Organizational Behavior: Key Concepts

• Organizational Behavior (OB) involves studying and applying knowledge about human actions within organizations.
• An organization is a structured social system of individuals and groups working together to achieve objectives.

Levels of Study in OB

• Individual: Focuses on individual characteristics, motivation, and the impact of rewards/punishment on performance.
• Work Groups: Examines the dynamics and behaviors within formal groups created by management.
• Entire Organizations: Analyzes the structure, activities, and relationships that enable cohesive operation.

Key Functions in Organizations

• Leadership: Sets the company's direction and strategic path.
• Communication: Links the organization to its employees and external environment.

Disciplines Contributing to OB

• Psychology: Measures and explains human behavior.
• Sociology: Studies people and their interactions with others.
• Anthropology: Studies societies to understand human activities.
• Political Science: Studies the behavior of individuals and groups in a political context.
• Management: Focuses on designing and implementing administrative and organizational systems.
• Medicine: Applied science for treating diseases and enhancing individual health.

Key Concepts in Organizational Performance

• Effectiveness: Achieving the intended result or purpose.
• Efficiency: Maximizing output with minimal input, time, and effort.
• Quality: Meeting customer needs and expectations.
• Efficiency: The ratio of outputs to inputs.
• Satisfaction: Meeting the needs of employees.
• Organizational Development: Increasing organizational capacity to handle environmental demands.
• Adaptiveness: Responding to internal and external changes.

Organizational Statements

• Mission Statement: Defines the reasons for a company's existence.
• Vision Statement: Describes the company's aspirations or "dream."

External Factors Influencing Organizations

• Includes customers, legal constraints, and economic, social, and technological forces.
• Organizational culture is a pattern of basic assumptions developed while coping with challenges.
• Socialization is the process of integrating new employees into the organization.

Stages of Socialization

• Anticipatory Socialization: Activities undertaken before joining the organization.
• Accommodation: Adjusting to the job and organizational culture.
• Role Management: Balancing conflicts between work and home life.
• Crisis: A sudden setback that challenges the status quo, requiring intervention strategies for cultural change.

Organizational Values and Ethics

• Company Credo: Summarizes the organization's values, attitudes, practices, and ethics.
• Corporate Social Responsibility: Committing to long-term goals that benefit society, beyond just profits.
• Workplace Spirituality: Recognizing the importance of inner life and meaning for employees.
• Spiritual Organizations: Have a clear vision and mission revolving around a meaningful purpose.
• Spiritual Organizations: Promote honesty and openness.

Communication Process

• Communication: Transmission of information from sender to receiver.
• Communicator: The sender of the message.
• Encoding: Translating ideas into symbols for communication.
• Medium: The channel through which the message is conveyed.
• Decoding: The receiver's interpretation of the message.

Types of Communication Flow

• Downward: Flows from top management to lower levels.
• Upward: Flows from lower levels to top management.
• Horizontal: Flows between individuals at the same organizational level.
• Transactions: Exchanges of communication between people.

Eric Berne's Ego States

• Parent: Feelings, behaviors, and thoughts learned from parents.
• Adult: Direct responses to the present moment.
• Child: Feelings, behaviors, and thoughts from childhood.