Background of the Business
Develop a case study that analyses and applies relevant OB theory and concepts to a ‘mythical business’.
The mythical business that I would intend to start is that of a handcrafted jeweler business I that would provide opportunities to the indigenous women and women of colours in Australia to make a living for themselves (Hogg & Terry, 2014). The motivation behind involving the indigenous women in the business can be attributed to the history of discrimination, exploitation and the marginalization of the indigenous women in the native Australia. I would follow the click and brick model to establish the jewellery start-up and therefore, thee business would be small in size. The business would operate as a boutique in a popular mall in Perth and also operate as an e-commerce brand. Later, there will be more stores in the city based on the popularity of the business. At the initial stage, around 20 women indigenous women, women of colours and women from other races would be employed into the business, however preference would be given to the indigenous women to earn their livelihood considering the deplorable economic condition of the indigenous women.
The overtones of the European cultural superiority theory have been so entrenched and widespread in the Australian society that even the staunch supporters of the indigenous rights extended their support to this cause. Since the 1960s and the 1970s there has been much concerted effort to ensure that there is a considerable improvement in the health and education of women belonging to the rural indigenous communities (Hersey, Blanchard & Johnson, 2007). The health clinics and the school continue be administered by the European specialists and there has been an increasing recognition that involvement is desirable and it has created employment opportunities and the chance for greater economic status of the indigenous women in the rural communities. The introduction of the bilingual education in the Northern Territory has been important in helping the women to return to their traditional role as educators. There has been a recognition that women as parents play a determining role in being successfully employed as teachers and the teacher’s aides, education of the children in their own language and rendering them an education and pride in the traditional skills, customs, values and practices (Armitage & Christian, 2003). However, it would be a farce to consider women as solely victims, women have been voicing in the community about their opinions that have implications in the family life and their determining role in the education of their children. The women in the community have to face uphill struggle against the culture of patriarchy in the community and the entrenched male-centric attitude. They are expected to assume the majority of responsibilities in the household and the community life that are traditionally considered to be the male domains. There has been studies that has documented the plight of the indigenous women, however very studies have documented their role as workers in the community (Robbins, Judge & Breward, 2003). It has been found that the number of women employed in small-scale business and regular and stable jobs are quite negligible. Although there are more opportunities available for the indigenous women owing to the change in attitude of the officials in the public service. This has led to the increasing recruitment of women in the identified jobs. The exact numbers of indigenous women who are there in the Northern Territory Public Service would not be easily assessed. Over the past ten years there has been a rise in the number of organizations run and administered by the indigenous communities. It is reported that there is variation in the size and the objectives of these organizations starting from the small cooperatives that are engaged in the production of arts and crafts to the provision of the specialized services for the local community to the nation-wide organizations that are involved in the providing accommodation or legal aid to the indigenous community members. Although the indigenous community members are engaged in the odd jobs they hold respectable position within the community.
Objectives of Organizational Behavior
Keeping in mind the history of the indigenous women’s employment and economic position in Australia and the potential of the indigenous women, my aim is to provide employment to these indigenous women in the handcrafted jewellery start-up business. The indigenous women workers are known for their commitment towards work and they demonstrate a strong work ethic and are compatible for the work culture in the community.
The term organizational behavior in management refers to the ways people behave and interact in the organizations. The areas of research related to the organizational behavior relates to the improvement in job, increasing the satisfaction of job, fostering the cause of innovation and in encouraging leadership. To achieve the desirable results, the managers may be able to adopt different tactics like the reorganization of the groups, modification of the structures and altering the ways in which the performance is evaluated. The history of organizational behavior can traced back to the Hawthorne Electric Company experiments that are designed to discern in what ways the changes in the environment and the design has changed the productivity of the employees. There have been multiple studies conducted between 1924 and 1933 that were meticulously measured. All these studies included the consequences of the studies over large periods of time (Wilson & Fiona, 2018). These famous studies from the Hawthorne are known as the Hawthorne Effect in the change of behavior of the test of subject when they are aware that they are being observed. The notion behind looking at the behavior scientifically at the productivity and the behavior. During the 1970s, the theories of the contingency and the institutions as well as the organizational ecology bounded by rationality and the resource dependence that have come to the fore considering the field has focused on the quantitative research (Fincham & Rhodes, 2005). The results, outcomes and findings of these theories enabled in making the organizations better and it would help in improving the structure of the business and in decision-making. The organizational behavior theories provide a series of patterned behavior that play a large role in the way a person would interact with the groups and produce the work. On knowing the personality of the individual through a series of tests or through conversation can provide a better idea regarding how it fits with the environment and would help in determining the employees can be hired into the organization and the ways it can motivate the person to deliver their best performance to the organization. Research on OB can produce theories related to job satisfaction and some of them may argue that a satisfying job may comprise of the solid reward system through the creation of compelling work, good supervisors and in creating satisfaction of the workers. The facet of leadership in OB is related to what it looks like and from where it is derived is a rich topic and study within the organizational behavior (Sinha, 2009). Since it is connected to the management, it is focused, broad, de-centralized or centralized, that is decision-oriented and intrinsic to the personality of the personality or authority. Another facet related to the OB theory is the politics, power and authority that can operate interdependently in the workplace. There is a need to understand it in the appropriate ways as is agreed upon by the workplace rules and the general ethical guidelines where the features are established and are used as the principle components for administering and managing a meaningful and coherent business.
