Introductory to Organisational Behaviour Principles

Essay Title:Introductory to organisational behaviour principles Books, journals and articles on organisational behaviour (OB) can be found anywhere nowadays. Experts and professionals in this area have done a lot of research, coming up with theories, models, concepts, explanations and views on how a person will behave in an organisation. This paper argues that there are other resources to help us understand OB better. This paper will firstly define what OB is and discuss the similarities and differences found from other resources to our main textbook, ‘Organisational Behaviour on the Pacific Rim’ written by Steven Mcshane and Tony Travaglione. It will then analyse the relevance and usefulness of information to people working in organisations and students of OB. So what does OB actually mean? Robbins and Judge (2007, P. ) defined that ‘OB is a field of study that investigates the impact that individuals, groups, and structure have on behaviour within organisations, for the purpose of applying such knowledge toward improving an organisation’s effectiveness. ’ While, Nahavandi and Malekzadeh (1999, P. 3) points out that ‘OB is the study of how people behave in organisations as individuals, teams and how the organisations structure human resources to achieve goals. ’ Comparing these two long definitions on OB, I would rather go along with the statement by Mcshane and Travaglione (2007, P. ), where it says that OB is the study of what people think, feel and do in and around organisations. It’s so much easier to grasp and understand the gist of OB especially to students like me. What all these experts are trying to say is actually the same and what they had done is only putting their own thoughts into words. This signifies that we humans have a lot of views on one issue, it can be either the same or different, there’s no right or wrong either, it’s just a matter of how we perceive things. Thus we need to look into other resources to tap into other peoples’ views and concepts to learn more about OB. So why do we study OB? As Mcshane and Travaglione (2007) had put it, we need to understand, predict and influence the behaviour of people, by doing so it will benefit the individual and the organisation. However, Tosi, Mero and Rizzo have a slightly different kind of say, they say that we study OB to understand, predict and improve the performance of people and ultimately to the organisation which they work (2000, P. 2). The latter statement seems to be more appropriate. Organisations are always trying to improve their employee’s performance, communication and decisions making ability by sending their employees for courses like team building. Mcshane and Travaglione (2007) have clearly identified and explained the five anchors on which OB is based on, which are the multidisciplinary anchor, systematic research anchor, contingency anchor, multiple levels of analysis anchor and lastly the open systems anchor. It appears that this is the only book that includes all five anchors in one book. These clearly explained concepts would help students to understand OB with ease and clarity than any other resources researched. With regards to the multidisciplinary anchor, Robbins and Judge (2007) only talks about the contributions to OB field from four behavioural disciplines which are psychology, social psychology, sociology and anthropology. Mcshane and Travaglione talks more than that, they even listed and discussed how emerging disciplines like communications and marketing contribute to the study of OB. Mcshane and Travaglione (2007) say that scholars have been depending on systematic research to form research questions, and apply test hypotheses against collected data. Mcshane and Travaglione also suggest that researchers are adopting grounded theory to understand the working environment. It’s a qualitative method whereby concepts and theories are formed by data collections like observations and interviews. For example, the Department for transport in the United Kingdom did a project to find out what factors affect the choice of transport of their citizens (Department for transport 2003). Maybe the Land Transport Authority in Singapore can refer to this article and find out the reason for the increasing number of people owning cars in Singapore. Mcshane and Travaglione (2007, P. 17) state that ‘no single solution is best in all circumstances. ’ What works in one situation may not be successful in a different situation (12Manage, 2008). This is a view shared by Nahavandi and Malekzadeh (1999) where they say for each situation a different kind of respond is required. An example can be money; money can be a motivator for some people but may not be that effective on others, it all depends on the person’s financial needs and status (Vries 2007). Therefore, OB experts and managers in organisations learn to understand factors of different situations in order to respond more appropriately and effectively (Nahavandi and Malekzadeh (1999). Similarly to our main text, Robbins and Judge (2007) states that there are three levels of analysis on OB, the micro which studies the individual, middle level which covers the small group and the macro level which looks into organisations. However, the latter book had included a model for visualisation, creating an image of importance on this classification will help students to understand topics area of concern later in the book. Now let’s look at the last anchor, the open system anchor. Similarly to our main text, Thomas (2005) points out that organisations are open systems that will receive input of information and resources from the environment and in turn transform them into goods or service before returning them back into the environment. Organisations are always restructuring and strategising to survive in the corporate world (Taplin 2005). This information will definitely be useful to top managements of organisations. They can apply this knowledge to strengthen their market share and strengthen their company image. This paper has argued that in order to understand OB principles more, a lot of reading and research had to be done. We have looked at what OB exactly is and due to the ever changing environment, peoples view and perceptions change, so we need to understand, predict and influence the changing needs of people. By using the five anchors we will be able to do that. Even though some information researched is the same, it still increases my knowledge on OB through the constant readings, some information may be irrelevant, but it is still useful even if only one percent of new knowledge is gained. Total word count (1060) References Cummings, TG 2005, ‘open systems’, Blackwell Encyclopedic Dictionary of Organizational Behavior, viewed 2 August 2008, < http://web. ebscohost. com. libproxy. sim. edu. sg/ehost/detail? id=4&hid=120&sid=add89e44-3e79-4bf6-ac4d-7c90f405c030%40sessionmgr103&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#db=lmh&AN=20986772> Department for Transport 2003, ‘Psychological Factors Affecting Transport Mode Choice’, viewed 2 August 2008, . Mcshane, S. & Travaglione, T. 2007, ‘Organisational Behaviour on the Pacific Rim’, 2nd edn, McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd, NSW. Nahavandi, A. & Malekzadeh, A. R. 1999, ‘Organizational Behavior, The person-or ganization fit’, Prentice –Hall Inc, New Jersey. Robbins, S. P. & Judge, T. A. 2007, ‘Organizational Behavior’, 12th edn, Pearson education Inc, USA. Taplin, I. M. 2005, ‘Strategic change and organisational restructuring: How managers negotiate change initiatives’, Journal of international management, vol. 12, no. 3, pp. 284-301, viewed 4 August 2008, Science Direct. Tosi, H. L. , Mero, N. P. & Rizzo, J. R. 2000, ‘Managing Organizational Behavior’, 4th edn, Blackwell Publishers Inc, USA. Vries, M. K. D. 2007, ‘Money, Money, Money’, Organizational Dynamics, vol. 36, no. 3, pp. 231–243, viewed 29 July 2008, Science Direct. 12 Manage 2008, ‘Contingency Theory’, Bilthoven, viewed 2 August 2008,

