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NSO1505 Assignment Semester 1 2024
chain of command and line authority - organization - a systematic arrangement of people brought together to accomplish some specific purpose (goals, people, structure) non managerial employees - people who work directly on a job or task and have no responsibility for overseeing the work of others managers - individuals in an organization who direct the activities of others top managers - individuals who are responsible for making decisions about the direction of the organization and establishing policies that affect all organizational members middle managers - individuals who are typically responsible for translating goals set by top managers into specific details that lower-level managers will see get done first-line managers - supervisors responsible for directing the day-to-day activities of non managerial employees management - the process of getting things done, effectively and efficiently, through and with other people efficiency - doing things right, or getting the most output from the least amount of inputs effectiveness - doing the right things, or completing activities so that organizational goals are attained planning - defining goals, establishing strategy, developing plans to coordinate activities (part of achieving the organization's stated purpose) organizing - determining what needs to be done, how it will be done, and who is to do it (part of achieving the organization's stated purpose) leading - directing and coordinating the work activities of an organization's people (part of achieving the organization's stated purpose) controlling - monitoring activities to ensure that they are accomplished as planned (part of achieving the organization's stated purpose) external environment - factors, forces, situations, and events outside the organization that affect its performance components of the external environment - political/legal, demographics, economic, sociocultural, technological, global
sharing economy - an economic environment in which asset owners share with other individuals through a peer-to-peer service, for a set fee, their underutilized physical assets or their knowledge, expertise, skills or time; collaborative consumption omnipotent view of management - the view that managers are directly responsible for an organization's success or failure symbolic view of management - the view that much of an organization's success of failure is due to external forces outside managers' control demographics - the characteristics of a population used for purposes of social studies; the size and characteristics of a country's population can have a significant effect on what it's able to achieve; age is important technology - any equipment, tools, or operating methods that are designed to make work more efficient 3 ways the external environment constrains and challenges managers - 1. through its impact on jobs and employment 2. through the environmental uncertainty that is present 3. through the various stakeholder relationships that exist between an organization and its external constituencies environmental uncertainty - the degree of change and complexity in an organization's environment environmental complexity - the number of components in an organization's environment and the extent of the knowledge that the organization has about those components stakeholders - any constituencies in an organization's environment that are affected by that organization's decisions and actions organizational stakeholders - internal & external organizational culture - the shared values, principles, traditions, and ways of doing things that influence the way organizational members act culture is... - perceived, descriptive & shared dimensions of organizational culture - an organization's culture may be shaped by one particular cultural dimension more than the others where does culture come from? - 1. reflects the vision or mission 2. what the organization should be & what its values are 3. founders "impose" their vision on employees because of new organization's small size 4. members create a shared history that binds them into a community how do employees learn the culture? - 1. organizational stories: narrative tales of significant events or people 2. corporate rituals: repetitive sequences of activities 3.
bounded rationality - making decisions that are rational within the limits of a manager's ability to process information satisfice - accepting solutions that are "good enough" managerial decisions can be influenced by - 1. the organization's culture 2. internal politics 3. power considerations 4. escalation of commitment escalation of commitment - an increased commitment to a previous decision despite evidence that it may have been wrong intuitive decision making - making decisions on the basis of experience, feelings & accumulated judgement; unconscious reasoning intuition - experience-based decisions, affect-initiated decisions, cognitive-based decisions, subconscious mental processing, values or ethics-based decisions structured problem - a straightforward, familiar, and easily defined problem; use procedures, rules & policies unstructured problem - a problem that is new or unusual for which information is ambiguous or incomplete programmed decision - a repetitive decision that can be handled using a routine approach procedure - a series of interrelated, sequential steps used to respond to a structured problem rule - an explicit statement that tells employees what can or cannot be done policy - a guideline for making decisions; establishes parameters; ethical standards nonprogrammed decision - a unique and nonrecurring decision that requires a custom-made solution; ex: creation a new organizational strategy at the top level, most problems that managers face are ____ - nonprogrammed certainty - a situation in which a decision maker can make accurate decisions because all outcomes are known risk - a situation in which a decision maker is able to estimate the likelihood of certain outcomes uncertainty - a situation in which a decision maker has neither certainty nor reasonable probability estimates available managers spend a significant portion of their time ________ - in meetings
