Organisational Behaviour
Historical Antecedents
of Organizational
Behaviour
Scientific Management and Human Relations Movement
Introduction
Industrial Revolution
Scientific Management
Administrative Management
Contents Human Relations Movement
Systems Theory
Contingency Approach
Institutional Theory
Charateristics of OB today
Conclusion
Group Members
Organisational Behaviour
Introduction
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History
1760-1840 Early 1900s 1930-50 1950-60
Industrial Revolution Scientific Management Human Relations Movement Systems Theory
Robert Owen, Ander Ure Fredric W. Taylor N. Hawthorne, Elton Mayor Ludwig von Bertalanffy
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Industrial
Revolution
(1760- 1840)
Poor working conditions
+ long working hours
+ low wages in factories
= inhumane and unsustainable
Cotton mill in New Lanark, Scotland:
Shorter working hours, education for children, and
better housing for workers. A role model for other
factories in Britain and Europe.
Robert Owen
Owen’s
Factory Reform:
Responsibility of factory owners for workers’ welfare and better working
conditions. A system of factory inspection and regulation was proposed
Contributions: to ensure protection of workers against exploitation.
Education:
Essential for the development of workers and society as a whole.
Establishment of schools for workers’ children and introduction of
innovative teaching methods.
Owen’s advocacy for
workers' rights and his
vision for a more Co-operative Movement:
equitable and
Workers should own the means of production and work cooperatively
cooperative society to share the profits. His cooperative community model served as a
continues to be an prototype for similar communities across Europe and North America.
inspiration.
Labor Movement:
Labor unions, trade unions, and worker cooperatives are a means of
protecting workers' rights. Grand National Consolidated Trades Union
united workers across different industries.
Andrew Focus on Science
Ure His work focused on the relationship b/w science, technology, and
society. Scientific knowledge could be used to improve industrial
production, manufacturing processes, quality of goods, and working
conditions for laborers.
Cotton-Spinning mule:
Development of a more efficient and precise mechanism for spinning
cotton. Increased productivity and reduced labor costs.
Industrial chemistry:
The book titled ‘The Philosophy of Manufactures’argued that the use of
science and technology could improve the efficiency and productivity of
factories.
Andrew Ure
Andrew Ure’s
Development of technical education in
Contributions: Britain:
should be available to workers of all social classes.
Technical schools= skills and knowledge to operate and maintain the
machinery in factories + scope for social mobility
Andrew Ure's greatly
contributed to the Workers' rights and social reform:
development of
scientific knowledge, its Access to basic amenities like housing, healthcare, and education.
Responsibility of employers in this regard.
application to industry,
and in promotion of
education and workers'
Labour Unions:
rights.
Establishment of labor unions. Strongly advocated the improvement of
working conditions in factories, particularly for women and children.
Scientific Management
Early 1900s
Frederick W. Taylor was an American mechanical
engineer who sought to improve industrial efficiency.
He is regarded as the father of scientific management
and one of the first management consultants.
Frederick W. Taylor believed in an organization design
with the following attributes:
Studied the efficiency and productivity of
individual workers within manufacturing
industries.
Worker training could increase productivity.
Promoted Standardized job performance methods.
Implemented piece-rate-based incentive pay
systems.
Efficiency could be improved by planning, training,
and scheduling jobs.
4 Principles 1. Replacement of thumb rule
Scientifically study each part of a job and develop 'One Best way'
of F.W. Taylor
2. Co-operation
Co-operate with workers to ensure they use the scientific method.
3. Development of workers
Carefully select and train the workers.
4. Distribution of work
Work and responsibility should be distributed.
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Scientific Management
Positive Attributes Negative Attributes
Facilitated job specialization Labor opposed scientific
and mass production. management because its explicit
Demonstrated to managers goal was to get more output from
their role in enhancing workers.
performance and productivity. Critics argued that Taylor's methods
and ideas would dehumanize the
workplace and reduce workers to
little more than drones.
His objective was to make behavior
as predictable as possible so that
with the use of sophisticated
machinery ,production and efficiency
could be achieved.
Advantage Disadvantage
Mind trained for excellence No individual initiatives
performance. May demotivate workers
Better planning and decision-making. The stress of finishing work on time
Better utilization of resources. Managerial strictness may influence
Ability to control employees because feelings of pressure.
of specialists and repeat work. Suitable only for small organizations.
Enhanced Production. Chances of unemployment.
Reduced Wastage. May disturb the working
Lower cost of production. environment
Administrative Management
Administrative Management Approach, which is also known as the
mechanical approach', or the principles of administration approach'.
The focus of Administrative Management is on the formal organisation
structure. Accordingly, while the basic tool of analysis of Scientific
Management was the time and motion study, that of the
Administrative Management Approach was the formal organisation
chart. The general problem addressed by the Administrative
Management Approach theorists was the identification of the tasks
necessary to accomplish organisational objectives and the grouping
and coordination of these tasks in such a way that one maximises
organisational efficiency.
