforce in organisations has greater implications for organizational

behaviour. Diversity presents both opportunities and challenges in organisations. To be
sure, the relationship between workforce diversity and effectiveness of a team or
organisation is very complex. In some circumstances and to some degree, diversity can
become a competitive advantage by improving decision making and team performance
on complex tasks. For many businesses, a diverse workforce is also necessary to provide
better customer service in the global market place. “We go out of our way to recruit from
a melting pot of nationalities,” says an executive at Amadeus, a developer of worldwide
airline reservations software near Nice-France.7 We believe that our product is superior
because of the different cultures of the people developing it.
However, along with its benefits workforce diversity presents new challenges, for
instance, there are situations in which diverse groups are less effective, although we are
still trying to learn about the contingencies of diversity. Discrimination is another
ongoing concern. Women have represented a large portion of the workforce for the past
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two decades, yet they are still underrepresented in senior positions. Racism still raises
ugly head from time to time.
Emerging Employment Relationships

The changing workforce, new information and communication technology (ICT), and
globalization have fueled substantial changes in employment relationships. Employees
face increasing turbulence in their work and employment relationships due to mergers,
corporate restructuring, and privatization of government-managed organisations. From
this turbulence, a ‘new deal’ employment relationship called employability has emerged
that replaces the implied guarantee of lifelong employment in return for loyalty.
Employability requires employees to perform a variety of work activities rather than hold
specific jobs, and they are expected to continuously learn skills that will keep them
employed. From this perspective, individuals must anticipate future organizational needs
and develop new competencies that match those needs. However, employability can have
implications for job design, organizational loyalty, workplace stress, and other
organizational settings. This already apparent in Japan, where companies are tearing
down the long-established life-time employment practices in favour of a more
performance oriented arrangement.
Workplace Values and Ethics

Values represent stable, long-lasting belief about what is important in a variety of
situations that guide our decisions and actions. They are evaluative standards that help us
define what is right or wrong, or good or bad, in the world. Values dictate our priorities,
our preferences, and our desires. They influence our motivation and decisions. Cultural,
personal, professional, and organizational values have been studied by organizational
Behaviour scholars for several decades. Cultural values represent the dominant
prescriptions of a society. They are usually influenced by religious, philosophical, and
political ideologies. Personal values incorporate cultural values, as well as other values
socialized by parents, friends, and personal life events. Professional values are held either
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formally or informally by members if a professional group, such as doctors, engineers,
and architects.
Values are not new to organizational behaviour, but the popularity of this topic has
increased noticeably in recent years. One reason is that corporate leader are looking for
better ways to guide employee decisions and behaviour. Today’s increasingly educated
and independent workforce resents the traditional “command-and-control” supervision,
and financial rewards are far from perfect. Values represent a potentially powerful way to
keep employees’ decisions and actions aligned with corporate goals. Values represent the
unseen magnet that pulls employees in the same direction. They foster a common bond
and help to ensure that everyone in the organisation-regardless of job or rank-has aligned
goals.
A second reason for the recent interest in values is that globalization has raised our
awareness of and sensitivity to differences in values across cultures. Global organisations
face the challenge of ensuring that employees make consistent decisions and actions
around the world even though they may have diverse cultural values. Reinforcing a
common organizational culture isn’t easy, because some organisational values may
conflict with some individual and societal values.
The third reason why values have gained prominence is that organisations are under
increasing pressure to engage in ethical practices and corporate social responsibility.
Ethics refers to the study of moral principles or values that determine whether actions are
right or wrong and outcomes are good or bad. We rely on our ethical values to determine
“the right thing to do.” Ethical behaviour is driven by the moral principles we use to
make decisions. These moral principles represent fundamental values.8
1.1.7. THE FIVE ANCHORS OF ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR

Organizational Behaviour scholars rely on a set of basic beliefs or knowledge structures.
These conceptual anchors represent the way that OB researchers think about
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organizations and how they should be studied. The following are some of the five beliefs
that anchor the study of Organisational Behaviour.
The Multidisciplinary Anchor

As mentioned above (contributing fields to OB), Organisational Behaviour is anchored
around the idea that the field should develop from knowledge in other disciplines, not just
from its own isolated research base. This means OB should be a multidisciplinary. The
true test of OB’s multidisciplinary anchor is how effectively OB scholars continue
transfer knowledge from traditional and emerging disciplines. History suggests that fields
of inquiry tend to become more inwardly focused as they mature.9 However, some OB
scholars have recently argued that OB is hardly inwardly focused. Instead, it probable
suffers from a ‘trade deficit’-importing far more knowledge from other disciplines than
exported to other disciplines. This occurs because many OB scholars are have been
trained in other fields such psychology, sociology etc and merely replicate research from
those fields.
The Systematic Research Anchor

A second anchor for organisational Behaviour researchers is their belief in the value of
studying organizations through systematic research methods. Traditionally, scholars have
relied on the scientific method by forming research questions, systematically collecting
data, and testing hypotheses against those data. Typically, this approach relies on
quantitative data (numeric data) and statistical procedures to test hypotheses. The idea
behind the scientific method is to minimize personal biases and distortions about
organisational events.
Recently, OB scholars have also adopted a grounded theory approach to developing

knowledge. Grounded theory is a process of developing a theory through the constant
interplay between data gathering and the development of theoretical concepts. This
dynamic and cyclical view of research process allows for observation, participation, and
9 Steven L. McShane et al., Organisational Behaviour, McGraw Hill : New York, 2005, p.19
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other qualitative methods in the data collection process, rather than just quantitative data
collection.
The Contingency Anchor

‘It depends’ is a phrase that OB scholars often use to answer a question about the best
solution to an organizational problem. The statement may seem evasive, yet it reflects an
important way of understanding and predicting the organizational events, called the
contingency approach. This anchor states that a particular action may have different
consequences in different situations. In other words, no single solution is best in all
circumstances.10
Many OB theorists proposed universal rules to predict and explain organizational life but
there are usually too many exceptions to make these “one best way” theories useful.
Although contingency-oriented theories are necessary in most areas of organizational
behaviour, we should also be wary about carrying this anchor to an extreme. Some
contingency models add more confusion that value over universal ones. Consequently,
we need to balance the sensitivity of contingency factors with the simplicity of universal
theories.
Multiple Levels of Analysis Anchor

Organisational Behaviour topics are divided into three level of analysis: individual, team
and organization. The individual level includes the characteristics and behaviours of
employees as well as the thought processes that are attributed to them, such as
motivation, perceptions, personalities, attitudes and values. The team level of analysis
looks at the way people interact. This includes team dynamics, decisions, power,
organizational politics, conflict and leadership. At the organizational level we focus on
how people structure their working relationships and how organizations interact with
their environments. Although an OB topic is typically pegged in one level of analysis, it
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usually relates to multiple levels. Therefore, you should try to think about each OB topic
at the individual, team and organizational levels not just at one of these levels.
The Open Systems Anchor

Organisations are open systems because they take their sustenance from the environment
and in, turn, affect that environment through their output. A company’s survival and
success depend on how well employees sense environmental changes and alter their
patterns of behavior to fit those emerging conditions.11 In contrast, a closed system has
all the resources needed to survive without dependence on the external environment.
Organizations are never completely closed systems, but monopolies operating in a very
stable environment can ignore customers and other for a fairly long time without adverse
consequences.
1.2. ASSESSMENT: REVISION QUESTIONS
These questions are meant to test your comprehension of the introduction to

Organisational Behaviour. Attempt to answer them after completing unit 1.0.
Solutions to these questions can be found at the end of the course modules.
1. A friend suggests that Organisational Behaviour course is useful only to

people who will enter management careers. Discuss the accuracy of your
friend’s statement.
2. Explain your understanding of (I) the field of Organisational Behaviour (ii)
reasons why we study Organisational Behaviour
3. Explain how emerging trend such as globalisation and the changing
workforce can influence behaviour in organisations.
4. Which schools of thought contributed significantly to the growth of
Organisational Behaviour as a discipline?
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UNIT 2.0
2. FOUNDATIONS OF INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIOUR
Unit 2.0)
This unit introduces you to the foundations of individual behaviour in relation to
organisational behaviour. It brings out some important psychological concepts that
explain the diversity in personality traits that guide individual behaviour. The idea is to
introduce the types of individual behaviour in organisations which account for a
collective “organisational Behaviour.” This section examines three important aspects of
individual behaviour: Personality, perception and attitudes. Extra attention should be
paid to the psychological terms used in this chapter and more research is recommended
where necessary.
When you have read and thought about this chapter, you will be able to:
1. Define personality and explain the factors that account for personality diversity.
2. Summarise the personality concepts behind the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator.
3. Identify the “Big Five” personality dimensions.
4. Five types of individual Behaviour in organisations.
5. Define perception and factors influencing perception.
6. Summarise the Attribution Theory.
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2.1. INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIOUR IN ORGANISATIONS
Mullins L., states one of the paradoxes of organisational life as the maintenance of
individuality and self-responsibility alongside the creation of co-operation and
conformity. Concretely, managers expect their employees to work with others and to
follow instructions and at the same time see in them personality, creativity and
independence. On important challenge to managers is to balance individual needs and
goals with group cooperation and conformity.12 A manager has thus to select staff who
will conform to organisational goals yet offer valuable individuality. As Tom Peters
suggests, organisations should apart from looking for those common place applicants
seek for those one who ‘break out’ from the mould and exhibited original thought. The
other side is that still an independent worker would be still expected to be a team player
who will be co-operative and conforming.
The study of individual behaviour is important to managers as they need to know the
people they need for specific tasks and responsibilities. Managers also need to know
themselves and their own uniqueness and the impact that their personality has on others.
When there are changes in an organisation like when an organisation is merged with
another one, employees may need sensitive handling together with other management
issues. Knowledge of some of the fundamental issues relating to individual differences
may be important for managers during these periods of change. It is a period where a
change of attitudes, new perceptions and beliefs is required and the manager should know
how to handle this with his workers. The knowledge of individual differences becomes
very crucial to managers. Personality is at the heart if management.
2.2. PERSONALITY
Personality defined as the pattern of relatively enduring ways in which a person feels,
thinks and behaves. Fincham R. describes personality as the relatively enduring
combination of traits which makes an individual unique and at the same time produces
12 Video, ‘Management Revolution and Corporate Reinvention’, BBC for Bussiness,1993.
26
consistencies in his or her thought and behaviour.13 A similar definition Rollison Derek
defines personality as, ‘those relatively stable and enduring aspects of an individual that
distinguish him/her from other people and at the same time form a basis for our
predictors concerning his/her future behaviour. (Rollison D., 1998). A complementary
definition; Robbins Stephen defines personality as the sum total of ways in which an
individual reacts and interacts with others.
It is a relatively stable pattern of behaviours and consistent internal states that explain a
person’s behavioural tendencies.14
We say that personality explains behavioural tendencies because individual’s actions are
not perfectly consistent with their personality profile in every situation. Personality traits
are less evident in situations where social norms, reward systems and other conditions
constrain our behaviour. For example, talkative people remain relatively quiet in a library
“no talking” rules are explicit and strictly enforced.
2.1.1. Personality And Organisational Behaviour
At one time, scholars often explained employee behaviour in terms of personality traits
and companies regularly administered personality tests to job applicants. This changed in
the 1960s when researchers reported that the relationship between personality and job
performance is very weak. They cited problems with measuring personality traits and
explained that connection between personality and performance exists only under very
narrowly defined conditions. Companies stopped using personality tests due to concerns
that these tests might unfairly discriminate against visible minorities and other
identifiable groups.
Over the past decade, personality has regained some of its credibility in organisational
settings. Recent studies have reported that certain personality traits predict certain work-
related behaviours, stress reactions, and emotions fairly well under certain conditions.
13 Fincham R. et.at., Principles of Organisational Behaviour, Oxford University Press, 1999, P.62.
27
Scholars have reintroduced the idea that effective leaders have identifiable traits and that
personality explains some of a person’s positive attitudes and life happiness. Personality
traits seem to help people find the jobs that best suit their needs.
Traits:
Traits may be defined as individual characteristics of thought or feeling that result in
tendencies to behave in specific ways. Also traits may be defined as enduring
characteristics that describe an individual’s behaviour. The more consistent the
characteristic and the more frequently it appears in diverse situations, the more important
that trait is in describing an individual. Traits can additionally be grouped to form
personality types.
Traits may be grouped into two groups namely; surface traits and source traits. Surface
traits for example assertiveness, can be observed in behaviour while, source traits such as
self-discipline can be inferred.
Robbins gives sixteen primary traits that group up to make one’s personality.
1. Reserved vs. outgoing
2. Less intelligent vs. more intelligent
3. Affected by feelings vs. emotionally stable
4. Submissive vs. Dominant
5. Serious vs. happy-go-lucky
6. Expedient vs. conscientious
7. Timid vs. venturesome
8. Tough-minded vs. sensitive
9. Trusting vs. suspicious
10. Practical vs. imaginative
11. Forthright vs. shrewd
12. Self-assured vs. apprehensive
13. Conservative vs. experimenting
14. Group-dependent vs. self –sufficient
15. Uncontrolled vs. controlled
16. Relaxed vs. Tense
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2.2.2. Determinants of Personality: Nature and Nurture
Sources of personality
Over the next few pages, we will look at personality traits and trait models that add value
to our knowledge of individual behaviour in organizations. However, behind these trait
categories is a battle among psychologists regarding the origins of personality. Some
scholars staunchly believe that personality is based purely on genetic code. They point to
evidence that personality traits are connected to specific parts of the brain and chemical
activities in the body. Evolutionary psychologists have taken this perspective a step
further by explaining how personality has been shaped by generations. Other
psychologists, without denying some effect of genetics, argue that the environment in
which we live influences our personality. Our personality is at least in part, developed
through early childhood socialization. To a small degree, personality can also evolve
through socialization and life experiences later in life. The following are some of the
factors that explain the sources of our personality.
Genetic factors
Inherited factors that influence physical and mental characteristics.
-height, build, intelligence, temperament, physical attractiveness.
Sheldon (1954) established a very extreme theory of genetic determinism in his
presentation of the three body shapes. He associated three body shapes with three
different personality types.
The endomorphic person with a soft, round, stocky body with large trunk and short legs
is said to have a relaxed, easy going sociable temperament and is said to love bodily
comforts. The Ectomorphic who is delicate with a slender build is said to be aesthetic,
inhibited and socially withdrawn. On the other hand, the mesomorph who is the
muscular, athletic type is said to be energetic, boisterous, assertive and possible
aggressive. His theory is now dismissed as naïve and unfounded. What is clear is that
personality is not totally determined by genes. Different factors play together to form
ones personality as we see in the case of identical twin studies.
29
Social Factors
Factors that could influence personality that arise from interacting with other people;
early socialization, which consists in interaction with parents, siblings and peers has an
effect on the way we act and think. The behaviourist school of psychology which views
all human as environmentally determined refer to personality as just accumulated
learning experiences (Skinner, 1974). Much of personality comes through learning and so
childhood experiences are paramount to the unfolding of personality.
Cultural Factors
Wider social beliefs, values and motives that are absorbed by an individual and guide
behaviour towards that which is acceptable within a particular social context; when high
value is placed on achievement and individualism in a certain society, we will find that
this may affect individual personality in instilling a trait of ‘the need to achieve’.
Situational Factors
This refers to the effect of a specific experience or situation on a person’s feelings and
behaviour. An individual’s personality, while generally stable and consistent, does
change in different situations. It is clear that very often different situations call forth
different aspects of one’s personality. Situations like church, an employment interview, a
picnic in a picnic in a park do affect behaviour differently. Examples here may be trauma
of losing a parent or a loved one. Certain situations can bring out unrecognized aspects of
personality we have never been aware of. Personality development is an ongoing process,
but to some degree personalities can be deemed as stable.
FOUR ETHICAL PRINCIPLES

In order to have a better understanding of the ethical dilemmas facing organisations, we
need to consider the various ethical principles that people rely on to make decisions.
Philosophers and other scholars have identified several ethical principles incorporating
different values and logical foundations, but most of these can be condensed down to four
basic groups-utilitarianism, individual rights, distributive justice, and care. You might
30
prefer one principle over the other based on your personal values. However, all four
principles should be actively considered to put important ethical issues to rest.
Utilitarianism-Utilitarianism advises us to seek the greatest good for the greater number
of people. In other words, we should choose option providing the highest degree of
satisfaction to those affected. This is some is sometimes known as consequential
principle because it focuses on the consequences of our actions, not on how we achieve
those consequences.
Individual Rights-The individual rights principle reflects the belief that everyone has
entitlements that let them act in a certain way. Some of the most widely cited rights are
freedom of movement, physical security, freedom of speech, fair trial and freedom from
torture.
Distributive Justice-The distributive justice principle suggest that people who are similar
in relevant ways should receive similar benefits and burdens; those who are dissimilar
should receive different benefits and burdens in proportion to their dissimilarity. For
example, we expect that two employees who contribute equally in their work should
receive similar rewards, whereas those who make lesser contribution should receive less.
Care-The Care Principle states that the morally correct action is one that expresses care
in protecting the special relationships that individuals have with each other. Whereas
distributive justice emphasises impartiality, the care principle emphasises partiality-
favouring those with whom we have special relationships. The idea behind the ethic of
the care is that our self-perception is based on relationships with others. Consequently,
our self-esteem and self-worth are influenced by how well we support and nurture those
relationships.15
15 Steven L. McShane et al., Organisational Behaviour, McGraw Hill: New York, 2005, P.34.
31
2.2.3. The Big Five Model Of Personality
Since the days of Plato, scholars have been trying to develop lists of personality traits.
About 100 years ago, a few personality experts tried to catalogue and condense the many
personality traits that had been described over the years. Recent investigations identified
five dimensions that had been debated earlier on but were in more clusters. The Big five
personality traits are five broad factors or dimensions of personality discovered through
empirical research. The first public mention of the model was in 1933, by L. L. Thurstone
in his presidential address to the American Psychological Association. Thurstone's
comments were published in Psychological Review the next year. The five factors are
Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism (OCEAN,
or CANOE if rearranged). They are also referred to as the Five Factor Model (FFM).
Researches have put in a lot of effort to distinguish between types of personality. One of
the ways that researchers have tried to describe personality is in terms of traits. A trait is a
specific component of personality that describes particular tendencies a person as to feel,
think and act in certain ways; example is shy or outgoing, critical or accepting,
compulsive or easy going. One’s personality is a collection of traits that describe how the
person generally tends to think and behave. Researchers have listed a number of traits
and believe that the traits that make up a person’s personality can be organized in a
hierarchy. The ‘big five’ model of personality puts five general personality traits
(personality factors) at the top. These are: extraversion-introversion, neuroticism-
stability, agreeableness-hostile, conscientious-expedient and openness to experience to
experience-closed to experience.
Agreeableness
Agreeableness reflects individual differences in concern with cooperation and social
harmony. Agreeable individuals have an optimistic view of human nature, and value
getting along with others; they are therefore considerate, friendly, generous, helpful, and
willing to compromise with others. Disagreeable individuals place self-interest above
getting along with others. They are generally unconcerned with others’ well-being, and
32
are less likely to extend themselves for other people. Sometimes their skepticism about
others’ motives causes them to be suspicious, unfriendly, and uncooperative.
Agreeableness reflects individual differences in concern with cooperation and social

harmony. Agreeable individual’s value getting along with others. They are therefore
considerate, friendly, generous, helpful, and willing to compromise their interests with
others’. Agreeable people also have an optimistic view of human nature. They believe
people are basically honest, decent, and trustworthy.
Sample Agreeableness items
• I am interested in people.
• I feel others’ emotions.
• I have a soft heart.
• I make people feel at ease.
• I sympathize with others’ feelings.
• I take time out for others.
• I am not interested in other people’s problems. (reversed)
• I am not really interested in others. (reversed)
• I feel little concern for others. (reversed)
• I insult people. (reversed)
Conscientiousness
Conscientiousness concerns the way in which we control, regulate, and direct our
impulses. Impulses are not inherently bad; occasionally time constraints require a snap
decision, and acting on our first impulse can be an effective response. Also, in times of
play rather than work, acting spontaneously and impulsively can be fun. Impulsive
individuals can be seen by others as colorful, fun-to-be-with, and zany.
Conscientiousness includes the factor known as Need for Achievement (NAch).
The benefits of high conscientiousness are obvious. Conscientious individuals avoid

trouble and achieve high levels of success through purposeful planning and persistence.
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They are also positively regarded by others as intelligent and reliable. On the negative
side, they can be compulsive perfectionists and workaholics. Furthermore, extremely
conscientious individuals might be regarded as stuffy and boring. Unconscientious people
may be criticized for their unreliability, lack of ambition, and failure to stay within the
lines, but they will experience many short-lived pleasures and they will never be called
stuffy (i.e. dull, boring, unimaginative).
Sample Conscientiousness items
• I am always prepared.
• I am exacting in my work.
• I follow a schedule.
• I get chores done right away.
• I like order.
• I pay attention to details.
• I leave my belongings around. (reversed)
• I make a mess of things. (reversed)
• I often forget to put things back in their proper place. (reversed)
• I shirk my duties. (reversed)
Extraversion and Introversion
Extraversion (also “extroversion”) is marked by pronounced engagement with the

external world. Extraverts enjoy being with people, are full of energy, and often
experience positive emotions. They tend to be enthusiastic, action-oriented individuals
who are likely to say "Yes!" or "Let's go!" to opportunities for excitement. In groups they
like to talk, assert themselves, and draw attention to themselves.
Introverts lack the exuberance, energy, and activity levels of extraverts. They tend to be
quiet, low-key, deliberate, and less dependent on the social world. Their lack of social
involvement should not be interpreted as shyness or depression; the introvert simply
needs less stimulation than an extravert and more time alone.
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A simple explanation is that an extravert gains energy by associating with others and
loses energy when alone for any period of time. An introvert is the opposite, as they gain
energy from doing individual activities such as watching movies or reading and lose
energy, sometimes to the point of exhaustion, from social activities.
Sample Extraversion items
• I am the life of the party.

