chapter 1, stephen p. robbins and nancy langton, fundamentals of organizational behaviour, second...

Chapter 1, Stephen P. Robbins and Nancy Langton, Fundamentals of Organizational Behaviour, Second Canadian Edition.Copyright © 2004 Pearson Education Canada Inc.

Chapter 1

What is Organizational

Behaviour?

Chapter 1, Nancy Langton and Stephen P. Robbins, Fundamentals of Organizational Behaviour, Third Canadian Edition 1-2Copyright © 2007 Pearson Education Canada

Chapter 1 Outline

• Defining Organizational Behaviour

• OB: Making Sense of Behaviour in Organizations

• How Will Knowing OB Make a Difference?

• Today’s Challenges in the Canadian Workplace


What Is Organizational Behaviour?

1. What is organizational behaviour?

2. Isn’t organizational behaviour common sense? Or just like psychology?

3. How does knowing about organizational behaviour make work and life more understandable?

4. What challenges do managers and employees face in the workplace of the twenty-first century?


Organizational Behaviour

• . . . a field of study that investigates how individuals, groups and structure affect and are affected by behaviour within organizations, for the purpose of applying such knowledge toward improving an organization’s effectiveness.


Why Do We Study OB?

• To learn about yourself and others

• To understand how the many organizations you encounter work.

• To become familiar with team work

• To help you think about the people issues faced by managers and entrepreneurs


What is an Organization?

• A consciously coordinated social unit, composed of two or more people, that functions on a relatively continuous basis to achieve a common goal or set of goals

.


Flexibility

Control

Mentor Innovator

BrokerFacilitator

Monitor Producer

Coordinator DirectorInte

rnal

Focu

sExte

rnal F

ocu

sRoles and Skills in the New

Workplace


How Companies are Changing

“Cool” Companies• Believe casual days are

progressive• Believe titles are obsolete• Don't impose on employees'

personal time• Allow staff to come and go as

they please • Offer all employees stock

options• Let employees make decisions

that affect their work• Offer assistance with childcare• Have minimal bureaucracy (red

tape)

“Old” Companies• Think casual Fridays are pitiful• Charge employees for perks and

incentives• Hold events on employee time• Have flex time: but only

between 7:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m.• Hide financial results from their

employees• Encourage employee input --

but rarely act on it• Employ rigid hierarchies (chain

of command)• Stop at “open door” policies


Exhibit 1-1 Challenges Facing the Workplace

Workplace

Organizational Level

• Productivity• Developing effective employees• Global competition• Managing in the global village

Group Level

• Working with others• Workforce diversity

Individual Level

• Job satisfaction• Empowerment• Behaving ethically

Today’s Challenges in the Canadian Workplace

• Challenges at the Organizational Level– Productivity

– Effectiveness

– Efficiency

Developing Effective Employees

Organizational Citizenship Behaviour (OCB)– Discretionary behaviour that is not part of an

employee’s formal job requirements, but that nevertheless promotes the effective functioning of the organization.

Putting People First

• committed workforce and positively affects the bottom line.

• “more control and say in their work.”

• How do you Put people first?

Global Competition

• In recent years, Canadian businesses have faced tough international competition, as well as from other companies within our borders.

• Reduce costs, increase productivity, and improve quality.

Managing and Working in a Multicultural World

• Managers and employees must become capable of working with people from different cultures:


Exhibit 1-4The Layers of OB

The Organization

NegotiationConflictCommunicationGroups and teams

Power and politics

The Group

EmotionsValues and attitudesPerceptionPersonality

Motivating self and others

The Individual

ChangeOrganizational cultureDecision makingLeadership

Groups and teams


How Will Knowing OB Make a Difference?

• For Managers

• For Individuals


Exhibit 1-3 Toward an OB Discipline

Social psychology

Psychology

Behavioural science

Contribution Unit ofanalysis

Output

Anthropology

Sociology

Political science

Study ofOrganizational

Behaviour

Organizationsystem

LearningMotivationPerceptionTrainingLeadership effectivenessJob satisfactionIndividual decision makingPerformance appraisalAttitude measurementEmployee selectionWork designWork stress

Group dynamicsWork teamsCommunicationPowerConflictIntergroup behaviour

Formal organization theoryOrganizational technologyOrganizational changeOrganizational culture

ConflictIntraorganizational politicsPower

Organizational cultureOrganizational environment

Behavioural changeAttitude changeCommunicationGroup processesGroup decision making

Group

Comparative valuesComparative attitudesCross-cultural analysis

Individual


The Rigour of OB

• OB looks at consistencies

• OB is more than common sense

• OB has few absolutes

• OB takes a contingency approach

Exhibit 1-2 Research Methods in OB

Source: J. R. Schermerhorn, J.G. Hunt, and R. N. Osborn, Organizational Behaviour, 9th Edition, 2005, p. 4. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of John Wiley & Sons, Inc.


Bottom Line: OB Is For Everyone

• Organizational behaviour is not just for managers.

• OB applies equally well to all situations in which you interact with others: on the basketball court, at the grocery store, in school, or in church.


Summary and Implications

• OB is a field of study that investigates the impact that individuals, groups, and structure have on behaviour within an organization.

• OB focuses on improving productivity, reducing absenteeism and turnover, and increasing employee job satisfaction and organizational commitment.

• OB uses systematic study to improve predictions of behaviour.

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