The Administrative Management Approach, as has been observed in
the social sciences encyclopedia, takes a deterministic view of social
action since the underlying assumption is that individuals will
maximize organizational efficiency independently of their own welfare
and with no thought for the relationship between the collective goal
and their own particular purposes. Urwick believes that the absence of
organizational design will make things illogical, cruel, meaningless,
and inefficient.
Secondly, the propounders of this Approach assume that there are
some principles that can be developed and are of universal
applicability. These principles are developed and evolved on the basis
of long experience and experimentation in industry and the army.
Views of
Henri Fayol Fayol is considered the founder of the
Administrative Management Approach. He
was born in 1841 and was an engineer by
profession. He worked in a mining company,
where he occupied the post of managing
director in 1888. It was during his tenure as
managing director that the company earned
huge economic gains. Fayol's theory is
mainly contained in two publications,
General and Industrial Management (1916)
and The Administrative Theory in the State
(1923).
Henri Fayol
Principles of Administrative Management
Division of labor: Work should be divided among Centralization: Authority should be centralized in a
individuals and groups to ensure specialization and single person or group.
efficiency. Scalar chain: There should be a clear hierarchy of
Authority: Managers have the right to give orders and authority within the organization.
expect obedience from subordinates. Order: There should be a place for everything, and
Discipline: Employees should obey rules and regulations everything should be in its place.
established by the organization. Equity: Employees should be treated with justice and
Unity of command: Employees should receive orders equality.
from only one supervisor. Stability of tenure: Employees should be secure in
Unity of direction: The organization should have a their jobs and should not be subject to frequent
single, unified direction in which all efforts are focused. turnover.
Subordination of individual interest to the general Initiative: Employees should be given the freedom to
interest: Individual interests should be subordinate to suggest improvements and take initiative in their
the goals and interests of the organization. work.
Remuneration: Workers should receive fair payment for Esprit de corps: Management should foster a sense of
their services. unity and team spirit among employees.
Human Relation Movement
Hawthorne studies
The Hawthorne studies consisted of a series of worker productivity
studies, which began around 1924 at the Western Electric plant in
Illinois, near Chicago. When the Hawthorne studies ended in 1932,
more than 20,000 employees had participated in some way. A team of
researchers led by george elton mayo carried out the studies.
The Hawthorne experiment consists of four parts.
1. Illumination Experiment.
2. Relay Assembly Test Room Experiment.
3. Interviewing Programme.
4. Bank Wiring Test Room Experiment.
Elton Mayo
Mayo (1880–1949) is regarded as one of the founding members of the management
discipline known as human relations.
Mayor is most known for his study from the 1920s and 1930s at the Hawthorne
Works of the Western Electric Company in Chicago.
Mayo and his colleagues found that social elements, such as coworker attitudes
and feelings of value, had a greater impact on worker productivity than physical
ones, such as temperature or lighting.
As a result of this discovery, Mayo created the idea of the "social man,"
emphasising the value of social and psychological variables in the workplace.
"Financial incentives vs social incentives"
The Human Problems of an Industrial Civilization (1933) and "The Social
Problems of an Industrial Civilization" (1945) are two of Mayo's well-known
works.
From 1926 until his passing in 1949, he served as a professor at the Harvard
Business School.
1. Illumination Experiment
This experiment was conducted
to establish a relationship
between output and
illumination.
It was concluded that there is
no consistent relationship
between the output of workers
and illumination in the factory.
So, there must be some other
factor that affected productivity.
2. Relay Assembly Test Room Experiment:
This phase aimed at knowing not only
the impact of illumination on production
but also other factors like length of the
working day, rest hours, and other
physical conditions.
The researchers concluded that socio-
psychological factors such as feeling of
being important, recognition, attention,
participation, cohesive work-group, and
non-directive supervision held the key
for higher productivity.
3. Mass Interview Programme
The objective of this programme was to make a systematic study of the
employees attitudes which would reveal the meaning which their “working
situation” has for them.
The findings confirmed the importance of social factors at work in the total
work environment.
4. Bank Wiring Test Room Experiment:
This experiment was conducted by Roethlisberger and Dickson with a view to
develop a new method of observation and obtaining more exact information
about social groups within a company
It was observed that the group evolved its own production norms for each
individual worker, which was made lower than those set by the management.
Because of this, workers would produce only that much, thereby defeating the
incentive system. Those workers who tried to produce more than the group
norms were isolated, harassed or punished by the group.
