Organizational Communications
Positive feedback
Find new avenues of growth and development
Hawthorne Effect
Findings of the Hawthorne study:Environmental factors had a slight influence on productivity at first, attention from managers/researchers was key to productivity -Productivity increases when more attention is paid to them
Real meaning
Philosophers such as Martin Buber (I-THOU) says understanding and empathy are not enough. Rather, you need genuine communication between people that transcends differences and recognizes a common humanity ●Not as highly recognized ●Uncommon in many corporations ●Difficult to achieve But can create a more meaningful, dynamic work environment ●Highest level of dialogue
Practical View: Jim Collins and Jerry Porras- often called cult like
authors of Built to Last, a study of practices that account for companies' long-term success -Collins and Porras suggest that an organization's longevity can be sustained by a culture that preserves its core purpose and values while remaining open to change and opportunity in a dynamic world. This type of corporation creates a strong, homogenous culture.
Homeostasis
Self-regulation and ability to maintain a steady state
physiological needs (Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs)
basic needs to survive; ex: competitive salary
Equitable Transaction
all participants have the ability to voice their opinions and perspectives, everyone has a voice -n equitable transaction is one in which all participants have the ability to voice their opinions and perspectives Voice is the ability of an individual or group to participate in the ongoing organizational dialogue In most organizations, a few voices are loud and clear, while others are muted or suppressed At a minimum dialogue requires that communicators be afforded equitable opportunities to speak
Looking-glass self
an image of yourself based on what you believe others think of you
5 elements of management #4: Coordinating
bind together, unify, and harmonize activity and effort
Organizations
collections of people who work together and coordinate their actions to achieve a wide variety of goals or desired future outcomes
urgent organizations
companies whose main challenge is to shorten the time in which employees can respond to customers and to one another
turbalent environment
constantly changing and needing to adjust, permanent white water rafting
All theories are Partisal
the story that is told is the story is favored; one-sided
anticipatory socialization
the voluntary process of preparing to accept new norms, values, attitudes, and behaviors
Openness
Open to the environment
The Changing World of Work
Outsourcing Access to more information-- and more communication as a result -Job Individual Work Experience Environment
Coopetition
a blend of cooperation and competition- cooperating with a competitor
psychological contract
a description of what an employee expects to contribute in an employment relationship and what the employer will provide the employee in exchange for those contributions
Weicks Loosley Coupled Systems:
a system in which the individual components are not so thoroughly bound together that a change in one breaks the other -Type/ degree of Interdependence -used to better understand organizations -conveys the image that coupled events are responsive but that each event has its individual identity and the coupling can vary over time ex: GW and all schools inside
Human Relations
spotlight on individual needs
symbolic interaction VS behaviorism
symbolic interaction: the ongoing use of language and gestures in anticipation of how the other will react; a conversation -interaction between people that takes place through the use of symbols behaviorism: behaviors as meaning
Empathic Conversation
the ability to understand or imagine the world as another person understands or imagines it -collective mindfulness in organizations -Appreciating differences in perspectives Text makes note of the fact that Western communication in organizations and in general largely focuses on what is right. When employing empathy, it is important to recognize the subjectivity of life experiences and opinions. It is not always even necessary to qualify someone else's statement/viewpoint as better or worse than another's
Anthropomorphism
the attribution of human characteristics or behavior to non-human things -Organizations are non-human but we often use words like suffering, growing, developing, cutting to describe orgnizations
Universalism
the ethical system stating that all people should uphold certain values that society needs to function
organizational assimilation
the process by which newcomers learn the nuances of the organization and determine if they fit in
Gareth Morgan: The Organization as an Organism
"Goals, structures, and efficiency now become subsidiary to problems oof survival and other more biological concerns" 1)Adapt 2)Learn 3)Interdependence 4)Survival -Population Ecology -Organizational Ecology -Coopetition
Chester Barnard: (1886-1961)
"Organizations by their very nature are cooperative systems and cannot fail to be so." -Barnard looked at organizations as systems of cooperation of human activity, andnoted that they are typically short-lived. According to Barnard, organizations are not long-lived because they do not meet the two criteria necessary for survival: effectivenes sand efficiency. Effectiveness, is defined the usual way: as being able to accomplish stated goals. In contrast, Barnard's meaning of organizational efficiency is defnied organization as the degree to which that organization is able to satisfy the motives of the individuals. -Functions of the Executive (1938) -Authoritative Communication -Incentives
Eupsychia
"The culture that would be generated by 1,000 self-actualizing people on some sheltered island where they would not be interfered with" -physchogogiv or growth promoting
Flexible mental model
- A mental model is a frame of mind and/or a pattern of beliefs that shapes how an individual interprets and interacts with an organization and the world around them -Often it's important to put your perspective into perspective people have different mental models
How newcomer assimilation occurs
- A new employee's initial expectations are violated, so they attempt to make sense of their job and the organization -the newcomer learns requirements and "normal" patterns of behavior ex: joining a basketball team
Advantages of Loosely Coupled Systems
- Ability to withstand change -More effective long term -Easier to maintain
Fayol's Power
- Advocated the centralization of decision making and respect for authority -He viewed discipline as a respect for agreed-upon rules and not solely respect for position
General Systems Theory (1968)-Ludwig von Bertalanffy,
- All phenomena can be viewed as a web of relationships among elements, or a system -All systems have common patterns, behaviors, and properties that can be understood and used to develop greater insight into behavior
Newcomer Assimilation phases
- Anticipatory Socialization - Organizational Assimilation - Transition to full member
Sequential interdependence
- Assembly line: each part builds on the previous work -You need someone to finish their part before you do yours
Eupsychian Management Policy (Maslow)
- Assume everyone is to be trusted -Assume in all your people the impulse to achieve -Assume that there is no dominance-subordination hierarchy in the jungle sense or authoritarian sense -Assume the preference for working rather than being idle -All human beings, not only eupsychian ones, prefer meaningful work to meaningless work
Counterculture
- Behaviorists believed in malleability of human nature -we are all born equally in possibilities that can be shaped by the environment -Maslow believed that human nature was not indefinitely malleable but each is born with needs that when allowed expression by the environment foster growth -Maslow - visions of individual potential
