Organisational Culture and Employee Behavior - Essay Example

Proposal The essay will look at the link between organisational culture and employee behaviour. This will act as the foundation of the strategies or methods that employers can use to achieve organisational goals. Because organisational culture is defined as the associated norms of an organisation, while employee behaviour is seen as the outward expression of an employee’s perception of organisational culture, then organisational culture precedes employee behaviour. Leaders have the ability to influence and manage organisational culture. When this is done effectively, then employees will express those values positively through their behaviour. The following qualities will be examined in detail in the essay; corporate communication decision making motivation other character traits All the above character traits can be used by leaders to influence organisational culture and hence employee behaviour. First of all, there will be a need to change corporate communication in order to create an open and transparent organisational culture. This can be achieved through giving clear communication thus eliminating here-say among members of the organisation. This enhances the way employees perceive themselves and will also affect their behaviour (Robbins, 2004) Decision making within any organisation needs to be done in such a way that it enhances independence. Employees need to feel that their respective organisations trust them to the point of allowing them to make decisions within the organisations. Experts have suggested that organisations where there is less bureaucracy in the process of decision making are generally more efficient. The reason why this occurs is that most employees will not waste time trying to maintain protocol. Details of how mangers can achieve this will be examined in the essay. Leaders need to motivate their employees. There are various ways in which this can be achieved; through reward systems, through allowances, flexible working hours and holiday provisions. Employees can also be motivated by possessing greater autonomy in the decision making process. Details of how managers can achieve this will be analysed in the essay. The overall effect of motivation is that it makes workers more energised. This can create a culture of hard work and will be manifested through employee behaviour. These interlink age will be elaborated further in the essay. (Dessler, 2001) The essay will also look at other quality traits that managers can utilise to influence their employees. This can be achieved through justice and honesty when handling employee cases. Leaders also need to employ participative character traits in order to affect organisational culture hence employee behaviour. Participation means collaboration between leaders and employees during the execution of tasks. The validity of this argument will be further scrutinised in relation to organisational culture. Managers also need to understand their employees and use motivational tools that relate to their employees character traits. By doing this, employers will enhance a culture of hard work and this will propagated in employee’s behavioural traits. Introduction Organisational culture may be defined as the accepted norms and values that are associated with a particular company. These norms are seen as distinctive to a particular organisation and normally affect the way specific organisations go about implementing their organisational goals. These norms are also passed on from one group of the organisation to another. The most fundamental question that managers and other organisational stakeholders need to answer is what is the relevance of organisational culture to the way they go about their activities? Organisational culture is closely related to organisational strategy. Managers who normally experience problems are those ones who fail to merge organisational culture to their strategies. If new strategies are incompatible with the kind of culture prevailing at that time, then chances are they might fall fail. Numerous authors have explained how many companies have failed in their endeavours to change their organisation because they had a plan to reorganise and transform without looking at prevailing culture. (Locke, 1976) Organisational culture related to employee behaviour Organisational culture can be tackled in three realms; these are; behaviour and artefacts values assumptions and beliefs Assumptions and beliefs indicate all the underlying values that have been taken for granted by particular organisation. These are usually values that have become so common to a specific organisation that no one even notices that they are there. Values on the other hand are issues that determine behaviour. It should be noted that values are more internal and are only expressed through behaviour. The latter term; behaviour denotes the visible elements of culture prevailing within a certain organisation. These can be analysed through the organisational dress code, the way employees use technology in their tasks, how work spaces are divided and even the way top executives are treated within the organisation. All the above elements should be understood by managers and implemented in order to influence and affect organisational culture. Corporate communication It is essential to remember that any particular form of organisational culture is affected by the way employees, employers and shareholders communicate to each other. Organisational culture is reflected in the manner communication is made within the firm. Corporate communication normally refers to the way companies distribute or disseminate their information either externally or internally. Internal communication will refer to the way employees share information within their organisation and also the way suppliers, partners and investors will share knowledge with the company. Leaders should endeavour to create organisational cultures in which employees represent the best image of the company. (Brown, 1995) Corporate