Managing

Table of Contents * Organizational culture * Organizational structure * Motivation * Need theories * Personality types * Learning styles * Ethics * Conflict * Communication styles * Attitudes (about the work environment) * Values (of employees) * Stress and stress management practices * Team skills and teamwork * Diversity * Internal Politics * Goal-setting practices * Mission * Vision * Communication (internal and external) * Globalization * Decision making * Ethical code of conduct Organizational Culture Organizational culture can be defined as the values and behaviors that contribute to the unique social and psychological environment of an organization (Businessdictionary.com, 2012). There are many variables that make up the culture of an organization. Some of the variables include: shared attitudes, values, beliefs, customs, written and unwritten rules within an organization. These variables influence the way employees interact with each other, clients, customers, and stakeholders. Organizational culture is a pattern of basic assumptions that are considered valid and that are taught to new members as the way to perceive, think, and feel in the organization (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p 263). The organizational culture may have positive and negative aspects within an organization and it is the model in which the organization conducts business, human relations, and ethical conduct. Organizational culture in sense is the personality of an organization. An effective manager must be able to recognize the organizations culture and act accordingly. This segment will provide information on how to identify an organizations culture. Levels of Organization Culture Just as there are multiple personality types, there are multiple types of organizational culture. The influences of the organizations culture can stem from three levels: artifacts, values, and basic assumptions, according to Edgar Schein (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p 264). By examining the three levels of an organizational culture, it can be determined what type of culture a particular organization is utilizing. Artifacts Artifacts include personal enactment, ceremonies and rites, stories, rituals, and symbols (Nelson, Quick, 2012, p. 264). Artifacts can also be recognized as architecture, furniture, and dress code. These are the most visible and understood elements of an organizational culture. Examining the artifacts of an organization can provide a more clear understanding of the organization culture from within and outside the organization. Values Values consist of both espoused values and enacted values. Espoused values are values that employees within an organization say they value, whereas enacted values are values in which employees actually behave (Nelson, Quick, 2012, p. 264). Espoused values are generally values established by the organizations leadership and can be found in the organizations mission statement, code of ethics, or annual reports. It is the responsibility of leadership to be the communicators of espoused values to ensure proper enacted values are demonstrated within the organization. From a social learning perspective it is proposed that employees learn their behaviors from observing their environment (Bandura, 1977). Employees end up modeling leadership’s behavior. Assumptions Assumptions govern how an employee determines the right behavior and feelings for their job and is how the culture actually operates within the organization (Gupta, 2009). Assumptions are unobservable and represent the core of organizational culture. The assumption fundamental level of organizational culture is often considered the essence of the culture (Nelson, Quick, 2012, p 267). Assumptions are often unconscious, as employees are not aware of their assumptions. This is said to be due to the deeply held beliefs within the organization that influence the behavior of all employees within an organization. Relationship of Culture and Performance There are three different perspectives for the effects of organizational culture in relation to performance. The three perspectives are the strong-culture perspective, the fit perspective, and the adaption perspective (Nelson, Quick, 2012, p. 268). A strong culture is when an organization establishes a coherent set of beliefs, values, assumptions, and is practice by most members within an organization. This type of culture generally has members with aligned goals and elevated motivation due to similar beliefs. However, a strong-culture can face problems with adapting to new demands. The fit perspective utilizes the belief that a culture should be tailored to the organizations industry. The fit perspective is useful for explaining short-term performance, but has difficulties in explaining long-term performance and provides methods for adapting (Nelson, Quick, 2012, p. 268). The adaption perspective is a culture where risk taking and change is encouraged. This theory suggests that utilizing change can increase effectiveness by tailoring to the needs of employees, customers, and stockholders. Culture Influence Effective leaders must be able to establish, monitor, and enforce the organizational culture among the employee base. There are multiple methods to influence the culture in an organization as a leader. It is important to emphasize what is important, as this will allow members of the organization to understand the goals of the organization. Rewarding employee’s behavior that reflects the organizational culture is another tool used to influence culture amongst the organization, as it will keep members motivated to comply with organizational culture. When inappropriate behavior occurs, it is imperative for leadership to discourage its members. Various methods can be used to discourage inappropriate behavior such as feedback, written and verbal warnings, probation, or even firing. Perhaps the most effective method for leadership to influence organizational culture is to lead by example. Cultural Importance It has been suggested that organizational culture is more important in today’s modern era than it was in the past (Schein, 1992). There has been a greater need to adapt to various internal and external changes, which has increased the importance of an organization culture. A positive organizational culture can maximize the attributes that employees bring to