• I don't mind being the center of attention.
• I feel comfortable around people.
• I start conversations.
• I talk to a lot of different people at parties.
• I am quiet around strangers. (reversed)
• I don't like to draw attention to myself. (reversed)
• I don't talk a lot. (reversed)
• I have little to say. (reversed)
Neuroticism
Neuroticism, also known inversely as Emotional Stability, refers to the tendency to

experience negative emotions. Those who score high on Neuroticism may experience
primarily one specific negative feeling such as anxiety, anger, or depression, but are
likely to experience several of these emotions. People high in Neuroticism are
emotionally reactive. They respond emotionally to events that would not affect most
people, and their reactions tend to be more intense than normal. They are more likely to
interpret ordinary situations as threatening, and minor frustrations as hopelessly difficult.
Their negative emotional reactions tend to persist for unusually long periods of time,
which means they are often in a bad mood. These problems in emotional regulation can
diminish a neurotic's ability to think clearly, make decisions, and cope effectively with
stress.
At the other end of the scale, individuals who score low in Neuroticism are less easily
upset and are less emotionally reactive. They tend to be calm, emotionally stable, and
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free from persistent negative feelings. Freedom from negative feelings does not mean that
low scorers experience a lot of positive feelings; frequency of positive emotions is a
component of the Extraversion domain.
Sample Neuroticism items
• I am easily disturbed.
• I change my mood a lot.
• I get irritated easily.
• I get stressed out easily.
• I get upset easily.
• I have frequent mood swings.
• I often feel blue.
• I worry about things.
• I am relaxed most of the time. (reversed)
• I seldom feel blue. (reversed)
Openness to Experience
Openness to Experience describes a dimension of personality that distinguishes

imaginative, creative people from down-to-earth, conventional people. Open people are
intellectually curious, appreciative of art, and sensitive to beauty. They tend to be,
compared to closed people, more aware of their feelings. They therefore tend to hold
unconventional and individualistic beliefs, although their actions may be conforming (see
agreeableness). People with low scores on openness to experience tend to have narrow,
common interests. They prefer the plain, straightforward, and obvious over the complex,
ambiguous, and subtle. They may regard the arts and sciences with suspicion, regarding
these endeavors as abstruse or of no practical use. Closed people prefer familiarity over
novelty; they are conservative and resistant to change.
Sample Openness items
• I am full of ideas.
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• I am quick to understand things.
• I have a rich vocabulary.
• I have a vivid imagination.
• I have excellent ideas.
• I spend time reflecting on things.
• I use difficult words.
• I am not interested in abstract ideas. (reversed)
• I do not have a good imagination. (reversed)
2.2.4. Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is a personality questionnaire designed to

identify certain psychological differences according to the typological theories of Carl
Gustav Jung as published in his 1921 book Psychological Types (English edition, 1923).
The original developers of the indicator were Katharine Cook Briggs and her daughter,
Isabel Briggs Myers, who initially created the indicator during World War II, believing
that a knowledge of personality preferences would help women who were entering the
industrial workforce for the first time identify the sort of war-time jobs where they would
be "most comfortable and effective".
In a similar way to left or right handedness, the principle is that individuals are either
born with, or develop, certain ways of thinking and acting. The MBTI endeavours to sort
some of these psychological differences into four opposite pairs, or "dichotomies", with a
resulting 16 possible psychological types. None of these types is "better" or "worse";
however, Briggs and Myers recognized that everyone has an overall combination of type
differences that is more natural for them. In the same way as writing with the left hand is
hard work for a right-hander, so people tend to find using their opposite psychological
preference more difficult, even if they can become more proficient (and therefore
behaviourally flexible) with practice and development.
The 16 different types are often referred to by an abbreviation of four letters, the initial
letters of each of their four type preferences (except in the case of Intuition), for instance:
ESTJ stand for Extraverted, Sensation, Thinking, Judging
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INFP stand for Introverted, iNtuition, Feeling, Perceiving
And so on for all 16 possible type combinations.
Attitudes: Extraversion (E) / Introversion (I)

The preferences for Extraversion (thus spelled in Myers-Briggs language) and
Introversion are sometimes referred to as attitudes. Briggs and Myers recognized that
each of the functions can show in the external world of behavior, action, people and
things (extraverted attitude) or the internal world of ideas and reflection (introverted
attitude). The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator sorts for an overall preference for one or the
other of these.
People with a preference for Extraversion draw energy from action: they tend to act, then
reflect, then act further. If they are inactive, their level of energy and motivation tends to
decline. Conversely, those whose preference is Introversion become less energized as
they act: they prefer to reflect, then act, then reflect again. People with Introversion
preferences need time out to reflect in order to rebuild energy. The Introvert's flow is
directed inward toward concepts and ideas and the Extravert's is directed outward
towards people and objects. There are several contrasting characteristics between
Extraverts and Introverts: Extraverts desire breadth and are action-oriented, while
introverts seek depth and are thought-oriented.
The terms Extravert and Introvert are used in a special sense when discussing the Myers-
Briggs Type Indicator.
Functions: Sensation (S) / Intuition (N) and Thinking (T) / Feeling (F)
The Sensation / Intuition and Thinking / Feeling dichotomies are often called functions.
According to Jung everyone uses all four functions. One function, which Jung called the
dominant function, will usually be used in a more conscious and confident way. The
dominant function is supported by two auxiliary functions (in MBTI publications only
one of these is called an auxiliary function, the other one is usually called the tertiary
function). The fourth and least conscious function is always the opposite to the dominant
38
function. Jung called this the inferior function. The four functions do not operate
independently from the attitudes (extraversion and introversion) but in conjunction with
them. Therefore each function will always be used in either an extraverted or introverted
way. A person whose dominant function is extraverted intuition, for example, uses the
intuition function very differently from someone whose dominant function is introverted
intuition.
Sensation and Intuition are the information gathering (perceiving) functions. They
describe how new information is understood and interpreted. Individuals with a dominant
Sensation function prefer to trust information that is in the present, tangible and concrete:
that is information that can be understood by the five senses. They tend to distrust
hunches that seem to come out of nowhere. They prefer to look for detail and facts. For
them the meaning is in the data. On the other hand those with a dominant Intuition
function tend to trust information that is more abstract or theoretical, that can be
associated with other information (either remembered or discovered by seeking a wider
context or pattern). They may be more interested in future possibilities. They tend to trust
those flashes of insight that seem to bubble up from the unconscious mind. The meaning
is in how the data relates to the pattern or theory.
Thinking and Feeling are the decision-making (judging) functions. Both the Thinking and
Feeling functions are used to make rational decisions. Those with a more dominant
Feeling function prefer to come to decisions by associating or empathizing with the
situation, looking at it 'from the inside' and weighing the situation to achieve, on balance,
the greatest harmony, consensus and fit, considering the needs of the people involved.
Those with a more dominant Thinking function prefer to decide things from a more
detached standpoint, measuring the decision by what seems reasonable, logical, causal,
and consistent and matching a given set of rules.
As noted already, people with a Thinking preference do not necessarily, in the everyday
sense, 'think better' than their Feeling counterparts; the opposite function is considered an
equally rational way of coming to decisions (and in any case, the MBTI is a measure of
39
preference, not ability). Similarly, those with a Feeling preference do not necessarily
have 'better' emotional reactions than their Thinking peers.
2.2.5. Other Personality Traits
Locus of Control
Locus of Control refers to a generalised belief about the amount of control people have
over their own lives. Individuals who feel that they are very much in charge of their won
destiny have an internal locus of control; those who think that events in their life are due
mainly to fate/luck or powerful others have an external locus of control. Locus of control
is a generalised belief, so people with an external locus can feel in control in familiar
situations (such as opening the door or serving a customer). However, their underlying
locus of control would be apparent in new situations in which control over events is
uncertain.
People perform better in most employment situations when they have moderately strong
internal locus of control. They tend to be more successful in their careers and earn more
money than their external counterparts. Internals are particularly well suited to leadership
positions and other jobs requiring initiative, independent action, complex thinking and
high motivation. Internals are also more satisfied with their jobs, cope better in stressful
situations, are more motivated by performance-based reward systems. 16
Self-Monitoring
Self-monitoring refers to an individual’s level of sensitivity to the expressive behaviour
of others and the ability to adapt appropriately to these cues. High self-monitors can
adjust their behaviour quite easily and therefore show little stability in other underlying
personality traits. In contrast, low self-monitors are more likely to reveal their mood and
personal characteristics, so predicting their behaviour from one situation to the next is
relatively easy. The self-monitoring personality trait has been identified as a significant
factor in many organisational activities. Employees who are high self-monitors tend to be
40
better at social networking, interpersonal conversation and leading people. They also
more likely than low self-monitors to be promoted within the organisation and to receive
better jobs else where.
Self-monitoring, locus of control, conscientiousness, and the other personality traits help
us to understand individual behaviour in organisations.
Attitudes and Behaviour

An attitude is defined as a ‘learned predisposition to respond in consistently favourable or
unfavourable manner with respect to a given object. Attitudes affect behaviour at a
different lever than do values. While values represent global beliefs that influence
behaviour across all situations, attitudes relate only to behaviour directed toward specific
objects, persons or situations. Values and attitudes are generally, though not always, in
harmony. A manager who strongly values helpful behaviour may have a negative attitude
towards helping an unethical co-worker.
Abilities and Performance

Individual differences in abilities and accompanying skills are a central concern for
managers because nothing can be accomplished without appropriately skilled personnel.
Ability represents a broad and stable characteristic responsible for a person’s maximum-
as opposed to typical-performance on mental and physical tasks. A skill on the other had,
is the specific capacity to physically manipulate objects. Consider this difference as you
imagine yourself being the only passenger on a small commuter plane in which the pilot
has just passed out. As the plane no-dives, your effort and abilities will not be enough to
save yourself and the pilot if you do not possess flying skills.
Abilities and skills are getting a good deal of attention in management circles these days,
because it is believed that performance depends on the right combination of effort, ability
and skill. The more encompassing term ‘competencies’ is typically used. Among the
many desirable competencies are oral communication, initiative, decisiveness, tolerance,
41
problem solving and adaptability. Importantly, our earlier cautions about on-the-job
personality testing extend to ability, intelligence and competency testing and certification.
Although experts do not agree on the specific definition, intelligence represents an

individual’s capacity for constructive thinking, reasoning and problem solving.
Historically, intelligence was believed to be an innate capacity passed genetically from
one generation to the next. Research since has shown, however, that intelligence (like
personality) is also a function of environmental influences.17
2.3. PERCEPTION AND ATTRIBUTION
Definitions:
Perception is a process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory
impressions in order to give meaning to their environment. It is the selection and
organization of environmental stimuli to provide meaningful experiences for the
perceiver. Perception represents the psychological process whereby people extract
information from the environment and make sense of their world.18 What we see
sometimes may be completely different from objective reality. An example is that
although it would be the ideal that all workers find the work place as a great place of
work, with favourable working conditions, interesting job assignments, good pay and
understanding and responsible management, it is never the case that all employees find it
that way. We all perceive the same reality differently. It is important to consider
perception in the work place because people’s behaviour is based on their perception of
what reality is, and not only on reality itself.
2.3.1. Selective Attention

Selective attention is the process of filtering information received by our senses. Our five
senses are constantly bombarded with stimuli. Some things are noticed but most are
screened out. A nurse working in a postoperative care might ignore the smell of recently
17 Robert Kreitner, Organisational Behaviour, McGraw-Hill: New York, 2002, P.136

18 Don Hellriegel et al., Organisational Behaviour 4th ed., West Publish Company: New York, 1986, P.83
42
disinfected instruments or the sound of co-workers talking nearby, yet a small flashing
red light on the nurse station console is immediately noticed because it signal s that a
patient’s vital signs are failing.
2.3.2. Factors Influencing Perception

Different people may look at something and yet perceive it differently. This depends on a
number of factors:
Internal Factors: The Perceiver
Perception depends on the personal characteristics of the perceiver. When an individual

looks at some object or incident his interpretation of what he/she sees depends on
personal characteristics. An example; when one buys a new shirt or a dress and suddenly
notice it is everywhere worn by different people. What has changed is not that the
number of the particular shirt or dress has increased in the place but rather that your
perception. It has been affected and you are more apt to notice similar dresses more.
Some of the factors affecting perception are sensory limits or thresholds, attitudes,
motives, interests, past experience, and expectations.
As individuals we differ in our sensory limits or threshold. Some people have very acute
eyesight and some have very clear hearing. People not only differ in he absolute
threshold but also differ in the ability to discriminate between stimuli. For instance the
trained wine taster may notice the difference in the wines that another person can’t. some
people are able to detect changes in stimuli and to detect differences. As humans we also
differ in terms of the amount of sensory information we need to reach our own
comfortable equilibrium. Some people may find loud music at a party unpleasant, while
others find the intensity of the music part of the enjoyment and pleasure. We also need
sensory information if we are deprived if it we may grow bored and develop discomfort.
43
Psychological Factors
Psychological factors affect the way we perceive. These factors include personality,
learning, intelligence, ability, training, interests, expectations, past experience and
motivation.
Personality
Differences are given in how people acquire and use information. This has been used as
one of the scales in the Myers-Briggs type indicator. Some people are the sensing type
while others are intuitive. Witkin H. A. (1954), in his experiments forwarded what he
called field dependence and independence. For him field dependence individuals were
found to be reliant on the context of the stimuli, the cues given in the situation, while the
field independent subjects relied on their internal bodily and less on the environment. He
concluded therefore that individuals need different information from the environment to
make sense of their world.
Attitudes
Two people may be different in a way that on likes small classes because she likes
interacting in class and asking many questions of his teachers, while the other prefers
getting lost in the big group and keeping quiet among the sea of people. On the first day
at the university these two people may perceive and interpret the first day differently. The
major reason is that they hold divergent attitudes concerning large classes.
Motives
Unsatisfied needs or motives stimulate individuals and may exert a strong influence on
their perceptions. A hungry person showed a blurred picture in an experiment viewed it
as food and those who has eaten interpreted the picture differently. In the work place this
can be seen in different ways. A manager who is not secure will perceive subordinate’s
44
efforts to do a good job as a threat to his/her position. He will perceive the fellow workers
as out to get his job. Also people who are devious are prone to see others as also devious.
Interests
Also our interests affect our perception. A plastic surgeon is bound to notice a blemish or
flaw in the face than a plumber. The supervisor who has been reprimanded by her boss
for the lateness among her staff will be more likely to notice lateness of an employee
more than she would have been before this. If you have a problem and your interests
elsewhere you may not be able to pay attention in class and so your perception will be
affected. The focus of or attention appears to be influenced by our interests. As our
interests vary a lot so do our perceptions.
Past experience
Our past experiences can narrow our perception. We often times perceive those things to
which we can relate. On the other hand we are often bound to notice those things we have
not seen before. Objects or events that have never been experienced before are more
noticeable than those that have been experienced in the past. We are more likely to see a
machine we have never seen before or the type of person we have not met before. We see
women in roles we have seen them easily. In the workplace we would see more the
operations on the assemble line that we have not seen or done before than the one we are
familiar with.
Expectation
It is often said that we see what we what to see. If we expect police to be authoritative,
young people to be ambitions, women to be timid, personnel directors to like people we
will most likely perceive them this way regardless of their actual traits.
45
External Factors: The Target
External factors refer to the nature and characteristics of the stimuli. The characteristics
in the target that is being observed may affect what is perceived. Attention may be drawn
to stimuli that is often:
Large, moving, intense, loud, contrasted, bright, novel, repeated or stand out from the
ground. Often the relationship of the target to its background influences perception. What
we see is dependent on how we separate a figure from its general background.
2.3.3. Social Identity Theory

The theory is a conceptual framework based on the idea that how we perceive the world
depends on how we define ourselves in terms of our membership in various social
groups. In other words it explains the connection between self-perception and perception
of others. According to the social identity theory, people maintain a social identity by
defining themselves in terms of the groups to which they belong and have an emotional
attachment. For example someone might have a social identity as a Zambian and a
graduate of the University of the Copperbelt, and an employee of Celtel. Everyone
engages in this social categorization process because it helps to make sense of where we
fit within the social world.
Besides social identity, people have personal identity-characteristics that make them
unique and distinct from people in any particular group. For instance, an unusual
achievement that distinguishes you from other people typically becomes a personal
identity characteristic e.g., “I’m probably the only one in this class who has trekked
through Malaysia’s Cameron Highlands!”. The difference between personal and social
identity is that personal identity refers to something about you as an individual without
reference to a larger group. Social identity, on the other hand, defines you in terms of
characteristics of the group. By assigning yourself as an employee of Celtel you are
actually assigning characteristics to yourself that are also characteristics of Celtel
employees in general.
46
Most of us want to have a positive self-image, so we identify with groups that have
higher social status or respect. Medical doctors usually define themselves in terms of
their profession because of its high status, whereas people in low –status jobs are less
likely to do so. Some people define themselves in terms of where they because their
employer has a favourable reputation in the community; other people never mention
where they work because the firm is known for its poor customer service or ethical
conduct.19
Perceiving Others Through Social Identity

Social identity is a comparative process, meaning that we define ourselves in terms of our
differences with people who belong to other groups. By defining yourself as someone
who attends this college, you are probably make comparisons to people who attend other
colleges. To simplify this comparison process, we tend to homogenize people within
social categories.
The social identity process explains how we perceive ourselves and others. We partly
identify ourselves in terms of our membership in social groups. This comparison process
includes creating a homogeneous image of our own social groups and different
homogenous images of people in other groups. We also tend to assign more favourable
features to our own group and less favourable feature to other groups. This perceptual
process makes our social world easier to understand. However, it also becomes the basis
for stereotyping people in organizational settings which we discuss next.
Stereotyping in Organisational Settings

Stereotyping is the tendency to assign attributes to someone solely on the basis of a
category to which that person belongs. People expect someone identified as a doctor, a
president of the company, or minister to have certain positive attributes, even if they have
met some who did not. A person categorized as dropout, ex-con, or alcoholic is
automatically perceived negatively. The perceiver may dwell on certain expected
characteristics and fail to recognize the characteristics that distinguish the person as an
19 Steven L. McShane et al., Organisational Behaviour, McGraw Hill: New York, 2005, P
47
individual.20 Stereotyping is an extension of social identity theory and a product of our
natural process of organizing information. It involves the process of assigning trait to
people based on their membership in a social category. Observable features allow us to
assign people to a social group quickly and without investigation.21 Employee
perceptions in organizational settings also take the same channel. For instance, there are
many commonplace stereotypes about women employees. A woman may be perceived as
‘an earth mother’, ‘a counselor figure’ ‘a pet’ brightening up the place, ‘a seductress’, ‘a
sex object’, ‘an iron maiden’; a man hunter.’22
Stereotyping occurs for three reasons. First trying to absorb the unique constellations of
attributes about each person we meet is a huge cognitive challenge; there is too much
information to remember. Instead we rely on a natural process called categorical
thinking-grouping people and objects into preconceived categories that are stored in our
long-term memory. This categorization process us the basis if stereotyping. Second, we
have a strong need to understand and anticipate how things will behave. We don’t have
enough information about the person we are meeting for the first time, so we rely heavily
on stereotypes to fill in the missing pieces. Lastly, stereotyping enhances our self-
perception and social identity. Recall from social identity theory that our self-perception
is developed by defining ourselves in terms of our membership in certain social groups
and contrasting them with other groups. In order to enhance our self-concept, we tend to
emphasize the positive aspects of the groups to which we belong and to emphasize the
negative aspects of contrasting groups.
2.3.4. Attribution Theory

This theory has been proposed to develop explanations of the ways in which we judge
people differently, depending on what meaning we attribute to a given behaviour. Part of
the process of perceiving other people is to attribute to characteristics to them. We judge
people by their behaviour and their intensions on past knowledge, and in comparison with
20 Don Hellrigiel
21 Steven L. McShane et al., Organisational Behaviour, McGraw Hill: New York, 2005, P
22 Laurie J. Mullins, Management and Organisational Behaviour, 7th ed., Prentice Hall: Harlow, 2005,
P.461.
48
other people we know. According to Mullins, attribution is the process by which people
interpret the perceived causes of behaviour. The initiator of attribution theory is Heider F.
(1958). He suggested that behaviour is determined by a combination of perceived internal
forces and external forces. The attribution theory suggests that when we observe an
individual’s behaviour, we attempt to determine whether it was externally or internally
caused. To determine this we base ourselves on three factors: Distinctiveness, consensus
and consistency
Distinctiveness
Distinctiveness refers to whether an individual displays different behaviours in different
situations. We may ask whether the employee who arrives late today is the same one who
is noted for by co-workers for being a goof-off? What one seeks to know is whether this
behaviour is unusual or not. If it is not usual, the observer is likely to give the behaviour
an external attribution. If this action is not unusual, one may judge it as internal
.
Consensus
We talk of consensus if everyone who is faced with a similar situation responds in the
same way. If we refer to the late comer above, his behaviour will meet this criterion if all
employees who took the same route to work were also late. If consensus is high, we give
an external attribution to the employee’s late coming, if on the other hand, employees
who took the same route arrived at work on time always, the conclusion as to causation
would be internal.
Consistency
We usually look for consistency in a person. We seek to know if a person responds in the
same way over time. Coming 10 minutes late for work is not perceived as the same thing
for the employee who is always punctual. The more consistent the behaviour the more the
observer is inclined to attribute to internal causes.
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Fundamental Attribution Error
There are errors and biases that distort our attributions. Very often in judging others we
have a tendency of underestimating the influence of external factors and overstate the
influence of internal or personal factors as causes of other behaviour or performance.
This is called the fundamental attribution error. A sales manager is prone to attribute poor
performance of her sales agents on their laziness other than the innovative product line
introduced by his/her competitor.
Self-serving Bias
There is a tendency for one to attribute their successes to internal factors like ability or
effort while putting the blame or failure on external factors. We call this the self-serving
bias and suggest that feedback provided to employees in performance reviews will be
predictably distorted by recipients depending on whether is it positive or negative.
Implication of Attribution Theory

Research has it that staff with an internal control orientation is generally more satisfied
with their jobs and are more likely to be in managerial positions. They are generally
satisfied with the participatory style of management than staff with an external control
orientation. Individual with a high achievement motivation may perceive that successful
performance is caused by their internal forces and their ability and effort rather than by
the nature of the task or by luck. In another case if members of staff fail to perform while
on their task they may believe that external factors are the cause and they may reduce the
level of future effort. Alternatively, if staff performs well but the manager perceives this
as due to an easy task or to mere luck, the appropriate recognition and reward may not be
given. The lack of recognition may demoralize the workers, it is therefore, important that
the correct attribution is done.
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ASSESSMENT: QUESTIONS
1. Give a comprehensive definition of personality and the factors that influence the
formation of personality.
2. What do you understand by these concepts; locus of control and self-monitoring?
3. Explain your understanding of the process of perception.
4. Discuss those factors which affect selection and attention in the process of
perception.
5. Explain the attribution theory.
51
UNIT THREE
6. FOUNDATIONS OF TEAM DYNAMICS
Learning Module (Unit 3.0)

The unit highlights the importance of team dynamics in organisational settings. You need
to understand the difference that teamwork makes in organisational events. The unit
outlines the reasons why people join groups and team development, and the change in
organisational performance as a result of team cohesiveness. In this chapter, you are
advised to think of examples from your own environmental set-up.
After you have read and thought about this unit, you will be able to:
1. Understand why people need to join groups
2. Explain the factors influencing team cohesiveness.
3. Be aware of the reasons why organisations have introduced team-working
4. Evaluate the main differences between groups and teams.
5. Be aware of the roles required in teams
6. Recognise the positive and negative aspects of team-working
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3.1. Nature of Teams
Groups and Teams
Teams are replacing individuals as the basic building blocks of organizations. Teams are
groups of two or more people who interact and influence each other, are mutually
accountable for achieving common goals associated with organizational objectives;
perceive themselves as a social entity within an organization.23 Robbins defines a group
as two or more individuals, interacting and interdependent, who has come together to
achieve particular objectives.24 In other words, a group consists of two or more people
with a unifying relationship. All teams are groups because they consist of people with a
unifying relationship but not groups are team; some groups are just people assemble
together without any necessary interdependence or organizationally focused objective.
For example, the friends you meet for lunch wouldn’t be called a team because they have
little or no task interdependence (each person could just as easily eat lunch alone) and no
organizational purpose beyond their social interaction.
.
A department of employees would not be considered a team if employees perform
independent tasks and have minimal interaction or coordination with each other. A
department would be a team only if employees work together toward a common objective
by sharing information, coordinating their work and influencing each other. Although the
terms ‘group’ and ‘team’ are sometimes used interchangeably in organizational
behaviour, the main focus is on teams.
3.2. Types of Groups

Individuals usually belong to many types of groups, and there are many ways of
classifying groups depending on a person’s perspective. For example, a person concerned
with the degree of difficulty in gaining membership or becoming accepted as a group
member might develop a classification scheme that differentiates groups according
whether they are open or closed to new members.
24 Robbins, S. P., Organisational Behaviour and Analysis, Harlow: Addison Wesley Longman, 1998, P.43
53
FRIENDSHIP AND TASK GROUPS-A person evaluating groups in an organization
according to the primary purpose they serve might find useful the classifications of
friendship group and task group. A friendship group serves the primary purpose of
meeting its members’ needs of security, esteem, and belonging. A task group primarily
accomplishes organizationally defined goals. Possibly a single group in an organization
can serve both friendship and task purposes.
INTERDEPENDENCE IN TASK GROUPS-Task groups can be further classified on the

basis of the interdependence between group members in accomplishing some task or
objective. Three types of task groups have been identified: interacting, coaching and
counteracting.
An interacting group exists when a group cannot perform a task until all members have
completed their shares of the task. For example the assembly team of a large luggage
manufacturer consists of about ten people who perform the separate tasks required to
assemble a complete piece of luggage. If one task is not undertaken, the task-the finished
suitcase-cannot be completed.
When the group members perform their jobs in relative independence of each other, in
the short run, a coaching group exists. Relative and in the short run indicate that if there
were no interdependence over time, there would be no task group. For example,
university faculty members may be independent in the day-t0-day teaching if their
courses, but they are highly interdependent in considering changes in courses or new
course offerings.
A counteracting group exists when members interact to resolve some type of conflict,
usually through negotiation and compromise. A labour-management negotiating group
illustrates a counteracting group. The representatives from management and the union
usually believe that at least some of their goals are in conflict.
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Along with formal work teams, organizations consist of informal groups. Informal groups
are not initiated by the organization and usually do not perform organizational goals (thus
they are ‘informal’). Instead, they exist primarily for the benefit of their members. As
mentioned above, informal groups are alliances that are neither formally structured nor
organizationally determined. They are natural formations in the work environment that
appear in response to the need of social contact.
CROSS-FUNCTIONAL TEAM-In business, a cross-functional team is a group of people

with different functional expertise working toward a common goal. It may include people
from finance, marketing, operations, and human resources departments. Typically, it
includes employees from all levels of an organization. Members may also come from
outside an organization (in particular, from suppliers, key customers, or consultants).
Cross-functional teams often function as self-directed teams responding to broad, but not
specific directives. Decision-making within a team may depend on consensus, but often is
led by a manager/coach/team leader.
A non-business, yet good example of cross-functional teams are music bands, where each
element plays a different instrument (or has a different role). Songs are the result of
collaboration and participation, and the goals are decided by consensus. Skills to play all
the instruments involved are not required since music provides a standard language that
everybody in the team can understand. In short, music bands are clear examples of how
these teams work.25
3.3. Why Rely On Teams