Fayol's Structure
- Believed in strict hierarchy with a clear chain of command --> Scalar Chain (Line of Authority) -Advocated division of labor through departmentalization (the grouping of similar activities together
Attitude (Fayol)
- Believed that employees should subordinate their personal interests to those of the organization -Encouraged employee initiative, or the capacity to see a plan through to completion, and believed that supervisors should work hard to build positive employee morale
8 common themes (Peters and Waterman
- Bias for Action -Close to the Customer -Autonomy and Entrepreneurship -Productivity through People -Hands-on, value drive -Stick to the knitting -Simple form, lean staff -Simultaneous loose-tight properties Waterman and Peters found 8 common themes which they argued were responsible for the success of the chosen corporations and became pointers for the managers ever since
disadvantages of loosely couples system
- Can be redundant and inefficient -Deter people from working together -Affects greater cohesion
Systems - Organism Metaphor
- Compare organizations to complex organisms that must interact with their environment- Descriptive, explanatory approach to Organizational Communication
Disadvantages of Dialogue
- Conflict- Groupthink- Takes a longer time than faster modes of communication like memos
Organizations as sets of interrelated subsystems
- Contain wholes within wholes -Individuals belonging to groups, groups belonging to departments, departments belonging to divisions, etc -Interdependence (pooled, sequential, reciprocal) -Goals -Processes vs. Individuals
Weick's use of System's Concepts
- Environment: internal info as well as physical environment -Interdependence of system components -Requisite Variety (§Decision rules and structures used when equivocality is low §More complex communication cycles and systems needed for uncertain information environments)
Human Relations 1924-1933
- Family Metaphor- Influenced by Historical Events like the Great Depression, WWII, and new ways to understand human behavior -(Spotlight on individual needs) -- Influence by the ideas of Symbolic Interaction -Importance of human needs in the workplace -Looks at employee-manager relationship -Influence of individuals in organizations -Interpersonal needs of workers -Family metaphor -Mary Parker Follet, Elton Mayo, Chester Barnard
Common features of visionary organizational philosophy
- Fervently held ideology -Indoctrination -Tightness of fit -Elitism
Advantages of Dialogue
- Having open dialogue can lead to brainstorming- Empowers individuals- If it is true dialogue, people wanna hear what you say- Enhances loyalty
Rensis Likert (1903-1981)
- Helped us understand high-involvement organizations and SUPPORTIVE RELATIONSHIps (all interactions should support self-worth and have open comm_ -Four Systems
Assets of Hierarchy (if used correctly)
- Hold people accountable for getting work done - Place people with right competency at each organization level - Allows separation of work by complexity
Drawbacks of Hierarchy
- Inefficiency - Lack of initiative - Poor adaptability - Low morale - Anti-creativity - Too many layers - Managers don't add real value
Newcomer transition
- Length of transition depends on the organization -Once transition occurs, newcomers feel more comfortable and start to individualize their position
Reaching Familiarity
- Newcomers search for information that carries a sense of urgency -They often have difficulty performing their jobs until they reach familiarity
Sources for Newcomers
- Official company messages -Coworkers and peers -Supervisors -Other organizational members (Assistants, Security Guards) -Customers and outside organizations -The employee's assigned tasks -Usually direct questions = high risk -Solution is disguising questions by having conversation
Organizations as Living Organisms
- Organizations as clusters of interrelated human, business, and technical systems that interact with the environment -Corporate survival - balance internal needs and adapt to the environment -Organic systems that remain open to new challenges
3 Views of Organizational Culture
- Practical View -Interpretive View -Critical/Postmodern View -1. Culture is seen as patterns of behavior and their interpretation and is formed and transformed mainly by the process of communication. 2. Everyday communication is as important as other, more notable symbolic expressions, i.e., logos, annual reports, and infrequent rituals. 3. In addition to words and actions, all types of non-verbal communication such as machines, artifacts, and work processes are studied. 4. Culture is considered a nexus of national, local, familial, and forces outside the organization, requiring broader patterns of interaction within society. 5. The legitimacy of multiple motives for studying culture, from improving corporate performance to overthrowing existing power structures, is acknowledged.
Katz and Kahn
- Published The Social Psychology of Organization - helped us understand what people do to contribute to an organization's effectiveness -Application of general systems theory to organizations as open systems with a focus soon open systems of communication: §Social not physical systems, created by people and §Need of system for maintenance inputs to keep human variability in check
Shared vision
- Replacing strict power structure/chain of command with "connective control" -All members share a common organizational vision
(Organizational Communication as) Transactional Process
- Transactional process model- People play the role of sender and receiver simultaneously ex: conversation, boss and employeee
Small Organizations
- flexible, entrepreneurial, speedy
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
-(level 1) Physiological Needs -(level 2) Safety and Security -(level 3) Relationships, Love and Affection -(level 4) Self Esteem -(level 5) Self Actualization
Reciprocal interdependence
-- Positive: deviation amplifying; new ways to grow -Negative: deviation counteracting, restore status quo -Brainstorming at same time
Behaviorism
--Behaviorism: All behavior can be measured -Stimulus ---> Response --B.F. Skinner: + behavior that is + reinforced will reoccur, esp. when intermittent --e.g. incentives such as raises in pay, equal working hours with superiors
EupsychianOrganizations
--Maslow's idea of organizations with a therapeutic work situation: ¨One that advanced the ultimate understanding of psychological health ¨Where people could achieve optimum levels of functioning ¨Because organizational practices focus on human potential and embrace the holistic nature of human beings
Symbolic Interactionism
--Stimulus --> Interpretation --> Response -Human beings act towards things on the basis of the meanings that the things have for them -The meaning of such things is derived from, or arises out of, the social interactionism and communication that one has with others -These meanings are handled in, and modified through, an interpretive process used by the person in dealing with the things he/she encounters
Why the ideal bureaucracy cannot be realized
--The ideal bureaucracy cannot be fully realized for several reasons 1. It is not possible to rid all extra-organizational influences on member behavior (Things that happen to employees outside of the organization impact their behavior while in the organization, ex: stress as home influences work) 2.Bureaucracy does not deal well with non-routine tasks(Strict rules and procedures are difficult to work around for non-routine tasks. A bureaucracy cannot handle tasks it does not have a procedure for.- ex: getting off the waitlist for a class) 3.people vary in terms of rationality(People have bounded rationality, meaning they can interpret and perceive messages differently. Not everything is 100% clear. The same rules do not work for everyone.- ex: assignment is due wed, when is it actually due?
