Success Drivers for Organizations, Decision Making, Ethics and Goal Setting Theory

ORGANIZATION AND BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

 

Part A

Question 1

Fundamental success drivers for organizations to gain competitive advantage over their competitors

A competitive advantage over rivals is that customers have a better value either via lower pricing or by providing more advantages and services that justify higher costs.

Contributing to competitive advantage, Porter proposed four general corporate tactics. The strategies deal with how narrow and wide the scope of a business is and the degree to which a company tries to distinguish its goods. The strategies include

The methods proposed by Porter are suitable for seeking competitive advantage are outlined in the following figure:

In a wide spectrum of markets or industries, the differentiation and cost leadership techniques are competitive advantages.

In contrast, a limited market or industry has a differention focus and cost focusing methods.

Cost Leadership

This approach aims to become the industry’s lowest-cost manufacturer. The traditional means to accomplish this goal is big-scale production, allowing the company to take advantage of enormous economies.

 

Why is cost leadership so significant? Many (maybe all) market sectors in the business are focused on cost reduction. If at least (or close to) the average selling price obtained for the market is equal, then the cheapest manufacturer (in principle) will benefit the best. This approach is typically linked to big companies providing very little difference “standard” goods which are easily acceptable to most consumers. Sometimes a cheap leader would reduce their goods in order to maximize its sales, especially when they are considerably costly over the competitors and therefore can grow their market share even more.

A cost leadership strategy calls for strong collaboration among all the company functional fields. A company is likely to create or utilize many of these as the lowest-cost producer:

• High productivity levels
• Use of high capacity
• Use of the negotiating leverage to obtain lower input costs
• Lean techniques of manufacturing (e.g., JIT)
• Effective utilization of manufacturing technologies
• Most efficient distribution routes access

 

Definition focus

In the strategy of differentiation, a company tries to distinguish between just one or a few market categories. The segment’s particular consumer requirements imply that goods are obviously distinct from rivals that are targeting a wider customer group.

Any organization which takes up this Strategy is essential in ensuring that consumers really have distinct requirements and desires – that there is a legitimate foundation for differentiation – and that current rival goods do not satisfy those needs and desires.

The traditional niche marketing approach is the emphasis on differentiation. Many small organizations may establish themselves on this technique in a specialized market, reaching higher pricing than undifferentiated goods through knowledge or other approaches for adding consumer value.

The emphasis on distinction exists in many successful instances. Tyrrells Crisps are an excellent one, focusing on the tiny frozen luxury sector in the cropper business.

Leadership differentiation

The organization seeks to gain a competitive edge across an industry through differentiating leadership on much bigger marketplaces.

This approach includes the choice of one or more criteria in the market for customers – and then placed the organization only to satisfy those requirements. This approach is typically linked to charging a premium price for the goods – often reflecting greater manufacturing costs and additional customer value-added features.

 

The difference is to charge a premium price which does not cover extra cost of manufacturing and to provide consumers obvious reasons to choose a product over another product that is less distinctive.

This may be done in many ways but not easily and needs significant and continuous investment in marketing. The techniques cover:

• High quality of the product (features, benefits, durability, reliability)
• Branding (strong customer recognition & desire; brand loyalty)
• Distribution through all main channels across industry (i.e., the product or brand is an essential item to be stocked by retailers)
• Consistent promotional support – which is usually dominated by publicity, sponsorship, etc.

Global brands such as Nike and Mercedes are great instances of a differentiating leadership. These brands provide significant economies of scale, but do not depend on a strategy to fight for cost leadership. Your company and brands are founded on the conviction that consumers are loyal to their brand and pay premium for their goods.

 

Question 2

Evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of group decision making. Explain the requirements for effectively managing group decision making

Group decision making (also known as collaborative decision making) occurs when people choose the options front of them jointly. Such choices cannot be attributed to a single person but to the whole group. By definition, group decisions are participative, and the participation of a Member is frequently directly proportionate to how much it is affected by a specific choice. Group choices, including pair pressure and group dynamics, are susceptible to variables, such as social influence. These social factors may influence the decision-making process and the results of the choice itself. A group may reach a consensus decision in which all members agree or use a majority-rules method and choose the most preferred option.

Advantages of Group Decision Making

Group decision-making has two benefits over solo decision-making: synergy and knowledge exchange. The concept of synergy is that the whole exceeds its sum of parts. When a group makes a collective decision, its judgement may be more acute than any of its individuals. Group members are able to discover more comprehensive and robust ideas and suggestions via debate, questioning and cooperation.

Another benefit of group decision-making process is the exchange of information among group members. Group choices consider a wider range of facts since each group members may provide unique knowledge and skills. Information sharing may enhance comprehension, clarify problems and enable transition to collaborative decision making.