communication normally affects the way the company is perceived by the external market. It may involve internal relations, crisis communication, corporate social responsibility, issue management and change management. These are all very critical in the determination of how an organisation will go about implementing its tasks and objectives. Sometimes, there may be a need to change certain policies. This is something that will need corporate communication. If done in an appropriate manner, it can affect organisational culture in the future and consequently employee behaviour. Sometimes internal corporate communication may be done to check on the progress of a certain plan to be conducted by the company. Managers should ensure that their communication is done transparently. It should also be done in a compassionate manner in order to make the employees feel as though they are an important part of the organisation and should not be undermined by certain rigid communication procedures. It is also important to make sure that communication is done openly. Most managers make the mistake of letting rumours or here-say be the source of their communications. Most of the time, such employers will not bother correcting or rectifying information. This kind of communication normally persists in cases where there is a high system of hierarchy. Leaders need to realise that they have the ability to influence organisational culture hence employee behaviour through the types of communication that they adopt for their organisation. Good corporate communication is one in which all the virtues mentioned above are incorporated. (Bate, 1994) Leaders need to realise that they can utilise corporate communication to influence organisational culture hence employee behaviour as they are communicated to the consumer. Organisations that build a system of loyalty through open communication will instil these values and will make their employees trickle this down to their clients. Such employees will ensure that their clients’ needs are met through discussions with them and will therefore contribute towards their satisfaction. Such organisations will normally have greater competitive advantage in comparison to others in the market. Decision making Decision making processes are also ways in which organisational culture can be transformed thus changing employee behaviour and competitive advantage. Organisations where employees are; confused about their enumeration systems or those ones where employees’ job description contracts always come in late or those ones where new employees are never recruited on time, may have problems with employee behaviour hence service delivery. It is essential for leaders to employ the expertise and knowledge that its employees have in their decision making processes. This is because staff members are the ones who eventually have to carry the burden of those decisions. Leaders need to realise that employees have a lot of contact with clients and may be more knowledgeable about consumer preference. It is therefore wise to learn about those ideas from their employees. This will make employees more responsible and will instil an organisational culture that is full of cooperation. (Kilmann et al, 1986) CEO s and other types of leaders need to create a free environment where employees are allowed to think for themselves. This will go a long way in enhancing efficiency because too much bureaucracy slows down service delivery. Employees should be encouraged to contribute their views through regular meetings with managers or employers. This can also be topped up by freedom to elect an independent advisory group that will facilitate certain agreements between employees and their employers. Organisations that are characterised with top-down management structure and cultures rarely affect their employees’ behaviour and will be less effective in achievement of sustainable advantage. Decision making as a method of influencing employee behaviour and organisational culture is effective in that it allows employees to be prepared psychologically for business activity. Organisations in which decision making is largely left to the employee are characterised by fast and intellectual employees during treatment of clients. It should be noted that such employees are normally quite ready for nay occurrences in the firm since they contributed to its formation. Consequently, chances of meeting obstacles and objections during hours of business will be minimised by those employees and they will be more effective in their tasks. Examples of areas in which employees should be allowed to contribute to include aspects of products sold. Employees can make their contribution about how their product should be based on knowledge acquired from consumers. They could also give their ideas about pricing strategies. Through their interaction with clients, employees will have the ability to know what consumers are looking for in their area of interest are. Such issues will contribute towards better employee behaviour and hence organisational behaviour. (Benedict, 1934) Motivation Motivation can be seen as way of influencing employee’s behaviour in such a way that it will lead to positive results within the organisation. This is one of the most instrumental factors in the process of affecting employee behaviour and hence organisational culture. Motivation can boost an employee’s self esteem and will influence their capacity to work. Motivation is especially necessary in instances where an organisation is undergoing changes. At that time, there is a need for a motivational plan that will include all the new environmental factors that will come into play. This motivational plan should bring out the following aspects in the employees; confidence honesty integrity (Judge & Watanabe, 1993) Motivation can be achieved through a variety of channels. First and foremost, an organisation needs to implement rewards systems that create an atmosphere of enthusiasm amongst its employees. It would be preferable if an organisation links reward