A New Airplane Program of Boeing 767 Case Study - 1

A New Airplane Program of Boeing 767 - Case Study Example At the same time, in 1966 company was facing a lot of pressure for the development of new plane as it had been long since the last plane was launched. There were a lot of apprehensions among the directors as the company had not enough experience of developing a plane of their own. Project Uncertainty and Risk Management, the project management was not effective in Boeing 767 program, is the first weakness. Since the company did not have any past experience of cockpit design for two persons, it resulted in many difficulties in the successful execution of the final product. There should have been a thorough analysis of design before getting the final approval. Another weakness was that the geographic locations of production were also not considered. This hence became a major weakness as the transportation of parts was important on time. Time also became critical also due to the change in the design of cockpit. The strength was that the conversion of conversion from two-person to the three-person cockpit, which a very big risk was handled very intelligently. First strength was that the delivery of the planes was just one month delayed. This conversion also raised project uncertainty concern. As the parts were designed for two-person cockpit and payments were already made. The strength of project management was that it was decided that modification experts will fix this problem once parts are installed. This resulted in minimization of the risk of production disruption. Hence the projected uncertainty arising from risk was avoided. This made the design of new cockpit more adaptable to changes. In terms of quality management, another weakness aroused due to this conversion for space. This risk seemed to disrupt the modification of the thirty planes which were almost ready and were also ready to be flown. However, many managers opposed this approach as it violated the fire control systems and may result in working environment without fire system for some time till the new system gets installed again