Douglas McGregor (1906-1954)
--Theories of human work motivation and management-●Created while working at MIT Sloan School of Management in 1950s ●Rooted in motivation theory along works of Maslow → hierarchy of needs -"[T]he essential task of management is to arrange things so people achieve their own goals by accomplishing those of the organization"
Likert (System I): Exploitative and Authoritative
--Threat, fear & punishment -Hierarchy -EXAMPLE: (sweatshops)
Importance of Environment in which organization exists - must organize with environment in mind:
-1.Importance of the environment in which organization exists - must organize with environment in mind: §Boundary Scanning §Changes in task, context §Bridging critical boundaries §Develop strategic respons
Edgar Schein's 6 Formal Propositions of Organizational Culture
-A pattern of Shared Basic Assumptions -Assumptions are invented, discovered, or developed by a given group -The group learns to cope with its problems of external adaptation and internal integration -Ways of how the group worked well are to be considered valid -These ways can be taught to new members of the group -Taught as the correct way to perceive, feel, and think in relation to the problems
Rewards (Fayol
-Advocated fair remuneration for well-directed efforts, foreshadowing the potential profit of sharing as compensation system -Believed in the value of a stable workforce - most concerned about the employee's perception of equity in pay and other issues -Proponent of stable tenure for employees
Basic Underlying Assumptions
-Assumptions determine how group members think, perceive, interpret, think, judge, and feel about things. (make sense, translate information)
Taylorism = Fordism
-Both focused on understanding mass production and new methods that could make it more efficient. -Both cut costs, reduced judgment and skills needed by workers -Both reduced worker independence and thinking
Founding Perspectives
-Classical(Historical backdrop but not "dead" subjects, Largely prescriptive approaches) -Human Relations (Spotlight on individual needs) -Human Resources (Spotlight on role of employees contributing to organizational functions)
F.W. Taylor's contribution to organizational theory:
-Clear delineation of authority and responsibility -Separation of planning from operations -Time and motion studies -Incentive schemes for workers -Task specialization -Eliminate uneven work -Reduce soldiering & Increase productivity
Follett's 3 key points Human Relations Approach #2: Communication
-Communication (Only cooperation among people working together in groups under visionary leadership produced excellence in the workplace, neighborhood or community)
practical view: Strong Culture by Deal and Kennedy
-Culture is "the way things get done around here" -Business enhanced by developing StrongCultures -4 components of a Strong Cultures: 1. Values- beliefs and vision (3M: innovation, Prudential: stability) 2. Heroes- exemplify values of organization (Steve Jobs, innovation and market savvy) 3. Rites/Rituals - ceremonies to celebrate values (awards for new ideas, company picnic, ETMO) 4. Cultural network - institutionalize and reinforce values (newsletters, informal social interactions, etc)
3 Views of Organizational Culture: Interpretive View
-Descriptive approach of a process that is -emergent, -complicated, -not unitary, -and often ambiguous. -It is not a thing that can or should be managed -It is sensemakingin an organization -Culture is a process that is socially constructed in everyday communicative behaviors among all members of the organization -Culture cannot be managed, it emerges from symbolism or discourse -Leaders don't create cultures, members do - Meaning is created in dialogue, stories, and narratives - Schein -Critique:Different narrators tell different stories about the organization, based on their own interests and values; Little agreement on how to define symbolism. Inadequate exploration of power dimensions or change initiatives
Fayol and Classical Administration
-Developed managerial principles rather than work methods -The organizationas a whole, theflow of information within an organization, & an understanding of how an organization operated
McDonaldization / Amazonization
-Efficiency -Predictability -Calculability (quantity vs quality) -Non-Human vs. Human George Ritzer's term describing the spread of bureaucratic rationalization and the accompanying increases in efficiency and dehumanization
Functions of the Executive (1938) by Barnard
-Establishing and maintaining a system of communication -Securing essential services from other members -Formulating organizational purposes and objectives
Frederick Winslow Taylor (1856-1915)
-Father of Scientific management of business -in his quest for efficiency and systematic management - Organizations are inefficient and lack systematic management- Ideas from his roots and personality, even as a child- Ideas from his own work experience as a common laborer to a chief engineer -"...THE BEST MANAGEMENT IS A TRUE SCIENCE, RESTING UPON CLEARLY DEFINED LAWS, RULES, AND PRINCIPLES, AS A FOUNDATION"
Classical Scientific School
-Find the best way to get the most work done examining the work processes & worker skills -Focus: Productivity of individuals, specifically competent workers
urgent organization
-Generally more turbulent -Short time frame to get a product from the thought stage to the market quickly
Classical Management Approaches
-Historical backdrop but not "dead" subjects -Largely prescriptive approaches -assumptions: supervisors control workers, workers are silent receptors of management information;nPeople are lazy and don't want to work -influenced by: Industrial revolution, uProtestant Ethic and notion of hard work (Benjamin Franklin) Divisions of labor, hierarchy, bureaucracy(Adam Smith, Karl Marx) Systematic Management, Scientific Management, Bureaucracy, Administrative Management, Human Relations
Newcomer Assimilation: Frederic Jablin:
-Involves sense making: "How things really work around here." -Often involves a sense of urgency to understand the organizational context -- When a new member of an organization is integrated into an organizations' culture -Involves Sensemaking: "How things really work around here" -Often involves a sense of urgency to understand the organizational context
3 Views of Organizational Culture: #3: Critical/Postmodern
-Looks at issues of power and domination associated with the development, maintenance, or transformation of a particular culture -Culture has multiple meanings and truths that change with one's perspective - Culture is composed of ongoing dialogues that are variously complicit (participants accept or go along with the dominant interpretation or meaning) and engaged (participants challenge the dominant interpretation with an alternative explanation) - culture is a site of multiple meanings and organizational truths that change with one's perspective - Integration perspective: culture is consistent and clear; members agree about what to do and why; little ambiguity - Differentiation perspective: shows differences and asserts that cultural manifestations can be inconsistent with one another; subcultures may coexist in harmony, conflict, or indifference; org cultures are political domains that have trouble with genuine dialogue - Fragmentation perspective: ambiguity is inevitable and pervasive and is a necessary component of dialogue; consensus and dissensus coexist in a constant pattern of change