systems to organisational success. This is the fundamental principle behind best practice theories. In best practice theories, employees normally feel motivated to do better when they can see the results of the efforts./ At the same time, employers need to avoid linking performance with enumeration for specific individuals within its organisation. When employers adopt such a system of enumeration, then they will only be dealing with temporary solutions. Linking enumeration to individual performance usually creates negative energies in the organisation. Employees may look for shortcuts in order to meet their targets. Others may become hostile towards their counterparts. It is therefore important to adopt fair distribution systems in enumeration so as to maintain harmony and to create a culture of looking at the ‘bigger picture’. Another method that managers/ employers can use to motivate their employees is through the use of allowances. For example, they could [provide certain holidays and flexible working hours that could encourage their employees to work harder. Organisations should also endeavour to provide safe environments for their employees especially in the construction and industrial sectors. They could provide their employees with all the necessary resources to go about their daily activities. This will give them more morale to continue with their tasks because they know their health or well being is not in any danger. Another source of motivation stem from flexible organisational structure. Firms that allow employees to make their own decision or those ones that allow them to have some form of autonomy in their project group will go a long way in enhancing motivation within the organisation. Motivation can also be achieved by institution of training and development strategies. This can be achieved for both new and old employees. Motivation and training are interlinked; training instils employees with the necessary skills and knowledge necessary continue with their day to day tasks. Training done on a regular basis ensures that employees have confidence when handling clients or when doing other technical skills. This will contribute to the nature of service delivery in the company and there will be greater achievement of organisational culture. (Bartol et al, 2005) Overly, motivation gives employees the energy and drive to bring positive changes to the organisation. When managers use motivational tools regularly, they will create an organisation culture that has extremely motivated individuals; this will be manifested in their output or behaviour. The latter will be directed towards achievement of organisational goals and such companies will be way above the rest. Employing specific character traits to affect employee behaviour Managers with the right qualities have the ability to affect organisational culture and hence employee behaviour. Managers should endeavour to display attributes of justice and honesty. This can be achieved through the honesty during interaction with employees. When leaders need to solve disputes between their employees, they should do this in a fast and fair manner. The disagreeing parties should be accommodated effectively in this process. By being just, employers will be showing their employees that the company is on their side and this will go a long way in enhancing transparent organisational culture. Such a culture will be depicted by committed workers who have confidence in their organisation. (Allen, 1985) Another quality that should be emphasised by managers is the participative culture. This can be achieved by working with employees. Organisations should try their best to create an environment where employers and employees collaborate to complete tasks. There is nothing that will many employees over like a leader who ‘walks his talk’. Such employees will be encouraged to place more efforts or to go that extra mile because they realise that their employees will do the same too. Leaders could also try to be more understanding of their employees. They should try and learn their employees and understand what the most important things to their employees are. Some employees may be motivated to work harder by money. Some employees may be motivated by continuous challenges in their tasks. On the other hand, others may prefer seeing the satisfaction on clients’ faces. If employers can understand their employees as individuals, then they can customise motivational tools to create an organisational culture where most of the employees are satisfied by their motivational tools. This kind of culture will be depicted in the way most of these employees behave. (Weick, 1979) Conclusion Organisational culture is linked to employee behaviour in that the latter is an expression of the former. If managers try their best to institute changes in the organisation that influence organisational culture, this will be expressed by employee behaviour and can actually create competitive advantage. Reference: Allen, R. (1985): Four Phases for Bringing About Cultural Change; Oxford Kilmann, M. et al (1986): Gaining Control of the Corporate Culture; McGraw Hill Bate, S. (1994): Strategies for Cultural Change; Butterworth Heinemann, Oxford Benedict, R. (1934): Patterns of Culture; Houghton Mifflin, Boston Brown, A. (1995): Organisational Culture; Pitman Publishing, London Bartol, K, et al. (2005): Management: a pacific focus; 4th edition McGraw-Hill Book Company. Dessler, G (2001): Management, leading people and organisations in the 21st century; Prentice Hall Inc, New Jersey. Locke, E. A. (1976): The nature and causes of job satisfaction. In M. D. Dunnette (Ed.), Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Chicago; Rand McNally Judge, T. A., & Watanabe, S. (1993): Another look at the job satisfaction-life satisfaction relationship; Journal of Applied Psychology, 78 Robbins, S. P. (2004): Organizational Behaviour - Concepts, Controversies, Applications; 4th Ed. Prentice Hall Weick, K.E. (1979): The Social Psychology of Organizing 2nd edtn; McGraw Hill Read More