Organizational Behavior and Management Roles

Organization Behavior

• A manager achieves goals through the efforts of others, crucial in organizational success.
• An organization is a consciously coordinated social unit working continuously towards specific goals.

Managerial Objectives

• Planning: Involves defining goals, making strategies, and developing actionable plans.
• Organizing: Involves decisions about task allocation, roles, reporting structures, and job assignments.
• Leading: Focuses on employee motivation, directing team activities, effective communication, and conflict resolution.
• Controlling: Involves monitoring activities to ensure alignment with goals and correcting deviations as needed.

Mintzberg's Managerial Roles

• Interpersonal Roles:

  • Figurehead: Symbolic leader performing legal and social duties.
  • Leader: Focuses on motivating and guiding employees.
  • Liaison: Builds networks to gather external information and support.

• Informational Roles:

  • Monitor: Central information source, tracking both internal and external developments.
  • Disseminator: Shares received information with organization members.
  • Spokesperson: Communicates organizational plans and results to outside parties, serving as an expert representative.

• Decisional Roles:

  • Entrepreneur: Identifies opportunities and initiates change projects within the organization.
  • Disturbance Handler: Takes corrective action in response to organizational disruptions.
  • Resource Allocator: Makes or endorses significant organizational decisions regarding resource distribution.
  • Negotiator: Represents the organization in important negotiations.

Management Skills

• Technical Skills: The ability to apply specialized knowledge and expertise in a specific area.
• Conceptual Skills: The mental capacity to analyze and understand complex situations and systemic interactions.
• Human Skills: The ability to work effectively with, understand, and motivate people.

Effective vs. Successful Management (Fred Luthans)

• Traditional Management: Engages primarily in decision making, planning, and controlling activities.
• Communication: Involves the exchange of routine information and paperwork processing.
• Human Resources: Encompasses motivation, conflict management, staffing, and training functions.
• Networking: Involves socializing, politicking, and interacting with external stakeholders.

Average Manager's Time Allocation

• Traditional management represents 32% of an average manager's responsibilities.

Spatial Visualization

• Ability to mentally manipulate and visualize changes in an object's position in space.

Memory

• Capacity to retain and recall past experiences.

Physical Ability

• Encompasses tasks requiring stamina, dexterity, strength, and related characteristics.
• Nine fundamental physical abilities related to strength and flexibility:
  • Dynamic Strength: Prolonged exertion of muscular force.
  • Trunk Strength: Strength exerted through trunk muscles.
  • Static Strength: Force exerted against stationary objects.
  • Explosive Strength: Maximum energy in short, explosive actions.
  • Extent Flexibility: Maximum trunk and back muscle movement.
  • Dynamic Flexibility: Rapid, agile flexing movements.
  • Body Coordination: Simultaneous actions across different body parts.
  • Balance: Maintaining equilibrium against disruptive forces.
  • Stamina: Capability to sustain maximum effort over a prolonged duration.

Diversity Management

• Programs aimed at increasing awareness and sensitivity to employee needs and differences.
• Employees may favor colleagues of their own race in evaluations, promotions, and pay.
• African Americans generally have poorer outcomes in employment decisions.

Tenure

• Tenure serves as a predictor of employee productivity.
• There is a positive correlation between tenure and job performance.

Religion

• U.S. law prohibits religious discrimination, yet issues persist, notably impacting Muslims.

Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity

• Federal law lacks protection against sexual orientation discrimination, though many states provide coverage.
• About 50% of Fortune 500 companies have policies on gender identity.

Cultural Identity

• Importance of accommodating and respecting individual cultural identities in the workplace.

Disabilities

• The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission classifies disabilities as significant physical or mental impairments that limit major activities.
• Workers with disabilities may receive favorable performance evaluations despite lower expectations.

Hidden Disabilities

• Include sensory disabilities, chronic illness, cognitive impairment, sleep disorders, and psychological challenges.
• U.S. organizations must accommodate a variety of disabilities.

Positive Diversity Climate

• An organizational environment characterized by inclusiveness and acceptance of diversity.

Intellectual Ability

• Refers to capacities necessary for performing mental tasks like thinking and reasoning.
• General mental ability represents a collective measure of intelligence.

Dimensions of Intellectual Ability

• Number Aptitude: Speed and accuracy in arithmetic.
• Verbal Comprehension: Understanding of spoken and written communication.
• Perceptual Speed: Quick identification of visual similarities and differences.
• Inductive Reasoning: Logical sequence identification to solve problems.
• Deductive Reasoning: Logic utilization to assess arguments.

Diversity in Organizations

• Surface-Level Diversity: Observable characteristics such as gender, race, and age that may activate stereotypes.
• Deep-Level Diversity: Differences in personality, values, and work preferences that grow in importance over time.
• Connection exists between surface and deep-level diversity in shaping perceptions.