an organization, which allows more participation, creativity, motivation, and performance. Leadership in the modern era is responsible for the creation and management of organizational culture, in efforts to increase the effectiveness of human resources. Organizational Socialization Organizational socialization has a great effect on the culture of an organization. This occurs when newcomers to the organization are brought into the company and transformed from outsiders to participating, effective members of an organization (Nelson, Quick, 2012, p. 270). The newcomers will end up being responsible to reinforce the organizational culture; this is why the process is so important. The process has three stages: anticipatory socialization, encounter, and change and acquisition. The first stage anticipatory socialization is all the learning that takes place prior to the new employees first day. This stage allows new employees to become familiar with the organizations culture and expectations, which is important for adjustment. The second stage encounter, occurs when new employees report and understand new tasks, responsibilities, and roles. The third and final stage of organizational socialization is the change and acquisition stage. This stage occurs when the new employee becomes comfortable with his or her job. This stage typically occurs after the first nine months of being on the job. By understanding the organizational socialization process, a leader will be able to maintain the organization culture, as newcomers will understand and implement the organizations cultural values and norms. Organizational Culture Change Changing the organizational culture can be a very difficult task. The leader of the organization will have to implement a strategic plan to effectively bring change among the culture. There are two basic approaches that can aid in culture change: helping current members buy into a new set of values and adding newcomers, while removing current members as appropriate (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p, 273). Having a realistic and solid transition plan when attempting organizational culture change is vital. The first step for change suggests attempting behavioral change amongst employees. The second step of change is the examining justifications for changed behavior, as this allows leadership to see if employees are complying with new established values. Cultural communication is the third step of the change process, it is vital that all artifacts are relaying a consistent message of leadership’s new values and beliefs. The next step of the change process is the hiring of new employees and using socialization to mold them into productive members of the organization. The last and final stage of change process is removing current members who resist the new values and beliefs of leadership. Through the series of change implementation, it is important leadership analyzes the behavior of employees. The change can be viewed as successful if the behavior is consistent with the organizational culture and employees are motivated by the new values and beliefs. Conclusion Organization culture is a vital element to any organization. The culture established and practiced by an organization is the model of how things get done, while following the values and beliefs from leadership. Management has a very important role in maintaining the culture of an organization, as well as being able to identify when change needs to be made. Culture is what defines the organization and is the guideline on how to behave within the organization. Organizational Structure An organization can be structured in many different ways. The structure of the organization will determine the channels in which it operates. Organization design is the process of constructing and adjusting an organization’s structure to achieve its business strategy and goals (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 245). The first variable to consider when implementing an organizational design is to consider the goals of the organization. The goals then can be broken down in small tasks such as jobs. Jobs then can be grouped together to form departments, which then forms the organization structure. The organizational structure clearly defines the responsibilities of the entire organization to achieve a common goal. Managers must familiarize themselves with the particular organization they are involved with and understand the importance of the structure. Organizational Design Process Differentiation can be described as the design process of breaking organizational goals into tasks (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 245). Integration involves linking tasks together to form an organization structure to support common goals. Together these two design processes are essential components of organizational design. A visual representation of organization design is an organizational chart, which maps out organizations reporting relationships, hierarchy, and communication lines. This can viewed as an integral map in how communication and work coordination should flow. Differentiation There are three different forms of differentiation: horizontal, vertical, and spatial. Horizontal differentiation is based on the employee’s specialized knowledge. In this form, the design is established by the division of labor and level of specialization. Horizontal differentiation clearly defines personal tasks and responsibilities. Highly specialized job will have a more narrow scope and less specialized jobs will have a more broad scope. Vertical differentiation is the design of hierarchy with reporting relationships to link roles within the organization. In this form of differentiation, defined areas of responsibility are established. There are structures within organizations known as tall and wide. A tall organization would be considered to have less area of responsibility compared to a wide organizational structure. Spatial differentiation is the geographic locations of an organization. The increases in number of locations in an organization will result in an increase in the complexity of the organizational design and structure (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 248). Integration Integration is the process of coordinating tasks and functions in an organization, while ensuring the organization is working effectively