Teams are generally more successful than individuals working alone at identifying
problems, developing alternatives, and choosing from those alternatives. Similarly, team
members can quickly share information and coordinate tasks, whereas these processes are
slower and prone to more errors in the traditional departments led by supervisors. Teams
typically provide superior customer service because they provide more breadth of
knowledge and expertise to customers than individual ‘stars’ can offer. This ability to
25 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross-functional_team"
55
share information and respond to the external environment explains why teamwork is
considered an important ingredient in knowledge management.
In many situations, employees are also potentially more energized and engaged when
working on teams, for at least two reasons. One reason is that employees have a drive to
bond and are motivated to fulfill the goals of groups they identify with and belong to.
Second, employees are able to perform more enriched jobs in team settings, where the
task is too complex for individuals to perform alone. The task is far too complex for any
employee working alone, whereas team members collectively experience higher levels of
task identity, skill variety (by rotating through jobs), autonomy and other elements of job
designs by performing the entire process.26
3.4. A Model of Effectiveness

Team effectiveness refers to how the team affects the organization, individual team
members and the team’s existence. It is the extent to which a team achieves its objectives,
achieves the needs and objectives of its members and sustains itself over time. First most
teams exist to serve some purpose relating to the organization or other system in which
the group operates. Second, team effectiveness relies on the satisfaction and well-being of
its members. People join groups to fulfill their personal needs, so effectiveness includes
the team’s viability-its ability to survive. It must be able to maintain the commitment of
its members, particularly during the turbulence of the team’s development. Without this
commitment, people leave and the team will fall apart. It must also secure sufficient
resources and find a benevolent environment in which to operate. Many organizations
have introduced team structures that have become failure because of the failure to take
into account the above.
3.4. Organisational and Team Environment

There are many element in the organisation and team environment that influence team
effectives. Six of the most important elements are reward systems, communication
56
systems, physical space, organizational environment, organizational structure, and
organizational leadership.
• Reward Systems-Team members tend to work together more effectively when
they are at least partly rewarded for team performance. This doesn’t mean that
everyone on the team should receive the same amount of pay based on team’s
performance. On the contrary, rewards tend to work better in the United States
and other western societies when individual pay is based on a combination of
individual and team performance.
• Communications systems-A poorly designed communication system can starve a
team of valuable information and feedback, or it may swamp it with information
overload. Communication systems are particularly important when team members
are geographically dispersed. Even when team members are co-located that space
should be arranged to encourage rather than discourage face-to-face dialogue.
• Physical Space-The layout of an office or manufacturing facility does more than
improve communication among team members. It also shapes employee
perceptions about being together as a team and influences the team’s ability to
accomplish tasks. Physical layout creates a close-knit community among
production team members, allowing closer interaction with each other and making
it easier to help each other when bottlenecks occur.27
• Organisational Environment-Team success depends on the company’s external
environment. If the organization cannot secure resources, for instance, the team
cannot fulfill its performance targets. Similarly, high demand for the team’s
output creates feelings of success, which motivates team members to stay with the
team. A competitive external environment can motivate employees to work
together more closely.
• Organisational Structure-Many teams fail because the organizational structure
does not support them. Teams work better when there are few layer of
management and teams are given autonomy and responsibility for their work.
This structure encourages interaction with team members rather than with
supervisors. Teams also flourish when employees are organized around work
57
process rather than specialized skills. This structure increases interaction among
team members.
• Organisational Leadership-Teams require ongoing support from senior executives
to align rewards, organizational structure, communication systems, and other
elements of team context. They also require team leaders or facilitators who
provide coaching and support. Team leaders are also enablers, meaning that they
ensure teams have the authority to solve their own problems and resources to
accomplish their tasks. Leaders also main a value system that supports team
performance more than individual success.28
3.5. Team Development

The Forming – Storming – Norming – Performing model of team development was first
proposed by Bruce Tuckman in 1965, who maintained that these phases are all necessary
and inevitable in order for the team to grow, to face up to challenges, to tackle problems,
to find solutions, to plan work, and to deliver results.29 This model has become the basis
for subsequent models of group development and team dynamics and a management
theory frequently used to describe the behavior of existing teams. It has also taken a firm
hold in the field of experiential education since in many outdoor education centers team
building and leadership development are key goals.
Forming
In the first stages of team building, the forming of the team takes place. The team meets
and learns about the opportunity and challenges, and then agrees on goals and begins to
tackle the tasks. Team members tend to behave quite independently. They may be
motivated but are usually relatively uninformed of the issues and objectives of the team.
Team members are usually on their best behavior but very focused on themselves. Mature
team members begin to model appropriate behavior even at this early phase.
28 Ibid
29 Tuckman B. W., Development Sequence in Small Groups, Psychological Bulletin, 63(3); 384-99,1965.
58
The forming stage of any team is important because in this stage the members of the team
get to know one another and make new friends. This is also a good opportunity to see
how each member of the team works as an individual and how they respond to pressure.
Storming
Every group will then enter the storming stage in which different ideas compete for
consideration. The team addresses issues such as what problems they are really supposed
to solve, how they will function independently and together and what leadership model
they will accept. Team members open up to each other and confront each other's ideas
and perspectives. In some cases storming can be resolved quickly. In others, the team
never leaves this stage. The maturity of some team members usually determines whether
the team will ever move out of this stage. Immature team members will begin acting out
to demonstrate how much they know and convince others that their ideas are correct.
Some team members will focus on minutiae to evade real issues.
The storming stage is necessary to the growth of the team. It can be contentious,
unpleasant and even painful to members of the team who are averse to conflict. Tolerance
of each team member and their differences needs to be emphasized. Without tolerance
and patience the team will fail. This phase can become destructive to the team and will
lower motivation if allowed to get out of control.
Supervisors of the team during this phase may be more accessible but tend to still need to
be directive in their guidance of decision-making and professional behavior.
Norming
At some point, the team may enter the norming stage. Team members adjust their
behavior to each other as they develop work habits that make teamwork seem more
natural and fluid. Team members often work through this stage by agreeing on rules,
values, professional behavior, shared methods, working tools and even taboos. During
this phase, team members begin to trust each other. Motivation increases as the team gets
more acquainted with the project.
59
Teams in this phase may lose their creativity if the norming behaviors become too strong
and begin to stifle healthy dissent and the team begins to exhibit groupthink.
Supervisors of the team during this phase tend to be participative more than in the earlier
stages. The team members can be expected to take more responsibility for making
decisions and for their professional behavior.
Performing
Some teams will reach the performing stage. These high-performing teams are able to
function as a unit as they find ways to get the job done smoothly and effectively without
inappropriate conflict or the need for external supervision. Team members have become
interdependent. By this time they are motivated and knowledgeable. The team members
are now competent, autonomous and able to handle the decision-making process without
supervision. Dissent is expected and allowed as long as it is channelled through means
acceptable to the team.
Supervisors of the team during this phase are almost always participative. The team will
make most of the necessary decisions. Even the most high-performing teams will revert
to earlier stages in certain circumstances. Many long-standing teams will go through
these cycles many times as they react to changing circumstances. For example, a change
in leadership may cause the team to revert to storming as the new people challenge the
existing norms and dynamics of the team.
Adjourning and Transforming

Tuckman later added a fifth phase, adjourning, that involves completing the task and
breaking up the team. Others call it the phase for mourning.
A team that lasts may transcend to a transforming phase of achievement.
Transformational management can produce major changes in performance through
synergy and is considered to be more far-reaching than transactional management.30
30 http//wikipedia/team development
60
3.6. Team Norms and Roles
Have you ever noticed how employees in some departments almost run for the exit door
the minute the workday end, whereas people in the same jobs elsewhere almost seem to
be competing for who can stay at work the longest? These differences are partly due to
norms. Norms are the informal rules and expectations that groups establish to regulate the
behaviour of their members. Norms apply only to behaviour, not to private thoughts or
feelings. Moreover, norms exist only for behaviours that are important to the team.
Norms guide the way team members deal with clients, how they share resources, whether
they are willing to work longer hours, and many other behaviours in organizational life.
Some norms ensure that employees support organizational goals. For example, the level
of employee absence from work is partly influenced by absence norms in the workplace.
In other words, employees are more likely to take off work in teams that support this
behaviour
Conformity to Team Norms-Everyone has experienced peer pressure at time or another.

Co-workers grimace if we are late for a meeting or make sarcastic comments if we don’t
have our part of the project completed on time. In more extreme situations, team
members may try to enforce their norms by temporarily ostracizing deviant co-workers or
threatening to terminate their membership. This heavy-handed peer pressure isn’t as rare
as you think.
Norms are also reinforced through praise from high-status members, more access to
valued resources or other rewards available to the team. But team members often
conform to the prevailing norms without direct reinforcement or punishment because
they identify with the group and want to align their behaviour with the team’s values.
This effect is particularly strong in new members because they are uncertain of their
status and want to demonstrate their membership in the team.
How Team Norms Develop-Norms develop as team members learn that certain
behaviours help them function more effectively. Some norms develop when team
61
members or outsiders make explicit statements that seem to aid the team’s success or
survival. For example, the team leader might frequently express the importance of
treating customers with respect and courtesy. A second factor triggering the development
of new norms is a critical event in the team’s history. A team might develop a strong
norm to keep the work area clean after co-worker slips on metal scraps and seriously
injures herself.
Team norms are most strongly influenced by events soon after the team is formed. Future
behaviours are shaped by the way members of a newly formed team initially greeted each
other, whey they locate themselves in a meeting, and so on. A fourth influence on team
norms is the beliefs and values that members bring to the team. For example, negotiation
teams develop norms about appropriate bargaining behaviour based on each member’s
previous bargaining experience.31
Troubleshooting Dysfunctional Team Norms-Although many team norms are deeply

anchored, there are ways to minimize the effect of dysfunctional norms on employee
behaviour. One approach is to introduce performance-oriented norms as soon as the team
is created. Another strategy is to select members who will bring desirable norms to the
group. If the organisation wants to emphasize safety, then it should select team members
who already value safety.
Selecting people with positive norms may be effective in new teams, but not when adding
new members to existing teams with counterproductive norms. A better strategy for
existing teams is to explicitly discuss the counterproductive norm with team members
using persuasive communication tactics (read more). For example, the surgical team of a
small hospital had developed a norm of arriving later for operations. Patients and other
hospital staff often waited 30 minutes or more for the team to arrive. The hospital CEO
eventually spoke to the surgical team about their lateness and, through moral suasion,
convinced team members to arrive for operating room procedures no more than five
minutes late for their appointments.
31Steven L. McShane et al., Organisational Behaviour, McGraw Hill : New York, 2005, P.272
62
Team Roles
An organization needs role structure in order to achieve its objectives. Every work team
and informal group has various roles that help the group to survive and achieve its
objectives. Each member’s role should be well defined together with the activities that go
with the named role. A role is a set of behaviours that people are expected to perform
because they hold certain positions in a team and organization. Mullins Lorrie (2002)
defines a role as the expected pattern of behaviours associated with members occupying a
particular position with the structure of the organization. Some roles help the team
achieve its goals; other roles maintain relationships so the team survives and team
members fulfill their needs. Some team roles are formally assigned to specific
individuals. For example, team leaders are usually expected initiate discussion, ensure
that everyone has an opportunity to present their views, and help the team reach
agreement on the issues discussed. But team members often take on various roles
informally based on their personality and values. These role preferences are usually
worked out during the storming stage of team development. However, in a dynamic
environment, team members often have to fulfill various roles temporarily as the need
arises.
Various team role theories have been proposed ever the years but Meredith Belbin’s team
role theory is the most popular. The model identifies nine team roles that are related to
specific personality characteristics. People have a natural preference for one role or
another, although they can adjust to a secondary role. Belbin’s model emphasizes that all
nine role must be engaged for optimal team performance. Moreover, certain team roles
should dominate over others at various stages of the team’s project or activities. For
example, shaper and coordinators are key figures when the team is identifying its needs,
whereas completers and implementers are most important during the follow-through
stage of the project. Belbin noted that for a group to be fully effective there must be
various contributions or team roles. He defined team role as a pattern of behaviour,
characteristic of the way in which one team member interacts with another where
63
performance to facilitate the progress of the team as a whole.32 The nine key team-roles
he gives are:
9 Plant-Creative, imaginative, unorthodox. Solves difficult problems
9 Shaper-Challenging, dynamic, thrives on pressure. The drive a d courage to
overcome obstacles.
9 Coordinator-Mature, confident, a good chairperson. Clarifies goals, promotes
decision making, delegates well.
9 Resource investigator-Extrovert, enthusiastic, communicative. Explores
opportunities. Develops contacts
9 Monitor-evaluator-sober, strategic, and discerning. See all options. Judges
accurately.
9 Team worker-Corporative, mild, perceptive, and diplomatic. Listens, builds,
averts friction.
9 Specialist-Single-Minded, self-starting, dedicated. Provides knowledge and skills
in rare supply.
9 Completer –finisher-Painstaking, conscientious, anxious. Searches out errors and
omissions. Delivers on time.
9 Implementer-Disciplined, reliable, conservative, efficient. Turns ideas into
practical actions.
3.7. Team Cohesiveness

Team cohesiveness is the degrees of attraction people feel toward the team and their
motivation to remain members-is usually an important fact in a team’s success. Social
interaction happens easily in all areas of life but ensuring harmonious working
relationships and effective teamwork is a real challenge to managers. The manager’s
central concern is to see that members of a work group co-operate in order to achieve the
results expected of them. Co-operation among members is often greater in a united
cohesive group. Membership of a cohesive group can be enriching of an individual as it
contributes to the promotion of morale group and aid the release of creativity and energy.
It follows that members of a high morale group are more likely to think of themselves as
32 Belbin, R. M., Team Roles at Work, Butterworth: Heinemann, 1993, 1993 in Mullin L., 2000, P.496
64
a group and work together effectively. Strong and cohesive work groups can, therefore,
have beneficial effects for the organization. Factors that affect group cohesion may be
seen in four divisions namely, membership, work environment, organization, group
development and maturity.
Membership
ƒ Size of the group
Smaller teams tend to be more cohesive than larger teams because it is easier or a
few people to agree on goals and coordinate work activities.33 Big groups can
form subgroups which may develop friction among them. Beyond 11-12 members
cohesiveness maybe difficult to achieve at times. With big numbers we have the
concept of social loafing and the Ringlemann effect, where members expend less
energy in a bigger group than when they act as individuals.
ƒ Compatibility of Members
Homogenous teams become cohesive more easily than do heterogeneous team. It
is noted that the more homogenous the group in terms of such features as shared
backgrounds, interests, attitudes and values of its members, the easier it is to
promote cohesion.
ƒ Permanence
Cohesion takes time to weave. Cohesion come about when members of a group
stay together for some reasonable time. A frequent turnover of workers may affect
morale and the cohesion of the group in general.
ƒ Gender of Workers
It is believed in recent studies according to Robbins Steven (1999), that women
report greater cohesion than men. The reason given is debatable, but it is believed
that this is so because women are less competitive and are cooperative with
people they see as friend, colleagues, or teammates than men are. In this way they
bond better.
ƒ Success
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If a group has a record of history of success it develops spirit de corps that attracts
and unites its members. Success attracts and holds together people of different
groups and the new ones that join them.
ƒ External threat
A group’s cohesiveness may increase once it feels threatened, face external
competition or under attack from external forces. Very often when management
disciplines one or two employees the group walks out in support of the
employees. This may not happen so all the time though, when the group feels
threatened as a group in itself and in its existence, sometimes it may just fall
apart.
ƒ Severity of Initiation
The more difficult it is to get into a group the more cohesive that group becomes.
In medical school the common initiation that takes applications, testing,
interviews, and the long wait for an answer all contribute to creating the
cohesiveness between first year students.
The Trouble with Teams

Teams often have a competitive advantage over individuals working place. This creates a
problem by obscuring the fact that teams aren’t always needed. Sometime, a quick and
decisive action by one person is more appropriate. Some tasks are performed just as
easily by one person as by a group. Teams also take time to develop and maintain.
Scholars refer to these hidden costs as process losses-resources (including time and
energy) expended toward team development and maintenance rather than the task. It is
much more efficient for an individual alone to work out an issue alone that to resolve
differences of opinion with other people. Lastly, teams require the right environment to
flourish. Many companies forget this point by putting people in teams without changing
anything else. As noted earlier, teams require appropriate rewards, communication
systems, team leadership and other conditions. Without these, the shift to a team structure
could be a waste of time.
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3.8. Social Loafing
The best known limitation of teams is the risk of productivity due to social loafing. Social
loafing occurs when people exert less effort (and usually perform at a lower level) when
working in groups than when working alone. A few experts question whether social
loafing is common, but students can certainly report many instances of this problem in
their team projects. Social loafing is more likely to occur in large teams where
individuals’ output is difficult to identify. Social loafing is less likely to occur when the
task is interesting, because individuals have a higher intrinsic motivation to perform their
duties
Social loafing can be minimised through the following;

1. Form smaller teams-Splitting the team into several smaller groups reduces social
loafing because each person’s performance becomes noticeable and important for
team performance.
2. Specialise tasks-Each person’s contribution is easier to see when each team
member performs a different work activity. For example, rather than pooling their
effort for all incoming customer inquiries, each customer service representative
might be assigned a particular type of client.
3. Measure Individual Performance-Social loafing is minimized when each
member’s contribution is measured. Of course, individual performance is difficult
to measure in some team activities, such as problem-solving projects in which the
team’s performance depends on one person discovering the best answer.
4. Increase Job Enrichment-social loafing is minimized when team members are
assigned more motivating jobs, such as requiring more skill variety or having
direct contact with clients. However, this minimizes social loafing only if
members have strong growth need strength. Generally social loafing is less
common among employees with high job satisfaction.
5. Select motivated employees-Social loafing can be minimized by carefully
selecting job applicants who are motivated by the task and have a collectivist
value orientation.34
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3.9. Summary
Teams are groups of two or more people who interact and influence each other, are
mutually accountable for achieving common objectives, and perceive themselves as a
social entity within an organization. All teams are groups because they consist of people
with a unifying relationship, some groups to not have purposive interaction.
Traditional departments are typically permanent work teams when employees directly
interact and coordinate work activities with each other. Organizations also rely on task
forces, skunkworks, communities of practice, and other teams to make decisions or
complete projects. Informal groups exist primarily for the benefit of their members rather
than for the organization. Team have become popular because they tend to make better
decisions, support the knowledge management process, and provide superior customer
service. In many situations, employees are potentially more energized and engaged
working teams rather than alone.
Team effectiveness includes the group’s ability to survive, achieve its system-based
objectives, and fulfill the needs of its members. The model of team effectiveness
considers the team and organizational environment, team design, and team processes. The
team or organizational environment influence team effectiveness directly, as well as
through team design and team processes. Six elements in the organizational and team
environment that influence team effectiveness are reward systems, communication
systems, physical space, organizational environment, organizational structure, and
organizational leadership.
Three team design elements are task characteristics, team size, and team composition.
Teams work best when tasks are clear, easy to implement, and require a high degree of
interdependence. Teams should be large enough to perform the work, yet small enough
for efficient coordination and meaningful involvement. Effective teams are composed of
people with the competencies and motivation to perform tasks in a team environment.
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Heterogeneous teams operate best on complex projects and problems requiring
innovative solutions.
Teams develop through the stages of forming, storming, norming, performing, and
eventually adjourning. However, some teams remain in a particular stage longer than
others, and team development is a continuous process. Teams develop norms to regulate
and guide member behavior. These norms may be influenced by critical events, explicit
statements, initial experiences, and members’ pregroup experiences. Team members also
have roles -- a set of behaviors they are expected to perform because they hold certain
positions in a team and organization.
Cohesiveness is the degree of attraction people feel toward the team and their motivation
to remain members. Cohesiveness increases with member similarity, smaller team size,
higher degree of interaction, somewhat difficult entry, team success, and external
challenges. Teams need some level of cohesiveness to survive, but high cohesive units
have higher task performance only when their norms do not conflict with organizational
objectives.
Teams are not always beneficial or necessary. Moreover, they have hidden costs, known
as process losses, and require particular environments to flourish. Teams often fail
because they are not set up in supportive environments. Social loafing is another potential
problem with teams. This is tendency for individuals to perform at a lower level when
working in groups than when alone. Social loafing can be minimised by making each
member’s performance more visible and increasing each member’s motivation to perform
his or her tasks within the group.35
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1. Define the terms ‘team’ and ‘group’ and explain why teams are different from
groups
2. How do teams develop and what factors influence team cohesiveness?
3. Give reasons why a manager would prefer teamwork to individual work?
4. Apart from the advantages of teamwork, what are some of its shortcomings
5. What are team norms and roles?
6. What is social loafing and as a manager, how can you prevent social loafing?
70
UNIT FOUR
4. APPROACH TO MANAGEMENT
Approach to management is central to the study Organisational Behaviour. Management
study highlights essential factors that make up organisational setting thereby affecting
organisational behaviour. This unit introduces management terms and outlines
managerial qualities and roles. It is very important that you take time to understand and
not to memorise the material in this unit.

When you have read and thought about this unit, you will be able to:
1. Define management and explain the nature of management
2. Explain the basic functions of management
3. Explain the development of management thought
4. Define Human Resource Management
4.1. Nature of Management

Definition
Management is the process of achieving organisational objectives, within a changing
environment, by balancing efficiency, effectiveness, and equality, obtaining the most
from limited resources, and working with and through other people. Management
comprises planning, organising, resourcing, leading or directing, and controlling an
organisation (a group of one or more people or entities) or effort for the purpose of
accomplishing a goal. Resourcing encompasses the deployment and manipulation of
human resources, financial resources, technological resources, and natural resources.
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Management is better described as part of the continuous social process that applies in
organisational life. The actions of managers are always concerned with achieving results
through other people. Thus the key elements of management are:
ƒ Achieving organisational objectives

ƒ Within a changing environment
ƒ Balancing efficiency, effectiveness and equity
ƒ Obtaining the most from limited resource
ƒ With and through other people
4.2. Managers
Managers may be termed as people who achieve organisational or cooperate goals

through people. Managers make decisions; allocate resources, and direct activities of
others so as to attain the set goals. In the very demanding and competitive environment in
which manager find themselves, managers are expected to have certain managerial
abilities. Managers undertake risks and handle uncertainties. Management requires
distinctive forms of expertise and capabilities. The manager or supervisor is the point of
reference for all staff. He is looked up to for quick and effective decisions, solutions to
problems, and the creation of an effective and productive place of work. Risk taking is at
the core of management. Some of the main managerial abilities expected of a manager
are listed below:
Managerial Abilities
ƒ Acting under uncertainty

ƒ Preserving flexibility
ƒ Political awareness
ƒ Timing
ƒ Judgment
ƒ Using Rhetoric effectively
ƒ Running multiple agendas.
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Closely linked to managerial abilities are managerial roles. According to Henry
Mintberg, who carried out a close study of five executives, managers perform ten highly
related roles. These ten roles can be grouped in three categories. These are:
1. Interpersonal role: Roles that include figurehead, leadership, and liaison activities.
2. Informational roles: Roles that include monitoring, disseminating, and
spokesperson activities.
3. Decisional roles: Roles that include those entrepreneur, disturbance handler,
resource allocator and negotiator
4.3. Development of Management Thought
The Classical Approach
The classical writers thought of the organisation in terms of its purpose and formal
structure. They placed emphasis on the planning of work, the technical requirements of
the organisation, principles of management, and the assumption of rational and logical
behaviour. The analysis of organisation in this manner is associated with work carried out
initially in the early part of the last century.
A clear understanding of the purpose of an organisation is seen as essential to

understanding how the organisation works and how its methods of working can be
improved. Identification of general objectives would lead to the clarification of purposes
and responsibilities at all levels of the organisation, and to the most effective structure.
Attention is given to the division of work, the clear definition of duties and
responsibilities, and maintaining specialisation and coordination. Emphasis is on
hierarchy management and formal organisational relationships.
Scientific Management
Many of the classical writers were concerned with the improvement of management as a
means of increasing productivity. At this time emphasis was on the problem of obtaining
increased productivity from individual workers through the technical structuring of the
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work organisation and the provision of monetary incentives as the motivator for higher
levels of output. F.W. Taylor, a major contributor to this approach, believed that in the
same way that there is a best machine for each job, so there is a best working method by
which people should undertake their jobs. He considered that all work processes could be
analysed into discrete tasks and that by scientific method it was possible to find the ‘one
best way’ to perform each task. Each job was broken down into component parts, each
part timed, and the parts rearranged into the most efficient method of working.
Bureaucracy
A form of structure to be found in many large-scale organisations is bureaucracy.