Analysis of Claude Levi Strauss's Books Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Analysis of Claude Levi Strauss's Books - Essay Example According to Levi-Strauss, â€Å"Heterogeneous beliefs and customs have been arbitrarily collected together under the heading of totemism.† There were many scholars who became supporters of totemism when they tried to decode the secrets of evolution. Levi-Strauss supported the anti-totemic school together with other anthropologists such as Goldenweiser and Boas. They believed that totemism was just a social historical reality. He concluded that totemism is just an exercise in logic of the savage mind. It is not the start of vast accomplishment of savage ancestors to form the first unit of social organization. In the book, Levi-Strauss also compared the Bricoleur and Engineer.. Bricoleur comes from the French verb bricoler which originally meant extraneous movements in ball games, hunting, gun firing, but now referred to repairing things by one’s self. The Engineer was referred by Levi-Strauss as the proper craftsman. According to Levi-Strauss, there is a difference betw een the two. Engineer sees things in its entirety and gathers all things needed in building or creating its masterpiece. On the other hand, a Bricoleur utilizes what materials are existing and finds new ways to create a masterpiece. The engineer uses a â€Å"scientific mind† while a bricoleur exercises a â€Å"savage mind†. ... Bricoleur, is closed to whatever is imposed by the state of civilization. Thus, according to Levi-Strauss, engineers works by concept while bricoleur works with signs. Signs incorporate certain amount of culture into reality while concepts tries to be transparent to reality. This view shows how Levi-Strauss discussed the world between technology and metaphysics. Thus talking about the engineer being able to utilize the available practical knowledge exhibited by the bricoleur, technology therefore was a tangible expression of metaphysics. The two don’t have a big difference but is interconnected. The Savage Mind focused on the division of world during the 1960s. It showed how the scholars had a hard time deciphering a specific formula of how the world works. With what the book has discussed, the world is torn between technology and metaphysics. Scholars also have different views such that others support in totemism while other are support the anti-totemic school such as the aut hor Levi-Strauss. The Tristes Tropiques Claude Levi-Strauss The Tristes Tropiques book by Levi-Strauss provided a very wide exploration of the relationship of human beings and the environment. This book focused in Levi-Strauss’ research in Brazil which discussed sociology, religion, education, as well as urban development. Being an anthropologist, he has shown his feelings, fears and the possible criticisms in this book. On the first part of his book, he showed his talent in writing and him being a good social scientist. He also discussed urban development in Part Three of his book that can be of great reference and influence to architects and urban planners. Being an anthropologist, Levi-Strauss has the responsibility to write his views and opinions. Writing about the

The Market for Lemons Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

The Market for Lemons - Essay Example In this paper, Akerlof presented a research on the relationship between quality and uncertainty by using the example of wide market for used cars to draw relevance (Akerlof 488). As per the paper, Akerlof gives the description of a used car, which he gives as the exchange of ownership from a car buyer to a seller after the first owner has used it to a state that may attract wear and tear (489). Asker of intimates that ‘cherries’ and ‘lemons’ are two categories of used cars where by a car attracts these categories depending on the quality of the car and the previous owner’s driving technique. Frequencies of maintenance and vehicle accident history are the other factors that contribute towards a car becoming a ‘cherry’ or a ‘lemon’. With this, this essay will review the article by Akerlof George by giving the summary of the article then discussing the points that he intended to put across. As per this article, a buyer may end u p buying a used product without having adequate information concerning the cars history or if it has any hidden defects. During car purchase, a buyer may not have the time to go through all the elements of the vehicle hence making a seller to take advantage of the situation. The implication of this is that the car buyer may not be certain on whether they are buying a ‘cherry’ or a ‘lemon’ as the buyer relies on the general quality of the vehicle and not quality in details. In the end, the average quality assessment that a buyer does influences them to buy it at their chosen value irrespective of whether the car has a good maintenance history or not. Therefore, a buyer or seller may be at a loss as the seller sells the car at a high price as the car deserves or the buyer buys the car at a low price. For this reason, car owners that are sure of the quality of their cars do not sell their cars in the used market for cars as this reduces the average car quality for the vehicles that they intend to sell. On the other hand, the reluctance by good quality used car owners reduces the value of other vehicles in the market hence translating to a reduction of product prices. 2. Asymmetrical information As indicated, quality used cars, tend to receive low value during their sale because of lemons and vice versa. This relatively the bad pushing out the good in a sequence whose dependency is two variables (490). p, is the first variable that denotes the price of the vehicle and the used cars quality presented for trade, or Qd = D (p, p), the supply of lemons and cherries together with their quality on average p will depend on the price (p = p) or (p) and S = S (p).  