Stereotyping and Discrimination

• Stereotyping involves judging individuals based on group perceptions.
• Discrimination refers to unfair judgments about individuals stemming from stereotypes.
• Stereotypical Threat: Concern over negative treatment stemming from stereotypes.

Types of Discrimination

• Discriminatory Policies: Actions denying equal opportunities for performance or rewards.
• Sexual Harassment: Unwanted sexual advances creating an offensive work environment.
• Intimidation: Threats or bullying towards specific employee groups.
• Mockery and Insults: Negative stereotypes perpetuated through jokes leading to offense.
• Exclusion: Limiting individuals’ access to job opportunities or social events.
• Incivility: Aggressive, disrespectful behavior towards others.

Biographical Characteristics

• Characteristics such as age, sex, race, and tenure that are easily obtained and represent surface-level diversity.
• Age: Older workers experience lower turnover and absenteeism, with age not correlating to decreased productivity.
• Sex: No consistent differences in problem-solving or other abilities between sexes; women earn less and face fewer opportunities.
• Race and Ethnicity: Anti-discrimination laws exist widely, but biases persist in many jurisdictions.

Diversity in Organizations

• Surface Level Diversity: Involves easily perceived characteristics like gender, race, ethnicity, age, and disability; does not necessarily reflect deeper attributes, but can trigger stereotypes.

• Deep Level Diversity: Comprises personality traits, values, and work preferences; these become more significant in determining similarity as interpersonal relationships develop.

• Connection Between Levels: Surface-level bias often leads to deep-level misunderstandings; lack of knowledge breeds hostility.

• Stereotyping: Making judgments about individuals based on perceived group characteristics; often a negative influence on interpersonal relations.

• Discrimination: Refers to unfair treatment stemming from stereotypes; includes discriminatory practices that impact equal opportunity.

Types of Discrimination

• Discriminatory Policies: Actions that deny equal opportunity or unequal rewards within organizations.

• Sexual Harassment: Involves unwelcome sexual advances or conduct that creates a hostile work environment.

• Intimidation: Includes overt threats or bullying targeted at specific employee groups.

• Mockery and Insults: Negative stereotypes or jokes that can escalate into harmful behaviors.

• Exclusion: Denying individuals opportunities for jobs, social events, or discussions.

• Incivility: Disrespectful treatment that may include aggressive behavior or interruptions.

Biographical Characteristics

• Age: Older workers often have lower turnover and absenteeism rates; age is unrelated to productivity levels.

• Sex: No significant differences between male and female problem-solving or analytical abilities, though women generally earn less and face fewer professional opportunities.

• Race and Ethnicity: Discrimination laws exist, but biases persist in evaluations, promotions, and pay for employees of different racial backgrounds.

• Tenure: Correlates positively with productivity; longer tenure typically signals better job performance.

• Religion: Discrimination based on religion is legally prohibited, yet issues remain, particularly for Muslims.

• Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity: While federal protections are limited, many states offer protections, and many companies maintain policies addressing these issues.

Disability Considerations

• Definition of Disability: Classified by the EEOC as any impairment that substantially limits major life activities.

• Employee Accommodations: Organizations must adjust for various disabilities, including sensory and cognitive challenges.

• Positive Diversity Climate: An environment characterized by inclusiveness and acceptance of diversity within the workplace.

Abilities in the Workplace

• Types of Abilities:
  • Intellectual Ability: Necessary for mental tasks including reasoning and problem-solving; encompasses general mental ability.
  • Physical Ability: Refer to the physical capacity needed for tasks requiring stamina and strength.

Intellectual Ability Dimensions

• Number Aptitude: Speed and accuracy in arithmetic.
• Verbal Comprehension: Understanding spoken and written information.
• Perceptual Speed: Quick identification of visual similarities.
• Inductive Reasoning: Identifying logical sequences to solve problems.
• Deductive Reasoning: Using logic to evaluate arguments.
• Spatial Visualization: Imagining spatial changes in objects.
• Memory: Retaining and recalling past experiences.

Physical Abilities

• Dynamic Strength: Exerting muscular force over time.
• Trunk Strength: Muscular strength using trunk muscles.
• Static Strength: Force exerted against objects.
• Explosive Strength: Maximal energy expended in explosive movements.
• Flexibility: Range of motion ability in trunk and limbs.
• Coordination: Simultaneous actions of the body parts.
• Balance: Maintaining equilibrium under disruptive forces.
• Stamina: Sustaining effort over prolonged periods.

Diversity Management

• Process and Programs: Aimed at increasing awareness and sensitivity to the needs and differences of others within the organization.

This quiz explores key concepts in organizational behavior, emphasizing the importance of managerial objectives such as planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. Additionally, it covers Mintzberg's managerial roles, distinguishing between interpersonal and informational responsibilities that managers must fulfill for successful organizational performance.