Weick'sBeliefs about Sensemaking
-Making sense of environmental uncertainties & reducing equivocality (sensemaking) -►Organizations exist in highly complex environments ►Same facts can be interpreted in various ways by different observers ►Equivocality reduction: People organize to make sense of equivocal inputs and enact this sense back into the world to make the world more orderly -What one expects is hat one sees -Important to make sense of thr world, organize informaton and cause/effect to be comofortable -How we decide what to "notice" and what to ignore→ cues we ignore do not actually exist for us -Its onoing and retrospective -It is how we develop plausible images that rationalize what people are doing -Action becomes disorganized -Efforts are made to construct plausible sense of what is happening -Plausibility normalizes the breach, restores the expectation, enables project/action to continue
Follett's 3 key points Human Relations Approach #3: Manager and Worker Relationships
-Manager and Worker Relationships (Empowering workers by providing them with shared information - (Democratic Ideals))
Authoritative Communication as proposed by Barnard
-Managers should obtain authority by treating subordinates with respect & competence. -Authority rests with the subordinate rather than superior. -- Subordinates comply when communication is understood, aligns with both personal and organizational interests, and mentally and physically able to comply
Culture
-Meaningful order of persons & things revealed through a group's symbols -The collective programming of the mind which distinguishes one group or category of people from another - Hoffstede -A construct that is Not directly accessible to observation, but is inferable from behavior and useful in predicting behavior -Environment & atmosphere, compensation, standards & policies, people, leadership, organization -Whenever people come together, there is a culture Cultures help you understand behavior and values
Elements of Culture in Organizations
-Metaphors ((we are one big happy family, lets gather the troops, etc) -Rituals ((yearly meetings, employee of the month, traditions of the etc) -Stories ((stories of the organization- how it was formed) -Artifacts: (what we can see!) -Heroes and heroines (Heros like Steve Job) -Performances (s (What do people do that reinforces the culture of the organization?) -Values
Weicks Models of Organizing
-Models of Organizing (both DESCRIPTIVE): ---•Making sense of environmental uncertainties & reducing equivocality (sensemaking) ----Loose vs. tight coupling (how people and work are linked)
Likert System II : Benevolent and Authoritative
-Motivated through incentive (financial) -No longer as 'hostile' as System I -Still a strong and present hierarchy
Likert (System III) Consultative
-Motivated through rewards and degree of involvement in their work -Managers use constructive criticism -Major decisions still made by managers (minimal trust)
Population Ecology
-Natural Selection -the study of factors that cause populations to increase or decrease
Henri Fayol(1841-1925)
-One of the most influential contributors to the concept of management -•he described how an organization "should be"run -•First to develop comprehensive theory and guidelines for management as "Administrative Science"in General and Industrial Management, 1916 -Identified the need for teaching management in universities and colleges -broad administrative theory
Classical Approaches to Organizational Design: Predictability
-Operates/is fixed by rules and standards
Ways and implications of understanding situated individuals
-Organizational context: Behavior is guided and constrained by their respective organizational and institutional contexts (ex: Line employee vs CEO) -Cultural context: Ethnic, religious, geographic, national, and philosophical contexts all shape how meaning is created and interpreted (ex: French vs Algerian) -Timing: Time can frame constraints and behavior, communications, and meanings (ex: 5 min call vs 1 hourcall) -Overlapping contexts: Dissonance and contradictory behavior can result when the impact of different contexts conflict (ex: Moral vs Legal) -Avoiding sterotypes: Complex process of constructing meaning might generate context based biases (ex: Different Backgrounds)
Theoretical Assumptions of Human Relations
-People are tractable, docile gullible, uncritical -People want to be led -People want to feel united and bound to something bigger
Learning Organizations: Peter Senge
-Peter Senge's 5 features of organizations that seek to replace traditional chains of command with a more systematic way of thinking, operating, and working together -Learning organizations ask individuals to seek comfortability in the unfamiliar by distancing themselves from the personal. -System thinking -Personal mastery -Flexible mental model -Shared vision -Team learning
Martin Buber: I-Thou
-Philosopher, Martin Buber -I-THOU says understanding and empathy are not enough -Need genuine communion between people -Communication must transcend differences -Communication must recognize a common humanity
Surface Knowledge: Artifacts
-Physical Space, layout -Technological Output -Written & Spoken Language -Methods of Communication -Behavior of Group Members -things we can seee
3 Views of Organizational Culture #1: Practical View
-Prescriptive approach ((it tells us how Culture should be, that we can use Culture as a tool to create the organization that we want)) -Culture is an organizational feature that can be leveraged by managers to create more effective organizations -Culture is purposeful, and can be strong -Culture is a rational instrument designed by top management to shape the behavior of employees - relationships can be created between cultural elements (stories, rituals) and organizational outcomes (org commitment) - Deal and Kennedy, Peters and Waterman - Companies with strong cultures can be highly profitable - Leaders help employees understand and work according to organization's vision and values Critique: -May require employees to give up freedoms in exchange for membership; May seem too controlling (Theory X), strong cultures can become addictive cultures, or abusive and dysfunctional
Harmful effects of bureaucracy
-Robert Merton identified what he saw as the dysfunctions of bureaucracy. -Bureaucracy stifles creativity with its sea of rules and SOPs. -It is also overly pragmatic and lacks a visionary element. -Occasionally rules dominate goals.