The objectives of organizational behavior are that in which people have an effect on the feelings, thoughts and actions. These thoughts, feelings and the actions are instrumental in influencing the organization. The organizational behavior studies and examines the mechanisms that govern the interactions that sought to identify and strengthen the behaviors that are compatible for the survival and the effectiveness of the organization (Hersey, Blanchard & Johnson, 2007). There are primarily eight fundamental objectives relating to the organizational behavior- job satisfaction, finding the right people, organizational culture, understanding the employees better, understanding how to develop good leaders, leadership and conflict resolution, development of a good team and in ensuring higher productivity. Organization behavior is premised on the fundamental concepts that revolve around the nature of the people and the organizations. These fundamental concepts are the individual differences, perception, a whole person, the desire for involvement, value of the person, motivated behavior, organizations are social system, mutuality of interest, holistic concept and the human dignity
The bureaucratic management theory conceptualized by Weber comprises of two essential features namely structuring the organization into a hierarchy in having clearly defined rules and regulations that help in governing the organization and the members in the organization. The bureaucratic management approach comprises of six principles. Firstly, it is concerned with the proper division of labor- The division of labor based on the specialization of each of the members and there is a balance between the power and the responsibilities shared by the different members (Armitage & Christian, 2003). The second feature of this approach is the chain of command or the organizational hierarchy that has been constructed in away where the information is related to the decision and the work that can flow effectively from the top to the bottom. The third feature is the separation of the personal and the official property where the owners and organization’s assets are separate and they are expected to be treated it by the owners or the organization. The fourth feature of this approach is the application of the complete and the consistent rules that concerns that there should be proper rules and regulations that should be present in the organization with the aim of running the organization. These rules need to be followed at every step in the organization and they are equally applicable to all the members of the organization. The fifth feature is the selection and the promotion based on the qualifications. According to this feature, selection and promotion would be based on the equalization of the expertise, age and the skills. It should not be informed by the benefits and the personal relations. There are training and skills required for the job (Bamberg, Fujii, Friman & Gärling, 2011). There is a distinction between the management and the other parts of the organization and in the improvement of the skills of the management. I would draw from the characteristics and the essence of the bureaucratic organization that is known for the high-degree division of labor specialization. There would be well-defined chain of command and rules and regulations within the organization would indicate that the employees would have to abide by the duties and the rights rendered to them. These formulated rules would be applicable for everyone in the organization (Nilsen, 2015). The selection and promotion of the employees would be on the grounds of technical qualifications. In the light of my jewellery start-up business Hermosa (that refers to beautiful in the Spanish language), I would draw from the principle features of the bureaucratic organization. The female employees in my organization would be accorded their roles and responsibilities based on their expertise, skill and knowledge. There would be different segments of the jewellery business like the neckpiece section, earring section, hand jewelleries (armlet, bracelet and hand harness), anklet section and finger ring section. The employees would be divided to these five categories and it would be ensured that each of the members are responsible in their work and there is no clash in their responsibilities. Each of the groups would have an in-charge who would look after the activities of the people. The rules of the organizations would be catering to the needs of the customers and treating the customer with utmost importance (Van Gelderen, Brand, van Praag, Bodewes, Poutsma & Van Gils, 2008). Promotion of the employees would be on the basis of their earlier association with any organization that was responsible for the production of jewelleries. Some of the women may also be recruited based on the interview and the demonstration where their skills would be put to test.
