Challenges of OB

CHALLENGES CHALLENGES OF O.B Introduction:-

Organizational behavior is a field of study that investigates the Impact that individuals, groups, and structures have on behavior within organization for the purpose of applying such knowledge towards improving an organization’s effectiveness .

Interpretation of Def n :Orga Organi niza zati tion on beha behavi vior or is a fiel field d of stud study. y. That That stat statem emen entt means that it is a distinct area of expertise with a common  body of knowledge. It stud studie iess ther theree dete determi rmina nant ntss of beha behavi vior or in orga organi niza zati tion on;; individuals, groups and structure. OB applies the knowledge gained about individuals groups and and the the effe effect ct of stru struct ctur uree on beha behavi vior or in order order to make make organizations more effective.

Challenges:Understanding organization behavior has been important for  manager. A quick look at a few of the dramatic changes now taking place in organizatio organization n supports supports this claim. For instance, instance, the typical typical employee employee is getting getting older older more and and more women women and and now now whites whites are are in work place; place; corporate corporate down sizing sizing and heavy use of temporary temporary workers workers are are severing severing the bonds of loyalty that historically tide many employees to the employers, and global global competitio competition n is requiring requiring employees employees to become become more flexible flexible and to learn to cope with rapid change. We review some of the more critical issues confronting managers for which OB offers solutions- or at least some meaningful insights towards solutions.

Responding to globalization Improving ethical  behavior 

Managing workforce diversity

OB challenges Stimulating innovation and change

Improving quality and  product

Empowering  people

Improving  people skills

1. RESPONDIN RESPONDING G TO GLOBALISA GLOBALISATION: TION:-If you are a manager and you are increasingly find yourself transfer to yours employers operating division on subsidiary in another country. Once there you’ll have have to manage a workforce that is is likely to be very different in needs. Aspirations and attitudes from the once you were used to back back home. Second, Second, even in your own country, country, you’re you’re going to find yourself working with boss, co-links and other employees who were  born and raised in different cultures. What motivates you, if you may not motivate them, your style of communication may be straight forward and open, but they may find this style uncomfortab uncomfortable le and threatenin threatening g work 

effectively with these people, you will need to understand their culture, how it has has shap shaped ed them them and and how how to adop adoptt your your mana manage geme ment nt styl stylee to thei their  r  difference.

2. MANAGING MANAGING WORKF WORKFORCE ORCE DIVE DIVERTSIT RTSITY:Y:Workforce diversity means that organization is becoming more heterogeneous in terms of gender, race and ethnic. But the term encompasses any one who varies from the so called called norm. We used to take take a melting-pot appr approa oach ch to diff differe erenc ncee in orga organi niza zati tion ons, s, assu assumi ming ng peop people le who who were were different. different. Would some some how automatically automatically want want to assimilate? assimilate? But we now recognize that employee don’t set aside their cultural values and life style   prefere preference nce when when they they come come to work. work. The challe challenge ngess for organi organizat zation ionss therefore, are to make themselves more accommodating to diverse groups of people by addressing their different life styles. Family needs to work  styles. The melting pot assumption is being replaced by one that recognizes and values differences. Work force diversity has important implications for management practice. Managers work needs to shift their    philosoph philosophy y from treating treating everyone everyone alike to recognizin recognizing g differences differences and responding to those differences in ways that will ensure employee relation and greater productivity while, at the same time , not discriminating. This shift includes, for instance for providing diversity training and revamping  benefits programmes to make them more friendly.” Diversity, if positively managed, can increase creativity and innovation in organizations as well as improve decision making by providing different prospective on problems. When When divers diversity ity is is not manage managed d proper properly ly there there is is potent potential ial for for highe higher  r  turnover, more different communication, and more interpersonal conflicts.

3. IMPROVIN IMPROVING G QUALITY QUALITY AND PRODUC PRODUCTIVI TIVITY:TY:Many managers are confronting the challenges that to increase productivity and improve quality of the products and services they offer. offer. Toward Toward the goal goal of improv improving ing qualit quality y and produc productiv tivity ity,, they they are imp impleme lemen nting ting prog rogramm rammes es such uch as tota totall qual qualiity man manage agement ment and and reengineeri reengineering-pr ng-programme ogrammess that require require extensive extensive employee employee involvemen involvement. t. Total quality quality managemen managementt is a philosophy philosophy of managemen managementt that is driven driven  by the constant attainment of customer satisfaction through the continuous

improvement improvement of all organizational organizational processes processes TQM has implicatio implications ns for OB   because it requires employees to think what they do and become more involved in work place decision. In terms of rapid and dramatic change quality and productivity from the prospective of “How would we do things around here, if we were starting over from scratch. That, in essence, is the approach approach of re-engineerin re-engineering. g. It asks the manager manager to reconsider reconsider how how work  would be done and their organization structured if they were starting over. Contemporary managers understand that, for any effort to improve quality and productivity to succeed. It must include their  employees. These employees will not only be a major force in carrying out change changess but increa increasin singly gly will will partic participa ipate te active actively ly in planni planning ng them. them. OB offers important insights into helping managers work these change.