Classical Approaches to Organizational Design: Patterns of Authority
-Scalar chain of command (one man- one boss)
Sensemaking is Focused on and by extracted cues
-Sensemaking uses extracted cues. ►If we notice sensory cues, we try to make sense of them - although we never have complete information ►We tend to make "bits" of data = entire situations and shape meanings of what we believe situation is
Classical Approaches to Organizational Design: Organizational Structure
-Specialization of tasks (division of labor) -Network of parts & Departments (Focus on complementary functions)
Human Resources
-Spotlight on role of employees contributing to organizational functions
Human Resources perspective
-Spotlight on role of employees contributing to organizational functions -Contributions of all employees in reaching organizational goals -Maximize both organizational productivity and individual needs satisfaction -All people not just managers have untapped resources (obligation of managers to tap these) -Participative decision-making -More creativity -Douglas McGregor -Abraham Maslow -Rensis Likert
Classical Approaches to Organizational Design: Efficiency
-Standardization, precision (subordination of individual to interest of organization) -Replaceability
Organizational Ecology
-Survival of the fittest organizations -A theory that explains how companies succeed or fail by examining them as part of broader environments or markets. Focuses upon the life cycle of companies (from founding to death), and argues that the success of any given company depends upon its situation within a broader eco-system.
Taylor's Scientific Management Perspective
-Theoretical approach to organizations that emphasizes: -organizational design, -worker training for efficiency, -chains of command, -division of labor." -Find the best way to get the most work done examining the work processes and worker skills
Does bureaucracy theory hold up?
-There have been both theoretical and applied challenges to bureaucracy as the only model of formal organization in the modern world. --Horizontal models of formal organization ---Decentralization of organizations ---Postmodern organizations
Mary Parker Follett: A Visionary (1868-1933- mother of modern management
-Wanted to change the model of strict divisions of labor to a model of teamwork and open cooperation -Presented a new way of thinking of social processes: Human Relations Approach -- 3 key points: Leadership, Communication, Manager and Worker Relationships -Teddy Roosevelt's personal consultant on nonprofit, non-gov, and voluntary organization
Systems thinking
-a way of monitoring the entire system by viewing multiple inputs being processed or transformed to produce outputs while continuously gathering feedback on each part -For one member to succeed, all members must succeed
5 elements of management #2: Organizing
-build up the structure, material, and human needs of the undertaking
Placid Environment
-rate of change is low and the future is fairly predictable -calm
Organizational Culture Life Cycles/ How do organizational cultures begin?
-usually with the founders, allthough there is no linear timeline -Birth, Midlife, Organizational Maturity (this is often where the organization dies off, doesn't bring in new culture) --No set timespan of each cycle
Karl Weick
-•Professor at University of Michigan -The Social Psychology of Organizing, Sensemakingin Organizations -Models of Organizing (both DESCRIPTIVE): ---•Making sense of environmental uncertainties & reducing equivocality (sensemaking) ----Loose vs. tight coupling
Likert's Principle of Supportive Relationships
-╺All interactions should support self-worth ╺Open communication ╺Emphasizes supportive relationships
Newcomer Assimilation 3 phases
1. Anticipatory Socialization (vocational , organizational) 2. Organizational Assimilation 3. Transition to Full Member
Four Systems (Likert)
1. Exploitative and Authoritative 2. Benevolent and Authoritative 3. Consultative 4. Participative
Weber's 6 key elements of an ideal Bureaucracy
1. Hierarchy of Offices 2. Fixed Division of Labor 3. Rules to Govern Performance 4. Separation of Private Life from Work 5. Selection of Personnel based on qualifications; 6.treat employees equally 7.Employment as a career; no arbitrary dismissal *Universalism vs Particularism
Distributed intelligence
All members of the system play an important role in system's ongoing self-organization
14 principles of management
1. Specialization of Labor 2. Authority 3. Discipline 4. Unity of Command 5. Unity of Direction 6. Subordination of Individual interests 7. Remuneration 8. Centralization 9. Scalar Chain (Line of Authority 10. Order 11. Equity 12. Personnel Tenure 13. Intiative 14. Espirit De Corps;
How do we know a culture?Levels of Culture
1. Surface Knowledge: Artifacts 2. Daily Enactment: Values 3. Basic Underlying Assumptions
4 components of strong cultures
1. Values- beliefs and vision (3M: innovation, Prudential: stability) 2. Heroes- exemplify values of organization (Steve Jobs, innovation and market savvy) 3. Rites/Rituals - ceremonies to celebrate values (awards for new ideas, company picnic, ETMO) 4. Cultural network - institutionalize and reinforce values (newsletters, informal social interactions, etc)
McKinsey 7s Framework
1. shared values 2. skills 3. strategy 4. structure 5. systems 6. style 7. staff Peters and Waterman were concerned with how organizations were organized and managed •Used these seven "variables" to create a visual framework, which became known as the McKinsey 7S Framework. •They used their 7S framework as a lens through which to evaluate organizational excellence.
4 essential elements of Taylor's Scientific Management
1."One best way" based on time and motion studies 2. Scientific selection of workers: Match the worker to the job- Certain people are more suitable than others for certain jobs. 3. Scientific training and pay of workers (Unless they increase pay, people would not work harder- Bonus incentive) 4. Inherent difference between management and workers: workers seen as machines, made efficient by removing wasted effort
4 types of dialogue in organizations
1.Mindful Communication 2. Equitable Transactpn 3. Empathic Conversation 4. Real Meaning
3 main ideas of Contingency Theory
1.Organizations are systems that need careful management to balance internal needs and to adapt to environmental circumstances 2.There is no best way of organizing, it depends on the kind of task or environment at hand 3.Different types of organizations are needed in different types of environments
Hawthorne Studies
1927 - 1932 -Plant of majority women who assembled telephone equipment where there was low employee satisfaction and high turn over -Women separated into two groups to analyze light exposure and other environmental factors on work productivity -Findings saw that lighting didn't have an effect, but attention from managers was key factor that affected productivity
Dialogue as mindful communication
A mental and relational activity that is purposeful and strategic Vs. mindless communication -A mindful approach to organizational communication enables to understand talk as a mental and relational activity that is both purposeful and strategic The more conscious of our communication we are, the more mindful we become How do we become more mindful? Analyze communication situations and developstrategies for accomplishing goals Think actively about possible communications choices, as well as the potential consequences Adapt messagesin a timely and thoughtful manner when seeking to influence listeners Evaluate the feedbackor responses we receive as an indication of how successful we were
Organizational Culture is....
