Organizational behavior is an integral field of human resource management that encompasses many of its functions. Among the important aspects of organizational behavior are organizational power and politics and stress management. These aspects of organizational behavior are influenced by business and ethical considerations and the present trends in business. For the purpose of this paper, the perception of power and politics by two organizations will be compared and contrasted.
Then, strategies to deal with stress would be presented.This will be followed by an evaluation of discussion of business and ethical concerns in the global market. Lastly, the organizational trends that will greatly influence businesses in the coming decade would be assessed. Organizational Power and Politics Power and politics play a crucial role in an organization. This section will compare and contrast the perceived power and politics of the employees. The first organization is 84 Lumber, a building materials sales company, and the other one is Carlisle SynTec, a developer of roofs for commercial and industrial buildings.
It was discovered that in 84 Lumber, the commonly observed bases of power utilized by the leaders are legitimate, coercive, and reward powers. On the other hand, the leaders in Carlisle SynTec employ mostly expert and referent powers, as perceived by the employees. A detailed explanation behind this perception of employees is provided in the succeeding paragraphs of this section. Meanwhile, politics in both organizations also take place, which usually manifests in the form of ingratiation.According to the staff of 84 Lumber in Pennsylvania, the power to make decisions lies solely on the store managers.
The managers also have the authority to assign tasks to every staff. Nevertheless, they motivate their subordinates to achieve their task objectives and perform well by establishing standards, or sales quota. When the subordinates reach this quota, the company rewards them with a bonus. Performance that exceeds the standards would be awarded with a higher bonus.
Based on the statement of the employees of 84 Lumber, the managers are employing legitimate, coercive, and reward power.As the managers are given the sole authority to decide, they are exercising their legitimate power. This kind of power arises from the employee’s acknowledgement of their superior’s authority to make decisions because his or her position or status in the company allows him or her to do so (Bielous, 1995). On the other hand, when the managers delegate tasks to the staff, they are using coercive power. It pertains to the employees’ perception that their superior has the power to impose rules and implement policies which they should follow (Bielous, 1995).Lastly, the managers apply their reward power through the bonus system.
This power is based on the subordinates’ judgment that their superior is authorized to recompense hard work and results (Bielous, 1995). In Carlisle SynTec, there are managers who are respected by the subordinates because of their knowledge and experience. They also empower the employees by allowing them to make decisions and do their job using their own method. At times when the employees commit errors in performing their tasks, the managers tell the employees which skills or areas they have to work on.
Then, the managers provide the employees with pointers for their improvement. Because of this, many managers have a friendly relationship with their subordinates. As a result, they are able to encourage the employees to perform to the best of their abilities. With reference to the leadership style of managers in Carlisle SynTec described in the previous paragraph, the managers employ expert and referent powers. When the managers give advice to their subordinates, they are using expert power.
It is observed when employees acknowledge and respect their superiors who have an in-depth understanding and knowledge their field of responsibility (Bielous, 1995). On the other hand, the superiors display their referent power when they establish a positive relationship with their subordinates that motivates the latter to work hard. This base of power is apparent when the leader has pleasant personal qualities that induce the subordinates to increase their output and improve their efficiency (Bielous, 1995). The most apparent manifestation of politics in both organizations is ingratiation.Many subordinates practice this to please the managers in order to obtain a positive evaluation. Deluga (2003) describes four manners to ingratiate: “other enhancement, opinion conformity, favor doing, and self-presentation” (n.
p. ). Other enhancement involves paying the superior embellished compliments. Opinion conformity, on the other hand, is exhibited by a “yes man” employee who never fails to agree with everything his or her boss says. Favor doing occurs when the subordinate offers to help the manager with anything, whether work or non-work related.Finally, self presentation involves portraying an image that is deemed desirable for the manager (e.
g. , hardworking). The employees who do this, however, are not as effective as their image appears to be (Deluga, 2003). Strategies for Managing Stress Corville and Bernardi (1999) suggested several ways that managers can use to manage stress. First, they stated that the leaders should watch out for manifestations of impact of stress on the staff and employ a “proactive approach” in dealing with stress (Corville & Bernardi, 1999).
They can achieve this by coming up with ways on how to take out some of the factors that cause a job to be stressful. For instance, if the subordinates are feeling stressed over not having less control on their work, the managers can grant the subordinates more autonomy to empower them (Corville & Bernardi, 1999). Corville and Bernardi (1999) believe that a balanced life is highly essential for employees to become more effective. Thus, they recommended some strategies to balance personal life and work.These include: persuading the staff to their vacation leave; permitting them to take days off to give time for personal appointments; and encouraging them to choose other alternative schedules (if possible) (Corville & Bernardi, 1999). There are other strategies suggested by Corville and Bernardi (1999), such as “counseling and wellness programs,” training, enhanced office ambiance (e.
g. , putting appropriate lighting and decorating the office with plants), and promotion of a relaxed atmosphere at work. International Business and Ethical ConsiderationsAs various firms join the international market, various business and ethical issues need to be considered. According to (NFIB) (2005), it is highly important to consider the diversity of the global market, as each customer around the world has a different view on what is deemed as appropriate conduct in business. Some of this variation in perception stems from the differences in language, culture, and governing laws (NFIB, 2005).
To overcome the language barrier, the organizational leaders can choose to learn the language themselves, but the presence of translators can also ease the communication.Meanwhile, learning the culture of the area where the company plans to operate can aid in resolving cultural differences. Finally, it is crucial to respect the laws of the country where the firm intends to expand. NFIB (2005), however, suggested that the FCPA or “Foreign Corrupt Practices Act” must be observed. The Act prohibits anyone (individual or firm) to commit any form of bribery in order to acquire permit to do business or preserve the business (NFIB, 2005).Evolutionary Trends in Organizational Behavior In her article, Arabe (2003) enumerates a number of trends in organizational behavior which will surely have a significant impact on companies.
One of the most important changes that will be affecting businesses over the next decade is that they will keep the operations running every hour of every day. Thus, the work schedules of the employees should be arranged creatively, and night shift differentials must be offered as well (Arabe, 2003). Another important trend is the technological advances.For instance, many companies employ a “self-serving HR” software, which has automated the basic HR functions such as payroll, resulting in huge savings in operational costs (Arabe, 2003).
As competition tightens, companies have seen the need to cut down costs (e. g. , in employee benefits), while they demand more from their employees. Because of this, most employees today are dissatisfied with their jobs. There is a high chance that this trend will linger for a long time.
Hence, firms should address this issue, or they will experience a decline in productivity and loss of skilled employees (Arabe, 2003).Lastly, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated that that there will be more jobs than workers by 2010, as birth rate continues to drop, baby boomers get old, and economy improves. Specifically, the number of workers with in the technical, healthcare, and manufacturing fields is predicted to decline. As a result, the number of companies that will offshore their manufacturing, customer service, and other departments is more likely to escalate. The government of United States may allow more non-native on working visa to work in the country, and the number of immigrant workers may rise as well (Arabe, 2003).