together and utilizing cohesion. Effective integration results in an organization that is interconnected and balanced. Linkages are structural devices that are used to integrate activities within an organization both vertically and horizontally. The linkages will direct the information flow within an organization and help establish hierarchy, rules, plans, and procedures. Vertical linkages help members of an organization understand their roles in the organization and is highly effective in times of crisis (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 248). Generally the taller the organization is considered, the more vertical linkages are needed. Horizontal linkages provide an organization the necessary communication and coordination channels to work inter departmentally. The horizontal linkages are built into the organization by creating liaison roles, tasks forces, integrator positions, and teams (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 249). By utilizing the various linkages, an organization is able to effectively integrate and increase the effectiveness of an organization. Structural Dimensions of Organization Design There are six major dimensions that make up the design of an organization. The six major dimensions are: 1. Formalization – Organizations official rules and procedures. 2. Centralization – Determines where decisions in the organization are being made. 3. Specialization – The scope of jobs within an organization. 4. Standardization – The level of routine work performed within an organization. 5. Complexity – The number of activities within an organization. 6. Hierarchy of authority – The amount of vertical differentiation in an organization. Once the six dimensions of an organization have been identified and analyzed, a manager will be able to determine the best structural configuration for the organization. It is important that the dimensions are identified accurately, as structural change within an organization can be counterproductive (Gupta, 2009). It also must be understood that the dimension can change and mitigation strategies can be put into place to avoid any mishaps in organizational design. Structural Configurations Henry Mintzberg proposed five structural configurations: the simple structure, the machine bureaucracy, the professional bureaucracy, the divisionalized form, and the adhocracy (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 250-251). In these structural configurations, there are five components of an organization according to Mintzberg, which are: the upper echelon, middle level, the operating core, technical staff, and the support staff. Each configuration affects people within the organization differently and all organizational structures should support the organizations goals (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 250). Mintzberg’s five structural configurations are provided below for me detail: Simple Structure – Used in an entrepreneurial setting and relies heavily on direct supervision from the upper echelon. Machine Bureaucracy – Used in large organizations and relies on standardization of work processes from the technological staff. Professional Bureaucracy – Used in professional services and relies on standardization of skills from the operating level. Divisionalized Form – Used in a multi-divisional organization and relies on standardization of outputs from middle level management. Adhocracy – Used project settings and relies on its ability to make adjustments and its key part of the organization is the support staff. Contextual Variables Four contextual variables influence the organizational design and are: size, technology, environment, and strategy and goals. These provide management guidance for the best organization design suited for their company. By analyzing these contextual variables an organization will have a better understanding of how these variables will affect the organizational structure. The existing structure within an organization will influence how an organization reacts to information from the contextual variables below: Size – The size of the organization will affect the level and amounts of hierarchy required to sustain organizations operations and decision making. Generally as size increases, complexity increases, this requires more levels of hierarchy. This is to keep the span of control or area of responsibility to large (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 253). Technology – The technology that an organization uses and produces will have a great influence on the organizational structure. The higher level of routines allows an organization to use more formulization, centralization, specialization, and standardized. This effectively allows an organization to have a wider area of responsibility. Environment – Can be identified as anything outside the boundaries of an organization. “The general environment includes all conditions that might have an impact on the organization, such as economic factors, political considerations, ecological changes, sociocultural demands, and government regulations” (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 255). The task environment refers to the elements of an organization’s environment that are relevant to the organization and is considered when deciding upon an organizational structure. An organization must consider environmental uncertainty within the environment, as flexibility may be needed to be built into the organizational structure. Strategy and Goals – This contextual variable provides an organization a clear and concise vision to meet organization goals. The strategic dimensions can be affected by the following decision processes: formalization, centralization, and complexity. It is important for a manager to understand how the decision making processes may affect the strategy and goals of an organization. Conclusion An effective organizational structure provides the framework of responsibilities, reporting relationships, and grouping (Draft, 2009). Organizational structure also provides the ability to link an organization into a cohesive unit. Organizational structure is an essential component of any organization and is vital for managers to understand its design and importance. It is essential to factor in all variables that can affect the organizational structure and act accordingly to develop an efficient and reliable structure. Motivation and Need Theories Motivation is defined as the process that initiates, guides, and maintains goal-oriented behaviors (Cherry, 2012). Motivation is what causes people to act and work towards something. Motivation consists of three basic components: activation, persistence, and intensity. Activation is the first initiator, as it involves the decision to initiate motivating behavior. Persistence is the continued effort toward an aspired goal. Intensity is the amount of focus or concentration that is put forth in pursuing a goal. Understanding motivation is very important for managers to understand, as employee motivation levels can greatly contribute to success. An effective leader needs to know how to motivate followers. Motivation can stem from internal needs or external incentives such as economic gain. Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Abraham Maslow proposed a theory of motivation that went beyond physical and economic needs to emphasize psychological and interpersonal needs (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 77). Maslow’s theory covers the five need categories of human beings. The five need categories in Maslow’s hierarchy are as follows: physiological needs, safety and security needs, social needs, esteem needs, and self-actualization needs. Maslow suggested that once a person meets human needs, the next motivation will be to fulfill the next need category. Managers should recognize that each employee has basic needs and providing incentives to meet the needs can provide motivation among employees. McClelland’s Need Theory David McClelland identified three basic needs and called them manifest needs. The three categories in the McClelland theory are the need for achievement, power, and affiliation. Individuals will have a higher degree of need for each category depending on personality type. A person’s motivation and effectiveness in certain job functions are influenced by these needs. People with a high need for achievement seek to excel and take on challenging endeavors. Typically an achiever prefers to work along or with other high achievers (NetMBA.com, 2010). Individuals with a high need for affiliation need to feel accepted by others. These people tend to conform to others in a work group and excel in customer service roles. People with a high need for power are categorized into two groups; one for a need of personal power and one for a need of institutional power. People that exhibit a great need for institutional power tend to be more effective managers than those with a high need for personal power (NetMBA.com, 2010). As a manager it is important to be able to identify team member’s needs, this will allow for them to exceed in their environment. Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory Frederick Herzberg believes that people had two sets of needs: one based on avoiding pain and on based from the desire for psychological growth (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 80). Motivation factors are a work condition that satisfies the need for psychological growth and hygiene factors caused dissatisfaction caused from discomfort or pain. Motivation factors or known as job satisfaction include the following factors: achievement, recognition of achievement, work itself, responsibility, advancement, salary, and growth. Where hygiene factor or job dissatisfaction includes the following factors: company policy and administration, supervision, interpersonal relations, working conditions, security, salary, and status. Herzberg noted that salary can be considered both a motivation and hygiene factor. An effective manager will be able to increase the motivational factors of needs and work on decreasing hygiene factors, to motivate followers. Healthy Motivation Stress is energy that humans experience when facing difficult challenges such as in a work environment. Stress can be both healthy and not healthy and is important to minimize negative or distress, which is negative energy. Eustress on the other hand is positive healthy energy that can provide motivation for employees. The implementation of positive organization behavior can encourage optimism hope and health for people at work (Nelson, Quick, 2012, p. 82). It is advised that managers try to control distress and utilize eustress to increase effectiveness within an organization. Expectancy Theory of Motivation Victor H. Vroom defines motivation as a process governing choices among alternative forms of voluntary activities and is a process controlled by the individual. Motivation is the individual’s expectancy that a certain effort will lead to the intended performance and desirability for the individual, which is known as valence (Condrey, S., Perry, J., 2005, p. 482). Managers utilizing this theory should use system that rewards for performance, as motivation is driven from the individual, effort, and performance. Managers should also understand which rewards are desired as the expectancy theory attributes motivational problems to occur when there is a lack of desire for rewards offered (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 87). Conclusion Motivation is critical to team success. Managers must be able to identify the needs of employees to inspire and lead through difficult times. By using a wide variety of motivation building techniques a manager can bring success to an organization. Being able to energize the team, recognizing accomplishment, and rewarding for performance can go a long way for a leader. It is important that managers have a wide variety of motivational techniques and knowledge of the various needs of individuals. Personality Types In any organization there are going to be a very wide variety of different personality types. An effective manager will be able to identify his or her own personality type and use his or her strengths to their advantage. A good manager will also be able to identify team member’s personality types and utilize strengths for each. By understanding the various personality types, there is a lot less potential for personal conflicts. Personality can be defined as a relatively stable set of characteristics that influence an individual’s behavior (Nelson, Quick, 2012, p. 38). Carl Jung and the Myers-Biggs Type Indicator Instrument Recent innovation by Swiss psychologist Carl Jung has focused on classifying personality types