Communication Between Management And Workers example essay topic

The term Organizational Behavior (OB) refers to the way in which people behave in an organization, and how that behavior affects your organization, either positively or negatively. A formal definition is as follows, "Organizational Behavior is a field of study that investigates the impact individuals, groups, and structure have on behavior within organizations for the purpose of applying such knowledge towards improving an organization's effectiveness". (Robbins, 2001) It is something that managers use to measure the effectiveness of their employees. Up until fairly recently, I don't believe there was a precise term for it. Managers have always needed a way in which to measure their workers. If they didn't, how would they know whether they were doing the job set out for them?

More to the point, how would they know if their workers were able to help their organization achieve the goals of the company? For instance, at my current job I sit on the HIIPA committee. The goal of this committee is to make sure the company as a whole is meeting the federal guidelines for the privacy of medical records. (I work for a physician's clinic.) One of the problems that we have encountered is tying to balance the act of meeting these regulations while at the same time offering the patients with fast, courteous patient care. The problem is with all of these regulations come a large amount of paperwork for the patient. These HIIPA regulations call for the privacy of the patient's records, but at what cost?

I have listened to patients grumble about the time it now takes to get in for an appointment. OB can lend a hand in determining if we really have the correct people in place to achieve this fine balance of customer care and federal satisfaction. Another subject I would like to take a look at as it relates to OB is in the worker himself. What kind of worker is more valuable to the company?

One that displays a no- Organizational Behavior 3 nonsense, hard-nosed attitude? Or the kind of person who has a knack for listening to people. The sort of person who knows how to really communicates with others and can motivate you by pushing the right buttons. I believe I have both kinds of people at my work. I can think of one doctor in particular who doesn't seem to care about the inner workings of the clinic. He seems like the kind of person who is concerned mostly about what is best for him.

An old school sort that is reluctant to change. Don't get me wrong. He has a large patient base and treats them well. But as far as actually listening and communicating with others, his skills are, well, shall we say lacking. On the other hand, I can think of another doctor who does have those so-called soft skills necessary for good communication. He listens to his staff and seems to realize that the workers under him play a vital role in the direction the clinic is heading.

It is no surprise, then, that one sits on the board and makes decisions as to the future of the company and one does not. Which are better skills to have? I believe both are important. However, if you are in a managerial position your people skills, or OB skills, should be honed. Both of these attributes are necessary to a company's success.

If your business has nothing but people who are technically driven with no idea as to how to talk to their co-workers and customers, do you really think that company has a chance to grow? On the same token, if your organization was filled with people who had the soft skills mastered but had no hard skills in which to perform the job then, again, your company doesn't have much of a chance. Finally I would like to discuss OB in how it fits into an organization's future. Working at my present job I do see a certain amount of time dedicated to the task of improving communication between management and workers, feedback from workers to Organizational Behavior 4 management, and the ongoing struggle of trying to improve communication between upper and lower management. Is an organization correct in pursuing a greater level of communication within?

Absolutely! Businesses stand to gain a great deal in the study and practice of OB. However, I want to stress a point here. I also believe a company can over-stress the research of OB.

For example, when I was an undergraduate one of my classes had to do with studying companies and their expansion, or, in this case, their demise. One company in particular, a hotel actually, (the name escapes me) was so wrapped up conducting surveys and researching employee behavior, that it lost site of its goal - to make money by outperforming the competition. A company must balance employee survey with hard-nosed business sense. The importance of OB is as great as having the best guy on the block build cars for you; he knows his stuff. But does his behavior and attitude reflect in a favorable light for your organization? Robbins, S.R. (2001).

Organizational Behavior New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.