Bureaucracy is the structure, and set of regulations in place to control activity, usually in
large organisations and government. It is represented by standardised procedure (rule-
following), formal division of powers, hierarchy, and relationships. In practice the
interpretation and execution of policy can lead to informal influence. Four structural
concepts are central to any definition of bureaucracy:
1. a well-defined division of administrative labor among persons and offices,

2. a personnel system with consistent patterns of recruitment and stable linear
careers,
3. a hierarchy among offices, such that the authority and status are differentially
distributed among actors, and
4. Formal and informal networks that connect organizational actors to one another
through flows of information and patterns of cooperation.
Its importance in the development of organisation theory means that it is often regarded
as a sub-division under the classical heading and studied as a separate approach to
management and the organisation of work. The ideas and principles of the classical
writers were derived mainly from practical experience.
Criticism
74
• Vertical hierarchy of authority can become chaotic, some offices can be omitted
in the decision making process, there may be conflicts of competence;
• Competences can be unclear and used contrary to the spirit of the law; sometimes
a decision itself may be considered more important than its effect;
• Nepotism, corruption, political infighting and other degenerations can counter the
rule of impersonality and can create a recruitment and promotion system not
based on meritocracy but rather on oligarchy;
• Officials try to avoid accountability and seek anonymity by avoiding
documentation of their procedures (or creating extreme amounts of chaotic,
confusing documents)
The Human Relations Approach
The main emphasis of the classical writers was on structure and the formal organisation,
but during the 1920s, the years of the Great Depression, greater attention began to be pain
to the social factors at work and to the behaviour of employees within an organisation-
that is, to human relations. Human relations writers demonstrated that people go to work
to satisfy a complexity of needs and not simply for monetary reward. They emphasised
the importance of the wider social needs of individuals and gave recognition to the work
organisation as a social organisation and the importance of the group, and group values
and norms, in influencing individual behaviour at work. It has been commented that the
classical school was concerned about ‘organisations without people’, and the human
relations school about ‘people without organisations.’36
Systems Approach
More recently, attention has been focused on the analysis of organisations as ‘systems’
with a number of interrelated sub-systems.
The classical approach emphasised the technical requirements of the organisation and its
needs-‘organisations without people’; the human relations approach the psychological
and social aspects, and the consideration of human needs-‘people without organisation.’
3636 Laurie,
P.81
75
The systems approach attempts to reconcile these two earlier approaches and the work of
the formal and informal writers. Attention is focused on the total work organisation and
the interrelationships of structure and behaviour, and the range of variables within the
organisation. This approach can be contrasted with a view of the organisation as separate
parts. The systems approach encourages managers to view the organisation both as a
whole and as part of a large environment. The idea is that any part of an organisation’s
activities affects all other parts.
The Contingency Approach
The classical approach suggested one best form of structure and placed emphasis on
general sets of principles while the human relations approach gave little attention at all to
structure. In contrast the contingency approach showed renewed concern with the
importance of structure as a significant influence on organisational performance. The
contingency approach, which can be seen as an extension of the systems approach,
highlights possible means of differentiating among alternative forms of organisation
structures and systems of management. There is no one optimum state. For example, the
structure of the organisation and its ‘success’ are dependent, that is contingent upon, the
nature of tasks with which it is designed to deal and the nature of environmental
influences.
The most appropriate structure and system of management is therefore dependent upon
the contingencies of the situation for each particular organisation. The contingency
approach implies that organisation theory should not seek to suggest one best way to
structure or manage organisations but should provide insights into the situation and
contextual factors which influence management decisions.37
4.4. Nature of Managerial Work
In for-profit work, management has as its primary function the satisfaction of a range of
stakeholders. This typically involves making a profit (for the shareholders), creating
valued products at a reasonable cost (for customers), and providing rewarding
3737 Laurie,
P.84
76
employment opportunities (for employees). In nonprofit management, add the importance
of keeping the faith of donors. In most models of management/governance, shareholders
vote for the board of directors, and the board then hires senior management. Some
organizations have experimented with other methods (such as employee-voting models)
of selecting or reviewing managers; but this occurs only very rarely.
In the public sector of countries constituted as representative democracies, voters elect

politicians to public office. Such politicians hire many managers and administrators, and
in some countries like the United States political appointees lose their jobs on the election
of a new president/governor/mayor. Some 2500 people serve at the pleasure of the United
States Chief Executive, including all of the top US government executives.
Public, private, and voluntary sectors place different demands on managers, but all must
retain the faith of those who select them (if they wish to retain their jobs), retain the faith
of those people that fund the organisation, and retain the faith of those who work for the
organization. If they fail to convince employees of the advantages of staying rather than
leaving, they may tip the organization into a downward spiral of hiring, training, firing,
and recruiting. Management also has the task of innovating and of improving the
functioning of organizations.
4.5. Basic Functions of Management
Management operates through various functions, often classified as planning, organizing,

leading/motivating and controlling.
• Planning: The planning function encompasses defining the organisational goals,

then establishing an overall strategy for achieving these goals, and developing a
comprehensive hierarchy of plans to integrate and coordinate activities. Planning
involves deciding what needs to happen in the future (today, next week, next
month, next year, over the next five years, etc.) and generating plans for action.
• Organising: Organising entails determining what tasks are to be done, and by
who. In organising the manager works out how tasks are grouped. She/he works
out who reports to who and where decisions are to be made. It entails making
77
optimum use of the resources required to enable the successful carrying out of
plans.
• Leading/Motivating: The leading function consists in coordinating and directing
people in the organisation. The managers in leading comprises of motivating
subordinates, directing the activities of others selecting the most effective
communication channel and resolving conflicts among members of the
organisation- exhibiting skills in these areas for getting others to play an effective
part in achieving plans.
• Controlling: Controlling function is concerned with monitoring activities to
ensure they are being accomplished as planned and correcting any significant
deviations. It involves monitoring - checking progress against plans, which may
need modification based on feedback.
In sum what the manager does is:
9 Setting and maintaining the required attitudes and values and reinforcing
these through personal conduct and performance, and remedying these where
they fall short.
9 Setting goals, aims and objectives for the department or division as a whole,
and for teams, groups and individuals within it.
9 Delegating, giving autonomy, authority and responsibility to subordinates to
complete work as they see fit, and proving the space for personal,
professional and organisational development.
9 Improving and developing the expertise of all staff.
9 Controlling the work and performance of persons on a variety of different
expertise, experience, hours and patterns of work.
9 Acting as advocate and spokesperson for the department and its members
9 Acting as supporter and confidant for the department and its members.
9 Being receptive, evaluative and judgmental of ideas received from members
of staff
9 Continuously seeking improvements to products and service quality; and for
improvements to work methods and practices
78
9 Engaging in general communications, consultation, information exchanges
9 Involving the staff in key operational, departmental and divisional
developments-including choices of new technology, developments in work
methods and practices, and involvement in both operational specific ER
activities
9 Creating the basis on which mutual trust, integrity, and harmony can be
maintained
9 Gather knowledge and understanding of the pressures, opportunities,
constraints and drives present in the workplace, and of those that can and
cannot be controlled
9 Know and understand what constitutes successful and effective performance
and to work out ways to find remedy when performance is poor
9 Handling daily operational management in such a way that staff relations are
not impaired, or conflict generated
9 Developing absolute standards in terms of equality, fairness and honesty, and
also in the operation of health, and safety matters, and in the attention to
individual disputes and grievances 38
Formation of the business policy
• The mission of the business is its most obvious purpose -- which may be, for
example, to make soap.
• The objective of the business refers to the ends or activity at which a certain task
is aimed.
• The business's policy is a guide that stipulates rules, regulations and objectives,
and may be used in the managers' decision-making. It must be flexible and easily
interpreted and understood by all employees.
• The business's strategy refers to the plan of action that it is going to take, as well
as the resources that it will be using, to achieve its mission and objectives. It is a
guideline to managers, stipulating how they ought to use best the factors of
38 Salome Najjuka, Uganda Martyrs University; Notes, 2004.
79
production to the business's advantage. Initially, it could help the managers decide
on what type of business they want to form.
How to implement policies and strategies
• All policies and strategies must be discussed with all managerial personnel and
staff.
• Managers must understand where and how they can implement their policies and
strategies.
• A plan of action must be devised for each department.
• Policies and strategies must be reviewed regularly.
• Contingency plans must be devised in case the environment changes.
• Assessments of progress ought to be carried out regularly by top-level managers.
• A good environment is required within the business.
The development of policies and strategies
• The missions, objectives, strengths and weaknesses of each department must be

analysed to determine their roles in achieving the business's mission.
• The forecasting method develops a reliable picture of the business's future
environment.
• A planning unit must be created to ensure that all plans are consistent and that
policies and strategies are aimed at achieving the same mission and objectives.
• Contingency plans must be developed, just in case.
All policies must be discussed with all managerial personnel and staff that is required in
the execution of any departmental policy.
Where policies and strategies fit into the planning process
• They give mid- and lower-level managers a good idea of the future plans for each
department.
• A framework is created whereby plans and decisions are made.
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• Mid- and lower-level management may add their own plans to the business's
strategic ones.
Managerial levels and hierarchy
The management of a large organisation may have three levels:
1. Senior management (or "top management" or "upper management")

2. Middle management
3. Low-level management, such as supervisors or team-leaders
Top-level management
• Top-level managers require an extensive knowledge of management roles and

skills.
• They have to be very aware of external factors such as markets.
• Their decisions are generally of a long-term nature.
• They are responsible for strategic decisions.
• They have to chalk out the plan and see that plan may be effective in the future.
• They are executive in nature.
Middle management
• Mid-level managers have a specialised understanding of certain managerial tasks.

• They are responsible for carrying out the decisions made by top-level
management.
Lower management
• This level of management ensures that the decisions and plans taken by the other
two are carried out.
• Lower-level managers' decisions are generally short-term ones
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4.6. Human Resource Management
Human resource is a term with which many organisations describe the combination of
traditionally administrative personnel functions with performance management,
Employee Relations and resource planning. The field draws upon concepts developed in
Industrial/Organizational Psychology. Human resource has at least two related
interpretations depending on context. The original usage derives from political economy
and economics, where it was traditionally called labour, one of four factors of production.
The more common usage within corporations and businesses refers to the individuals
within the firm, and to the portion of the firm's organisation that deals with hiring, firing,
training, and other personnel issues.
The objective of Human Resources is to maximise the return on investment from the
organization's human capital and minimise financial risk. It is the responsibility of human
resource managers to conduct these activities in an effective, legal, fair, and consistent
manner. Human resource management serves these key functions:
1. Recruitment Strategy Planning

2. Hiring Processes(recruitment)
3. Selection
4. Training and Development
5. Performance Evaluation and Management
6. Promotions
7. Redundancy
8. Industrial and Employee Relations
9. Record keeping of all personal data.
10. Compensation, pensions, bonuses etc in liaison with Payroll
11. Confidential advice to internal 'customers' in relation to problems at work.
12. Career development
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Human resource management involves all management decisions and practices that
directly affect or influence the people, or human resources, who work for the
organisation. 39 Human resource planning is a strategy for the acquisition, utilization,
improvement and retention of an enterprise’s human resources. Whatever the nature of
the organisation, HR planning should not be regarded in isolation but as integral part if
the broader process of a corporate planning.
4.7. Assessment: Revision Question
1. What is management and explain briefly the nature of management?

2. What are some of the basic functions of management?
3. Who is manager?
4. Define human resource management and briefly give the some human
resource functions
P.747
83
UNIT FIVE
5. APPROACHES TO LEADERSHIP

This unit introduces the nature of leadership and explores the process of leadership
traits. After the study of management in the previous unit, it is important to focus
attention on the nature of leadership so as understand the difference between leadership
and management. The unit explores some leadership traits and how leadership in
organisations is understood. It is rather important not to confuse leadership and
management, therefore it is recommended that you understand well the previous unit.

1. Understand what leadership is and how it differs from management
2. Explain differences in leadership styles
3. List seven competencies of effective leaders
4. Leadership in organisations
5. Know the difference between a leader and a manager
5.1. Nature of Leadership

Leadership is the ability to influence, motivate, and enable others to contribute to the
effectiveness. In other words, it is the process of influencing group activities toward the
achievement of goals. This definition contains two important concepts. First leadership
involves a relationship between or more people in which influence and power are
unevenly distributed.40
Leadership is a quality an individual may possess. One can categorize the exercise of
leadership as either actual or potential:
40 Laurie Mullins, P.281
84
• Actual - giving guidance or direction, for example: a teacher being a leader to a
student, as in the phrase "the emperor has provided satisfactory leadership".
• Potential - the capacity or ability to lead, as in the phrase "she could have
exercised effective leadership"; or in the concept "born to lead".
Leadership can have a formal aspect (as in most political or business leadership) or an
informal one (as in most friendships). Speaking of "leadership" (the abstract term) rather
than of "leading" (the action) usually implies that the entities doing the leading have
some "leadership skills" or competencies.
One of the differentiating factors between Management and Leadership is the ability or
even necessity to inspire. A Leader, one who can instill passion and direction to an
individual or group of individuals, will be using psychology to affect that group either
consciously or subconsciously.
Those who seem to be "Natural Leaders" and effectively inspire groups without really
knowing the strategies or tactics used are considered Charismatic Leaders. The conscious
Leader on the other hand applies a variety of psychological tactics that affect the
"reactions" of a group to the environment they exist in.
In numerous "directive" (meaning to willfully direct as opposed to unconsciously do)

organisational psychology disciplines that deal with Leadership and theories like “The
ripple effect” by Sigal Barsade, leadership is a product of awareness and command of the
reactions and influences of a group on the individual as well as the individual on the
group. A Leader's successful application of directive organisational psychology by
modifying specific leadership behaviors towards the group, will yield an Organizational
culture that is in essence “inspired”.
Leadership is not about changing the mindset of the group but in the cultivation of an
environment that brings out the best (inspires) in the individuals in that group. Each
individual has various environments that bring out different facets from their own
identity, and each facet is driven by emotionally charged perceptions within each
environment. To lead, one must create a platform through education and awareness where
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individuals fill each others needs. This is accomplished by knowing why people may
react favourably to a situation in environment A, but get frustrated or disillusioned in
environment B. (Reference: Arthur F Carmazzi, The Psychology of Leadership)
Scope of leadership
One can govern oneself, or one can govern the whole earth. In between, we may find
leaders who operate primarily within:
• youth
• families
• bands
• tribes
• organisations
• states and nations
• empires
Intertwined with such categories, and overlapping them, we find for example religious
leaders potentially with their own internal hierarchies, work-place leaders corporate
officer, executives, corporate officer, officers, senior management, senior/upper
managers, middle management, middle managers, staff-managers, line-managers, team
leader, team-leaders, supervisors and leaders of voluntary associations.
Some anthropological ideas envisage a widespread but by no means universal pattern of

progression in the organisation of society in ever-larger groups, with the needs and
practices of leadership changing accordingly. Thus simple dispute resolution may
become legalistic dispensation of justice before developing into proactive legislature,
legislative activity. Some leadership careers parallel this sort of progression: today's
school-board chairperson may become tomorrow's city councilor, then take in say a
mayor dom before graduating to nation-wide politics. Compare the "cursus honorum" in
ancient Rome.
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5.2. Leadership in Formal Organisations
An organisation that is established as an instrument or means for achieving defined

objectives has been referred to as a formal organisation. Its design specifies how goals
are subdivided and reflected in subdivisions of the organisation. Divisions, departments,
sections, positions, jobs, and tasks make up this work structure. Thus, the formal
organization is expected to behave impersonally in regard to relationships with clients or
with its members. According to Weber's definition, entry and subsequent advancement is
by merit or seniority. Each employee receives a salary and enjoys a degree of tenure that
safeguards him from the arbitrary influence of superiors or of powerful clients. The
higher his position in the hierarchy, the greater his presumed expertise in adjudicating
problems that may arise in the course of the work carried out at lower levels of the
organisation. It is this bureaucratic structure that forms the basis for the appointment of
heads or chiefs of administrative subdivisions in the organisation and endows them with
the authority attached to their position.41
5.3. Leadership in informal organisations
In contrast to the appointed head or chief of an administrative unit, a leader emerges

within the context of the informal organisation that underlies the formal structure. The
informal organization expresses the personal objectives and goals of the individual
membership. Their objectives and goals may or may not coincide with those of the
formal organisation. The informal organization represents an extension of the social
structures that generally characterize human life — the spontaneous emergence of groups
and organizations as ends in themselves.
In prehistoric times, man was preoccupied with his personal security, maintenance,
protection, and survival. Now man spends a major portion of his waking hours working
41 http//www.wikipedia/leadership/free encyclopedia
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for organisations. His need to identify with a community that provides security,
protection, maintenance, and a feeling of belonging continues unchanged from prehistoric
times. This need is met by the informal organization and its emergent, or unofficial,
leaders.
Leaders emerge from within the structure of the informal organization. Their personal
qualities, the demands of the situation, or a combination of these and other factors attract
followers who accept their leadership within one or several overlay structures. Instead of
the authority of position held by an appointed head or chief, the emergent leader wields
influence or power. Influence is the ability of a person to gain co-operation from others
by means of persuasion or control over rewards. Power is a stronger form of influence
because it reflects a person's ability to enforce action through the control of a means of
punishment.
5.4. Leader in organisations
An individual who is appointed to a managerial position has the right to command and
enforce obedience by virtue of the authority of his position. However, he must possess
adequate personal attributes to match his authority, because authority is only potentially
available to him. In the absence of sufficient personal competence, a manager may be
confronted by an emergent leader who can challenge his role in the organization and
reduce it to that of a figurehead. However, only authority of position has the backing of
formal sanctions. It follows that whoever wields personal influence and power can
legitimize this only by gaining a formal position in the hierarchy, with commensurate
authority. Leadership can be defined as one's ability to get others to willingly follow.
Every organisation needs leaders at every level.
Orthogonality and leadership
Those who praise leadership may encounter problems in implementing consistent

leadership structures. For example, a pyramidal structure in which authority consistently
emanates from the summit can stifle initiative and leave no path for grooming future
leaders in the ranks of subordinate levels. Similarly, a belief in universal direct
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democracy may become unwieldy, and a system consisting of nothing but representative
leaders may well become stymied in committees.
Thus many leadership systems promote different rules for different levels of leadership.
Hereditary autocrats meet in the United Nations on equal representative terms with
elected governments in a collegial leadership. Or individual local democracies may
assign some of their powers to temporary dictators in emergencies, as in ancient Rome.
Hierarchies intermingle with equality of opportunity at different level.
Support-structures for leadership
Charisma and personality alone can work miracles, yet most leaders operate within a
structure of supporters and executive agents who carry out and monitor the expressed or
filtered-down will of the leader. This undercutting of the importance of leadership may
serve as a reminder of the existence of the follower: compare followership. A more or
less formal bureaucracy (in the Weberian sense) can throw up a colorless nonentity as an
entirely effective leader: this phenomenon may occur (for example) in a politburo
environment. Bureaucratic organizations can also raise incompetent people to levels of
leadership.
In modern dynamic environments formal bureaucratic organizations have started to

become less common because of their inability to deal with fast-changing circumstances.
Most modern business organizations (and some government departments) encourage
what they see as "leadership skills" and reward identified potential leaders with
promotions.
In a potential down-side to this sort of development, a big-picture grand-vision leader

may foster another sort of hierarchy: a fetish of leadership amongst subordinate sub-
leaders, encouraged to seize resources for their own sub-empires and to apply to the
supreme leader only for ultimate arbitration.
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Some leaders build coalitions and alliances: political parties abound with this type of
leader. Still others depend on rapport with the masses: they labor on the shop-floor or
stand in the front-line of battle, leading by example.
5.5. Determining what makes "effective leadership"
Leadership maintains its effectiveness sometimes by natural succession according to

established rules, and sometimes by the imposition of brute force.
The simplest way to measure the effectiveness of leadership involves evaluating the size
of the following that the leader can muster. By this standard, Adolf Hitler became a very
effective leader for a period — even if through delusional promises and coercive
techniques. However, this approach may measure power rather than leadership. To
measure leadership more specifically, one may assess the extent of influence on the
followers, that is, the amount of leading. Within an organisational context this means
financially valuing productivity. Effective leaders generate higher productivity, lower
costs, and more opportunities than ineffective leaders. Effective leaders create results,
attain goal, realise vision, and other objectives more quickly and at a higher level of
quality than ineffective leaders.42
James MacGregor Burns introduced a normative element: an effective Burnsian leader

will unite followers in a shared vision that will improve an organization and society at
large. Burns calls leadership that delivers "true" value, integrity, and trust
transformational leadership. He distinguishes such leadership from "mere" transactional
leadership that builds power by doing whatever will get more followers. But problems
arise in quantifying the transformational quality of leadership - evaluation of that quality
seems more difficult to quantify than merely counting the followers that the straw man of
transactional leadership James MacGregor Burns has set as a primary standard for
42 Don Hellriegel et al., Organisational Behaviour 4th ed., West Publish Company: New York, 1986,
P.304.
90
effectiveness. Thus transformational leadership requires an evaluation of quality,
independent of the market demand that exhibits in the number of followers.43
Current assessments of transformational and transactional leadership commonly make

use of the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ), developed by Bass and Avolio
in 1990 and revised in 1995. It measures five dimensions of transformational leadership:
1. idealised influence - attributions

2. idealised influence - behaviors
3. inspirational motivation
4. individualised consideration
5. intellectual stimulation
The three dimensions of transactional leadership measured by the MLQ cover:
1. contingent reward
2. management by exception (active)
3. management by exception (passive)
The functional leadership model conceives leadership as a set of behaviors that helps a
group perform a task, reach their goal, or perform their function. In this model, effective
leaders encourage functional behaviors and discourage dysfunctional ones.
In the path-goal model of leadership, developed jointly by Martin Evans and Robert
House and based on the "Expectancy Theory of Motivation", a leader has the function of
clearing the path toward the goal(s) of the group, by meeting the needs of subordinates.
Some commentators use the metaphor of an orchestral conductor to describe the quality
of the leadership process. An effective leader resembles an orchestra conductor in some
ways. He/she has to somehow get a group of potentially diverse and talented people -
many of whom have strong personalities - to work together toward a common output.
Will the conductor harness and blend all the gifts his or her players possess? Will the
43 Ibid.
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players accept the degree of creative expression they have? Will the audience enjoy the
sound they make? The conductor may have a clear determining influence on all of these
questions.
5.6. Qualities of Leadership

Studies of leadership have suggested qualities that people often associate with leadership.
They include:
Technical/specific skill at some task at hand
Charismatic inspiration - attractiveness to others and the ability to leverage this esteem to
motivate others
Preoccupation with a role - a dedication that consumes much of leaders' life - service to a
cause
A clear sense of purpose (or mission) - clear goals - focus - commitment
Results-orientation - directing every action towards a mission - prioritizing activities to
spend time where results most accrue
Cooperation - work well with others
Optimism - very few pessimists become leaders
Rejection of determinism - belief in one's ability to "make a difference"
Ability to encourage and nurture those that report to them - delegate in such a way as
people will grow
Role models - leaders may adopt a persona that encapsulates their mission and lead by
example
Self-knowledge (in non-bureaucratic structures)
Self-awareness - the ability to "lead" (as it were) one's own self prior to leading other
selves similarly
With regards to people and to projects, the ability to choose winners - recognizing that,
unlike with skills, one cannot (in general) teach attitude. Note that "picking winners"
("choosing winners") carries implications of gamblers' luck as well as of the capacity to
take risks, but "true" leaders, like gamblers but unlike "false" leaders, base their decisions
on realistic insight (and usually on many other factors partially derived from "real"
wisdom).
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Empathy - Understanding what others say, rather than listening to how they say things -
this could partly sum this quality up as "walking in someone else's shoes" (to use a
common cliché).
Integrity - the integration of outward actions and inner values.
The approach of listing leadership qualities, often termed "trait theory of leadership",
assumes certain traits or characteristics will tend to lead to effective leadership. Although
trait theory has an intuitive appeal, difficulties may arise in proving its tenets, and
opponents frequently challenge this approach. The "strongest" versions of trait theory see
these “leadership characteristics” as innate, and accordingly label some people as "born
leaders" due to their psychological makeup. On this reading of the theory, leadership
development involves identifying and measuring leadership qualities, screening potential
leaders from non-leaders, then training those with potential.
5.7. Leadership styles