advantages and disadvantages of group decision making - a: more complete info, diversity, more alternatives, increased acceptance of a solution, increased legitimacy d: time-consuming, minority domination, ambiguous responsibility, pressures to conform groupthink - when a group exerts extensive pressure on an individual to withhold his or her different views in order to appear to be in agreement groupthink - minimize: cohesiveness, open discussion, impartial leader groups most effective - creativity, degree of acceptance, better decisions effectiveness of group decision making - influenced by the size of the group (5-7 is the best) make groupthink more creative - brainstorming, nominal group technique, electronic meetings brainstorming - an idea-generating process that encourages alternatives while withholding criticism nominal group technique - decision-making technique in which group members are physically present but operate independently electronic meeting - a type of nominal group technique in which participants are linked by computer - anonymity, honesty, & speed; more effective & increase efficiency decision-making issues - national culture, creativity & design thinking, big data decision-making practices differ from country to country - degree of risk is different; managers who accommodate the diversity in decision-making philosophies and practices can expect a high payoff if they capture the perspectives and strengths that a diverse workforce offers ringisei - Japanese consensus-forming group decisions creativity - the ability to produce novel and useful ideas; seeing problems others can't see; identify all viable alternatives individual creativity requires - expertise, creative-thinking skills & intrinsic task motivation impede creativity - expected evaluation, surveillance, external motivators, competition, constrained choices design thinking - approaching management problems as designers approach design problems; opening up perspectives & gaining insight by using observation & inquiry skills, not relying simply on rational analysis
authority - the rights inherent in a managerial position to give orders and expect the orders to be obeyed; one element of power responsibility - an obligation to perform assigned duties line authority - authority that entitles a manager to direct the work of an employee sometimes the term line is used to differentiate line managers from ____ - staff managers staff authority - positions with some authority that have been created to support, assist, and advise those holding line authority unity of command - structure in which each employee reports to only one manager line versus staff authority - strict adherence to unity of command creates a degree of inflexibility that hinders an organization's performance you do not need to be a manager to have power & power is not perfectly correlated with one's level in the _____ - organization power - an individual's capacity to influence decisions authority versus power - power includes centrality (3d), as well as functional & hierarchical dimensions; one's distance from the organization's core authority is 2d the higher one moves in an organization (increase in authority) - the closer one moves to the power core one can move horizontally inward toward the core without moving up (ex: assistants) types of power - coercive, reward, legitimate, expert, referent span of control - the number of employees a manager can efficiently and effectively supervise; favor small span; increases in some organizations; determined by contingency variables effective and efficient span depends on - experience & training (larger span), similarity of tasks (larger span), complexity of tasks (smaller span), etc centralization - the degree to which decision making takes place at upper levels of organization decentralization - the degree to which lower-level managers provide input or actually make decisions the trend over the decades - movement toward more decentralization formalization - how standardized an organization's jobs are and the extent to which employee behavior is guided by rules and procedures
mechanistic organization organic organization - m: bureaucratic; a structure that's high in specialization, formulation & centralization o: a structure that's low in specialization, formalization, and centralization the "if": 4 contingency variables - > structure - strategy: goals are important, structure should facilitate goal achievement; simple strategy - > simple structure (passionate pursuit of innovation - > organic) (passionate pursuit of cost control - > mechanistic) size: size affects structure (magic number - > 2,000 employees); large >2, (mechanistic) <- size is less influential technology: concert inputs into outputs environment: constraint on managerial discretion; stable - > mechanistic, dynamic/uncertain - > organic many organizations rely less on strict rules & standardization to guide & regulate employee behavior - some formalization is necessary for consistency & control unit production - the production of items in units or small batches; least complex mass production - large-batch manufacturing process production - continuous flow or process production; most complex more routine technology - mechanistic structure woodward's findings on technology and structure - traditional organizational designs - more mechanistic in nature simple structure - an organizational design with low departmentalization, wide spans of control, authority centralized in a single person, and little formalization; smaller businesses; fast, flexible and inexpensive to maintain functional structure - an organizational design that groups similar or related occupational specialities together; functional departmentalization applied to the entire organization (finance, HR, operations, product R&D) divisional structure - an organizational structure made up of separate business units or divisions organizations need to be more organic - lean, flexible & innovative team structures - a structure in which the entire organization is made up of work teams; no line of managerial authority from top to bottom matrix structure - a structure in which specialists from different functional departments are assigned to work on projects led by a project manager; dual chain of command