among individuals. Jung’s model is built around four different main traits that every individual’s personality is built around. He proposed that that population was made up of either extraverted type of introverted types. Later going on to identify two types of perceiving: sensing and intuition, two types of judgment: thinking and feeling, and two types of closure: judging and perceiving. It is stated that each person has a four letter characteristic and effects that way their personality is molded, makes decisions, plans, and how effectively one can lead. There are a total of sixteen different personality types according to Jung’s and MBTI theory. The table 1.1 provides a clear picture of how each characteristic is chosen. An example would a personality type of ESTJ, which translates that the person is: Extraverted, Sensor, Thinker, and Judger. Below table 1.2 displays the sixteen personality traits and estimations in the frequency amongst the population (PersonalityMax.com, 2012) Table 1.1. (16-personality-types.com, 2012) Table 1.2 (PersonalityMax.com, 2012) As you can see in the table above the sixteen personality types are distributed fairly equal amongst the population. As a manager it can be important to utilize personal to their strengths, to produce an effective work teams and environment. Each of the sixteen personality types in MBTI’s theory has its own unique set of characteristics that positively affect each organization if utilized correctly. Managers need to be able to understand his or her personality type, but the entire work team as well. Managing personalities can be one of the largest hurdles for any manager, as every personality is vastly different from one another. However, managing personalities is crucial to maintaining an effective work team. Learning Styles There are many different learning styles used in work environments. It is a must for managers to understand the importance of training employees and creating an environment where employees learn and grow. Having a well-trained and knowledgeable staff is a one way ticket to a successful work team or organization. Learning also constitutes corrective matters, as it will teach employees not to make the same mistakes again. As a manager, it is common to find yourself playing the role of a teacher. Given the responsibilities, it is leadership responsibility to properly teach the work force and incorporate learning as much as possible. Learning styles are effective tools to develop human resources. Classical Conditioning Classical conditioning is the process of modifying behavior by pairing a conditioned stimulus with an unconditioned stimulus to elicit an unconditioned response (Nelson, Quick, 2011). Much of the studies on classical conditioning were done on dogs and this learning style doesn’t suit humans as well for multiple reasons. The reasons are humans are more complex than animals and the capacity for decision making can override the simple conditioning found in the classical conditioning approach. This style however, can be effective for simple tasks such as: when a customer walks in the door it should alarm an employee to greet the customer. Classical conditioning is not recommended for an overall learning style, but can work well for the automatic responses needed in a work environment. Operant Conditioning Operant conditioning can be defined as a method of learning that occurs through rewards and punishments for behavior. Through operant conditioning, an association is made between a behavior and a consequence for that behavior (Cherry, 2009). Operant conditioning is primarily dealing with voluntary behavior and is why it can be an effective means of learning in a work environment. Operant conditioning utilizes various forms of both positive and negative reinforcement and punishment. It is through the reinforcements and punishments that employees are able to learn from positive and negative performance. A study was performed by Fred Luthans, where the biggest increases in performance came in both the manufacturing and service industries; however the manufacturing industry were greater (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 92). The operant conditioning style favors industries that are more performance based. As a manager it can be important to identify if the current industry in which you manage would be suited for an operant conditioning style. Reinforcement Theory Reinforcement theory is another form of operant conditioning and is very similar. This style notions that learning association are formed between stimuli and responses. In the reinforcement theory, the primary objective is to reward for good behavior and punish for poor behavior. This theory uses both positive and negative consequences, which can aid in molding the work force to using good behavior. Positive consequences include things that may please an employee such as: bonus, promotion, vacation, or pay raise. Negative consequences include things that don’t appeal to employees such as: demotion, pay decrease, or disciplinary action (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 92). Edward Thorndike’s law of effect states “responses to a situation which are followed by a rewarding state of affairs will be strengthened and become habitual responses to that situation.” (Culatta, 2012). As a manager it can be effective choice to reward for positive outcomes and punish for negative outcomes as it can train employees. Social Learning Theory Unlike the other learning styles above, the social learning theory does not provide a reward system. This theory states that learning occurs when observing other people behavior. This can be very important for managers, as employees with naturally look up to managers and model their actions after them. Self-efficacy is a term widely associated with the social learning theory and notes that employees with high self-efficacy have a greater belief in getting things done (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 94). It is also suggested that high self-efficacy leaders to increased performance in a work environment. In a sense, increasing employee’s self-efficacy is increasing self-confidence and overall confidence. It is vital for managers to empower employees and develop higher levels of self-efficacy to lead an efficient work environment. Conclusion As a manager it is vital to mold the work force