Disadvantages of Group Decision Making

Responsibility Diffusion

One potential drawback of collective decision-making is that it may spread responsibilities that causes results to be irresponsible. In some sense, if everyone has a choice, then nobody is. In addition, collective choices may facilitate members’ refusal of personal responsibility and blame others for poor judgments.

Efficiency lower

Group choices may also be less efficient than individual ones. Group choices may take extra time since involvement, debate and cooperation amongst group members are required. Meetings may be stuck with minor information, which may mean a lot to one person or the others, without proper facilitation and organization.

Groupthink

Group thinking is one of the most important barriers of successful group decision-making. Group Think is a psychological phenomenon in a group that results in an illogical or dysfunctional decision-making consequence by a desire to harmonies or conform. By separating themselves from external influences and deliberately suppressing dissident views, the group members achieve a majority conclusion without a critical assessment of opposing viewpoints.

Group loyalty means that people do not raise difficult questions or solutions, and individual creativity, originality, and independent thought are lost. The Group’s dysfunctional dynamics lead to a sense of invulnerability (an inflated certainty that the right decision has been made). This means that the organization greatly undermines the decision-making capacities of its opponents and substantially undermines them (the out-group). In addition, groupthink may dehumanize the outside group.

Requirements for effectively managing group decision making

Given the potential benefits and possible risks of group decision-making, it is essential to have a strategy to guide and enable the group process to be successfully implemented. This typically needs one person, even to plan and conduct meetings, to assume certain forms of leadership within the group. There are many things that may be done to conduct smooth and successful group decision making which are:.

• Brainstorming

Brainstorming is an ideo-generating technique that promotes all options in particular and rejects criticism of them. This technology may thus assist in creating a cohesive group, since it encourages all members to contribute to the process without being afraid of criticism. A small group of individuals answer questions or issues raised by a facilitator in a typical brainstorming session. All the answers are registered and at this stage there is no debate or analysis. The group will then choose the ideas or alternatives after a certain period of time to explore, but while brainstorming, there is no pressure to commit to choosing a solution.

Indeed, brainstorming may create new ideas, but research repeatedly demonstrates that people who work alone generate more ideas than in group sessions through “productive blocking.” In a gathering where individuals generate ideas, several people speak at once, distracting the process of thinking and preventing ideas from being shared.

• Technical nominal group

The nominal group method is like brainstorming since it invites all participants to make their contribution. It is nevertheless distinct from brainstorming, since throughout the decision-making process it restricts debate. Group members, however, work individually and utilise the following four-part process in the creation of ideas:

1. Members write their thoughts on a particular issue individually.
2. Each member submits to the group one suggestion. Each member turns and gives a single suggestion, until every thought is presented.
3. The group discusses options for clarity and assessment.
4. Every participant ranks the ideas independently. The concept with the greatest overall classification decides the ultimate choice.

One of the main benefits of nominal group technology is that it alleviates the anxiety of individuals worried about being attacked for their views and not wanting to participate in a dispute. However, because of its highly organized nature, more than one concept is lacking at a time. The amount of time required to submit every proposal and the subsequent debate on every concept is another drawback to nominal group technology.

• E-brainstorming

E-brainstorming is another version in which individuals may react to problems in real time using their computers. All the answers and rankings are anonymous and may be seen and commented on by anyone. E-brainstorming has the benefits of having plenty of ideas produced, anonymity, honesty, and quickness. The main drawback is that cohesion is reduced.

The advocacy of D. Devil

The decision-making method of the Devil is when a person or group is chosen to criticize the proposed choice. The most powerful way to use the tactic of the devil’s advocates is to inhibit collective thinking. The method of the Devil’s advocate permits a deep conversation about various concepts and may contribute to the bridging of apparently incomparable opposites. The group may improve its thinking and develop excellent ideas. This method can contribute. Every leader utilizing this technology must be conscious that it is intended to create conflict and that the leader must control meetings actively.

• Facilitator/referee

A neutral facilitator or referee may be employed to separate participants and leading roles or groups with opposing views in order to debate a topical subject in detail. The facilitator controls group processes and dynamics, requires a degree of impartiality on problems of content, and a focus on group requirements. In order to guarantee excellent choices, the facilitator focuses on the achievements and adequate levels of involvement needed. An assisted method has the benefit of being able to generate original, creative, and high-quality choices. A professional facilitator and a considerable amount of time are required for this approach.

• Technical Delphi.

