Organisational Culture and Organisational Behaviour

Every organization has a unique social and psychological environment that defines it and sets it apart from other firms within the same industry. This specific environment and way of operation are known as the organizational culture (Oliver, 2011, p. 08). Organisational culture defines the human resources management functions of a firm. This organization culture influences the way leaders to associate with their subordinates and the autonomy that they accord the latter (Achouri, 2011, p. 296). The tension between the two levels of workers in an organization is heavily due to the influence of values that define behaviors within an organization. The organization culture also defines how receptive a firm will be to changes in the market and business environment. Problem-solving is another area that heavily depends on the organization culture. This culture also affects how effective a firm is in motivating its employees, and also the welfare of teamwork and group work within the organization. Organisational culture has four main elements; stories, rituals, language, and material symbols among others. All these are elements that the employees of an organization should embrace for organization culture to have a positive influence on their productivity and relationships (Fink & Yolles, 2011).

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How organisational culture affects change reception

Organization culture defines the way and process of achieving goals within an organization. To progress in a culturally diverse business environment, there is need to adopt changes and new ways of doing things within the organization. However, there are barriers these changes are bound to face from the management and as well as employees too. One of these barriers includes the complexity of the proposed change. A firm needs to be prepared to adapt to the proposed change. However, it depends on what values the firm holds dear and what it considers important and worth implementing. Most changes, especially due to advancements in technology, come and go at such a speed that requires firms to be very apt and quick in their reception and application. However, if the management is afraid of taking risks, it would be impossible to keep up with other competitors within the industry (Skoll, 2016, p. 169).

Stories that circulate within an organization can determine how receptive a firm is to change. Sometimes, especially in firms with a history of employees overthrowing their leaders, the management might be slow in their adaption of changes (Tjosvold & Tjosvold, 2015, p. 70). Sometimes, these changes may require a high investment in the implementation and training process and therefore bring more loss to the organization than profit. In firms that are extremely analytical and cautions, this culture favouring slow adaption to change may be a good thing (Miller & Freeman, 2015, p. 630). Since the rate of innovations and inventions is very high, some firms may be quick to chase short-term profits without the consideration of the future state of the organization. Therefore, such firms that hold caution are likely to ensure they get the best of what technology has to offer by analyzing the dynamics to ensure quality. They are also likely to follow strategic planning to account for all the possible pitfalls in the implementation of change.

Employees, on the other hand, depending on their relationship with the management, are also likely to be barriers to the implementation of change (Aboutalebi, 2016., p. 540). The way the management communicates to the subordinates determines their attitude towards their job and also towards change. Language is very instrumental in influencing employees and cultivating positive relationships with them. Employees should feel like they are an integral part of the organization and that their feedback and opinions matter. When the communication is effective, and the organization culture allows the respect of employees and award of autonomy, implementation of change would be easy. Otherwise, employees can resist a change if they do not identify with an organization. If a firm has a history of disrespecting employees and not consulting them in the making of decisions, then the reception to change will be very poor. However, the leadership can influence the employees to accept change. Transformational leaders have a way of influencing others to be as passionate about change and goals as much as they are about them. The relationship between the management and the surbodinates is also essential and is a direct function of the organization culture. Employees’ behaviour is another aspect of an organization that organization culture determines.

Organisational Behaviour and Organisational Culture

Organization behaviour is the study of how people interact within an organized group. It is a crucial relationship that affects the productivity of an organization and how easy or difficult it can be to adopt changes and develop as a business (Bechtoldt, 2015, p. 486). Organization behaviour requires that people understand each other to get along effectively. People within a firm have different personality traits that may cause friction in the required interactions within a firm. One of the elements of culture that organization behaviour employs is norms. Norms are informal understandings that govern the way people in social situations behave and relate. They are based on respect and understanding among people. These people should be sensitive to the needs and values of others and stick to the set norms that govern society. Employees should respect the boundaries of others to ensure cohesion in the workplace and cooperation in the completion of tasks.

These norms within an organization define what acceptable and unacceptable behaviour is (Koszembar-Wiklik 2017, p. 103). Norms ensure that employees stick to their assigned tasks, and do their work without interfering with the work of others. In organizations without a strong sense of respect in their culture, observance of norms is absent, and employees may not respect each other as well (Christopher & Goodenow, 2012, p. 260). Such firms also entertain and do little to reduce bullying among the employees. The result is a reduction of productivity and progress among them. With such a culture, communication and articulation of ideas are difficult. Employees, especially those bullied, have no confidence in their presentation of ideas to the management.  Therefore, the firm stands to lose out on a good idea simply by entertaining the wrong kind of culture among the workers.

Communication climate is another aspect of organisational culture that affects organisational behaviour. Each firm should strive to create a sense of security and safety among the employees to promote cohesion and cooperation. Employees need to trust that their organisational leaders will respect their opinions and take their ideas seriously (Christopher & Goodenow, 2012, p. 265). Without such a communication climate, it is impossible to utilize the value and competencies of these employees fully. Workers need to know that they will receive the credit they deserve for their contribution of ideas and labour into the organization (Drumwright, 2017). They also need assurance of their job security and their position in the organization. These employees also deserve a chance to grow professionally and personally such that the firm adds value to them as they work towards achieving the goals of their organization. They need this kind of inspiration to prove loyal. Therefore, motivation is another role and function of human resource management. Organisational culture has a lot to do with motivation.