Challenges Facing the Gulf Cooperation Council Thesis Proposal

Challenges Facing the Gulf Cooperation Council - Thesis Proposal Example The council members criticized the world’s failure to take action on Syria’s current situation. The council condemns Iran’s interference in its internal affairs. Divergent views by GCC member states make it intricate for them to achieve a unified decision with regards to Syria. For instance, Qatar and Saudi Arabia have openly supported the opposition forces in their struggle against Bashar al-Assad’s regime (Ehteshami, 2013). All GCC member countries want better relations with Iran, yet condemn it for interfering with its internal affairs. Iran is suspected to support opposition protests in Bahrain (Rashwan, 2012). GCC neighbors are going through a difficult political transition such as Yemen. Other nations like Jordan are strategically located in relation to the Gulf region. As such, Jordan is included in the security calculations of the Gulf region. Nevertheless, Jordan is subject to pressure from Israeli. This leaves Jordan at the state of economic cris is (Masters, 2013). The diverse experiences that GCC neighbors are going through make it hard for them to achieve a unified decision.   The research seeks to explore aspects of the GCC council and its decision-making mechanisms. The research also seeks to examine the state of countries neighboring the GCC member states. These are such as Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Jordan   International relations study gained momentum in the 19th century following world war two. Three schools of thought emerged in a bid to explain the international system. These are liberalism, realism, and constructivism. However, realists and liberalists are the prominent schools of thoughts explaining international relations. Realism sees international relations as being founded on selfish motives where individual states seek power.

The Role of Religion in the Formation of America Essay

The Role of Religion in the Formation of America - Essay Example â€Å"Religion was an important issue for many Americans in their personal lives at the time of the American Revolution and the ratification of the Constitution†¦ Religion played a formative role in many of the colonies at the time of their founding.† (Merriman, 68) Plymouth Plantation was founded by a group including separatists, who are known as the Pilgrims, and it was one of the earliest colonies to be founded by the English in North America which provided the first sizable stable English settlement in the region. Plymouth Plantation was an important settlement for the people were fleeing religious persecution and searching for an appropriate place to worship their God. Thus, the people of the Plymouth Plantation were very religious and its social and legal systems were intimately linked to the religious beliefs of the settlers. The influence of the Pilgrims at Plymouth Plantation on the formation of our country is indisputable and the people and events of this colony have formed part of our folklore. Similarly, the works of Roger Williams, the controversial young Puritan minister and the founder of Rhode Island, have greatly influenced the formation of our country.

Tall Ships Festival in 2014 Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Tall Ships Festival in 2014 - Essay Example I may not know all the different types of ships present but I can identify a few ships that look like the battleships I have watched in some action movies and simply seeing them is an awesome experience. The number of people on the port is uncountable as they are into their thousands. Women are dressed in short shorts and halter tops all complete with sandals and wide-brimmed hats to prevent the scorching sun. The men, on the other hand, are also dressed in shorts and male sandals and t-shirts. The same goes for the children. It is not surprising that there are no animals as they are not allowed but the large crowds make up for the lack of animal sounds. Not everyone is entering the ships for the competition but some people are left behind mostly for fear of water or simply to watch over the children scared of the tall humongous ships. The air is filled with different noises from laughter to shouts and screams to even sounds of crying children and of course of the water being disturbed by the ships and the sound is soothing and good music to the ears of those relaxing in the shaded areas and benches. The place is protected from accidents by use of fences. Car traffic is heavy as people are entering the port but there are numerous parking attendants pointing to the large parking spaces. Those on foot are carried using the shuttles to the port from the two entry points but since the shuttles are not many, the first priority is being given to those in wheelchairs and crutches, pregnant women as well as those with small children which is very interesting. The port is littered with tons of vendor booths selling refreshments and snacks and what is also interesting is the fact that there are hundreds of litter bins in anticipation of the amount of trash. T