Management Research Project Introduction The study of organizational behavior is gaining more and more importance as time goes by because organizations are getting bigger and more complex in nature. This is compounded by increasing globalization. This trend has resulted in a situation where people now have to work with others belonging to a different culture or race. Organizational behavior can be defined as “the study of the performance of individuals and groups in different structures and cultures within the workplace.” (Glossary: Organizational Behavior. 1995-2004). This paper is a study of a few important topics of organizational behavior. It will apply those topics to see how it can help a working manager to improve his managerial abilities. The international courier and goods transportation company, DHL Global Forwarding will be used as an example in this study. Background of Organizational Behavior: The definition given in the previous section shows that human behavior is influenced by the nature of the structure or organization he works in as well as the cultural diversity that may occur there. Organized working has been in existence for a
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Management Research Project
Introduction
The study of organizational behavior is gaining more and more importance as time goes by
because organizations are getting bigger and more complex in nature. This is compounded by
increasing globalization. This trend has resulted in a situation where people now have to work
with others belonging to a different culture or race. Organizational behavior can be defined as
“the study of the performance of individuals and groups in different structures and cultures
within the workplace.” (Glossary: Organizational Behavior. 1995-2004). This paper is a study
of a few important topics of organizational behavior. It will apply those topics to see how it can
help a working manager to improve his managerial abilities. The international courier and
goods transportation company, DHL Global Forwarding will be used as an example in this
study.
Background of Organizational Behavior:
The definition given in the previous section shows that human behavior is influenced by the
nature of the structure or organization he works in as well as the cultural diversity that may
occur there. Organized working has been in existence for a very long time even though no
formal studies have been known to be conducted with regard to human behavior within such
organization. An example of ancient and large organized working could be the building of the
great pyramids of Egypt. Formal studies of human behavior in an organization originated only
during the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. One of the pioneers of this science was Frederick
Taylor who pioneered the principles of scientific management. But Taylor only focused on
improving performance in the workplace and not on the social and emotional needs of workers.
He focused on breaking down of a task into smaller observable units so that speed and
productivity could be increased. It was to his credit that he took into account better payment,
fatigue, shorter working hours etc. in his efforts to increase productivity
Management Research Project
But in all other respects he equated workers to machines which brought about deep frustration
within the working class. “Nevertheless, the industrial engineer with his stop watch and clip-
board, standing over you measuring each little part of the job and one's movements became a
hated figure and lead to much sabotage and group resistance.” (Wertheim). More humanistic
thinkers bought the human element into the picture and more importance was given to
organizational behavior. It was the Western Electric Study more popularly known as the
Hawthorne Experiments that bought about an awareness of group behavior. The study which
was originally about work performance and working environment also revealed the
sociological and psychological factors that exist in a group as well as the individuals in the
group. Another theory by Douglas McGregor called Theory X and Theory Y pointed out the
assumptions of managers about worker perceptions and the perceptions of the workers
themselves. The former was called Theory X and the latter was called Theory Y and it was
pointed out by McGregor that both the theories were contradictory to each other. Manger
perceptions of workers include inherent distaste of employees towards work, lack of ambition
and creativity, lack of problem solving ability and the need for close supervision. But the most
inaccurate assumption was that workers were motivated only by physiological factors and
security. Theory Y on the other hand contends that in the right environment, people enjoy
work, self-control is more effective than close supervision and that employees are creative. It
also says that they are motivated due to affiliation, self-esteem and self-actualization. The
development of the systems theories during the 1970’s and the contingency theories in the
1980’s paved the way for further studies into organizational behavior.
Management Research Project
Organizational Behavior:
Organizational behavior is not a subject by itself, but is in fact a combination of four other
social sciences namely psychology, sociology, social psychology and anthropology with
economics being used for to understand the economic impact of organizational behavior.
“Organizational Behavior is a unique combination of different disciplines. The predominate
areas are psychology, sociology, social psychology, anthropology, political science, and
economics.” (Chapter-1, Understanding Organizational Behavior: Origins of Organizational
Behavior).
Organizational behavior is affected by three levels namely the individual, the group and the
organization itself.
Individual level:
a. Ability – Ability of the individual is an important fact in determining organizational
behavior. A person of high ability is bound to have a high level of job satisfaction
provided the work is related to his ability. Job satisfaction will positively affect
organizational behavior of the individual.
b. Values and attitudes: Like ability values and attitudes also play a important part in
shaping organizational behavior. High values and a positive attitude will result in
favorable behavior within the organization also.
c. Personality and emotions: This again will vary from individual. An outgoing
personality and emotions will reflect positively on his behavior within an organization.
d. Perception: This refers to how a person views the external environment and people
whom he is associated with. For example, perception that work is worship will result in
a positive behavior.
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e. Motivation: There has been lot of research and studies on this topic, both at individual
and group level. A highly motivated person with regard to his work will exhibit positive
behavior in an organization also.
f. Learning: The learning level of a person and also his ability and willingness to learn
will also have an effect on organizational behavior.
g. Other factors like age, gender, race, culture, nationality etc will also affect
organizational behavior. For example, Japan has a high level of work culture and hence
employees are more sincere to the company when compared to most other countries.