A process that is socially constructed in everyday communicative behaviors among all members of the organization
Feedback
A system of loops that connect communication and action
Incentives proposed by Barnard
As for incentives, he proposed two ways of convincing subordinates to cooperate: tangible incentives and persuasion. -Money and other tangible inducements; -Personal non-material opportunities for distinction -Desirable physical conditions of work -Ideal benefactions, such as pride of workmanship etc.
Elliot Jaques
Association- Group of equals; equal distribution of power and authority- Best for idea generation, exploration of beliefs, professional colleagues Bureaucracy- Hierarchy, chain of command, levels of power and control- Best to deliver goods and services
Organizations as Dialogues
Balanced communication in which each individual has a chance to speak and be heard
Elitism
Belonging, specialness, superiority, and secrecy are hallmarks of strong cultures. It can be reinforced by the secretive culture of an organization that can prevent employees from discussing work in public
Modern Contingency Theory: Paul Lawrence and Joy Lorsch
Built on 2 principal ideas: -1.Different kinds of organizations are needed to deal with differing market and technological conditions 2.Organizations operating in uncertain/turbulent environments need to achieve a higher degree of internal differentiation
Transformation
Change energy taken into the system into a new form
in defense of bureaucracy
Charles Perrow argues that the machine ought not to be blamed rather those that misuse it to further their personal goals
Theory X (authoritarian management style)
Classical theory- assumes that Employees dislike work, are lazy, avoid responisiblilty, need supervision, have no incentive, and THEY NEED REWARDS TO ACHIEVE GOALS --Micromanagement and control
(Organizational Communication as) Strategic Control
Communication is "a tool for influencing and shaping one's environment" -Using conversation to shape the message, goal oriented
Interpretation and Action
Communication is interpretation and action that can create, constrain, define, and interpret the world
Contingency Theory: Lawrence and Lorsch
Contingency Theory -It is adapting one's organization to its environment (-this refers to the internal and external environement) -Organizations must organize with the environment in mind- conguence with the enviornment -Is possible to identify various organizational forms ranging from mechanistic to organic - Effective firms reach a higher quality of performance when adequate internal differentiation is achieved, depending on the organization's external environment -The more homogeneous and stable the environment, the more formalized and hierarchical the form -The more turbulent of an environment, the more flexible forms need to be taken -Ecological Perspective: those organizations that can best adapt to the environment will survive
Self Actualization (Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs)
Creativity spontaneity, problem solving, lack of prejudice, morality, acceptance of facts. -Allocating more challenging and stimulating responsibilities
Situated
Depends on the context; What works for one organization won't work for another -effective communication varies by: -Company •Industry •People involved •Organizational cult
Negative feedback
Deviations from the norm cause action to correct the deviation
Equifinality
Many ways to arrive at the same end
pooled interdependence
Dividing up work and everyone gets a part -All working together
Synergy
Dynamic interaction where the whole is greater than the sum of parts
Personal mastery
Each member of the group must self-reflect and seek personal development; this includes a high sense of curiosity and commitment to learning
Likert (System IV): Participative
Employees are: -involved in the decision making process -Comfortable sharing opinion -Working together as 'teams'
Organizational Sensemaking
Enactment, Selection, Retention
Contingency theory
Environment may determine the structure of a system
Contextual Factors in Org Comm
External, Internal, Personal
A Solution: Bureaucracy
Formalize rules to protect workers and create job security. Has since developed to what we perceive as a slow, red tape system.
Daily Enactment: Values
Group members justify their actions and behaviors based on their values and beliefs. How do people justify their actions? What are their values?
The Problem: Particularism
Hire and fire workers based on race, religion, sex, etc. ➢Bosses have too much power. -Conflicts with US ideals of democrac
Why Study Theories
Historical: explain past, reflect era when they emerged Metaphorical: Use language to describe processes; points out functions we might miss, might de-emphasize important aspects
Abraham Maslow
Humanistic psychologist known for his "Hierarchy of Needs" and the concept of "self-actualization" -Maslow - visions of individual potential -- Eupsychian Management- -Strongly influenced my McGregor The Human Side of Enterprise (1960) -Belief that McGregor had not gone far enough with Theory X and Y
Practical View : Peters and Waterman
In Search of Excellence -Sought to integrate theory and practices -Integrating management theories and practice with human beings and organizations -Strong organizational cultures yield strong companies
Organizational Subsystems
Inputs that energize the organization: human, financial, info, material resources --> Throughputs --> Organizational Outputs: Goods, services, effectiveness, influence on future Environemt Strategy Technological Human-Cultural Structural Managerial
Dialogue enables us to work with
Integrity and Ethics
Requisite variety
Internal complexity of a system: internal regulatory mechanisms must be as diverse as the system's environment
Problem with Theory X and Y
It is assumptions based and not based on reality- (If you act in theory xand you have employees are actually motivated, they'll be angry If you act in theory yand you have employees who are slackers, nothing gets done) -importance: finding the balance between theory x and theory y
Organizations: do they have a concrete, material existence
It is the process and individuals apart of the organization that make it an organiziation Organizations are abstract concepts
Perishable
Last year's communication, practices may not work this year (ex: using an encyclopedia or calling- need to update these things to reflect the growing and evolving world)
Follett's 3 key points Human Relations Approach #1: Leadership
Leadership (Coactive" control NOT "coercive" control- power with others, not power over)
Double loop learning
Learning to learn, questioning basic assumptions
Large Organizations
Lots of money, Deep pockets, reputation, hierarchy, slow (would work best in placid environments)
Ideal Managerial Hierarchy
Managers accountable for work of others, sustain team, set direction and get workers to follow- The problem is not that hierarchy doesn't work - we need to learn to use it properly- Too many layers have little distinction therefore little value; too few layers have too big a jump and little value
Integrity requires
Mindfulness, Dialogue, Courage -respect others, respect yourself
Top of hierarchy
More complex problems that need complex mental functioning
Overlapping Contexts
Multiple contexts guide each individual's actions and interpertations
Sensemaking is Retrospective
Only after we perceive something, do we decide what happened
Medium Organizations
No entrepreneurial or financial edge
Systems theory
Organizational effectiveness depends on coordination of the total enterprise rather than individual components
Indoctrination
Organizations with strong cultures seek to instill their core ideology through orientation programs, training, organization-specific language, etc.