In 1994 House and Podsakoff attempted to summarize the behaviors and approaches of
"outstanding leaders" that they obtained from some more modern theories and research
findings. These leadership behaviors and approaches do not constitute specific styles, but
cumulatively they probably characterize the most effective style of today's
leaders/managers. The listed leadership "styles" cover:
Vision- Outstanding leaders articulate an ideological vision congruent with the deeply-
held values of followers, a vision that describes a better future to which the followers
have an alleged moral right.
Passion and self-sacrifice- Leaders display a passion for, and have a strong conviction
of, what they regard as the moral correctness of their vision. They engage in outstanding
or extraordinary behavior and make extraordinary self-sacrifices in the interest of their
vision and mission.
Confidence, determination, and persistence- Outstanding leaders display a high degree
of faith in themselves and in the attainment of the vision they articulate. Theoretically,
such leaders need to have a very high degree of self-confidence and moral conviction
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because their mission usually challenges the status quo and, therefore, may offend those
who have a stake in preserving the established order.
Image-building- House and Podsakoff regard outstanding leaders as self-conscious
about their own image. They recognize the desirability of followers perceiving them as
competent, credible, and trustworthy.
Role-modeling- Leader-image-building sets the stage for effective role-modeling
because followers identify with the values of role models whom they perceived in
positive terms.
External representation- Outstanding leaders act as spokespersons for their respective
organisations and symbolically represent those organisations to external constituencies.
Expectations of and confidence in followers-Outstanding leaders communicate
expectations of high performance from their followers and strong confidence in their
followers’ ability to meet such expectations.
Selective motive-arousal-Outstanding leaders selectively arouse those motives of
followers that the outstanding leaders see as of special relevance to the successful
accomplishment of the vision and mission.
Frame alignment- To persuade followers to accept and implement change, outstanding
leaders engages in "frame alignment". This refers to the linkage of individual and leader
interpretive orientations such that some set of followers’ interests, values, and beliefs, as
well as the leader’s activities, goals, and ideology, becomes congruent and
complementary.
Inspirational communication-Outstanding leaders often, but not always, communicate
their message in an inspirational manner using vivid stories, slogans, symbols, and
ceremonies.
Even though these ten leadership behaviors and approaches do not really equate to
specific styles, evidence has started to accumulate that a leader’s style can make a
difference. Style becomes the key to the formulation and implementation of strategy and
plays an important role in work-group members’ activity and in team citizenship. Little
doubt exists that the way (style) in which leaders influence work-group members can
make a difference in their own and their people’s performance.
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Situational Theories
Situational leadership theories came about as a result of an attempt to explain the
inconsistent findings about traits and styles. Situational theories propose that the
effectiveness of a particular style of leader behaviour depends on the situation. As
situations change, different styles become appropriate. This directly challenges the idea
of one best style of leadership.
Fiedler’s Contingency Model

Fred Fiedler, an OB scholar, developed a situational model of leadership. It is the oldest
and one of the most widely known models of leadership. Fiedler’s model is based on the
following assumption.
“The performance of a leader depends on two interrelated factors; the degree to which the
situation gives the leader control and influence-that is, the likelihood that (the leader) can
successfully accomplish the job; and the leader’s basic motivation-that is, whether (the
leader) self-esteem depends primarily on accomplishing the task or on having close
supportive relations with others.”44
With respect to the leader’s basic motivation, Fiedler believes that leaders are either task
motivated or relationship motivated. These basic motivations are similar to initiating
structure/concern for production and consideration/concern for people. Fiedler’s theory is
also based on the premise that leaders have one dominant leadership style that is resistant
to change. He suggests that leaders must learn to manipulate or influence the leadership
situation in order to create a ‘match’ between their leadership style and the amount of
control within the situation at hand.
Situational Control
Situational control refers to the amount of control and influence the leader has her or his
immediate work environment. Situational control ranges from high to low. High control
implies that the leader’s decisions will produce predictable results because the leader has
44 Robert Kreitner et al., Organisational Behaviour, McGraw Hill: New York,2002, P. 459.
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the ability to influence work outcomes. Low control implies that the leader’s decisions
may not influence work outcomes because the leader has very little influence. There are
three dimensions of situational control: leader-member relations, task structure, and
position power.
ƒ Leader-member relations is the most important component of situational control.
Good leader-member relations suggest that the leader can depend on the group,
thus ensuring that the work group will try to meet the leader’s goals and
objectives.
ƒ Task structure is the second most important component of situational control. A
managerial job, for example, contains less structure that that of a bank teller.
Because structured tasks have guidelines for how the job should be completed, the
leader has more control and influence over employees performing such tasks.
ƒ Position power, the final component, covers the leader’s formal power to reward,
punish or otherwise obtain compliance from employees.45
Transactional Leadership
This is based on legitimate authority within the bureaucratic structure of the organisation.
The emphasis is on the clarification of goals and objectives, work task and outcomes, and
organisational rewards and punishments. Transactional leadership appeals to the self-
interest of followers. It is based on a relationship of mutual dependence and an exchange
process of; ‘I will give you this, if you do that.’
Transformational Leadership
By contrast, transformational leadership is a process of engendering higher levels of
motivation and commitment among followers. The emphasis is on generating a vision for
the organisation and the leader’s ability to appeal to higher ideals and values of followers,
and creating a feeling of justice, loyalty and trust. In the organisational sense,
transformational leadership is about transforming the performance or fortune of a
business.46
45 Ibid
46 Laurie, P.302.
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5.8. Leadership and Management
Some commentators link leadership closely with the idea of management. Some regard
the two as synonymous, and others consider management a subset of leadership. If one
accepts this premise, one can view leadership as:
Centralised or decentralised
Broad or focused
Decision-oriented or morale-centered
Intrinsic or derived from some authority
Any of the bipolar labels traditionally ascribed to management style could also apply to
leadership style. Hersey and Blanchard use this approach: they claim that management
merely consists of leadership applied to business situations; or in other words:
management forms a sub-set of the broader process of leadership. They put it this way:
"Leadership occurs any time one attempts to influence the behavior of an individual or
group, regardless of the reason. Management is a kind of leadership in which the
achievement of organisational goals is paramount."
However, a clear distinction between management and leadership may nevertheless prove
useful. This would allow for a reciprocal relationship between leadership and
management, implying that an effective manager should possess leadership skills, and an
effective leader should demonstrate management skills. One clear distinction could
provide the following definition:
Management involves power by position.
Leadership involves power by influence.
Abraham Zaleznik (1977),for example, delineated differences between leadership and

management. He saw leaders as inspiring visionaries, concerned about substance; while
managers he views as planners who have concerns with process. Warren Bennis (1989)
further explicated a dichotomy between managers and leaders. He drew twelve
distinctions between the two groups:
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¾ Managers administer, leaders innovate
¾ Managers ask how and when, leaders ask what and why
¾ Managers focus on systems, leaders focus on people
¾ Managers do things right, leaders do the right things
¾ Managers maintain, leaders develop
¾ Managers rely on control, leaders inspire trust
¾ Managers have a short-term perspective, leaders have a longer-term perspective
¾ Managers accept the status-quo, leaders challenge the status-quo
¾ Managers have an eye on the bottom line, leaders have an eye on the horizon
¾ Managers imitate, leaders originate
¾ Managers emulate the classic good soldier, leaders are their own person
¾ Managers copy, leaders show originality
Paul Birch (1999) also sees a distinction between leadership and management. He
observed that, as a broad generalization, managers concerned themselves with tasks while
leaders concerned themselves with people. Birch does not suggest that leaders do not
focus on "the task." Indeed, the things that characterise a great leader include the fact that
they achieve. Effective leaders create and sustain competitive advantage through the
attainment of cost leadership, revenue leadership, time leadership, and market value
leadership. Managers typically follow and realize a leader's vision. The difference lies in
the leader realising that the achievement of the task comes about through the goodwill
and support of others (influence), while the manager may not.
This goodwill and support originates in the leader seeing people as people, not as another
resource for deployment in support of "the task". The manager often has the role of
organising resources to get something done. People form one of these resources, and
many of the worst managers treat people as just another interchangeable item. A leader
has the role of causing others to follow a path he/she has laid out or a vision he/she has
articulated in order to achieve a task. Often, people see the task as subordinate to the
vision. For instance, an organization might have the overall task of generating profit, but
a good leader may see profit as a by-product that flows from whatever aspect of their
vision differentiates their company from the competition.
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Leadership does not only manifest itself as purely a business phenomenon. Many people
can think of an inspiring leader they have encountered who has nothing whatever to do
with business: a politician, an officer in the armed forces, a Scout or Guide leader, a
teacher, etc. Similarly, management does not occur only as a purely business
phenomenon. Again, we can think of examples of people that we have met who fill the
management niche in non-business organisations. Non-business organizations should find
it easier to articulate a non-money-driven inspiring vision that will support true
leadership. However, often this does not occur.
Differences in the mix of leadership and management can define various management
styles. Some management styles tend to de-emphasize leadership. Included in this group
one could include participatory management, democratic management, and collaborative
management styles. Other management styles, such as authoritarian management, micro-
management, and top-down management, depend more on a leader to provide direction.
Note, however, that just because an organisation has no single leader giving it direction,
does not mean it necessarily has weak leadership. In many cases group leadership
(multiple leaders) can prove effective. Having a single leader (as in dictatorship) allows
for quick and decisive decision-making when needed as well as when not needed. Group
decision-making sometimes earns the derisive label "committee-itis" because of the
longer times required to make decisions, but group leadership can bring more expertise,
experience, and perspectives through a democratic process.
Patricia Pitcher (1994) has challenged the bifurcation into leaders and managers. She
used a factor analysis (in marketing)factor analysis technique on data collected over 8
years, and concluded that three types of leaders exist, each with very different
psychological profiles:'Artists' imaginative, inspiring, visionary, entrepreneurial,
intuitive, daring, and emotional Craftsmen: well-balanced, steady, reasonable, sensible,
predictable, and trustworthy Technocrats: cerebral, detail-oriented, fastidious,
uncompromising, and hard-headed She speculates that no one profile offers a preferred
leadership style. She claims that if we want to build, we should find an "artist leader" if
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we want to solidify our position, we should find a "craftsman leader" and if we have an
ugly job that needs to get done like downsizing. We should find a "technocratic leader".
Pitcher also observed that a balanced leader exhibiting all three sets of traits occurs
extremely rarely: she found none in her study.
Bruce Lynn postulates a differentiation between 'Leadership' and ‘Management’ based on

perspectives to risk. Specifically, “A Leader optimises upside opportunity; a Manager
minimises downside risk." He argues that successful executives need to apply both
disciplines in a balance appropriate to the enterprise and its context. Leadership without
Management yields steps forward, but as many if not more steps backwards.
Management without Leadership avoids any step backwards, but doesn’t move forward.
1. What is leadership and how does it differ from management?

2. What are the different leadership styles that can be used?
3. Give some important leadership qualities
4. Explain Fiedler’s contingency model.
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UNIT SIX
6. ORGANISATIONAL STRUCTURE AND ENVIRONMENTS

Unit 6.0
This unit presents new information on divisional structures, including the general decline
of geographic divisional structures. It outlines the different organisational structures and
how these structures influence organisational behaviour. When learning ‘organisational
structures and environments’ it is always good to have a picture of some organisations
you are familiar with or the organisation you are in. This helps in as far as the
understanding of organisational structures is concerned. Once again, extra reading is
highly recommended.
After you have read and thought about this unit you will be able to;
1. Describe the elements of organisational structure
2. Describe three types of coordination in organisational structure
3. Contrast functional structures with divisional structures
4. Explain why geographic divisional structures are becoming less common than
other divisional structures
5. Outline the features and advantages of the matrix structure
6. Describe the four feature of team-based organisational structure
7. Discuss the dynamics of centralization and formalization as organisations get
larger and older
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6.1. Nature of Organisations
An organisation is a social arrangement which pursues collective goals, which controls

its own performance, and which has a boundary separating it from its environment. The
word itself is derived from the Greek word ὄργανον (organon) meaning tool. The term is
used in both daily and scientific English in multiple ways.
Farnham and Horton define organisation as;
Social constructs created by groups in society to achieve specific purposes by means of

planned and coordinated activities. These activities involve using human resources to act
in association with other inanimate resources in order to achieve the aims of an
organisation.47
Robbins defines it as a consciously coordinated social unit, compared of two or more

people that functions on a relatively continuous basis to achieve a common goal or set of
goals.48
Rollinson Derek defined organisation as social entities brought into existence and
sustained in an ongoing way by humans to serve some purpose, from which it follows
that human activities in the entity are normally structured and coordinated towards
achieving some purpose or goals.49
In the social sciences, organizations are studied by researchers from several disciplines,
the most common of which are sociology, economics, political science, psychology,
management, and organizational communication. The broad area is commonly referred to
as organizational studies, organizational behavior or organization analysis. Therefore, a
47 Farham D et.al., Managing the New Public Service, London: Macmillan, 1996, P.26.
48 Robbins S.P., Organisational Behaviour, San Diego: Prentice Hall, P.18
49 Rollinson D., et al., Organisational Behaviour and Analysis, Harlow: Addison Wesley Longman, 1998,
P.2
102
number of different theories and perspectives exist, some of which are compatible, and
others that are competing.
• Organisation – process-related: an entity is being (re-)organized (organization as

task or action).
• Organisation – functional: organization as a function of how entities like
businesses or state authorities are used (organization as a permanent structure).
• Organisation – institutional: an entity is an organization (organization as an actual
purposeful structure within a social context)
Organisations are primarily complex goal-seeking units which in order to achieve must
accomplish secondary tasks such e.g., they must maintain their internal system to
coordinate the human side of entreprise and must adapt to and shape the external
environment.
Organising involves determining and noting activities needed to achieve objectives of the
undertaking; grouping these and assigning such groups of activities to managers, ensuring
effective delegation of authority to enable activities to be carried out and providing
coordination of authority relationship.
6.2. Basic Components of an Organisation
Principally, any organisation can be described in terms of an operating component and an

administrative component. The operating component is made up of the people who
actually undertake the work of producing the products, or providing the services while
the administrative component is made up of managers, analysts, and is often concerned
with supervision and coordination.
Mullins L. subdivides these two components into further five basic components of an
organisation
Operational Core
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This is concerned with direct performance of the technical or productive operations and
the carrying out of actual task activities of the organisation, an example is people putting
parts on an assembly line, teaching in the classroom, treating patients, cooking meal in a
hotel.
Operational Support
This is concerned with the technical or productive process but closely related to the actual
flow of operational work. An example would be people working in quality control, work
study, progress planning, technical services.
Organisational Support
This is concerned with provision of services for the whole organisation including the
operational core; these are services outside the actual flow of operational work. Example;
medical services, canteen, office services, management accounting.
Top Management
This encompasses broad objectives and policy, strategic decisions. It is concerned with
the whole organisation and with its interactions with the external environment. Examples:
Managing director, governor, management team, chief executive, board of directors,
council members.
Middle management
This deals with coordination and integration of activities and providing links with
operational support and organisational support staff, and between the operational core
and top management.
6.3. Organisational Structure
Organisational structure is the basic framework within which the executive’s decision-
making behaviour occurs. The nature of the structure influences the quality and nature of
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decisions made. Organisation is concerned with the grouping of activities in such a
manner that enterprise objectives are attained, the assignment of these activities to
appropriate departments and the provision for authority, delegation and coordination. It is
important to note that in order to accomplish any goal, activities must be grouped
logically and authority should be granted so that conflicts do not occur.
6.4. Formal and Informal Organisation
Informal Organisation
The informal organisation is always within the formal organisation. It develops from the
interaction of the people working in an organisation wanting to meet their psychological
needs and other needs.
ƒ Informal organisations are flexible and loosely structured.

ƒ Relationships may remain undefined
ƒ Membership is spontaneous and with varying degrees of
involvement. The informal organisation may serve various functions.
ƒ It provides satisfaction of member’s social needs, and a sense of personal identity

and belonging
ƒ It provides for additional channels of communication, for example information of
importance to particular members is communicated quickly.
ƒ It provides a means of motivation, through status, social interaction, variety in
routine, and informal methods of work.
ƒ It provides a feeling stability and security, through informal ‘norms’ of behaviour
and informal organisation can exercise a form of control over members.
ƒ It provides a means of highlighting deficiencies or weaknesses in the formal
organisation.
The informal organisation, no doubt, has an important influence on the morale,

motivation, job satisfaction and performance of staff.
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Formal Organisation
It is described as the planned coordination of the activities of a number of people for the
achievement of some common, explicit purpose or goal, through the division of labour
and function, and through a hierarchy of authority and responsibility.
The formal organisation is:
ƒ Deliberately planned and created

ƒ Concerned with the coordination of activities
ƒ Hierarchically structure with stated objectives, the specification of tasks, and
defined relationships of authority and responsibility.
The study of organizations includes a focus on optimizing organizational structure.

Organisational structure refers to the division of labour as well as the patterns of
coordination, communication, work flow, and formal power that direct organisational
activities. An organisational structure reflects the organisational culture and power
relationships. Our knowledge of this subject provides the tools to engage in
organisational design, that is, to create and modify organisational structure.50
Organisational structures are frequently used as tools for change. Structure support or
inhibit communication and relationships across organisation. They also serve as
mechanisms that either support change or make initiatives more difficult. Structures
establish new communication patterns and align employee behaviour with corporate
vision. For example, Ford Motor Company restructured it many business unit so that
employees are closer to specific types of customers, such as luxury car buyers (jaguar,
Volvo), services (Hertz, e-commerce), and Ford’s mainstream car buyers. 51
50 Stephen McShane, P.446

51 Ibid.
106
All organisational structure includes two fundamental requirements: the division of
labour into distinct tasks and the coordination of that labour so that employees are able to
accomplish goals.
6.5. Division of Labour
Division of labour refers to the various ways of dividing up tasks and labour to achieve
desired goals. In other words, it refers to the subdivision of work into separate job
assigned to different people. Adam Smith, the father of capitalistic economic system,
recognised the importance of this concept in organisational design in an “An inquiry into
the Nature of and Cause of the Wealth of Nations” published in 1776. Smith noted that
the wealth of a nation could be increased if organisations used the proper division of
labour. In general he believed that the greater the division of labour used in the design of
an organisation, the greater would be the efficiency of the organisation.52 Subdivided
work leads to job specialisation, because each job now includes a narrow subset of the
tasks necessary to complete the product or service. For example, designing and
manufacturing an aircraft at Boeing Company requires thousands of specific tasks that
are divided among thousands of people.53
Work is divided into specialised jobs because this potentially increases work efficiency.
Job incumbents can master their tasks quickly because work cycles are very short. Less
time is wasted changing from one task to another. Training costs are reduced because
employees require fewer physical and mental skills to accomplish the assigned work. Job
specialisation facilitates the matching of people with specific aptitudes or skill to the jobs
for which they are best suited. However, the continued increase in the division of labour
may become counterproductive. Employee, especially those at lower levels, who perform
only routine and simple jobs that require fewer skills, may become bored, alienated,
indifferent and even hostile to their work. The results may be low productivity, high
conflict, low product quality, and the like.
Coordinating Work Activities
52 Hellrigiel
53 Stephen
107
Immediately people divide their work among themselves, coordinating mechanisms are
needed on to ensure that everyone works in concert. Any organisation from the two-
person corner convenience store to the large corporate entity uses one or more of the
following mechanisms; informal communication, formal hierarchy, and standardisation.
Coordinating through informal communication-informal communication is a coordinating

mechanism in all organisations. This includes sharing information on mutual tasks as
well as forming common mental models so that employees synchronise work activities
using the same mental road map. Informal communication permits considerate flexibility
because employees transmit media-rich channels. Coordination through informal
communication is easiest in small firms and work units where employees face few
communication barriers. Emerging information technologies have further leveraged this
coordinating mechanism in large organisations, even where employees are scattered
around the globe. Large organisations can also support informal communication by
forming temporary cross-functional teams and moving team members into a common
physical area, called co-locating. For example, platform teams, also called concurrent
engineering teams, are project teams consisting of people from marketing, design,
manufacturing, customer service, and other areas. These employees are typically co-
located to improve cross-functional coordination, whereas more formal and less flexible
coordinating mechanisms are seen when product development occurs through several
departments.
Larger organisations also encourage coordination through informal communication by

creating integrator roles. Integrators are responsible for coordinating a work process by
encouraging in each work unit to share information and informally coordinate work
activities. They do not have authority over the people involved in the process, they must
rely one persuasion and commitment.
Coordination through Formal Hierarchy-informal communication is the most flexible

form of coordination, but it can be time-consuming. Consequently, as organisations grow,
they develop a second coordinating mechanism in the shape of a formal hierarchy.
Hierarchy assigns legitimate power to individuals, who then use this power to direct work
108
processes and allocate resources. In other words, work is coordinated through direct
supervision. Any organisation with a formal structure coordinates work to some extent
through the formal hierarchy. The formal hierarchy also coordinates work among
executives through the division of organisational activities. If the organisation is divided
into geographic areas, the structure gives the head of those regional groups legitimate
power over executives responsible for production, customer service, and other activities
in those areas. If the organisation is divided into product groups, then the heads of those
groups have the right to coordinate work across regions.
Coordination through Standardisation- Standardisation-creating routine pattern of

behaviour or output-is the third means of coordination. Many organisations try to
improve the quality and consistency of a product or service by standardising work
activities through job descriptions and procedures. Standardisation coordinates work that
is simple and routine, but less effective where tasks are complex and conditions are
ambiguous. In these situations, companies might coordinate work by standardising the
individual’s or team’s goals and product or service output (e.g., customer satisfaction,
production efficiency). For instance, to coordinate the work of salespeople, companies
assign sales targets rather than specific behaviours.
When work activities are too complex to standardise through procedures or goals,
companies often coordinate work effort by extensively training employees or hiring
people who have learned precise role behaviours from educational programmes. This
form of coordination is used in hospital operating rooms. Surgeons, nurses, and other
operating room professionals coordinate their work through training than goals or
rules.54
6.6. Elements of Organisational Structure
Every company is configured in terms of four basic elements of organisational structure;

span of control, centralisation and decentralisation, formalization and
departmentalisation.
54 Stephen
109
Span of Control
Span of control refers to the number of people directly reporting to the next level of
hierarchy or the number of people supervised by a manager. The span of control an
organisation uses is a major influence on its shape and structure. When the span of
control is broad, relatively few levels exist in the hierarchy between the top and the
bottom of the organisation. Conversely, when the span of control is narrow, more levels
are required in the hierarchy for the same number of workers.55
Centralisation and Decentralisation
Centralisation and decentralisation represent a second elemet of organisational design.

Centralisation means that formal decision-making authority is held by a small group of
people, typically those at the top of the organisational hierarchy. Most organisations
begin with centralised structures, as the founder makes most of the decisions and tries to
direct the business toward his or her vision. But as organisations grow, they diversify and
their environments become more complex. Senior executives aren’t able to process all the
decisions that significantly influence the business. Consequently, larger organisations
tend to decentralise, that is, they disperse decision authority and power through out the
organisation.
Microsoft is case in point. The software giant has grown over the past quarter-century to
more than 50,000 employees working on various high-tech products and services, yet
almost all important decisions are still made at the top by Bill Gates on technology and
products and Steve Ballmer on sales and marketing. Sources say this centralised decision-
making has made Microsoft less responsive to the marketplace and has contributed to the
departures of talented people who were frustrated by the process.
The optimal level of centralisation or decentralisation depends on several contingencies.