Experts answer the questions in a number of rounds according to the Delphi method (called after the Oracle at Delphi). As the rounds advance, questions on a certain subject narrow. The first questionnaire is open-ended and aimed at identifying general problems relating to the topic under discussion. The answers are qualitatively evaluated by sorting, classifying, and researching common topics. These answers are then utilized for the second questionnaire, which is more detailed and seeks to evaluate or classify the things according to their relevance. The following surveys may further limit the answers. As the facilitator rejects the outcomes of the preceding rounds, convergence on a viewpoint tends to take place. The Delphi method is helpful if it is not feasible to convene the participants face to-face. The drawback is that it takes days to finish and the leader has to make a lot of effort.

• Affective and Cognitive Conflictions

You will need to look for emotional conflict and aim for healthy cognitive conflict in all of those group decision-making methods. Affective conflict occurs when conversation is “personal,” and individuals become more hostile or disconnected. The way of thinking goes from “we’ve got an issue” to “you’re the problem.” Opposition is seen rather than investigated as something to be tampered with. The aim is not to find the greatest feasible answer, but to win for its own sake. Cognitive conflicts are when individuals concentrate on and debate tasks and discuss them and arrive at a creative solution. There may be strong arguments and exchanges of ideas between the parties, but there is two-way communication and openness to listening. The aim is not to win the debate, but to discover the best feasible answer. Alternative views rather than threats are seen as beneficial.

• Final Decision

The decision-making process should be made clear as one of the fundamental criteria. There are, of course, many choices and varied preferences may lead to one of three options: command, democracy or consensus. When an organization has a centralized system for decision-making, the preference for a command determines that the leader takes the ultimate choice. The group may also engage actively in the debate and thinking process, but a single leader will make the ultimate choice. The democratic approach aims to provide equal power to all group members through a formal system of voting. Still, decisions are made. A simple majority may accept a decision, whereas unanimity may be necessary. The best approach is by agreement at the moment. The participation of everyone in the group underlines each of the various decision-making procedures here. The consensus method makes it possible to address present and prospective impediments already known to participants and to include workarounds in a decision in advance. Defining the procedure will assist all people to know what to anticipate from the beginning (Lumen, 2019).

 

Part B

Question 1

Define ethics and explain why there are disagreements and dilemmas about what a proper ethical behavior really is. Discuss why right or wrong behavior has not clearly been identified in an organization.

Rationalize your answers in detail, with organizational examples.

Ethics may be described as a framework or a set principle which guides a person or organization’s decision-making using a range of ideas, values and theories to show the distinction between the right and the wrong. It is founded on a person’s moral convictions and responsibilities towards other individuals or organizations.

There are much disagreements and dilemmas about what an ethical behavior is since any rule or theory is not universally applicable. It would be undesirable and irrelevant for any individual or circumstance to apply the same concept and rule because of the great variety of the human race and its wide variations in terms of geographic, climatic, demographic, psychological, cultural and racial considerations. Therefore, because of the diversity in the circumstances in which people live, their mental perspective, the outside factors which influence them and their background, no universal thought or belief is practiced by all human beings. Therefore. These variations make it impossible in all situations to use the same value or principle to evaluate correctly and wrongly.

However, whatever we say, everything relies on and differs from person to individual. Take an example of the guy whose mother is sick, and he needs money within an hour, he attempted to acquire money everywhere, but he couldn’t get the money as soon as he stole it. Now here, if we consider the deed from the viewpoint of the people, it’s OK, since it rescued its mother, but when we see it from the police, it is a crime. Therefore, it’s quite different to define right or wrong in ethics.

Let’s take a firm example, supposing a salesman would engage in multi-level marketing after business hours. But no other employee, according to the business, ought to be engaged in any other part-time or full-time job. Firm takes this immoral approach, but sellers claim that they provide the company 100% in office hours and whatever they do from work, then they are solely responsible, they should not meddle with it. There’s also another controversy here about what is ethical or unethical.

An organization is not clearly able to identify what is right and wrong, because every human resource in a workplace is derived from a different exposures level, background and culture where social adaptation has made ethical and acceptable certain values or actions, which in other cultures can still be considered inacceptable or immoral. Hugging and kissing, for instance, is viewed as a pleasant gesture among western workers, but it may be regarded as immoral and obscene among Asian employees. Similarly, timeliness is extremely important among Japanese people, and arriving late is seen to be negative labels, while among the Americans the event is typically began one hour late. Thus, in an organization it is impossible to draw a clear boundary between good and wrong.

There is thus no judgement on one side right or incorrect in ethical conduct. We cannot follow any standard or well-defined method for determining either wrong or correct every circumstance is different.

In my view, in every scenario, we should not only take account of the purpose and the context in which the conduct took place, while we should check. This will enable us to come to an end (Contributor G. , 2013).