Jerry Harvey
Prayers of Communication and Organizational Learning -The only way for organizations to learn is through prayer -Any caring, truth-seeking communication that is informed by a spirit of transcendence
Systematic soldiering (slacking)
Problem: Getting employees to work at max capacity at all timesrather than minimum output level -}Causes: ◦Full capacity may result in need for fewer workers ◦Piecework system of pay ◦Rule-of-thumb methods of training ◦Group Interactions social pressure among workers to keep productivity down and wages up
Ethics is a system of
Rules, Duties, Morality to guide behavior -doing things right and doing the right things
Organizational Communication is
SITUATED & PERISHABLE -As the world constantly changes so does the definition of effectiveorganizational communication
Fervently held ideology
Strong cultures explicitly articulate their overriding goals and values and ensure that employee behavior is guided and consistent with the ideology
Tightness of Fit
Strong organizational cultures employ an extensive screening process to ensure that those hired are good fits with the culture.
Hierarchy: Stratified Employment
System Tenets:- 1 or more persons held accountable for the work of others- Employment is a function - at least 1 manager- Enforce accountability by the right too veto appointments, assign tasks, evaluate performance, and remove person from role
Systems Approaches
System is: A complex set of relationships among interdependent components or parts -It is GREATER than the the sum of its parts -RELATIONSHIPS are what make a system -Open systems interact with their environment System = Individuals + Relationships -he whole is greater than the sum of its parts Works in a synergistic way-- enhances aspects Relationship sare what make a system Open Systems interact with their environments
negative entropy
System's attempt to sustain itself by importing energy
Entropy
Tendency of closed systems to deteriorate and run down
The Father of The Human Relations Movement: Elton Mayo (1880-1949)
The "Social Man" Era (1930-1950) -Harvard Professor - Belief in limits on individual rationality and the importance of interpersonal relationships -his beliefs: -Society comprises groups, not isolated individuals. --Individuals are swayed by group norms, and do not act alone in accord with self interests. --Individual decisions are not entirely rational, but influenced by emotion. - Classical and Scientific --> Human Relations- Hawthorne Studies
Theory Y (participative management style)
The assumption that employees like work, are creative, seek responsibility and challenge, dont need direction, and motivated by self -trusts workers and workers are self motivated
Particularism
The belief that circumstances dictate how ideas and practices should be applied and that something cannot be done the same everywhere
new social contract
The employment relationship in which job security is fleeting and tied to the fit of employees skills fit with the organizations needs at a specific time.
External Foundation
The individual's thoughts and actions stem from the interpertation and negotiation of contexts to create meaning
(Organizational Communication as) Balance of Creativity and Constraint
The moment to moment working out of the tension between individual creativity and organizational constraints -scale, balance
Social needs (Maslow's hierarchy of needs)
The needs for love, companionship, and friendship-the desire for acceptance by others -Work, social events
Situated Individual Model of Organizational Communication
The situated individual is connected to others through a network of shared, mutually negotiated, and maintained meanings. -The situated individual is a person conducting the everyday business of constructing the evryday business of constructing and maintaining the social realities in which he or she lives (Eisenberg, 46). -These meanings provide location, identity, action and purpose to the individual. They tell me where I am, Who I am, what I am doing, how to do it and why... Thoughts and actions are based on interpretation of contexts in learning about others •Always more than one context --Their behavior is both guided and constrained by their respective organizations (Eisenberg, 46) They continuously construct and maintaining the social realties in which they live (Eisenberg, 46) They connect to others through shared, negotiated, and maintained meanings which provide location, identity, and purpose (Anderson, 1987) -Importance to organizational comm: the power to create or constrain meaning is alient in every organization: 1. Individual: Components of organizations Complex actors make uniform analysis impossible and unhelpful 2. Organizational: Mission and message impacted by shifting social realities Reframing contexts can be lucrative 3. Environmental: Collectively defined social reality establishes the "rules of the game" for organizations Stakeholders may create or constrain the viability of an organization's context Individuals define meanings in response to their situations and other's interpretations Every individual is defined by multiple contexts Situated individuals can create, define, and destroy organizations through communicating
Organizational Communication as) Information Transfer
The way information flows from one person to another in a linear model -one way communication, sending something out -pipeline -Examples: one memo from a boss sent to an entire company
All theories are Problematic
There is always more than one point of view' -People have different points of view, theories leave us with more questions
Team learning
Through effective communication and dialogue, a group "becomes open to the flow of a larger intelligence" -collective thought -Be curious through effective communication and dialogue, a group becomes open to the flow of a larger intelligence (David Bohm) Collective thought Individuals input is better when everyone is working together -David Bohm: when you add everybody together, it creates something that is much better
Max Weber (1864-1920)
To comprehend behavior, one must learn subjective meaning people attach to actions Universalism: fair standards and equal treatment for all.
Ideal Bureaucracy
Weber characterized this by a hierarchy of authority and a system of rules and procedures designed to create an optimally effective system for large organizations.