4. IMPROV IMPROVING ING PEOPLE PEOPLE SKILLS SKILLS::OB will help you to explain and predict the behavior of   people  people at work. In addition, addition, you’ll also gain gain in sights into specific specific people skills that you can use on the job. For instance you’ll learn a variety of ways to motivate people, how two be a better communicator, and how to create more effective teams.

5. EMPOW EMPOWERI ERING NG PEOP PEOPLE: LE:-Now-a-days there is always occurring of reshaping of the relationship between manager and those they’re supposedly responsible for  managing. You will find managers being called coaches, advisers, sponsors on facilitators. It may organizations organizations employee’s employee’s are now called associates. associates. And there is a blurring between roles of manager and workers. Decisions making is being pushed down to operational level, where workers are being given the freedom to make choice about schedules and procedures and to solve work related problems In the 1980’s managers were encouraged to get there employees to participate in work-related decisions. Now, managers are going considerably further by allowing employees full control of their work. An increasing number of organizations are using self-managed teams, where worker workerss operated operated largely largely without without bosses bosses.. Manage Managers rs are empowe empowerin ring g employees. They are putting employees in change of what they do. And in so doing, doing, managers managers are having having to learn how to give up control control and

employees employees are having having to learn how to take responsibi responsibility lity for their work  and make appropriate decisions. In the past, managing could be characterized by long periods of stability, interrupted occasionally by short periods of change. Managing today would be more accurately described as long periods of an going change, interrupted occasionally by short periods of stability! The world that most managers and employees face today is one of permanent temporariness. The actual jobs that workers perform are in a permanent state of flux, so workers need to continually update their knowledge and skills to  perform new job requirement. In the past, employees were assigned to specific work  group group and that assignm assignment ent that was relativ relatively ely perman permanent ent.. There There was a considerable amount of security in working with the same people day in and day out. That predictability has been replaced by temporary work groups, teams that include members from different department and whose members change all time and the increased use of employee relation to fill constantly changing work assignments. Finally, organizations themselves are in state of  flux. They continu continually ally re-organi re-organize ze their various various division divisions, s, sell-off sell-off poor   performing business, downsize operations, sub contact non critical services and operation to other organizations and replace permanent employees with temporaries. Today’s managers and employees must learn to cope with temporariness. They have learned to cope with temporariness. They have to learn to live with flexibility, flexibility, spontaneity unpredictability. The study of of OB can provide important insights into helping you better understand a work  world of continual change, how to overcome resistance to change and how  best to create an organizational culture that thrives on change.

6. STIMULAT STIMULATING ING INNOVAT INNOVATION ION AND CHANG CHANGE:E:Today’s successful organization must faster innovation and master the art of change on they’ll become candidates for extinction. Victory will go to those organizations that maintain their flexibility, continually improve their quality, and beat their competition to makes place with a constant stream str eam of innovative products and services. An organization employee can be impetus for innovation and change on they can be a major  stumbl stumbling ing block. block. The challe challenge nge for manage managers rs is to stimul stimulate ate employ employee ee

creativity and tolerance for change. The field of OB provides a wealth of  ideas and techniques to aid in realization of these goals.

7. IMPROVIN IMPROVING G ETHICAL ETHICAL BEHAVIOUR BEHAVIOUR::Members of organization s are increasingly finding themselves facing ethical dilemmas, situation and in which they are required to define write and wrong conduct. Managers and their organizations are responding to this this prob proble lem m from from a numb number er of dist distin inct ctio ions ns.. They They are writ writin ing g and and distributing codes of ethics to guide employees through ethical dilemmas. They are offering seminars, workshops and similar training programs to try to improve ethical behavior. They are providing in-house advisers who can  be contacted in many cases anonymously, for assistance in dealing with ethical issues. And they’re creating protection mechanisms for employees who reveal internal unethical practices. Today’s Today’s manager manager needs to create an ethically ethically healthy healthy climate for his her employees. Where they can do their work productively and confront a minimal degree of ambiguity regarding what constitutes right.