However, we also need to keep in mind that different degrees of decentralisation can
occur simultaneously in different parts of the organisation. Nestle has decetralised
marketing decisions to remain responsive to local markets. At the same time, the Swiss-
55 Hellrig
110
Based food company has centralised production, logistics, ad supply chain management
activities to improve cost efficiencies and avoid having too much complexity across the
organisation.56
Formalisation
Have you ever wondered why Spar’s hamburgers in Lusaka look and taste the same as
Spar’s hamburgers in Johannesburg? The reason is that the company has engineered out
variations through formalisation. Formalisation is the degree to which organisations
standardise behaviour through rules, procedures, formal training, and related
mechanisms. In other words, formalisation represents the establishment of
standardisation as a coordinating mechanism.
Older companies tend to become more formalised because work activities become
routinised, making them easier to document into standardised practices. Larger
companies formalise as a coordinating mechanism, because direct supervision and
informal communication among employees do not operate easily.
However, formalisation can also create problems. Rules and procedures reduce
organisational flexibility, so employees follow prescribed behaviours even when the
situation clearly calls for a customised response. Some work rules become so convoluted
that organisational efficiency would decline if they were actually followed as prescribed.
Labour unions sometimes call work-to-rules strikes, in which their members closely
follow the formalised rules and procedures established by an organisation. This tactic
increases union’s power because the company’s productivity falls significantly when
employees follow the rules that are supposed to guide their behaviour.
Another concern is that although employees with very strong security needs and a low
tolerance for ambiguity like working in high formalised organisations, others become
alienated and feel powerless in these structures. Finally, rules and procedures have been
known to take on a life of their own in some organisations. They usurp the focus of
56 Stephen,p.452
111
attention from the organisation’s ultimate objectives of producing products or service and
serving its dominant stakeholders.
Departmentalisation
Forms of Departmentalisation
Span of control, centralisation, and formalisation are important elements of organisational

structure, but most people think about organisational charts when the discussion of
organisational structure arises. The organisational chart represents the fourth element in
the structuring of organisations, called departmentalisation. Departmentalisation specifies
how employees and their activities are grouped together. It is a fundamental strategy for
coordinating organisational activities because it influences organisational behaviour in
the following ways.
ƒ Departmentalisation establishes the ‘chain of command’, that is, the system of

common supervision among positions and units within the organisations. It
typically determines which position and units must share resources. Thus, it
establishes interdependencies among employees and subunits.
ƒ Departmentalisation usually creates common measures of performance. Members
of the same work team, for example, share common goals and budgets, giving the
company standards against which to compare subunit performance.
ƒ Departmentalisation encourages coordination through informal communication
among people and subunits. With common supervision and resources, members
within each configuration typically work near each other, so they can use frequent
and informal interaction to get the work done.57
There are almost as many organisational charts as there are in business, but we can
identify five types of departmentalisation; simple, functional, divisional, matrix, and
team-based. Few organisations fit into any of these categories.
Simple Structure
57 Stephen, P.455
112
Most companies begin with a simple structure. They employ only a few people and
typically offer only one distinct product or service. There is minimal hierarchy, usually
just employees reporting to the owners. Employees are grouped into broadly defined
roles because there are insufficient economies of scale to assign them to specialised roles.
Simple structures are flexible, yet they usually depend on the owner’s direct supervision
to coordinate work activities.
Functional Structure
A functional structure organises employees around specific knowledge or other

resources. Employees with marketing expertise are grouped into a marketing unit, those
with production kills are located in manufacturing, engineers are found in product
development, and so one. Organisations with functional structures are typically
centralised to coordinate their activities effectively. Standardisation of work processes is
the most common form of coordination used in a functional structure.
An important advantage of functional structures is that they foster professional identity

and clarify career paths. They permit greater specialisation so that the organisation has
expertise in each area. Direct supervision is easier, because managers have backgrounds
in that functional area and employees approach them with common problems and issues.
Finally, functional structures created common pools of talent that typically serve
everyone in the organisation. This creates an economy of scale that would not exist if
functional specialist were spread over different parts of the organisation.
Functional structures also have limitations. Because people with common interests and
backgrounds are grouped together, these designs tend to emphasise subunit goal over
superordinate organisational goals. Employees in purchasing, accounting, engineering
and other functional units are less likely to give priority to the company’s product or
service than to the goals of their specific departments. Another concern is that functional
structures tend to have higher dysfunctional conflict and poorer coordination with other
units.
Divisional Structure
113
A divisional structure groups employees around geographic areas, clients, or outputs
(products or services). Divisional structures are sometimes called strategic business unit
(SBU), because they are normally more autonomous than functional structures and
operate as subsidiaries rather than departments of the entreprise. Geographic
divisionalised structures organise employees around distinct areas of the country or
globe.
A large number of divisionalised companies are moving away from geographic

structures. One reason is that information technology reduces the need for local
representation. Clients can purchase online and communicate with businesses from
almost anywhere in the world, so local representation is less critical. Geographic
structures are also waning because freer trade has reduced government intervention in
some products, and consumer preferences in many product and service areas are
becoming more similar (converging) around the world.
Matrix Structure
Matrix structure is a type of departmentalisation that overlays two organisational form in

order to leverage the benefits of both. The matrix structure usually involves a
combination of both functional and product forms of departmentalisation through the use
of dual authority, information, and reporting relationships and systems. Matrix structures
create the unusual situation where employees have two bosses. A project team member
would report to the project leader on a daily basis, but also reports to the functional
leader. Every matrix contains three unique sets of role relationships; 1). The top manager,
who heads up and balances the dual chains of command 2). Managers of functional and
product departments, who share subordinates; and 3). The managers (or skilled
specialists) who report to both a functional manager and a product manager. In an
organisation that that has major operations throughout the world, matrix managers could
be designated for each of the firm’s major geographic areas.58
58 .Hell, p.416
114
Some companies give these managers equal power; more often, each has authority over
different elements of the employee’s or work unit’s tasks. Matrix structures that combine
two divisionalised forms also have dual-boss reporting system, but only for some
employees. The manager of an ABB transformer plant in the United States would report
to both the U.S country manager and the global manager of ABB’s transformer business.
Only about 500 plant managers and group leaders at ABB have two bosses due to the
matrix structure.
Matrix structures usually optimise the use of resources and expertise, making them ideal
for project-based organisations with fluctuating workloads. When properly managed,
they improve communication efficiency, project flexibility and innovation compared to
purely functional or divisional designs. Matrix structures focus technical specialist on the
goals of serving client and creating marketable products. Yet, by maintaining a link to
their functional unit, employees are able to interact and coordinate with others in their
technical specialty.
In spite of these advantages, matrix structures have several well-known problems. One
concern is that they require more coordination than functional or pure divisional
structures. The existence of two bosses can also dilute accountability. Royal Dutch/Shell
has moved away from a matrix design because of these reasons. Matrix structures also
tend to generate conflict, organisational politics, and stress. In project-based firms, for
example, project leaders must have a general management orientation and conflict
resolution skills to coordinate people with diverse functional backgrounds.59
Team-Based Structure
The team-based organisational structure is a type of departmentalisation with a flat

hierarchy and relatively little formalisation, consisting of self-directed work teams
responsible for various work processes. The team-based organisational structure has a
few distinguishing features from other organisational forms. First, it uses self-directed
work teams rather than individuals as the basic building block of organisations. second,
115
teams are typically organised around work processes, such as making a specific product
or serving a specific client group. A third distinguishing feature of team-based
organisational structures is that they have a flat hierarchy, usually with no more than two
or three management levels.
Management team
Finally this type of structure has very little formalisation. Almost all day-to-day decisions
are made by team members rather than someone further up in the organisational
hierarchy. Teams are given relatively few rules about how to organise their work. Instead,
the executive team typically assigns output goals to the team, such as the volume and
quality of product or service, or productivity improvement targets for the work process.
Teams are then encouraged to use available resources and their initiative to achieve those
objectives.
The team-based organisation represents an increasing popular structure because it is

usually more responsive and flexible. Teams empower employees and reduce reliance on
managerial hierarchy, thereby reducing costs. A cross-functional team structure improves
communication and cooperation across traditional boundaries. With greater autonomy,
this structure also allows quicker and more informed decision making. Some hospitals
composed of nurses, radiologists, anesthetists, a pharmacology representative, possible
social workers, rehabilitation therapist and other specialists communicate and coordinate
more efficiently, therefore reducing delays and errors.
One concern with team-based structures is that they can be costly to main due to the need
for ongoing interpersonal skills training. Teamwork potentially takes more time to
coordinate than formal hierarchy during the early stages of team development.
Employees may experience more stress due to increased ambiguity in their roles. Team
leaders also experience more stress due to increased conflict, loss of functional power,
and unclear career progression ladders.
116
According to management science, most human organisations fall roughly into four
types:
• Pyramids or hierarchies
• Committees or juries
• Matrix organizations
• Ecologies
Pyramids or hierarchies
A hierarchy exemplifies an arrangement with a leader who leads leaders. This

arrangement is often associated with bureaucracy. Hierarchies were satirized in The Peter
Principle (1969), a book that introduced hierarchiology and the saying that "in a
hierarchy every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence".
An extremely rigid, in terms of responsibilities, type of organisation is exemplified by

Führerprinzip.
Committees or juries
These consist of a group of peers who decide as a group, perhaps by voting. The
difference between a jury and a committee is that the members of the committee are
usually assigned to perform or lead further actions after the group comes to a decision,
whereas members of a jury come to a decision. In common law countries legal juries
render decisions of guilt, liability and quantify damages; juries are also used in athletic
contests, book awards and similar activities. Sometimes a selection committee functions
like a jury. In the middle Ages juries in continental Europe were used to determine the
law according to consensus amongst local notables.
Committees are often the most reliable way to make decisions. Condorcet's jury theorem
proved that if the average member votes better than a roll of dice, then adding more
members increases the number of majorities that can come to a correct vote (however
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correctness is defined). The problem is that if the average member is worse than a roll of
dice, the committee's decisions grow worse, not better: Staffing is crucial.
Parliamentary procedure, such as Robert's Rules of Order, helps prevent committees from
engaging in lengthy discussions without reaching decisions.
Staff organisation or cross-functional team
A staff helps an expert get all his work done. To this end, a "chief of staff" decides
whether an assignment is routine or not. If it's routine, he assigns it to a staff member,
who is a sort of junior expert. The chief of staff schedules the routine problems, and
checks that they are completed.
If a problem is not routine, the chief of staff notices. He passes it to the expert, who
solves the problem, and educates the staff – converting the problem into a routine
problem.
In a "cross functional team", like an executive committee, the boss has to be a non-
expert, because so many kinds of expertise are required.
Organisation: Cyclical structure
A theory put forth by renowned scholar Stephen John has asserted that throughout the
cyclical nature of one’s life organisational patterns are key to success. Through various
social and political constraints within society one must realize that organisational skills
are paramount to success. Stephen John suggests that emphasis needs to be put on areas
such as individual/ group processes, functionality, and overall structures of institutions in
order to maintain a proper organization. Furthermore, the individual's overall
organizational skills are pre-determined by the processes undertaken.
Matrix organisation
This organizational type assigns each worker two bosses in two different hierarchies. One
hierarchy is "functional" and assures that each type of expert in the organization is well-
118
trained, and measured by a boss who is super-expert in the same field. The other direction
is "executive" and tries to get projects completed using the experts. Projects might be
organized by regions, customer types, or some other schema.
Ecologies
This organisation has intense competition. Bad parts of the organisation starve. Good
ones get more work. Everybody is paid for what they actually do, and runs a tiny business
that has to show a profit, or they are fired.
Companies who utilise this organisation type reflect a rather one-sided view of what goes
on in ecology. It is also the case that a natural ecosystem has a natural border - ecoregions
do not in general compete with one another in any way, but are very autonomous.60
Assessment: Revision Question

1. Why are many organisations moving away from the geographic divisional
structures?
2. From an employee perspective, what are the advantages and
disadvantages of working in a matrix structure?
3. What is departmentalisation and are some of the forms of
departmentalisation
4. Define centralisation and decentralisation.
60 http//www.wipedia/organisational structure/free enclypedia
119
UNIT SEVEN
7. ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE AND CHANGE
This unit delineates the nature of organisational culture and its elements. It brings out
important ideas on conserving organisational culture and it effect on organisational
performance. The unit explores the impact culture has on the organisational behaviour. It
is important for you to understand what organisational culture is and its relations to
different organisational events.
1. Describe the elements of organisational culture
2. Explain the classification of organisational culture and give three functions of
organisational culture
3. Understand the classification of organisational culture
4. Understand ways of changing and strengthening organisational culture
5. Understand authority and power; spans of control
7.1. Nature of Organisation

Definition
Organisational culture, or corporate culture, comprises the attitudes, experiences, beliefs

and values of an organization. It has been defined as "the specific collection of values and
norms that are shared by people and groups in an organization and that control the way
they interact with each other and with stakeholders outside the organization. In other
words, organisational culture is the basic pattern of shared assumptions, values, and
beliefs considered to be the correct way of thinking about and acting on problems and
opportunities facing the organisation.61 Organizational values are beliefs and ideas about
120
what kinds of goals members of an organization should pursue and ideas about the
appropriate kinds or standards of behavior organizational members should use to achieve
these goals. From organisational values develop organizational norms, guidelines or
expectations that prescribe appropriate kinds of behavior by employees in particular
situations and control the behavior of organizational members towards one another"62
Senior management may try to determine a corporate culture. They may wish to impose
corporate values and standards of behavior that specifically reflect the objectives of the
organisation. In addition, there will also be an extant internal culture within the
workforce. Work-groups within the organization have their own behavioral quirks and
interactions which, to an extent, affect the whole system. Task culture can be imported.
For example, computer technicians will have expertise, language and behaviours gained
independently of the organisation, but their presence can influence the culture of the
organization as a whole
Strong/weak cultures
Strong culture is said to exist where staff respond to stimulus because of their alignment
to organisational values.
Conversely, there is weak culture where there is little alignment with organizational
values and control must be exercised through extensive procedures and bureaucracy.
Where culture is strong people do things because they believe it is the right thing to do,
there is a risk of another phenomenon, Groupthink. "Groupthink" was described by Irving
L. Janis. He defined it as "...a quick and easy way to refer to a mode of thinking that
people engage when they are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group, when members'
strivings for unanimity override their motivation to realistically appraise alternatives of
action." This is a state where people, even if they have different ideas, do not challenge
organisational thinking, and therefore there is a reduced capacity for innovative thoughts.
This could occur, for example, where there is heavy reliance on a central charismatic
62http// www.wipedia/organisationalculture
121
figure in the organization, or where there is an evangelical belief in the organization’s
values, or also in groups where a friendly climate is at the base of their identity
(avoidance of conflict). In fact groupthink is very common, it happens all the time, in
almost every group. Members that are defiant are often turned down or seen as a negative
influence by the rest of the group, because they bring conflict (, through reliance on
established procedures.
Innovative organizations need individuals who are prepared to challenge the status quo—
be it groupthink or bureaucracy, and also need procedures to implement new ideas
effectively.
G. Johnson described a cultural web, identifying a number of elements that can be used to
describe or influence Organizational Culture:
• The Paradigm: What the organization is about; what it does; its mission; its
values.
• Control Systems: The processes in place to monitor what is going on. Role
cultures would have vast rulebooks. There would be more reliance on
individualism in a power culture.
• Organisational Structures: Reporting lines, hierarchies, and the way that work
flows through the business.
• Power Structures: the most powerful individuals or groups in the organisation
which may be based on management position and seniority but in some
organisations power can be lodged with other levels or functions. Who makes the
decisions, how widely spread is power, and on what is power based?
• Symbols: These include organisational logos, offices, cars, tittles, type of
language or technology and designs commonly used which become shorthand
representations of the nature of the organisations. It also extends to symbols of
power such as parking spaces and executive washrooms.
• Rituals and Routines: Management meetings, board reports and so on may
become more habitual than necessary.
122
• Stories and Myths: build up about people and events, and convey a message about
what is valued within the organization
The Cultural Web of an Organisation
Stories
Rituals and Myths
and Power
Routines Structures
The Paradigm
Control Symbols
Systems
Organisational
Structures
7.2. Classification of Organisational Culture
Geert Hofstede demonstrated that there are national and regional cultural groupings that
affect the behavior of organizations. Hofstede identified five dimensions of culture in his
study of national influences:
• Power distance - The degree to which a society expects there to be differences in

the levels of power. A high score suggests that there is an expectation that some
123
individuals wield larger amounts of power than others. A low score reflects the
view that all people should have equal rights.
• Uncertainty avoidance reflects the extent to which a society accepts uncertainty
and risk.
• Individualism vs. collectivism - individualism is contrasted with collectivism, and
refers to the extent to which people are expected to stand up for themselves, or
alternatively act predominantly as a member of the group or organization.
However, recent researches have shown that high individualism may not
necessarily mean low collectivism, and vice versa. Research indicates that the two
concepts are actually unrelated. Some people and cultures might have both high
individualism and high collectivism, for example. Someone who highly values
duty to his or her group does not necessarily give a low priority to personal
freedom and self-sufficiency
• Masculinity vs. femininity - refers to the value placed on traditionally male or
female values. Male values for example include competitiveness, assertiveness,
ambition, and the accumulation of wealth and material possessions.
• Long vs. short term orientation - describes a society's "time horizon," or the
importance attached to the future versus the past and present. In long term
oriented societies, thrift and perseverance are valued more; in short term oriented
societies, respect for tradition and reciprocation of gifts and favours are valued
more. Eastern nations tend to score especially high here, with Western nations
scoring low and the less developed nations very low; China scored highest and
Pakistan lowest.
Charles Handy (1985) popularized a method of looking at culture which some scholars
have used to link organizational structure to Organisational Culture. He describes:
• A Power Culture which concentrates power among a few. Power culture depends
on a central power source with rays of influence from the central figure
throughout the organisation. A power culture is frequently found in small
entrepreneurial organisations and relies on trust, empathy and personal
communications for its effectiveness. Control radiates from the center, like a web,
124
by selection of key individuals. There are few rules and procedures, and little
bureaucracy. It is a political organisation with decisions taken largely on the
balance of influence.63 Power Cultures have few rules and little bureaucracy;
swift decisions can ensue.
• Role Culture is often stereotyped as a bureaucracy and works by logic and
rationality. Role culture rests on the strength of strong organisational pillars-the
functions of the specialist, for example; finance, purchasing and production. The
work of, and interaction between, the pillars is controlled by procedures and rules,
and coordinated by the pediment of a small band of senior managers. Role or job
description is often more important than the individual and position power is the
main source of power.64 People have clearly delegated authorities within a highly
defined structure. Typically, these organizations form hierarchical bureaucracies.
Power derives from a person's position and little scope exists for expert power.
• Task Culture is job oriented or project oriented. In terms of structure the task
culture can be likened to net, some strands of which are stronger than others, and
with much of the power and influence at the interstices. An example is the matrix
organisation. Task culture seeks to bring together the right resources and people,
and utilises the unifying power of the group. Influence is widely spread and based
more on expert power than on position or personal power. Teams are formed to
solve particular problems. Power derives from expertise as long as a team requires
expertise.
• A Person Culture is where the individual is the central focus and any structure
exists to serve the individual within it. When a group of people decide that it is in
their own interest to band together to do their own thing and share office space,
equipment or clerical assistance then the resulting organisation would have a
person culture. Examples are groups of barristers, architects, doctors or
consultants. Although it is found in only a few organisations many individuals
have a preference for person culture, for example university professors and
specialists. Management hierarchies and control mechanisms are possible only by
63 Laurie J. Mullins,
64 Stephen McShane, P. 892
125
mutual consent. Individuals have almost complete autonomy and any influence
over them is likely to be on the basis of personal power. Person culture exists
where all individuals believe themselves superior to the organization. Survival
can become difficult for such organizations, since the concept of an organization
suggests that a group of like-minded individuals pursue the organizational goals.
Some professional partnerships can operate as person cultures, because each
partner brings a particular expertise and clientele to the firm.
Every organisation will have its own unique culture and most large businesses are likely
to be something of a mix of cultures with examples for each of the four types in varying
areas of the organisation. Different people enjoy working in different types of
organisational culture and they are more likely to be happy and satisfied at work if their
attributes and personalities are consistent with the culture of that part if the organisation
in which they are employed.65
Deal and Kennedy defined organisational culture as the way things get done around here.
They measured organisations according to two determining factors in the market place.
• Feedback - quick feedback means an instant response. This could be in monetary

terms, but could also be seen in other ways, such as the impact of a great save in a
soccer match. The speed at which organisations and their employees receive
feedback on the success of decisions or strategies.
• Risk - represents the degree of uncertainty in the organisation’s activities.
Using these parameters, they were able to suggest four classifications of organisational
culture:
• The Tough-Guy Macho Culture. An organisation of individuals who frequently

take high risks and receive quick feedback on the right or wrong of their actions.
Feedback is quick and the rewards are high. This often applies to fast moving
financial activities such as brokerage, but could also apply to a police department,
65 Laurie, p.893
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or athletes competing in team sports. This can be a very stressful culture in which
to operate.
• The Work Hard/Play Hard Culture is characterized by few risks being taken,
all with rapid feedback. This is typical in large organizations, which strive for
high quality customer service. It is often characterized by team meetings, jargon
and buzzwords.
• The Bet your Company Culture, where big stakes decisions are taken, but it
may be years before the results are known. Typically, these might involve
development or exploration projects, which take years to come to fruition, such as
oil prospecting or military aviation. The focus is on the future and the importance
of investing in it.
• The Process Culture occurs in organisations where there is little or no feedback.
People become bogged down with how things are done not with what is to be
achieved. This is often associated with bureaucracies. While it is easy to criticise
these cultures for being overly cautious or bogged down in red tape, they do
produce a consistent result, which is ideal in, for example, public services. Lack
of feedback forces employees to focus on how they do something, not what they
do. People tend to develop a ‘cover your back’ mentality. Process cultures can be
effective when there is a need for order and predictability.
Edgar Schein and MIT Sloan School of Management professor defines organisational
culture as "the residue of success" within an organization. According to Schein, culture is
the most difficult organizational attribute to change, outlasting organisational products,
services, founders and leadership and all other physical attributes of the organization. His
organisational model illuminates culture from the standpoint of the observer, described
by three cognitive levels of organizational culture.
At the first and most cursory level of Schein's model is organisational attributes that can
be seen, felt and heard by the uninitiated observer. Included are the facilities, offices,
furnishings, visible awards and recognition, the way that its members dress, and how
each person visibly interacts with each other and with organisational outsiders.
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The next level deals with the professed culture of an organisation's members. At this
level, company slogans, mission statements and other operational creeds are often
expressed, and local and personal values are widely expressed within the organization.
Organizational behavior at this level usually can be studied by interviewing the
organization's membership and using questionnaires to gather attitudes about
organizational membership.
At the third and deepest level, the organisation's tacit assumptions are found. These are
the elements of culture that are unseen and not cognitively identified in everyday
interactions between organizational members. Additionally, these are the elements of
culture which are often taboo to discuss inside the organisation. Many of these 'unspoken
rules' exist without the conscious knowledge of the membership. Those with sufficient
experience to understand this deepest level of organisational culture usually become
acclimatised to its attributes over time, thus reinforcing the invisibility of their existence.
Surveys and casual interviews with organizational members cannot draw out these
attributes--rather much more in-depth means is required to first identify then understand
organizational culture at this level. Notably, culture at this level is the underlying and
driving element often missed by organisational behaviourists.
Using Schein's model, understanding paradoxical organisational behaviours becomes

more apparent. For instance, an organisation can profess highly aesthetic and moral
standards at the second level of Schein's model while simultaneously displaying curiously
opposing behaviour at the third and deepest level of culture. Superficially, organizational
rewards can imply one organisational norm but at the deepest level imply something
completely different. This insight offers an understanding of the difficulty that
organisational newcomers have in assimilating organisational culture and why it takes
time to become acclimatized. It also explains why organisational change agents usually
fail to achieve their goals: underlying tacit cultural norms are generally not understood
before would-be change agents begin their actions. Merely understanding culture at the
deepest level may be insufficient to institute cultural change because the dynamics of
interpersonal relationships (often under threatening conditions) are added to the dynamics
of organisational culture while attempts are made to institute desired change.
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Influences on the Development of culture
The culture and structure of an organisation develop over time and in response to a
complex set of factors. We can, however, identify a number of key influences that are
likely to play an important role in the development of any corporate culture. These
include; history, primary function and technology, goals and objectives, size, location,
management and staffing, and the environment.
History- The reason, and the manner in which, the organisation was originally formed,
its age, and the philosophy and values of its owners and first senior managers will affect
culture. A key event in the organisation’s history such a merger or major reorganisation,
or a new generation of top management, may bring about a change in culture. Corporate
history can be an effective induction tool to assist a growth programme, and to help
integrate acquisitions and new employees by infusion with the organisation’s culture and
identity.
Primary function and technology- The nature of organisation’s business and its primary
function have an important influence on its culture. This includes the range and quality of
products and services provided, the importance of reputation and type of customers. The
primary function of the organisation will determine the nature of the technological
process and methods of undertaking work, which in turn also affect structure and culture.
Goals and Objectives-Although a business organisation may pursue profitability, this is

not by itself very clear or a sufficient criterion for its effective management. For example,
to what extent is emphasis placed on long-term survival or growth and development?
How much attention is given to avoiding risks and uncertainties? Or how much concern
is shown for broader social responsibilities? The organisation must give attention to
objectives in all key areas of its operations. The combinations of objectives and resultant
strategies will influence culture, and may itself be influence by changes in culture.
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Size-Usually larger organisations have more formalised structures and cultures. Increased
size is likely to result in separate departments and possibly split-site operations. This may
cause difficulties in communication and inter-departmental rivalries with the need for
effective coordination. A rapid expansion, or decline, in size and rate of growth, and
resultant changes in staffing will influence structure and culture.
Location-Geographical location and the physical characteristics can have a major

influence on culture. For example, whether an organisation is located in a quiet rural
location or a busy city centre. This can influence the types of customers and the staff
employed. It can also affect the nature of services provided, the sense of ‘boundary’ and
distinctive identity, and opportunities for development.
Management and Staffing-Top executives can have considerable influence on the

nature of corporate culture. Members of staff help to shape the dominant culture of an
organisation, irrespective of what senior management feel it should. Culture is also
determined by the nature of staff employed and the extent to which they accept
management philosophy and policies or pay only ‘lip service.’ Another important
influence is the match between corporate culture and employees’ perception of
psychological contract.
The Environment-In order to be effective, the organisation must be responsive to

external environmental influences. For example, if the organisation operates within a
dynamic environment it requires a structure and culture that are sensitive and readily
adaptable to change. An organic structure is more likely to respond effectively to new
opportunities and challenges, and risks and limitations presented by the external
environment.
7.3. Culture and Organisational Performance