to the organizations expectations and expected performance. Through various learning styles, managers have the ability to shape their organization for increased performance. A manager will need to decide which style(s) to use, as every work environment is unique. Being able to tailor a learning style suited for the work environment can yield large rewards for a manager. Ethics As a manager one of the primary responsibilities is to lead a team practicing good ethics. Managers are supposed to enforce the ethical conduct in their work environment. Ethics involve learning what is right or wrong and doing the right thing. As easy as this sounds ethical dilemmas are usually not straightforward and rather difficult to make decisions. Managers will be faced with ethical situations on a daily basis. Managers can be faced with a lot of difficult decisions, for this reason it is suggested that ethic theories are learned to help guide decisions. Ethical Theories Understanding the various ethical theories can help a manager develop better knowledge and practices concerning ethical decisions. Consequential theories of ethics emphasis the consequences or results of behavior (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 28). Businesses tend to follow this notion, as if you are doing what is right or good, there will not be any negative consequences. Rule-based theories of ethics main emphasis is on the act itself and not the effects and adheres strictly to moral and legal rights. This theory suggests following a guideline to avoid any wrong doings, implementations such as a code of ethics or organizational rules can be effective when following the rule-based theory of ethics. Character theories of ethics focus on the inner character of the individual virtues, rather than the outward behavior (Nelson, Quick, 2012, p. 28). This notion suggests that if everyone followed good inner behavior, ethical decisions would be easy to make. This theory can be hard to instill amongst an entire workforce as a manager, due to the vast amount of differences and beliefs among employees. Ethical Dilemmas Some of the ethical concerns faced in modern organization include the following: employees’ rights, sexual harassment, organizational justice, whistle-blowing, and social responsibility. Establishing written programs is a great tool for managers to use when facing some of the above concerns. This allows all hands within the organization to be aware of the rules. It is management’s role to enforce the written rules and advise for legal assistance when needed to make the correct decisions. A manager must be aware of legal rules, as a manager is ultimately responsible for what happens within the organization. Providing ethics training can be a huge benefits to any organization as well, as employees will be better suited to handle ethical situations. Establishing written programs such as a code of ethics and providing ethics training helps avoid ethical dilemmas before they begin, as employees are aware and have a guideline to follow. Establishing an ethics program will effectively aid a manager in controlling the behaviors of employees that are suited for the organization. Benefits of Managing Ethics Managing ethics in an organization can create strong teamwork and increased productivity. Ethics programs have the ability to align employee behaviors with the ethical standards established by leadership of an organization. Attention to ethics programs amongst employees can build openness, integrity, and community. These are critical ingredients to strong teams (McNamara, 2011). Instilling ethics amongst the workplace also avoids any law violations that may potentially occur. Establishing an ethics program will allow employees to be aware of what is right and wrong, this acts as an insurance policy for the organization, as leadership will be confident in employees exhibiting positive ethical behavior. Conclusion As a manager it can be vital to enforce positive ethics amongst the workforce. Ethics in a work place effect many areas and can bring down highly effective teams. Managers must be able to control and influence the behavior within an organization. Managers are responsible for the maintaining the ethical image of an organization and must enforce the values, morals, and beliefs of the organization. Conflict Conflict exists in every organization across the world. As a manager one of the responsibilities is to identify and manage conflict. Conflict can be described as any situation in which incompatible goals, attitudes, emotions, or behaviors lead to disagreement or opposition between two or more parties (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 211). Conflict management skills are a major predictor of managerial success and effective work teams. Types of Conflict There are two major types of conflict: functional and dysfunctional. It is important that a manager can distinguish the two different types from each other. Reason being is not all conflict is bad, functional conflict can be very productive amongst a work team or organization and a manager must embrace the functional conflict as it can bring effective change. As a manager it is important to not discourage functional conflict as it can bring an end to effective change and start the downfall of an organization. Dysfunctional conflict on the other hand, should be discouraged and needs to be resolved at the earliest possible time. Dysfunctional conflict is usually the result of two or more people with mix agreements that lead to anger or problems within the workplace. As a manager this type of conflict needs to be discouraged and mitigation steps should be put into place to avoid any dysfunctional conflict. Dysfunctional conflict can be very distracting and devastating amongst teams. As a manager it is important to be able to identify what type of conflicts are occurring within the organization and providing a means to correct them. Conflict may rise from structural factors and personal factors. Some of conflicts structural factors include: specialization, interdependence, common resources, goal differences, authority relationships, status inconsistencies, and jurisdictional ambiguities. Most structural conflicts stem from the organization itself and the way it is organized. Conflict involving personal factors include: skills and abilities, personalities, perceptions, values