Group level:
a. Group structure: There will be formal and informal groups in any organization. The
form of the group, level of leadership in the group, its size and composition etc are
decisive factors in organizational behavior. For example, an informal group may be
formed on the basis of race and all members of the same race will tend to belong to that
group.
b. Leadership and trust: Groups will have leaders and its behavior will depend on the
ability and perception of the leader. Group behavior will in turn affect organizational
behavior.
c. Communication: The level of communication within the group will be important in
spreading the views of the group and its leaders. A high level of communication will
result in all or most members being aware of group decisions and actions.
d. Group decision making: This again depends on the cohesiveness of the group. A highly
cohesive group will have common views and decisions and can exert a stronger
influence on organizational behavior.
Management Research Project
e. Power and politics: Every group will have varying levels of power and existence of
internal politics. This in turn will affect the organizational behavior of the group and its
members.
f. Conflicts: Conflicts can exist within a group, with other groups or with the organization
itself. A high level of conflicts in any of these areas can result in poor organizational
behavior.
Organizational level:
a. Policies, practices and systems: All organizations will have their own private agenda
that should ideally work in cooperation with the agenda of its employees. A set of
policies, practices and systems would have been developed and put in place. These are
not static, but dynamic and will change as and when the need arises. These factors play
a crucial role in defining organizational behavior.
b. Organizational structure and design: Each organization will follow commonly accepted
structures. Some will be top heavy while others will be more decentralized. Whatever
the form of the structure and design, it will influence organizational behavior in
different ways.
c. Job design and technology: Job design will play an integral part in affecting job
satisfaction. The level of technology available is also a factor here. Both these will have
its impact on the organizational behavior in an organization.
d. Organizational cultures: This will play an important part in organizational behavior. A
strong culture or work ethics and well-being of its employees will have a positive effect
on organizational behavior. The reverse will also be true.
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These are the broad topics that form part of organizational behavior in any organization. The
selected topics will be discussed in relation to DHL Global Forwarding. Also how a manager
can make use of these factors for the betterment of his abilities will also be discussed.
DHL Global Forwarding:
DHL is considered to be one of the leading transportation and logistics companies in the world
with delivery destinations in more than 220 countries. DHL was formed in 1969 as an
innovative concept in shuttling goods between San Francisco and Honolulu. The company was
founded by Adrian Dalsey, Larry Hillblom and Robert Lynn and the name DHL was taken by
taking the first letters from Dalsey, Hillblom and Lynn. There were no express delivery
services like the one DHL offered and the company grew rapidly to its present top position of
businesses in its class. The Company with more than 30,000 employees and 4000 offices
worldwide is now a part of the Deutsche Post Group. The company has four main divisions
namely DHL Express, Supply Chain – Corporate Information Solutions, Mail and Global
Forwarding.
DHL Express: DHL Express is a global air and rail based courier and express delivery
company. It offers its services to both organizations and private individuals. The company
markets its services under three names namely Same Day, Time Definite and Day Definite.
Services are offered in more than 220 countries and territories.
Supply Chain – Corporate Information Solutions: As the name indicates, this division is
concerned with providing logistics and corporate information solutions to corporate clients and
not to individuals. Solutions to customers are tailor made to their specifications and include
such services as warehousing, transportation and value added services that cover the entire
supply chain of its clients.
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Its clients include companies from diverse areas such as automobile, fast moving consumer
goods, life sciences, retail, fashion and technology based industries. Services include
digitizing, printing, storing, managing addresses, dispatching, and archiving of documents of
its clients.
Mail: The Company offers mail services to individual and corporate clients in more than 200
countries around the world. It also offers integrated mailing solutions to its corporate clients.
Global Forwarding: This paper will focus on this particular division in applying three topics of
organizational behavior. This division was formed mainly for air and sea transportation of
goods and also includes overland services in its European markets. Goods can be transported at
an agreed price and delivered to its destination at an agreed price and date. Services under this
division also include logistics services and customs assistance in various ports. “This business
unit stands for flexible, individualized solutions: national and international full-container-load
and less-than-container-load services - via road, rail or inter-modal transportation. In addition,
The manager in the DHL division would do well to be aware of these theories and put them
into practice. What he should do is to take the relevant ideas from each theory and formulate
practices of his own. People are also motivated by other factors which should also be
incorporated.
They include motivational quotes and stories, ice-breaking games, appreciation, empathy,
workshops, physical activity (in an office environment) etc.
The manager in the DHL Global Forwarding Division can also benefit from what is given
about the three topics on organizational behavior. He should incorporate them and develop a
style of his own that is best suited for the current environment that he is faced with.
Management Research Project
Bibliography
Stephen P.R & Timothy A.J, 2008.Essentials of Organizational Behavior, Pearson International
edition: Prentice hall
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