Pertaining to this handcrafted jewellery business and provided it is a start-up business and it purports to follow the brick-and-click model. There may be certain challenges that I would have to endure at the onset of the business. Considering that, the business is going to flag of both the stores as well as establish itself in the world of e-commerce. Before beginning with the business, it is important to find a trusted partner for developing the website. Choosing the right partner is essential and there may not be sufficient funds therefore, I would need to distribute the responsibility with my partner that would be both reliable and affordable. The second challenge emerges related to photography and the renders (Albrech, 2011). The customers who are usually accustomed to buying jewelleries from the other established e-commerce giants or the boutiques. Therefore, it would be a challenge to convince the potential consumers about the credibility of my business and compel them to purchase online without being able to touch and feel the products (Boonstra, 2008). Good photography is important as it would generate excitement among the consumers and enable them to buy the product they want. Another challenge that emerges in the context of an online business is that considering this is a start-up there will be zero-trust on the brand by the customers thereby posing an impediment in reaching out to the customers and attract them towards the brand. Whilst choosing the website partner I would look for customer testimonials from the websites that I feel would be well designed and well developed (Fincham & Rhodes, 2005). To avoid conflict I would share my vision with the potential partner and seek their opinions to ensure that our ideas are on the same plane and whatever I want to achieve that is well understood by both the parties. I would not be focusing on the entire website, there would be meaningful landing on the page with one click, and this would enable in capturing the new enquiries that can be built from here. This would be followed by choosing a payment gateway that would be easy to use and the overall objective would be to make the website fast and responsive. It is important for the business to be transparent regarding the supply chain if it is asked by the customers. During the pilot study, it was found that the customers enquire out of curiosity and also for the peace of the customers (McShane, Steen & Tasa, 2009). To retain my customer I would keep the customers updated about the different complimentary offers, loyalty programs, bonus points and flash sale options through the app or through sms. Once on placing the order online, the customer would be updated about packaging to the shipping of the products. To avoid any conflict with the customer, the customers would be informed a priori about delay or cancellation of the product due to quality issues. Based on the pilot survey, it has been understood that packaging makes a difference therefore; the products would be tastefully packaged. The delivery expectations of the customers would be met by timely delivery of the product.
Other issues may emerge in the light of the handcrafted jewellery start-up business. There may be scandals within the company that may reach the public and therefore, the organizations should have ethical policies to facilitate the behavior. As an entrepreneur, it would be a challenge to promote ethical behavior within the organization and create an organizational culture where the employees would feel motivated for working towards a common goal for the company (Pettinger, 2013). Personal interest will play an important role in the organizational behavior and I would encounter upon the task of encouraging the interest of the group over the personal interest with the aim of preserving the ethical values. Another issue that is intrinsic to the organizational behavior is technology and innovation. Communication at the workplace would influence the employees and how the people in the group behave in the organization. Incorporation of technology would bring with it the efficiency of collation and the dissemination of knowledge as it can alienate the individuals such as the elderly indigenous women in the organization. The main challenge pertaining to this would be promoting technological organizational communication and inclusion instead of discrimination and inclusion (Cooper & Nelson, 2007). Another factor that needs to be kept in mind is the employee privacy issues and the employee rights. Issues like job ownership and the individual rights may be operative at work. These issues may become controversial if the organization will prohibit certain activities. The expectation of the employees may change and as an entrepreneur, it should be my responsibility to understand the changing need of the demographics and empower the employees.
Although the aim of Hermosa would to provide sustainable and dignified employment option to the indigenous women in Australia, women of colours, white women and women irrespective of their origin, sexuality, ethnicity and age would be incorporated into the workforce (Ajzen, 2011). This would be done with the intention of maintaining workforce diversity. Diversity in the workplace creates an environment that promotes acceptance, respect and team spirit among the employees despite their political beliefs, religious background, sexual orientation, communication styles and their linguistic identity. There can be a several benefits in case there is a diverse workforce at the workplace. There is process and product innovation that is an outcome of the employees who have a variety of demographics and the backgrounds. I feel that when there are different people who join the business bring with them diverse perspectives. In fact studies have shown that companies that abides by ethical practices of diversity tend to outperform companies by 15 per cent than companies with non-diverse workforce (Jackson & Parry, 2011). However, there arise certain key challenges, as the workplace becomes diverse it becomes a great challenge for the HR to recruit the professionals. The first challenge in this direction would be the acceptance and the respect of the different beliefs as there may arise conflicts due to the lack of acceptance of the culture of others and the different beliefs of the employees. There would be diversity training that would help the employees to understand and accept the employees and respect the differences of each other. The next challenge that may emerge in this context and affect the culture of the organization is the accommodation of the beliefs there needs to be diversity in the cultural, political and spiritual beliefs that can pose a challenge for the diverse workforce (Huczynski & Buchanan, 2010). The resolution to this issue would be asking the employees. Another challenge that may emerge is the ethnic and the cultural differences where some individuals may have prejudice against their colleague and that may lead to conflict. This can be resolved through the cultural sensitivities training and the diversity awareness programs in the workplace that will help in addressing this issue.