and ethics, emotions, communication barriers, and cultural differences. Conflicts involving personal factors don’t originate from the organization but rather the members within the organization. As a manager it is vital to understand all the possible conflicts within the work environment and to understand the importance of resolving them. Conflict Management There are a number of strategies that a manager may use when attempting to manage a conflict. The two main types of strategies managers may elect to utilize are competitive and cooperative strategies. A competitive strategy encompasses a win-lose scenario, in which the conflict will end with one party not being happy. This type of strategy can back fire on a manager, as the conflict may not be resolved due to non-mutual feelings amongst parties. The cooperative strategy utilizes a win-win scenario, in which both parties will find a resolution to their conflict. Effective managers will be able to use effective techniques in resolving conflicts, as the teams will still be intact and manager will have more respect from the work teams. Effective strategies include: superordinate goals, expanding resources, changing personnel, changing structure, and confronting and negotiating. Some ineffective conflict management techniques include: non-action, secrecy, administrative orbiting, due process non-action, and character assassination. Most of the ineffective techniques do very little to resolve a conflict for a manager and more often than not increase the level of conflict and worsening the situation. Managers should utilize as many effective techniques as possible to manage effective work teams and continue productivity. A manager may also utilize multiple different styles when managing conflict. Some of the various styles include: avoiding, accommodating, competing, compromising, and collaborating. Below is a Thomas-Kilmann conflict mode instrument table (1.3) which illustrates how each style utilizes assertiveness and cooperation. Understanding which style to use can be dependent on the situation and is important a manager recognizes which style suits the situation based on managerial goals. Table 1.3 (JD, 2011) Conclusion Managers spend around 21% if their time resolving conflict, which is a great deal of time (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 211). As a manager it is a must to understand conflict and provide methods for resolution. An effective manager holds teams together by resolving conflicts effectively on a daily basis. By understand the different types of conflicts, method of resolution, and management styles, a manager can lead an organization through conflict. Communication Styles Communication styles are very important for managers. Every manager has it owns communication style that he or she is comfortable with. This entails how a manager likes to send and receive information. Is the manager more comfortable sending emails, talking on the phone, or face to face' The style at which a manager communicates can effectively increase the work team’s efficiency, as information will easily be understood and accepted. Managers can have great ideas and implementations, but without the proper delivery or communication method, the ideas can go unnoticed or un received. Different communication styles should be used depending on the situation. Managers must also understand that each of their employees has a different style as well. An effective manager will be able to connect with the employee in a way that is effective. Denise O’Berry from AT&T states “there are four main communication styles and goes onto explaining the effective ways to communicating with each” (O’Berry, 2011). * Relational Innovator -- This is an idea person who will communicate in big picture terms. A phone call is a great way to help them throw out ideas that pop in their heads. * Logical Processor -- This person communicates by finding the process of a situation and is very detail oriented. Social media is the worst way to communicate with them, as you can't give enough details in 140 characters. * Hypothetical Analyzer -- The Hypothetical Analyzer loves to discover the why by digging deeply into a discussion to dissect all the elements. Managers should arrange a meeting or phone call to answer questions and help them explore the various options of a problem. * Reactive Stimulator -- They are an action-oriented communicator with low attention to detail. A quick call or short email is an ideal way to connect with them. Communication Skills A manager may also increase his or her communication style by improving their communication skills. Managers must have creative insight and be able to ask the right questions amongst the workforce to effectively lead. Having sensitivity can be a great tool for communicating, as it enables managers to pay attention to the needs of employees. Managers must be able to have vision and communicate it to their work teams. Vision allows managers to communicate clear a picture of the organizations strategy and provide inspiration to the work environment. Managers must communicate with shared meaning, as it enables managers to understand employee’s perspectives and enables two way communications. Conclusion As a manager one of the primary roles is to be the key communicator to the work force. A manager must be able to effectively deliver messages both up and down the organization ladder. Being an effective communicator is a vital attribute that increases team performance, moral, and efficiency. Attitudes Attitudes can affect the work environment within an organization. As a manager it is important to monitor attitudes, understand how attitudes are formed, and understand the different components of attitudes. An attitude is described as a psychological tendency expressed when we evaluate a particular entity with some degree of favor of disfavor (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 55). Attitudes are a very important element in organizational behavior and it is important managers can mitigate the effects of them. The ABC Model Attitudes can be broken down into three components and is called the ABC model of an attitude. The three components are affect, behavioral intent, and cognition. Affect is the emotional component of the attitude and is the person’s emotional feelings about the situation. The second attitude is behavioral