Motivation

Firms everywhere invest in motivational activities to ensure they show appreciation to their employees. Motivation is a method of promoting productivity among employees (Smith, 2016, p. 70). It is the reason why people do the things they do and make the decisions they make. Without it, there is no point of behaving in a certain way or working towards a certain goal. Therefore, motivation is a management function that proves instrumental in ensuring productivity and enriching the working environment. Organization culture also influences the way a firm relates to employees as pertains motivation. Sometimes, it is the needs of employees that motivate them to be good at their jobs. Fear of losing income due to a demotion, suspension or complete loss of a job can inspire a person to pursue their goals in an organization, thus helping the organization in general. However, the management of firms also seeks ways of motivating employees and inspiring hard work and creativity.

Rituals are one element of organization culture that affects the motivational effect of the management towards employees. Employees need to predict rewards for their good work to pursue success in different contexts. Rituals have to do with traditions, which are part of the organisational culture. These rituals are also instrumental in the promotion of positive interactions among employees, which boosts productivity, and cooperation. The human resources departments fashion these rituals in such a way that employees will gain inspiration and also recognize the need for cooperation among themselves too.

Organizations recognize two forms or types of motivation, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation. According to the Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory, also known as the two-factor theory, certain factors in the workplace result in job satisfaction, while another set is responsible for dissatisfaction over the same (Pegler, 2012). Therefore, motivation efforts should gear on emphasizing on the former while downplaying and eliminating the latter. However, what one employee finds satisfactory brings disdain to another. Therefore, it is essential to identify the needs of every employee and defining ways of increasing their level of job satisfaction (Wnuk, 2017, p. 36). That is a function of the human resource department and should be considered vital. The management should treat employees as wholesome beings, with emotions, rather than just factors of production for the success of the firm.

Intrinsic motivation refers to the self-applied motivational strategies that have to do with internal satisfaction and the needs of a personal emotionally (Keller, 2009, p. 270). It has everything to do with satisfaction the employees seek. When they find their work satisfying, they will do everything possible to excel at it. Therefore, during training and recruitment, the management should ensure that each employee has their needs met to promote productivity. It is the point where the question of the best-fit person for a position comes in (Smith, 2016, p. 71). An employee may be very dedicated and willing to work, but will need an environment that best brings out their skills and competencies (Thompson & McHugh, 2009, p. 310). Therefore, giving them a role they do not find satisfying will result in unmotivated employees who will be quite unproductive in their work. Extrinsic motivation, on the other hand, has to do with external rewards (Keller, 2009, p. 257). These include bonuses, better working hours, trophies, and vacation days, among others. They are the external benefits that an employee is bound to get when they do well in their job. As mentioned above, these rewards have to do with the rituals of the organization. If they have a habit of rewarding salespeople who record the highest number in a year, the salespeople will do their best to close those sales. However, as much as employees seek these rewards and recognition, they can never achieve some goals without teamwork. Each employee has their skills and strengths. When combined, each of them can contribute to achieving a certain goal.

Teamwork

Organisations have to promote a culture of teamwork to ensure continuity in practice of the same. There is a difference between group work and teamwork, with the latter being more effective in the achievement of goals than the other. In group work, there’s just coordination of activities, where each member does their role without a care of how the other person achieves their goal. However, in teamwork, there is the coordination of activities, but with a similar goal and purpose. All the members of a team are committed to meeting the goals of the organization and work together, pulling each other along the way to achieve these goals (Fleming & Ward, 2013, p. 50).

Some benefits result from the promotion of teamwork in an organization. During the formulation of teams, the human resource department focuses on the process of pooling ideas and skills in various functions and fields. Each of the members of a team offers a unique set of skills that are vital in the completion of a task. The result is efficiency in the achievement of goals. Teamwork also promotes diversity, by offering different perspectives to the group, thus utilizing the skills and resources available to them (Nguyen, 2016). Teamwork also promotes the transfer of skills among the team members, thereby building the potential of the team. It is also easy to inspire passion and hard work in a team setting. Teams also offer an opportunity for the team members to develop and improve their communication skills. Teams require patience and listening skills, which are virtues in organisational behavior.

. As much as teamwork has a wide range of benefits and advantages, some drawbacks result from the promotion of teamwork. Efficiency might also be an issue that challenges the effectiveness of a team. Coordinating many people may encounter challenges that have to do with differing opinions and views. For example, if a certain section of a team proposes the investment into certain equipment, convincing the rest of the team to endorse and support the idea might be a challenge. Teams also fail when the leadership is ineffective, leading to great inability to solve conflicts and manage deadlines of these tasks (Nguyen, 2016). The failures of one team member can jeopardize the progress and success of the entire team and organization. There is also associated lack of flexibility when people are in a team. It is because all activities are coordinated in such a way that the entire team moves in synchronization.

There are challenges that teamwork encounters in spite of its associated benefits. One of the main challenges has to do with the different personality traits (Henry, 2009, p. 20). Coordinating the ideas and approaches to people with entirely different thoughts is hard. Since teams are also about cooperation, it may take more time to achieve tasks than when each person concentrates on their task. There may also be an issue of disengagement where it concerns teams. This issue result when there are an unclear vision and mission hence no direction for the team members to follow. This issue also closely associates with lack of unclear goals set by the management. Another challenge that teams face is the possibility of ‘free-riding’ within the team. Since the success of the firm is evaluated in general, some members may take advantage of the efforts of others and slack in their tasks and responsibilities (Nguyen, 2016).

Conclusion

There is a strong correlation between human resource management and organization culture.  Management of people requires that an organization considers their motivation, and uses their personalities to propel the organization towards achieving goals. The elements of organisational culture affect organisational behaviour in a firm, affecting how easily they coordinate their activities in teamwork.

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