Culture can help reduce complexity and uncertainty. It provides a consistency in outlook
and values, and makes possible the processes of decision-making, coordination and
control. Culture is clearly an important ingredient of effective organisational
performance. Culture helps to account for variations among organisations and managers,
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both nationally and internationally. It helps to explain why different groups of people
perceive things in their own way and perform things differently from other groups. With
greater international competition, an understanding of national culture has become of
increasing importance to managers. According to Siddall, for example: international
business, the issue of culture and the need for better understanding have become major
parts of organisational behaviour. Cultural practices vary widely among different
countries and because of our own values may be difficult to understand.
According to Peters and Waterman, the dominance and coherence of culture has proved
to be an essential quality of the excellent companies. Moreover, the stronger the culture
and more it was directed to the marketplace, the less need was there for policy manuals,
organisational charts, or detailed procedures and rules. In these companies, people way
down the line know what they are supposed to do in most situations because the handful
of guiding values is crystal clear.
7.4. Changing and Strengthening Organisational Culture
When one wants to change an aspect of the culture of an organization one has to keep in
consideration that this is a long term project. Corporate culture is something that is very
hard to change and employees need time to get used to the new way of organising. For
companies with a very strong and specific culture it will be even harder to change.
1. Formulate a clear strategic vision
In order to make a cultural change effective a clear vision of the firm’s new strategy,
shared values and behaviours is needed. This vision provides the intention and direction
for the culture change (Cummings & Worley, 2005, p.490).
2. Display Top-management commitment
It is very important to keep in mind that culture change must be managed from the top of
the organization, as willingness to change of the senior management is an important
indicator (Cummings & Worley, 2005, page 490). The top of the organization should be
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very much in favour of the change in order to actually implement the change in the rest of
the organization. De Caluwé & Vermaak (2004, p 9) provide a framework with five
different ways of thinking about change.
3. Model culture change at the highest level
In order to show that the management team is in favour of the change, the change has to
be notable at first at this level. The behaviour of the management needs to symbolize the
kinds of values and behaviours that should be realized in the rest of the company. It is
important that the management shows the strengths of the current culture as well, it must
be made clear that the current organizational does not need radical changes, but just a few
adjustments. (See for more: (Deal & Kennedy, 1982; Sathe, 1983; Schall; 1983; Weick,
1985; DiTomaso, 1987)
4. Modify the organisation to support organisational change
The fourth step is to modify the organisation to support organisational change.
5. Select and socialise newcomers and terminate deviants.
A way to implement a culture is to connect it to organisational membership, people can

be selected and terminate in terms of their fit with the new culture (Cummings & Worley,
2005, p. 491).
6. Develop ethical and legal sensitivity
Changes in culture can lead to tensions between organisational and individual interests,
which can result in ethical and legal problems for practitioners. This is particularly
relevant for changes in employee integrity, control, equitable treatment and job security
(Cummings & Worley, 2005, p. 491).
Strengthening Organisational Culture
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9 Actions for Founder and Leaders- Founders establish an organisation’s culture.
Founders develop the systems and structures that support their personal values.
They are also typically the visionaries whose energetic style provides a powerful
role model for others to follow. In spite of the founder’s effect, subsequent leaders
can break the organisation away from the founder’s values.
9 Introducing Cultural Consistent Rewards-Rewards systems strengthen corporate

culture when they are consistent with cultural values. For example, Husky
Injection Molding Systems has an unusual stock incentive programme that
supports its environmentalist culture. Employees at the plastic equipment
manufacturer earn one-twentieth of a company share for each seedling they plant,
one share for each month of car pooling, and so on. The idea is to align rewards to
the cultural values the company wants to reinforce.
9 Maintaining a stable workforce- An organisation’s culture is embedded in the

minds of its employees. Organisational stories are rarely written down; rituals and
ceremonies do not usually exist in procedures manuals; organisational metaphors
are not found in corporate directories. Thus, organisations depend on a stable
workforce to communicate and reinforce the dominant beliefs and values. The
organisation’s culture can literally disintegrate during periods of high turnover
and precipitous downsizing because the corporate memory leaves with these
employees. Conversely, corporate leaders who want to change the corporate
culture have accelerated the turnover of senior executives and older employees
who held the previous culture in place.
9 Managing the Cultural Network-Organisational culture is learned, so an effective

network of cultural transmission is necessary to strengthen the company’s
underlying assumptions, values and beliefs. According to Max De Pree, the
former CEO of furniture manufacturer Herman Miller Inc., every organisation
needs ‘tribal story teller’ to keep the organisation’s history and culture alive.
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9 Selecting and Socialising Employees-Hiring new people in an organisation can be
a failure if the job applicants are uncomfortable with the existing culture
especially if this results into violation of some organisation’s core values.
Organisations strengthen their corporate cultures by hiring people with beliefs,
values, and assumptions similar to their cultures. Along with selecting people
with compatible values companies maintain their cultures through the process of
organisational socialisation
7.5. Organisational Socialisation

Organisational socialisation refers to the process by which individuals learn the values,
expected behaviours, and social knowledge necessary to assume their roles in the
organisation. By communicating the company’s dominant values, job candidates and new
hires are more likely to internalize these values quickly and deeply. Socialisation is an
important process for absorbing corporate culture as well as helping new comers to adjust
to co-workers, work procedures, and other corporate realities.
Organisational socialisation is a process of both learning and adjustment. It is learning

process because new comers try to make sense of the company’s physical workplace,
social dynamics, and strategic/cultural environment. Newcomers need to learn about the
organisation’s performance expectations, power dynamics, corporate culture, company
history, and jargon. They also need to form successful and satisfying relationships with
other people from whom they can learn the ropes. Organisational socialisation is also a
process of adjustment, because individuals need to adapt to their new work environment.
They develop new work role that reconfigure their social identity, adopt new team norms,
and practice new behaviours.66
Socialisation is a continuous process, beginning long before the first day of employment
and continuing throughout one’s career within the company. However, it is most intense
when people move across organisational boundaries, such as when they first join the
company or get transferred to an international assignment. The focus of socialisation on
66 Stephen McShane, P.491.
134
new employees shows preemployment socialisation, encounter and role management. In
preemployment socialisation, think back to the months and weeks before you began
working in a new job (or attending a new school). The preemployment socialisation stage
encompasses all of the learning and adjustment that occurs prior to the first day of work
in a new position. Encounter stage is marked by the first day on the job. This is the stage
when newcomers test their prior expectations against the perceived realities. Reality
shock occurs when newcomers perceive discrepancies between their preemployment
expectations and on-the-job reality. Role management stage in the socialisation process
employees settle in as they make the transition from newcomers to insiders. They
strengthen relationships with co-workers and supervisors, practice new role behaviours,
adopt attitudes and values consistent with their new position and organisation.67
1. Suggest how you would attempt to explain the concept of organisational

culture. What factors might influence the development of culture?
2. Discuss the importance of organisational culture for effective
organisational performance. Give practical examples from your own
organisation
3. What is organisational socialisation?
4. As a manager of an organisation, how can you strengthen organisational
culture?
67 Stephen McShane ,P.495.
135
UNIT EIGHT
8. THE NATURE OF MOTIVATION
Unit 8.0
This unit outlines the nature of motivation and its conception in the field of Organisation
Behaviour. It is important to understand the role that motivation plays in determining
organisational behaviour. Some scholarly motivation theories in this unit will help you to
grasp the concept of motivation in its relation to human needs. Each theoretical
assumption should be thought about in line of personal and organisational settings.

When you have read and thought about this unit, you will be able:
1. Explain the nature of motivation
2. Contrast between Maslow’s theory of motivation and other motivation
theories
3. Explain Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
4. Give the relationship between motivation and performance, and between
motivation and job satisfaction
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8.1. Nature of Motivation
Definition
The term motivation derives from the Latin word movere, meaning ‘to move.’ In the
present context, motivation represents ‘those psychological processes that cause the
arousal, direction, and persistence of voluntary actions that are goal directed.68 Managers
need to understand these psychological processes if they are to successfully guide
employees toward accomplishing organisational objectives.
A reward, tangible or intangible, is presented after the occurrence of an action (i.e.

behavior) with the intent to cause the behavior to occur again. This is done by associating
positive meaning to the behavior. Studies show that if the person receives the reward
immediately, the effect would be greater, and decreases as duration lengthens. Repetitive
action-reward combination can cause the action to become habit.
Rewards can also be organized as extrinsic or intrinsic. Extrinsic rewards are external to
the person; for example, praise or money. Intrinsic rewards are internal to the person; for
example, satisfaction or accomplishment.
Some authors distinguish between two forms of intrinsic motivation: one based on
enjoyment, the other on obligation. In this context, obligation refers to motivation based
on what an individual thinks ought to be done. For instance, a feeling of responsibility for
a mission may lead to helping others beyond what is easily observable, rewarded, or fun.
A reinforcer is different from reward, in that reinforcement is intended to create a

measured increase in the rate of a desirable behavior following the addition of something
to the environment.
68 Robert Kreitner, P.176
137
Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation
Intrinsic motivation is when people engage in an activity, such as a hobby, without

obvious external incentives.
Intrinsic motivation has been studied by educational psychologists since the 1970s, and
numerous studies have found it to be associated with high educational achievement and
enjoyment by students. There is currently no universal theory to explain the origin or
elements of intrinsic motivation, and most explanations combine elements of Fritz
Heider's attribution theory, Bandura's work on self-efficacy and other studies relating to
locus of control and goal orientation. Though it is thought that students are more likely to
be intrinsically motivated if they:
• Attribute their educational results to internal factors that they can control (e.g. the
amount of effort they put in),
• Believe they can be effective agents in reaching desired goals (i.e. the results are
not determined by luck),
• Are interested in mastering a topic, rather than just rote-learning to achieve good
grades.
Note that the idea of reward for achievement is absent from this model of intrinsic
motivation, since rewards are an extrinsic factor.
In knowledge-sharing communities and organizations, people often cite altruistic reasons

for their participation, including contributing to a common good, a moral obligation to
the group, mentorship or 'giving back'. In work environments, money may provide a
more powerful extrinsic factor than the intrinsic motivation provided by an enjoyable
workplace.
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The most obvious form of motivation is coercion, where the avoidance of pain or other
negative consequences has an immediate effect. Extreme use of coercion is considered
slavery. While coercion is considered morally reprehensible in many philosophies, it is
widely practiced on prisoners, students in mandatory schooling, within the nuclear family
unit (on children), and in the form of conscription. Critics of modern capitalism charge
that without social safety networks, wage slavery is inevitable. However, many capitalists
such as Ayn Rand have been very vocal against coercion. Successful coercion sometimes
can take priority over other types of motivation. Self-coercion is rarely substantially
negative (typically only negative in the sense that it avoids a positive, such as forgoing an
expensive dinner or a period of relaxation), however it is interesting in that it illustrates
how lower levels of motivation may be sometimes tweaked to satisfy higher ones.
In terms of GCSE PE, intrinsic motivation is the motivation that comes from inside the
performer. E.g. they compete for the love of the sport. Extrinsic motivation comes from
outside of the performer. E.g. The crowd cheer the performer on, this motivates them to
do well, or to beat a PB (Personal Best). Another example is trophies or a reward. It
makes the performer want to win and beat the other competitors, thereby motivating the
performer.
Self-control
The self-control of motivation is increasingly understood as a subset of emotional

intelligence; a person may be highly intelligent according to a more conservative
definition (as measured by many intelligence tests), yet unmotivated to dedicate this
intelligence to certain tasks. Yale School of Management professor Victor Vroom's
"expectancy theory" provides an account of when people will decide whether to exert self
control to pursue a particular goal.
Drives and desires can be described as a deficiency or need that activates behaviour that
is aimed at a goal or an incentive. These are thought to originate within the individual and
may not require external stimuli to encourage the behaviour. Basic drives could be
sparked by deficiencies such as hunger, which motivates a person to seek food; whereas
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more subtle drives might be the desire for praise and approval, which motivates a person
to behave in a manner pleasing to others.
By contrast, the role of extrinsic rewards and stimuli can be seen in the example of
training animals by giving them treats when they perform a trick correctly. The treat
motivates the animals to perform the trick consistently, even later when the treat is
removed from the process.
8.2. Maslow’s Theory
Maslow saw human beings' needs arranged like a ladder. The most basic needs, at the
bottom, were physical -- air, water, food, sex. Then came safety needs -- security,
stability -- followed by psychological or social needs -- for belonging, love, and
acceptance. At the top of it all were the self-actualizing needs -- the need to fulfill
oneself, to become all that one is capable of becoming. Maslow felt that unfulfilled needs
lower on the ladder would inhibit the person from climbing to the next step. Someone
dying of thirst quickly forgets their thirst when they have no oxygen, as he pointed out.
People who dealt in managing the higher needs were what he called self-actualizing
people. Benedict and Wertheimer were Maslow's models of self-actualisation, from
which he generalized that, among other characteristics, self-actualizing people tend to
focus on problems outside of themselves, have a clear sense of what is true and what is
phony, are spontaneous and creative, and are not bound too strictly by social conventions.
Peak experiences are profound moments of love, understanding, happiness, or rapture,

when a person feels more whole, alive, self-sufficient and yet a part of the world, more
aware of truth, justice, harmony, goodness, and so on. Self-actualising people have many
such peak experiences.
Maslow's thinking was surprisingly original -- most psychology before him had been
concerned with the abnormal and the ill. He wanted to know what constituted positive
mental health. Humanistic psychology gave rise to several different therapies, all guided
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by the idea that people possess the inner resources for growth and healing and that the
point of therapy is to help remove obstacles to individuals' achieving this. The most
famous of these was client-centered therapy developed by Carl Rogers.
Maslow was a professor at Brandeis University from 1951 to 1969, and then became a
resident fellow of the Laughlin Institute in California. He died of a heart attack in 1970.
Maslow hierarchy
Diagram of Maslow's hierarchy of needs, represented as a pyramid with more primitive

needs at the bottom.
Maslow's primary contribution to psychology is his Hierarchy of Needs. Maslow

contended that humans have a number of needs that are instinctoid, that is, innate. These
needs are classified as "conative needs," "cognitive needs," and "aesthetic needs."
"Neurotic needs" are included in Maslow's theory but do not exist within the hierarchy.
Maslow postulated that needs are arranged in a hierarchy in terms of their potency.
Although all needs are instinctive, some are more powerful than others. The lower the
need is in the pyramid, the more powerful it is. The higher the need is in the pyramid, the
weaker and more distinctly human it is. The lower, or basic, needs on the pyramid are
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similar to those possessed by non-human animals, but only humans possess the higher
needs.
The first four layers of the pyramid are what Maslow called "deficiency needs" or "D-
needs:" the individual does not feel anything if they are met, but feels anxious if they are
not met..... Needs beyond the D-needs are "growth needs," "being values," or "B-needs."
When fulfilled, they do not go away; rather, they motivate further.
The base of the pyramid is formed by the physiological needs, including the biological
requirements for food, water, air, and sleep.
Once the physiological needs are met, an individual can concentrate on the second level,
the need for safety and security. Included here are the needs for structure, order, security,
and predictability.
The third level is the need for love and belonging. Included here are the needs for friends
and companions, a supportive family, identification with a group, and an intimate
relationship.
The fourth level is the esteem needs. This group of needs requires both recognition from
other people that results in feelings of prestige, acceptance, and status, and self-esteem
that results in feelings of adequacy, competence, and confidence. Lack of satisfaction of
the esteem needs results in discouragement and feelings of inferiority.
Finally, self-actualization sits at the apex of the original pyramid.
In 1970 Maslow published a revision to his original 1954 pyramid, adding the cognitive
needs (first the need to acquire knowledge, then the need to understand that knowledge)
above the need for self-actualization, and the aesthetic needs (the needs to create and/or
experience beauty, balance, structure, etc.) at the top of the pyramid. However, not all
versions of Maslow's pyramid include the top two levels.
Maslow theorised that unfulfilled cognitive needs can become redirected into neurotic
needs. For example, children whose safety needs are not adequately met may grow into
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adults who compulsively hoard money or possessions. Unlike other needs, however,
neurotic needs do not promote health or growth if they are satisfied.
Maslow also proposed that people who have reached self-actualization will sometimes
experience a state he referred to as "transcendence," in which they become aware of not
only their own fullest potential, but the fullest potential of human beings at large. He
described this transcendence and its characteristics in an essay in the posthumously
published The Farther Reaches of Human Nature. (see flow).
In the essay, he describes this experience as not always being transitory, but that certain
individuals might have ready access to it, and spend more time in this state. He makes a
point that these individuals experience not only ecstatic joy, but also profound "cosmic-
sadness"[3] at the ability of humans to foil chances of transcendence in their own lives and
in the world at large.
Maslow's theory of human needs draws strongly on the pioneering work of Henry Murray
(1938). This provides the basis for wide-ranging and extensively validated work relating
to achievement, affiliation, power and ambition. “We move toward self actualization".
This quote brings in Maslow's theory of motivation, tying along with the growth,
happiness and satisfaction of every person. He believes to be motivated that it is not
driven by reducing tension or avoiding frustration that people look for a positive view.
Two Factor Theory (also known as Herzberg's Boby Motivation-Hygiene Theory) was
developed by Frederick Herzberg, a psychologist who found that job satisfaction and job
dissatisfaction acted independently of each other. Two Factor Theory states that there are
certain factors in the workplace that cause job satisfaction, while a separate set of factors
cause dissatisfaction
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8.3. Two Factor Theory fundamentals
Frederick Herzberg's studies of job attitudes and their connection with industrial mental
health are related to Maslow's theory of motivation. His findings have had a considerable
theoretical, as well as a practical, influence on attitudes toward administration .
According to Herzberg, man is not content with the satisfaction of lower-order needs at
work—for example, those associated with minimum salary levels or safe and pleasant
working conditions. Rather, he looks for the gratification of higher-level psychological
needs having to do with achievement, recognition, responsibility, advancement, and the
nature of the work itself. So far, this appears to parallel Maslow's theory of a need
hierarchy. However, Herzberg added a new dimension to this theory by proposing a two-
factor model of motivation, based on the notion that the presence of one set of job
characteristics or incentives leads to worker satisfaction at work, while another and
separate set of job characteristics leads to dissatisfaction at work. Thus, satisfaction and
dissatisfaction are not on a continuum with one increasing as the other diminishes, but are
independent phenomena. This theory suggests that to improve job attitudes and
productivity, administrators must recognise and attend to both sets of characteristics and
not assume that an increase in satisfaction leads to a commensurate decrease in
dissatisfaction.
The two-factor, or motivation-hygiene theory, developed from data collected by Herzberg

from interviews with a large number of engineers and accountants in the Pittsburgh area.
From analyzing these interviews, he found that job characteristics related to what a man
does — that is, to the nature of the work he performs — apparently have the capacity to
gratify such needs as achievement, competency, status, personal worth, and self-
realisation, thus making him happy and satisfied. However, the absence of such
gratifying job characteristics does not appear to lead to unhappiness and dissatisfaction.
Instead, dissatisfaction results from unfavorable assessments of such job-related factors
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as company policies, supervision, technical problems, salary, interpersonal relations on
the job, and working conditions. Thus, if management wishes to increase satisfaction on
the job, it should be concerned with the nature of the work itself — the opportunities it
presents for gaining status, assuming responsibility, and for achieving self-realization. If,
on the other hand, management wishes to reduce dissatisfaction, then it must focus on the
job environment— policies, procedures, supervision, and working conditions. If
management is equally concerned with both (as is usually the case), then managers must
give attention to both sets of job factors.
The theory was based around interviews with 203 American accountants & engineers in
Pittsburgh, chosen because of their professions' growing importance in the business
world. The subjects were asked to relate times when they felt exceptionally good or bad
about their present job or any previous job, and to provide reasons, and a description of
the sequence of events giving rise to that positive or negative feeling.
Here is the description of this interview analysis:
Briefly, we asked our respondents to describe periods in their lives when they were
exceedingly happy and unhappy with their jobs. Each respondent gave as many
"sequences of events" as he could which met certain criteria including a marked change
in feeling, a beginning and an end, and contained some substantive description other
than feelings and interpretations....
The proposed hypothesis appears verified. The factors on the right that led to satisfaction
(achievement, intrinsic interest in the work, responsibility, and advancement) are mostly
unipolar; that is, they contribute very little to job dissatisfaction. Conversely, the dis-
satisfiers (company policy and administrative practices, supervision, interpersonal
relationships, working conditions, and salary) contribute very little to job satisfaction [3].
Two Factor Theory distinguishes between:
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• Motivators (e.g. challenging work, recognition, responsibility) which give
positive satisfaction, arising from intrinsic conditions of the job itself, such as
recognition, achievement, or personal growth, and
• Hygiene factors (e.g. status, job security, salary and fringe benefits) which do not
give positive satisfaction, although dissatisfaction results from their absence.
These are extrinsic to the work itself, and include aspects such as company
policies, supervisory practices, or wages/salary.
Essentially, hygiene factors are needed to ensure an employee is not dissatisfied.