content and is the person’s intentions towards an object or person. Cognition is the third component in the ABC model and reflects the person’s perception or beliefs. By examining the ABC model a manager will be able to understand the attitude better and provide a course of action to fix or correct the employee’s attitude. Figure 1.4 below illustrates the three components of the ABC model below and provides examples of each. Figure 1.4 (Nelson, Quick, 2011, p. 56) Function of Attitudes Attitudes can serve functions for the individual and as a manager attitudes can provide a means to identify problems with an employee. Attitudes have the ability to help a person mediate between their own inner needs and the outside world (McLeod, 2009). Attitudes can serve a function for an employee and can be broken down into four function areas: knowledge, expressive, defensive, and adaptive. As a manager this can be important, as identifying the reason for the attitude and examining an attitude can help. For instance, knowing an employee’s attitude can help predict his or her behavior and provide a means for resolution. Attitudes also allow employees to express themselves, whether it is positively or negatively. As a manager this can be viewed as a communication mechanism. Conclusion Attitudes can serve as a communication method for employees. As a manager it is a must to decipher the message and turn it into a positive. It is important that managers control attitudes in the work environment, as attitudes can negatively affect work behavior and provide a spiral effect amongst the entire work force. Attitudes can cause a team break down and loss of performance and is the manager’s responsibility to provide corrective actions towards employee attitudes. Values Employee’s values can greatly enhance an organization. As a manager it is vital that employee’s values are aligned with the organizations. Work values are what influences employees perception of right and wrong (Nelson, Quick, 2011. P. 68). The four work values are as follows: achievement, concern for others, honesty, and fairness. Each of these values offers employees the basis for which they make decisions or get motivation from. An effective manager will be able to bring out the positives of all employee values. * Achievement – Is a concern for one’s career and drives employees to work hard and develop new skills. * Concern for others – Is the compassionate side of an employee that can be useful in helping others in the work team. * Honesty – Is telling the truth and not being deceitful or misleading others in the work environment. * Fairness – Is acting unbiased at all times towards other employees. As a manger it is important to identify strong values of employees. This can help a manager build effective teams and create an excellent work environment. As a manager it is important to look for great values in employees. Some great values for employees are as follows: * Strong work ethic – Hard working employees have a profound effect in the work environment and can provide motivation to others. * Dependability – Dependable employees offer a manager a sense of responsibility and confidence. * Positive attitude – Employees with a positive attitude have a great effect on the entire organization. * Adaptability – Employees with high levels of adaptability allow managers more flexibility when building teams. * Self-motivated – Employees that are self-motivated require very little supervision or direction for managers. This allows managers to focus on other areas of improvement and to have confidence in the employee. * Loyalty – Managers can value loyal employees, as they will bring trust to the work teams and receive confidence from the organization. Managers must consistently value employees with good personal values. Personal values are what make the foundation for an effective employee and ultimately an effective organization, since employees are what make the organization. A responsibility of a manager is to collectively identify employees that have good values and create strong work teams. References: Bandura, A. (1977). Social Learning Theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. BusinessDictionary.com. (2012). Organizational Culture. Retrieved from: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/organizational-culture.html Draft, R. (2009). Organizational Theory and Design. Mason, OH: South-Western. FreeDictionary.com. (2012). Anthropological. Retrieved from: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/anthropological Gupta, A. (2009). Organizational Culture. Retrieved from: http://www.practical-management.com/Organization-Development/Organization-Culture.html Gupta, A. (2009). Organizational Design. Retrieved from: http://www.practical-management.com/Organization-Development/Organization-Design.html Nelson, D., Quick, J. (2011). ORGB. Mason, OH: South-Western. Schein, E., (1992). Organizational Culture and Leadership. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass Publishers. Cherry, K. (2012). What is Motivation'. Retrieved from: http://psychology.about.com/od/mindex/g/motivation-definition.htm NetMBA.com. (2010). McClelland’s Theory of Needs. Retrieved from: http://www.netmba.com/mgmt/ob/motivation/mcclelland/ Condrey, S., Perry, J. (2005). Handbook of Human Resource Management in Government. John Wiley & Sons PersonalityMax.com. (2012). Personality Types. Retrieved from: https://www.personalitymax.com/personality-types 16-Personality-Types.com. (2012). 16 Personality Types. Retrieved from: http://www.16-personality-types.com/myers_briggs_personality_types.htm Culatta, R. (2012). Connectionism (Edward Thorndike). Retrieved from : http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/connectionism.html McNamara, C. (2011). Complete Guide to Ethics Management. Retrieved from: http://managementhelp.org/businessethics/ethics-guide.htm#anchor26548 JD. (2011). Five Conflict Management Styles at a Glance. Retrieved from: http://sourcesofinsight.com/conflict-management-styles-at-a-glance/ O’Berry, D. (2011). How managers can enhance communication techniques depending on employees personalities. Retrieved from: http://smbtelephones.att.com/smb/index.cfm/product-support/news-resources/denise-oberry-overcoming-communications-styles-article-4/ McCleod, S. (2009). Attitudes. Retrieved from: http://www.simplypsychology.org/attitudes.html