At the individual workplace diversity challenges exist and these issues would strengthen the company. Communication is essential to any organization especially for a handcrafted jewellery business where there may emerge. There are chances where th employee may misinterpret the tone, the emails or the body language of the higher authorities that may lead to miscommunication. If a person is socialized and raised in a certain way, it would be difficult for the person to completely change oneself overnight. There will be resistance from the employees when change will be initiated. Even if there is one employee who is resistant towards the values and the policies of the company, it can wreck havoc on the organizational culture of the company. This can be arrested or mitigated through transformational leadership or collaborative leadership. Employees may resist the change considering it as a significant barrier. As part of the management, we need to be 100 per cent behind the diversity plan. Otherwise, it would serve as a stumbling block (Van Dick, Christ, Stellmacher, Wagner, Ahlswede, Grubba, & Tissington, 2004). It has been reported that any business would need its manager to be on board and the major decisions need to be taken with the help of a supportive manager. It has been seen that people have the tendency to relate the word diversity to the multicultural issues. There is a failure to account for the adverse result or outcome of discrimination against certain groups. The culture and the religious groups that may cause strain in the relationship with the colleagues even without their realization usually consume people. There will be difference among the employees due to their diverse cultural background. Conflicts among the employees can affect the organizational culture and as discussed earlier t may interfere with the team bonding. Therefore, it is important to seek solutions that would enable and facilitate in overcoming these challenges. Considering that every workplace is different and there are different strategies required for different kinds of settings there is a need to have activities that would promote team bonding. There can be activities like team outing where all the employees would get the opportunity to spend time with each other outside the setting of the warehouse. There can be group shopping sessions or bowling sessions that would bring the employees closer. There can be weekly sessions in the warehouse where the women would be provided with a platform to speak themselves and that would provide an opportunity to the others to know about their colleagues and understand about their problem better (Boonstra, 2008). There is a need to motivate the employees to take on extra task by providing extra week or paid holidays or reward points. I would also develop an open-doo policy with the am that the management and the human resources are approachable towards the grievances of the employees. This would be done with the belief that the staff would feel encouraged to share their feelings and in turn it would help the management to amend their lacunae. A diverse workforce for the organization would definitely benefit the company owing to the values that would be brought by these women. The employees would be accountable for their behaviour and in maintaining quality of the products. The diverse workforce would promote the ability of the company to adapt to any situation (Tavakoli, 2010). The staff would represent the variety that can be brought to resolve the issues that may emerge in the organization. This is known as the multicultural advantage. A diverse workforce is indicative of the inclusive, pluralistic and representative values of the organization. In addition, it would help the company to reach millstones and generate more business in the future.
Conclusion
Based on the above discussion it is demonstrated that my mythical business would be a start-up handcrafted jewellery business in Perth, Australia. The business would follow a click-and brick model. Initially, the business would operate as a boutique in the mall along with operating as n e-commerce. Operating as an e-commerce would help the business to reach out to a wide variety of customers where they would be able to choose the products of their choice at a click away. Considering that it will be a start-up jewellery business there will be several challenges that would affect the organizational culture. Being an e-commerce, it would be a challenge to maintain good quality photography so that the customers are attracted towards the products. The business would draw from Weber’s organizational approach and the responsibilities employees would be divided according to their skills, knowledge and expertise. There would be five sections in the business and each section would led by an in-charge to supervise the smooth functioning of the business. Diversity of workforce would be a major challenge in the organizational behaviour, considering the multiple backgrounds of the employees therefore as a manger I would need to accommodate these diversities through both transformational and collaborative leadership as early intervention would lead to an ideal organizational culture and help in maintaining the organizational behaviour.
References
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