human resource management - having the right number of the right people in the right place at the right time staffing & HRM decisions and actions are critical... - to ensuring that the organization hires & keeps the right people human resource management - the management function concerned with getting, training, motivating, and keeping competent employees 8 important HRM activities - safety & health, strategic human resource planning, recruitment & downsizing, selection, orientation, training & development, performance management, compensation & benefits most critical role for HRM & increased importance of HR managers - hiring talented people first 3 activities in HRM process (employment planning) - 1. addition of staff through recruitment 2. reduction in staff through downsizing 3. selection - > identification & selection next 2 activities (4 &5) in HRM process - 4. orientation 5. training last 2 (6 & 7) in HRM process - 6 & 7. identify performance goals, correct performance problems if necessary, & help employees sustain a high level of performance (performance appraisal, compensation & benefits) the entire HRM process is influenced by... - the external environment HRM practices are governed by... & they are not the same globally - law work councils - groups of nominated or elected employees who must be consulted when management makes decisions involving personnel board representatives - employees who sit on a company's board of directors and represent the interests of the firm's employees supply & demand - challenge & important for companies employment planning - the process by which managers ensure they have the right numbers and kinds of people in the right places at the right time - > translates the organization's missions and goals into an HR plan 1. assessing current human resources & future human resource needs 2. developing a plan to meet those needs human resource inventory - a report listing important information about employees such as name, education, training, skills, languages spoken, and so forth job analysis - an assessment that defines jobs and the behaviors necessary to perform them; used to develop or revise job description & specifications
job description - a written statement that describes a job (content, environment, conditions of employment) job specification - a written statement of the minimum qualifications that a person must possess to perform a given job successfully future human resource needs are determined by... - the organization's strategic goals and direction recruitment (or downsize) - locating, identifying, and attracting capable applicants the source to recruit should reflect the... - local labor market, the type or level of position, and the size of the organization recruiting sources - employee referrals generally produce the best applicants a relevant strategy for meeting the demands of a dynamic environment - downsizing downsizing options - firing, layoffs, attrition (not filing openings), transfer, reduced workweeks, early retirements, job sharing selection process - screening job applicants to ensure that the most appropriate candidates are hired selection decision outcomes - the major intent of any selection activity is to reduce the probability of making reject errors or accept errors while increasing the probability of making correct decisions reliability - the degree to which a selection device measures the same thing consistently validity - the proven relationship between a selection device and some relevant criterion (application forms, tests, interviews, physical exams) selection devices - written tests (internet based), performance-simulation tests, interview, behavioral/situation interview performance-simulation tests - selection devices based on actual job behaviors; job analysis data; work sampling (mini replica of the job) & assessment centers (simulating real problems); better predictor of short-term job performance to be effective predictors, interviews need to be... - structured, well organized, relevant questions inflated information - mismatched applicants withdraw, unrealistic expectations - > dissatisfaction & resignation, disillusionment & less commitment, mislead during hiring process - > problem employees
traditional manager-employee performance evaluation systems may be outdated due to... - downsizing & involvement when employee's performance is not up to par - job mismatch, inadequate training, lack of desire to do job (discipline problem) discipline - actions taken by a manager to enforce an organization's standards and regulations employee counseling - a process designed to help employees overcome performance-related problems compensation - pay for doing a job; reflect the changing nature of work and the workplace different jobs require - different kinds and levels of knowledge, skills & abilities (KSAs) that have varying value to the organization the higher the KSAs and the greater the authority and responsibility - the higher the pay skilled-based pay systems - reward employees for job skills & competencies they have; job titles doesn't define pay, skills do; more successful in manufacturing organizations variable pay systems - individual's compensation is contingent on performance primary determinant of pay - the kind of job an employee performs what determines pay and benefits - non-cash compensation from employers - employee benefits - important & varied non financial rewards designed to enrich employee's lives; social security, unemployment compensation, paid time off from work, life insurance, etc. HRM issues - managers - downsizing, workforce diversity, sexual harassment & HR costs downsizing - planned elimination of jobs in an organization (improving profits) many organizations help layoff victims by... - offering job-help services layoff-survivor sickness - a set of attitudes, perceptions & behaviors of employees who survive involuntary staff reductions symptoms: job insecurity, perceptions of unfairness, guilt, stress, etc. tips for managing downsizing - improving workforce diversity requires managers to... - widen their recruiting net - nontraditional recruitment sources
orientation is difficult for... - women & minorities sexual harassment - single largest financial risk facing companies today; can result in decreases in a company's stock price sexual harassment - any unwanted action or activity of a sexual nature that explicitly or implicitly affects an individual's employment, performance or work environment; makes a fellow employee uncomfortable what can a company do to protect itself? - 1. did the organization know about, or should it have known about, the alleged behavior? 2. what did managers do to stop it? HR costs are high - organizations must try to control them - especially associated with employee health care & pensions smokers & obese employees are of concern how are organizations controlling their health-care costs? - providing opportunities for employees to lead healthy lifestyles (financial incentives, health & wellness programs) corporate pension... - fundamentally broken; eliminated from many companies; hard to afford