The Hawthorne studies showed that people’s work performance
is dependent on social issues and job satisfaction. The studies
concluded that tangible motivators such as monetary incentives
and good working conditions are generally less important in
improving employee productivity than intangible motivators
such as meeting individuals’ desire to belong to a group and be
included in decision making and work. Hawthorne studies
proved that job performance is strongly linked to social factors
and work-group norms.
Systems Theory: The Origin
The systems theory of organization has its
roots in biology and systems science.
However, it’s more commonly applied to
businesses and other types of organizations.
Ludwig von Bertalanffy first formalized the
theory in the early 1950s. His ideas became
the foundation for what we now refer to as
systems theory.
This concept broke away from classical
management theory that viewed organizations
as machines and moved toward a more
holistic view that sees them as networks of
people, procedures and activities.
The systems theory asserts that any organization is a single, unified system of interrelated
parts or subsystems.
Each part of the overall system is dependent on the others and cannot function optimally
without them.
This framework presents an organization as a natural ecosystem, where each element is
interdependent.
A computer is a perfect example of how systems theory works. Essentially, a computer is a
system made up of many smaller systems that have to work in coordination with one
another.
Components of an Organizational System
Environment:
It is the setting or location in which it operates. This can dictate the resources it has access
to, its relationships with other systems and even the nature of the organization’s activities.
If the organizational system itself is a business, then the environment might be the country,
region, county or city in which it operates. Each would also have its own environment. Since
you can describe anything as a system, the definition of the environment can change based
on what you’re describing as a system.
Inputs:
An organization requires some external inputs to enable it to conduct certain processes. In
the case of a business or company, these inputs are the major components of production,
like labour, raw materials, fuel or electricity.
Transformation process:
Once an organization acquires the necessary inputs, it can begin working to produce a product or
service from them. This is the transformation process and often represents the primary activity of
the organizational system. It’s also typically the aspect of the organization’s activities that’s least
dependent on the external environment. In the case of a business, the transformation process is
where it combines the labour of its workforce with other inputs to produce the desired output. This
also requires the use of tools, which it may also acquire from the environment.
Outputs:
Once the transformation process is complete, the organization has successfully produced its outputs.
These are primarily things like the goods or services that it intends to manufacture and later sell to
the market, which is part of the organization’s external environment. In the case of the car
manufacturer, the primary output is the automobiles that it intends to sell. There are other outputs
that result from this activity. These include the financial results of the sale of its primary output,
information from post-production checks like quality assurance and reviews from customers.
Feedback:
A properly functioning organizational system derives feedback from certain internal and external
elements, like customer reviews, quality assurance audits and financial results. The information that
you can derive from feedback enables you to alter your input requirements, such as new machinery,
alternative materials, different production processes or more efficient technologies. Although it
primarily affects your inputs, this feedback might also have an indirect effect on your transformation
process.
Contingency Approach
The contingency approach recognizes that different employees and organizations have
unique characteristics and contexts that affect their behavior and performance. As such,
managers need to consider various situational factors such as the task, the individuals
involved, and the organizational culture when deciding on the best management approach
to use.
The strength of this approach is that it encourages analysis of each situation prior to action.
It encourages managers to be flexible and adaptable in their management style, taking into
account the situational factors that affect the behavior and performance of their
employees. By doing so, managers can create a more productive and effective workplace
culture that supports the needs of individual employees and the organization as a whole.
Thus, it helps to use all current knowledge about people in the organisation in the most
appropriate manner.
Institutional Theory
Institutional theory considers the processes by which structures, including schemes, rules,
norms, and routines, become established as authoritative guidelines for social behavior.
Institutional theory, as applied to business organizations, is an approach to understanding
organizations and management practices as the product of social rather than economic
pressures.
Adoption and retention of many organizational practices are often more dependent on
social pressures for conformity and legitimacy than on technical pressures for economic
performance.
Social pressures might include ethics, peer activity, social norms, etc.
Characteristics of the field of OB today:
Organisational behaviour is a field of study that examines how employees behave within an
organisation. The following are some of its key characteristics:
1. Multidisciplinary: Organisational behaviour is an interdisciplinary field of study that draws on a
variety of disciplines, including psychology, sociology, anthropology, economics, and
management.
2. Applied: The knowledge generated by the field is highly practical and used to solve real-world
organisational issues.
3. Humanistic: Organisational behaviour recognises that employees are human beings with their
own personalities, motivations, and values, and seeks to create a work environment that respects
and supports them.
4. Dynamic: Organisational behaviour recognises that change is constant in organisations and seeks
to understand and manage the processes of change.
5. Comprehensive: It examines all aspects of employee behaviour, including individual and group
behaviour, attitudes, and performance.
6. Strategic: Organisational behaviour looks at how employee behaviour contributes to the
achievement of the organisation's goals and objectives.
7. Contextual: Organisational behaviour recognises that behaviour is influenced by broader
environmental factors, such as culture, politics, and economic.
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