Motivation factors are needed in order to motivate an employee to higher performance,
Herzberg also further classified our actions and how and why we do them, for example, if
you perform a work related action because you have to then that is classed as movement,
but if you perform a work related action because you want to then that is classed as
motivation.
Unlike Maslow, who offered little data to support his ideas, Herzberg and others have
presented considerable empirical evidence to confirm the motivation-hygiene theory.
Their work, however, has been criticized on methodological grounds. Nevertheless,
Herzberg and his associates have rendered a valuable service to science and to
management through their efforts to apply scientific methods to understanding complex
motivational problems at work and have stimulated others to continue the search.
8.4. McClelland's Theory of Needs
In his acquired-needs theory, which draws on Murray's model, David McClelland

proposed that an individual's specific needs are acquired over time and are shaped by
one's early life experiences. Most of these needs can be classed as either achievement,
affiliation, or power. A person's motivation and effectiveness in certain job functions are
influenced by these three needs. McClelland's theory sometimes is referred to as the three
need theory or as the learned needs theory. Later work indicated that motives are actually
quite stable over long periods of time.
146
Achievement
People with a high need for achievement (nAch) seek to excel and thus tend to avoid both
low-risk and high-risk situations. Predominantly Achievement-motivated individuals
avoid low-risk situations because the easily attained success is not a genuine
achievement. In high-risk projects, the Achievement-motivated see the outcome as one of
chance rather than one's own effort. High nAch individuals prefer work that has a
moderate probability of success, ideally a 50% chance. Achievement-motivated
individuals need regular feedback in order to monitor the progress of their achievements.
They prefer either to work alone or with others like themselves.
Affiliation
Those with a high need for affiliation (nAffil) need harmonious relationships with other
people and need to feel accepted by other people. They tend to conform to the norms of
their work group. High nAff individuals prefer work that provides significant personal
interaction. They enjoy being part of groups and when not anxious make excellent team
members, though sometimes are distractible into social interaction. They can perform
well in customer service and client interaction situations.
Power
A person's need for power (nPow) can be one of two types - personal and institutional.
Those who need personal power want to direct others, and this need often is perceived as
undesirable. Persons who need institutional power (also known as social power) want to
organize the efforts of others to further the goals of the organization. Managers with a
high need for institutional power tend to be more effective than those with a high need for
personal power. Work by Abigail Stewart indicated that this motive can interact with
emotional maturity; at Stage I, one feels powerful by being associated with the powerful,
whereas at Stage IV one sees oneself as a channel to empower others.
Thematic Apperception Test
147
McClelland used the Thematic Apperception Test (TAT), also called the Picture-Story
Exercise (PSE) to measure the individual needs of different people. The TAT is a
projective test that presents the subject with a series of ambiguous pictures, and the
subject is asked to develop a spontaneous story for each picture. The assumption is that
the subject will project his or her own needs into the story and these will reflect certain
underlying themes.
Psychologists have developed reliable scoring techniques for the Thematic Apperception
Test. The test determines the individual's score for each of the needs of achievement,
affiliation, and power. This score can be used to suggest the types of jobs for which the
person might be well suited. While some believe other psychometric questionnaires that
offer better reliability and validity, the properly administered PSE meets 0.85 reliability
standards, and is the only tool to measure implicit motivation with any degree of validity.
In a seminal longitudinal study at AT&T, McClelland found that of all the tools used to
predict how far people were promoted in 8-12 years, only motivation predicted at all, and
it predicted with 67% accuracy, an extraordinary result over that period of time. No other
measures, including personality and IQ, predicted to that level of significance, or indeed
at all in most cases. This study was repeated 20 years later by Ruth Jacobs, with identical
results for men and women.
Implications for management
People with different needs are motivated differently. While all people have all three
motives, they have them to different degrees. In practice, the majority of people have one
motive to significantly higher degree, though a few have all three high.
• High need for achievement - Highly achievement-motivated people should be

given challenging projects with reachable but challenging goals. They should be
provided frequent feedback. While money is not an important motivator, it is an
effective form of feedback if it is linked to clear measures of success
148
• High need for affiliation - Employees with a high affiliation need perform best in
a cooperative environment, where they can belong to something larger than
themselves
• High need for power - Management should provide people with strong need to
influence the opportunity to manage others.
Note that McClelland's theory allows for the shaping of a person's needs; training
programs can be used to modify one's need profile. Studies have indicated that motives
cannot be decreased, but may be increased over significant time.
Other business-related work
McClelland, disturbed by what he saw as the unjustified use of intelligence (IQ) tests for
job selection, introduced the idea of competencies. A competency is defined as any
characteristic of a person that differentiates performance in a specific job, role, culture, or
organization. As he put it, "if you are hiring a ditch digger, it doesn't matter if his IQ is 90
or 110 -- what matters is if he can use a shovel." After his first paper on this topic in
1973, it spread throughout industry and is now a generally accepted approach to
measuring job requirements and evaluating job candidates, as it has been consistently
shown to be the least biased form of job selection. See also Emotional Intelligence, a
concept proposed by Daniel Goleman, a student of McClelland.
McClelland's last paper in 1998 was a study demonstrating that rigorous competency-
based selection could predict performance in top executives in a multinational
organization: his study found you could predict the job performance (against business
goals) two years in advance with 75-85% accuracy -- a validity coefficient estimated to
be 0.81, and unmatched by any other tool. Since the technique is both labor-intensive and
requires skilled assessors to execute at that level, it is often not used at entry-level
through supervisory levels of organizations, though it is still effective.
149
8.5. Vroom and Expectancy Theory
Victor Vroom is a business school professor at the Yale School of Management, who
was born on 9 August 1932 in Montreal, Canada. He holds a PhD from University of
Michigan. Vroom's primary research was on the expectancy theory of motivation, which
attempts to explain why individuals choose to follow certain courses of action in
organizations, particularly in decision-making and leadership. His most well-known
books are Work and Motivation, Leadership and Decision Making and The New
Leadership. Vroom has also been a consultant to a number of corporations such as GE
and American Express.
Vroom's theory assumes that behavior results from conscious choices among alternatives
whose purpose it is to maximize pleasure and minimize pain. The key elements to this
theory are referred to as Expectancy (E), Instrumentality (I), and Valence (V). Critical to
the understanding of the theory is the understanding that each of these factors represents a
belief.
Vroom's theory suggests that the individual will consider the outcomes associated with
various levels of performance (from an entire spectrum of performance possibilities), and
elect to pursue the level that generates the greatest reward for him or her.
Expectancy refers to the strength of a person's belief about whether or not a particular job
performance is attainable. Assuming all other things are equal, an employee will be
motivated to try a task, if he or she believes that it can be done. This expectancy of
performance may be thought of in terms of probabilities ranging from zero (a case of "I
can't do it!") to 1.0 ("I have no doubt whatsoever that I can do this job!")
A number of factors can contribute to an employee's expectancy perceptions:
the level of confidence in the skills required for the task the amount of support that may
be expected from superiors and subordinates the quality of the materials and equipment
150
the availability of pertinent information Previous success at the task has also been shown
to strengthen expectancy beliefs.
Instrumentality: "What's the probability that, if I do a good job, that there will be some
kind of outcome in it for me?"
If an employee believes that a high level of performance will be instrumental for the
acquisition of outcomes which may be gratifying, then the employee will place a high
value on performing well. Vroom defines Instrumentality as a probability belief linking
one outcome (a high level of performance, for example) to another outcome (a reward).
Instrumentality may range from a probability of 1.0 (meaning that the attainment of the
second outcome -- the reward -- is certain if the first outcome -- excellent job
performance -- is attained) through zero (meaning there is no likely relationship between
the first outcome and the second). An example of zero instrumentality would be exam
grades that were distributed randomly (as opposed to be awarded on the basis of excellent
exam performance). Commission pay schemes are designed to make employees perceive
that performance is positively instrumental for the acquisition of money.
For management to ensure high levels of performance, it must tie desired outcomes
(positive valence) to high performance, and ensure that the connection is communicated
to employees. The VIE theory holds that people have preferences among various
outcomes. These preferences tend to reflect a person's underlying need state.
Valence: "Is the outcome I get of any value to me?"
The term Valence refers to the emotional orientations people hold with respect to
outcomes (rewards). An outcome is positively valent if an employee would prefer having
it to not having it. An outcome that the employee would rather avoid ( fatigue, stress,
noise, layoffs) is negatively valent. Outcomes towards which the employee appears
indifferent are said to have zero valence. Valences refer to the level of satisfaction people
151
expect to get from the outcome (as opposed to the actual satisfaction they get once they
have attained the reward).
Vroom suggests that an employee's beliefs about Expectancy, Instrumentality, and

Valence interact psychologically to create a motivational force such that the employee
acts in ways that bring pleasure and avoid pain.
People elect to pursue levels of job performance that they believe will maximize their
overall best interests (their subjective expected utility).
There will be no motivational forces acting on an employee if any of these three

conditions hold:
• the person does not believe that he/she can successfully perform the required task
• the person believes that successful task performance will not be associated with
positively valent outcomes
• the person believes that outcomes associated with successful task completion will
be negatively valent (have no value for that person)
8.6. Motivation and Job Satisfaction

An individual’s work motivation is related to his or her job satisfaction. Motivation is not
independent of an employee’s work environment or personal life. For example, your
desire to study for your next OB test is jointly affected by how much you like the course
and the state of your health at the time you are studying. It is very hard to study when you
have a bad cold or the flue. Because of these dynamic relationships, we conclude our
discussion of motivation in this unit by discussing the causes of job satisfaction. This
information will increase your understanding of how to motivate others as well as
yourself.
The Causes of Job Satisfaction
Job satisfaction is an effective or emotional response toward various facets of one’s job.
This definition means job satisfaction is not a unitary concept. Rather, a person can be
relatively satisfied with on aspect of his or her job and dissatisfied with another.
152
Need Fulfillment
These models propose that satisfaction is determined by the extent to which the
characteristics of a job allow an individual to fulfill his or her needs. For example, a
recent survey of 30 law firms revealed that 35 to 50 percent of law-firm associates left
their employers within three years of starting because the firms did not accommodate
family needs.
Discrepancies
These models propose that satisfaction is a result of met expectations. Met expectations
represent the difference between what an individual expects to receive from a job, such as
good pay or promotional opportunities, and what he or she actually receives. When
expectations are greater that what is received, a person will be dissatisfied.
Value Attainment
The idea underlying value attainment is that satisfaction results from the perception that a
job allows for fulfillment of an individual’s important work values. In general, research
consistently supports the prediction that value fulfillment is positively related to job
satisfaction.
Equity
In this model, satisfaction is a function of how ‘fairly’ an individual is treated at work.
Satisfaction results from one’s perception that work outcomes, relative to inputs, compare
favourably those of a significant other.
Dispositional/Genetic Components
Have you ever noticed that some of your co-workers or friends appear to be satisfied
across a variety of job circumstances, whereas others always seem dissatisfied? This
model of satisfaction attempts to explain this pattern. Specifically, the
dispositional/genetic model is based on the belief that job satisfaction is partly a function
of both personal traits and genetic factors.
153
8.7. Motivation and Organisational Performance
Satisfaction affects performance through an employee’s intentions or effort. Performance

is expected to be more strongly influenced by the boxes in-between inputs and
performance, namely motivational processes and motivated behaviours. Organisational
success is dependent on upon members being motivated to use their full talents and
abilities, and directed to perform well in the right areas. The best companies have
stimulating workplaces where their staff feels motivated and valued. But they do not end
up this way by accident. Without exception, the creation of an outstanding workplace has
been a deliberate act of top management. Benefits such as holidays and share schemes are
important for human satisfaction.
According to a major international study undertaken by Proudfoot consulting, a major

reason for productivity loss was poor working morale. Aspects of poor working morale
included; low motivation, lack of attention to quality; unwillingness to see a job well
done and a poor sense of belonging. With a positive motivation philosophy and practice
in place, productivity, quality and service should improve because motivation helps
people towards; achieving goals, gaining a positive perspective, creating the power to
change, building self-esteem and capability, and managing their development and helping
others.69
P.475.
154
1. Describe the nature of motivation

2. Give a brief description of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, Vroom and
Expectancy theory and Herzberg's Boby Motivation-Hygiene Theory.
3. What impact does motivation have on organisational performance and job
satisfaction
4. What are some of the causes of job satisfaction
155
SUGGESTED SOLUTIONS TO THE REVISION QUESTIONS
UNIT ONE
Question 1
Question 2
i. Organisational Behaviour is a field of study that investigates the impact that
individuals, groups and structures have on behaviour within organisations, for the
purpose of applying such knowledge toward improving an organisation’s
effectiveness. It is the study of what people think, feel and do in and around
organisations. It is concerned with the study of the behaviour of people within an
organisational setting. This involves understanding, predicting and control of
human behaviour.70 Therefore, Organisational Behaviour maybe termed as the
study of many factors that have an impact on how individuals and groups respond
to and act in organisations and how organisations manage their environment.
ii. Each one of us has an inherent need to understand and predict the world in which
we live. Much of our time is spent working in or around organisations, so the
concepts offered by Organisation Behaviour will help you to partially satisfy that
innate drive. It’s nice to understand and predict organisational events, but most of
us want to influence the environment in which we live. Whether you are
marketing specialist or computer engineer, OB knowledge will help you to
influence organisational events by understanding and applying concept in
motivation, communication, conflict, team dynamics and other topics. OB
knowledge is for everyone not just managers. We all need to understand
organisational behaviour and master the practices that influence organisational
events. Indeed, organisations will continue to have managers but their roles have
156
changed. More important, the rest of us are now expected to manage ourselves.
As one forward-thinking Organisational Behaviour scholar wrote many years ago
“everyone is a manager”.
Question 3
Globalisation influences several aspects of Organisational Behaviour-some good, some
not so good. Globalization is applauded for increasing organizational efficiency and
providing a broader net to attract valuable knowledge and skills. It potentially opens up
new career opportunities and provides a greater appreciation of diverse needs and
perspectives.
However, globalization also presents new challenges. The debate about whether
globalization makes developing countries wealthier or poorer adds a new ethical
dimension to corporate decisions. Firms also need to adjust their organisational structures
and forms of communication to assist their global reach. Globalisation adds more
diversity to the workforce, which affects the organisation’s culture and introduces new
forms of values-conflicts among employees.
Globalization is also identified as one of the main sources of increased competitive

pressures, mergers and market volatility. These environmental conditions, in turn, reduce
job security, increase work intensification and demand more work flexibility from
employees. Lastly, globalization influences the study of Organisational Behaviour. We
cannot assume that OB practices are equally effective around the world, so scholars are
paying more attention to the cross-cultural differences. Global investigations have
become increasingly necessary as we discover the complex effects of values and other
differences across cultures.
Organisations around the world are increasingly moving towards a multicultural
workforce because of the increasing demographic diversity caused by different factors.
There are secondary and primary dimensions of workforce diversity. The primary
categories include gender, ethnicity, age, race, sexual orientation, and mental/physical
qualities and these represent personal characteristics that influence an individual’s
157
socialization and self-identity. The secondary dimensions are those features that we learn
or have some control over throughout our lives, such as education, marital status,
religion, and work experience. Another form of diversity is the increasing representation
of women in the workforce. Women now represent nearly 50 percent of the paid
workforce, compared to just 20 percent a few decades ago.
Diversity in workforce in organisations has greater implications for organizational

behaviour. Diversity presents both opportunities and challenges in organisations. To be
sure, the relationship between workforce diversity and effectiveness of a team or
organisation is very complex. In some circumstances and to some degree, diversity can
become a competitive advantage by improving decision making and team performance
on complex tasks. For many businesses, a diverse workforce is also necessary to provide
better customer service in the global market place. “We go out of our way to recruit from
a melting pot of nationalities,” says an executive at Amadeus, a developer of worldwide
airline reservations software near Nice-France.71 We believe that our product is superior
because of the different cultures of the people developing it.
However, along with its benefits workforce diversity presents new challenges, for
instance, there are situations in which diverse groups are less effective, although we are
still trying to learn about the contingencies of diversity. Discrimination is another
ongoing concern. Women have represented a large portion of the workforce for the past
two decades, yet they are still underrepresented in senior positions. Racism still raises
ugly head from time to time.
Question 4
Organisational Behaviour is an applied behavioural science that built upon contributions
from various behavioural disciplines. The central ones are psychology, sociology, social
psychology, anthropology and political science and other disciplines
158
UNIT TWO
Question 1
Personality defined as the pattern of relatively enduring ways in which a person feels,
thinks and behaves. Fincham R. describes personality as the relatively enduring
combination of traits which makes an individual unique and at the same time produces
consistencies in his or her thought and behaviour.72 A similar definition Rollison Derek
defines personality as, ‘those relatively stable and enduring aspects of an individual that
distinguish him/her from other people and at the same time form a basis for our
predictors concerning his/her future behaviour. (Rollison D., 1998). A complementary
definition; Robbins Stephen defines personality as the sum total of ways in which an
individual reacts and interacts with others.
Genetic factors
Inherited factors that influence physical and mental characteristics.
-height, build, intelligence, temperament, physical attractiveness.
Sheldon (1954) established a very extreme theory of genetic determinism in his
presentation of the three body shapes. He associated three body shapes with three
different personality types.
The endomorphic person with a soft, round, stocky body with large trunk and short legs
is said to have a relaxed, easy going sociable temperament and is said to love bodily
comforts. The Ectomorphic who is delicate with a slender build is said to be aesthetic,
inhibited and socially withdrawn. On the other hand, the mesomorph who is the
muscular, athletic type is said to be energetic, boisterous, assertive and possible
aggressive. His theory is now dismissed as naïve and unfounded. What is clear is that
personality is not totally determined by genes. Different factors play together to form
ones personality as we see in the case of identical twin studies.
72 Fincham R. et.at., Principles of Organisational Behaviour, Oxford University Press, 1999, P.62.
159
Social Factors
Factors that could influence personality that arise from interacting with other people;
early socialization, which consists in interaction with parents, siblings and peers has an
effect on the way we act and think. The behaviourist school of psychology which views
all human as environmentally determined refer to personality as just accumulated
learning experiences (Skinner, 1974). Much of personality comes through learning and so
childhood experiences are paramount to the unfolding of personality.
Cultural Factors
Wider social beliefs, values and motives that are absorbed by an individual and guide
behaviour towards that which is acceptable within a particular social context; when high
value is placed on achievement and individualism in a certain society, we will find that
this may affect individual personality in instilling a trait of ‘the need to achieve’.
Situational Factors
This refers to the effect of a specific experience or situation on a person’s feelings and
behaviour. An individual’s personality, while generally stable and consistent, does
change in different situations. It is clear that very often different situations call forth
different aspects of one’s personality. Situations like church, an employment interview, a
picnic in a picnic in a park do affect behaviour differently. Examples here may be trauma
of losing a parent or a loved one. Certain situations can bring out unrecognized aspects of
personality we have never been aware of. Personality development is an ongoing process,
but to some degree personalities can be deemed as stable.
Question 2
Locus of Control refers to a generalised belief about the amount of control people have
over their own lives. Individuals who feel that they are very much in charge of their won
destiny have an internal locus of control; those who think that events in their life are due
mainly to fate/luck or powerful others have an external locus of control. Locus of control
160
is a generalised belief, so people with an external locus can feel in control in familiar
situations (such as opening the door or serving a customer). However, their underlying
locus of control would be apparent in new situations in which control over events is
uncertain.
People perform better in most employment situations when they have moderately strong
internal locus of control. They tend to be more successful in their careers and earn more
money than their external counterparts. Internals are particularly well suited to leadership
positions and other jobs requiring initiative, independent action, complex thinking and
high motivation. Internals are also more satisfied with their jobs, cope better in stressful
situations, are more motivated by performance-based reward systems. 73
Self-Monitoring
Self-monitoring refers to an individual’s level of sensitivity to the expressive behaviour
of others and the ability to adapt appropriately to these cues. High self-monitors can
adjust their behaviour quite easily and therefore show little stability in other underlying
personality traits. In contrast, low self-monitors are more likely to reveal their mood and
personal characteristics, so predicting their behaviour from one situation to the next is
relatively easy. The self-monitoring personality trait has been identified as a significant
factor in many organisational activities. Employees who are high self-monitors tend to be
better at social networking, interpersonal conversation and leading people. They also
more likely than low self-monitors to be promoted within the organisation and to receive
better jobs else where.
Self-monitoring, locus of control, conscientiousness, and the other personality traits help
us to understand individual behaviour in organisations.
161
Question 3
Perception is a process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory

impressions in order to give meaning to their environment. It is the selection and
organization of environmental stimuli to provide meaningful experiences for the
perceiver. Perception represents the psychological process whereby people extract
information from the environment and make sense of their world.74 What we see
sometimes may be completely different from objective reality. An example is that
although it would be the ideal that all workers find the work place as a great place of
work, with favourable working conditions, interesting job assignments, good pay and
understanding and responsible management, it is never the case that all employees find it
that way. We all perceive the same reality differently. It is important to consider
perception in the work place because people’s behaviour is based on their perception of
what reality is, and not only on reality itself.
Question 4
Check for the answers on page
UNIT THREE
Question 1
Check for the answers on page 53/54
Question 2
Check for the answers on pages 58/64
Question 3
74 Don Hellriegel et al., Organisational Behaviour 4th ed., West Publish Company: New York, 1986, P.83
162
Question 4
Check for the answers on page 66
Question 5
Question 6
UNIT FOUR
Question 1
Question 2
Question 3
Question 4
UNIT FIVE
Question 1
163
Question 2
Question 3
Question 4
UNIT SIX
Question 1
Question 2
Check for the answers on page 114/115
Question 3
Question 4
UNIT SEVEN
Question 1
Check for the answers on pages 120/129/167
Question 2
164
Question 3
Question 4
UNIT EIGHT
Question 1
Question 2
Check for the answers on pages 140-144
Question 3
Check for the answers on pages 153
Question 4
165
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Steven L. McShane et al., Organisational Behaviour, McGraw Hill: New York, 2005.
Video, ‘Management Revolution and Corporate Reinvention’, BBC for Bussiness, 1993.
Fincham R. et.at., Principles of Organisational Behaviour, Oxford University Press, 1999.
Robert Kreitner, Organisational Behaviour, McGraw-Hill: New York, 2002.
Don Hellriegel et al., Organisational Behaviour 4th ed., West Publish Company: New
York, 1986.
Laurie J. Mullins, Management and Organisational Behaviour, 7th ed., Prentice Hall:
Harlow, 2005.
Robbins, S. P., Organisational Behaviour and Analysis, Harlow: Addison Wesley

Longman, 1998
Tuckman B. W., Development Sequence in Small Groups, Psychological Bulletin, 63(3);

384-99, 1965.
Belbin, R. M., Team Roles at Work, Butterworth: Heinemann, 1993, 1993 in Mullin L.,
2000,
http//wikipedia/team development
Rollinson D., et al., Organisational Behaviour and Analysis, Harlow: Addison Wesley
Longman, 1998
Steve Ellis et al, Introduction to Organisational Behaviour, McGraw Hill: New York,
2003
166
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CAVENDISH UNIVERSITY ZAMBIA

BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Organisational Behaviour (BBA313)

1.1. Introduction to the Field of Organisational Behaviour

2. Foundations of Individual Behaviour

3. Foundations of Team Dynamics

6. Organisational structure and Environments

7. Organisation Culture and Change

ƒ Suggested Solutions to Revision Questions

This unit provides an introduction to the nature of organisations in relation to

Summary of learning outcomes

Introduction to the Field of Organisational Behaviour

3. Foundations of Group Behaviour

6. Organisational Structure and environments

7. Organisational Culture and Change

8. The Nature of Motivation

Outcomes and Assessment criteria

Support materials (Check the Bibliography: Last page)

What will you learn?

1.1. INTRODUCTION TO THE FIELD OF ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR

Organisational Behaviour scholars systematically study individual, team and structural

1.1.2 HISTORICAL BACKGROUP OF OB

1.1.3 CONTRIBUTING FIELDS TO OB

1.1.4 THE OB CONCEPT

1.1.6. ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR TRENDS

Globalisation influences several aspects of Organisational Behaviour-some good, some

Globalization is also identified as one of the main sources of increased competitive

Information Technology and OB

Two other emerging work activities attributed to information technology are

The Changing Workforce

Diversity in workforce in organisations has greater implications for organizational

Emerging Employment Relationships

Workplace Values and Ethics

1.1.7. THE FIVE ANCHORS OF ORGANISATIONAL BEHAVIOUR

The Multidisciplinary Anchor

The Systematic Research Anchor

Recently, OB scholars have also adopted a grounded theory approach to developing

The Contingency Anchor

Multiple Levels of Analysis Anchor

The Open Systems Anchor

1.2. ASSESSMENT: REVISION QUESTIONS

These questions are meant to test your comprehension of the introduction to

1. A friend suggests that Organisational Behaviour course is useful only to

2. FOUNDATIONS OF INDIVIDUAL BEHAVIOUR

12 Video, ‘Management Revolution and Corporate Reinvention’, BBC for Bussiness,1993.

2.1.1. Personality And Organisational Behaviour

FOUR ETHICAL PRINCIPLES

Agreeableness reflects individual differences in concern with cooperation and social

Sample Agreeableness items

The benefits of high conscientiousness are obvious. Conscientious individuals avoid

Sample Conscientiousness items

Extraversion and Introversion

Extraversion (also “extroversion”) is marked by pronounced engagement with the

Sample Extraversion items

• I am the life of the party.

Neuroticism, also known inversely as Emotional Stability, refers to the tendency to

Sample Neuroticism items

Openness to Experience describes a dimension of personality that distinguishes

Sample Openness items