Interdependence
Wholeness of the system and its environment and its interrelationships with individuals within the system (members depend on each other)
5 elements of management #1: Planning
forecast a plan; examine the future and draw up plans of action
All theories are Partial
no one theory answers it all, not one theory is better than another one
personal
individual feelings, beliefs and values about what is happening in an organization
5 elements of management #3:Commanding
maintain activity among the personnel
The environment of an organization
need to know the environment in which an organization in operating in order to understand how it works Placid <---> turbulent
3 P's of Theories
partial, partisan, problematic
5 elements of management (Fayol)
planning, organizing, command, coordination, control
Esteem Needs (Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs)
prestige and feeling of accomplishment; Feedback via appraisal, generally praising staff
Eupsychian Management (1965)- Maslow
rearranging an organization to help employees satisfy higher level needs -industrial or societal management that attempts to consider the basic human needs as Maslow viewed them -Maslow fused his notions about importance of work, needs of the individual, the supportive nature of the environment on individual behavior
Safety Needs (Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs)
security, safety (ex:Safe working conditions)
5 elements of management #5: Controlling
see that everything occurs in conformity with policy and practice (in the sense that a manager must receive feedback)
Reification
viewing/regarding an abstract, immaterial concept as if it were a concrete thing ex:political parties, sports, group projects, virtual organizations, families, extracurriculars, etc
internal
what is happening inside the organization
External
what is happening outside the organization
Boundary Spanning
when individuals form relationships outside their formally assigned groups Interactions among team members and individuals and groups who are not part of the team
Open systems encourage Alignments between systems
§Identify and eliminate dysfunctions §Openness: open to the environment §Requisite variety: internal complexitity: internal regulatory mechanisms must be as diverse as the systems environment §Matching subsystems §Equifinality: you can accomplish the same goal in a number of diffrent way -Open Systems: thrive by the input of energy -Negative Entropy
Learning :►Chris Argyris& Donald Schon
§Single loop: Most common style; problem solving.. purely problem solving, get a problem, get a solution, then we have learned---> learning to get a solution §Double loop: More than problem solving, this learning style reevaluates and reframes goals, values, etc... learning to learn, and quesitoning basic assumptions
Requisite Organization
¨Organization that improves the sense of well-being & self-actualization of employees -moral "rightness" component -responsible, moral organization
¨How to Create moral organizations in society? What causes dysfunction?
¨Problem - poor structure & systems, not deficient employees ¨Fix system rather than employees ¨Employees work at full potential, efficiency, effectiveness, and job satisfaction: --capability matches job complexity, --Employees' capability match managers 'to improve leadership/ communication, --right number of organizational layers, --Defined managerial authority/accountability --Felt fair compensation re: job complexity
Contexts are
•Complex •Interpreted to make sense of what we see and hear •Often constructed and evolve into reality •Often taken for granted
4 Perspectives/ approaches to Organizational Comm
•Transactional Process •Information Transfer •Strategic Control •Balance of Creativity & Constraint •Dialogues
Self and Other
•We construct "others" in relation to our conception of self •Complex, dialogic - constrained by our culture, race, gender, subconscious, etc. •Self and others are partners in constructing meaning
Sensemaking is Social
►Actions and meanings have a social context even when we are alone ►Generalizations, prototypes, stereotypes and interdependencies simplify sensemaking
Sensemaking is Driven by plausibility rather than accuracy
►Any map will do if it gets people orienting themselves and moving in their sensemaking ►Complete accuracy and full information are impossible ►Mental models need not be correct, just plausible, coherent and reasonable
Sensemaking is Ongoing
►Communication is an ongoing process of making sense of circumstances and events ►Previous knowledge helps us to learn from and update actions and meanings
Environment
►Different environments favor different species of organizations -►Different environments favor different methods of organizing ►Congruence with the environment is key to success
3 parts of Sensemaking
►Enactment ►Selection ►Retention
Feedback
►Feedback §Positive- deviation amplifying; new ways to grow §Negative- deviation counteracting, restore status quo
Sensemaking has 7 Characteristics
►Grounded in identity construction ►Retrospective ►Enactive of sensible environments ►Social ►Ongoing ►Focused on and by extracted cues ►Driven by plausibility rather than accuracy 1. Grounded in identity construction 2. Retrospective 3. Enactive of sensible environments 4. Social 5. Ongoing 6. Focused on and by extracted cues 7. Driven by plausibility rather than accuracy
Enactment
►Organizational environments are not only physical, but are informationenvironments that do not exist out there in an objective manner ►We create environments through actions and patterns of attention and talking (enactment) ►In Enactment, different members give information different meanings, creating different information environments and provide the answer to the question, "What's the story?" -No monolithic, singular, fixed environment detached from & external to people
Selection
►Reduce the number of possible meanings ►Use retrospective attention, mental models, articulation to reduce bracketed material ►Generate a plausible story that is tentative and provisional
Sensemaking activated by:
►Same or different? ►Action becomes disorganized ►Efforts are made to construct plausible sense of what is happening ►Plausibility normalizes the breach, restores the expectation, enables project/action to continue
Retention
►Selected story gains solidity ►When the story is retained it becomes more substantial as it relates to past experience, connects to significant identities, and is used as guidance for further action or interpretation
Sensemaking is Enactive of sensible environments
►Take in cues as data and make sense of information that fits with the rest of one's concept of the situation ►How we respond to the cue further shapes the situation and our reality ►We create and then find what we expected to find ►Determines the basis for action EX: policeman saying "I thought they were reaching of a gun"
Weick's Sensemaking Key points
►What one expects is what one sees ►Important to make sense of the world, organize information & cause/effect to be comfortable ►How we decide what to "notice" and what to ignore (Cues we ignore do not actually exist for us) ►It's ongoing and retrospective ►It is how we develop plausible images that rationalize what people are doing
Sensemaking is Grounded in Identity Construction
►Who we think we are (identity) shapes what we notice and how we interpret ►We "know" who we are by interactions with others ►If images of us change, identity may be destabilizedand we are more receptive to new meanings ►When people face an unsettling difference, that difference often translates into questions such as who are we, what are we doing, what matters, and why does it matter? ►Recipe: §How can I know what I think until I see what I say?
Organized Contexts
●Each context has its own constraints that limit creativity & individual freedom and suggest constructions of reality that assist in interpretation ●Interpretation of behaviors is complicated by multiple contexts
Tom Burns and G.M. Stalker
⦁British researchers ⦁One of the most influential studies ⦁Famous for establishing the spectrum of "mechanistic" and "organic" approaches to organization and management
Organic Approach
⦁Used by organizations rooted in more turbulent environment ⦁Need to have flexibility to be successful ⦁Meetings are popular ⦁Exchange information and identify problems ⦁Example: Google Headquarters (-work organization more geared to the contingencies of changing situations -meetings create an alternate system outside the formal work hierarchy)
Mechanistic Approach
⦁Used by organizations rooted in stable environment (predictable) ⦁People in organization know what is expected of them ⦁Problems treated as temporary deviations from norm ⦁Example: being a college student