 

Question 4

Elaborate on the motivational aspects of the goal setting theory and how to design goals that motivate. Discuss the Imitations of goal setting as a management tool in employee motivation.

Goals setting motivation theory says that precise and demanding objectives and feedback lead to greater and better performance of the activity.

Goals highlight and offer an employee guidance on what to accomplish and how much effort to make.

Edwin Locke presented the idea of motivation in the 1960s as a goal setter. The idea is that the setting of the target is fundamentally related to task performance.

Goals must be established on five principles in the philosophy of targets. In order to inspire, these objectives must be met.

7 Principles of goal setting theory

5. Complexity of the task
6. Self-efficiency.
7. Engagement goal.

Let’s take a detailed look at each of them.

1. Clearness

Clear goals are clear and quantifiable. There is less awareness of what conduct is being rewarded when a goal is precious and precise, with a certain time limit for its achievement. An example of cherished objectives is “Reducing work turnover by 15%” or “Responding to recommendations of employees within 48 hours.”

2. Difficulty.

The difficulty level is one of the most significant features of the goals. People are frequently driven by success and will evaluate a goal based on the importance of the expected achievement. Rewards are usually increased for harder goals. If you think you will be handsomely paid for a difficult goal, it will increase your passion and desire to achieve it. If a job is simple and not seen as highly essential, and if the performance is not expected to be noteworthy by you or your employees, the effort may not be remarkable.

3. Engagement.

If they are to be successful, goals need to be understood and accepted. Employees are more inclined to “purchase” an objective if they believe they are part of that objective. This concept of workers involved in determining goals and taking choices depends on the notion of participatory management.

4. Feedback

In addition to the appropriate kind of target, feedback must also be included in a successful goal program. Feedback offers chances to clarify expectations, modify objectives, and recognize them.

Benchmarking opportunities or goals are essential, so people may decide how they perform for themselves.

5. Complexity of work

The last element in the idea of creating goals presents two more success criteria. For extremely complicated goals or tasks, be especially careful not to make the job too burdensome. The theory of establishing goals offers a number of potentials, such as self-efficiency and dedication to objectives.

6. Efficiency in itself

Self-efficiency is the self-assurance and confidence a person possesses. If the job is accomplished, The higher the degree of auto-efficiency, the more difficult duties will be performed by the person. While the degree of self-efficacy is lower, the individual’s efforts are less or even less important while facing difficulties (IEduNote, 2019).

7. Engagement for goals

The idea of establishing goals implies that a person is dedicated to the objective and does not abandon the aim. The dedication to the goals depends on the following factors:

• Goals are made public, known and transmitted.
• Individual goals should be defined instead of assigned.

The collection of individuals must conform to corporate objectives and vision.

Limitations of goal setting theory

1. Sometimes the goals of the company contradict the management objectives. Goals conflict affects performance if it drives conflicting effects.
2. Very complicated and demanding goals encourage risky conduct.
3. When the employee lacks the abilities and skills necessary to act, the establishment of the goals may fail, leading to a performance deterioration.
4. There is no proof of better work satisfaction by establishing the goals.

 

Question 5

Differentiate between team environment and traditional environment of organizations

Improved Communication

One distinction between traditional and new organizations is that the new organizations are able to communicate often. Traditional means of communication of an organization typically involve newsletters, email and other material from the top of the organization through the levels.

Since teams are more flexible, communication is often more frequent than traditional companies. communication is more informal. For example, for announcements and status updates, your team may use social media or workflow technologies like forums or a live chat (Contributor, 2020).

Making Optimized Decisions

The inherent bureaucracy of traditional organizations, as administrators of traditional organizations, may impede creativity and innovation since they typically take decisions without the support of subordinates. A distinction between traditional and new organizations is that new organizations make decision making more effective.

Typically, management seeks the involvement of employees in a team-based framework. The leader may have a brainstorming session to collect information and eventually make the best choice, depending on the kind of decision, time and resources available. This empowerment for team-based staff should lead to greater productivity and a higher quality of work and working life for workers (Contributor, 2020).

Meetings

In traditional organizations, managers typically plan and conduct meetings, which include setting up the agenda and controlling the flow of the meeting. Employees are authorized to call and conduct meetings on themselves inside a team-based company.

Team members may report in a matrix or team structure to more than one boss and attend many meetings on the same subject. Similarly, team-based staff may operate at many places needing audio and video conference software that enables them to communicate. As the team-based organizations are less formal and structured than traditional, they enable sub-teams to be formed and deployed until they have done the necessary (Contributor, 2020).

Accountability

Team members are responsible for each other and the whole team in a team structure. This reciprocal responsibility implies the whole team is accountable for its collective activities. This is the antithesis of responsibility inherent in traditional organizations at individual level.

While teams might have done better in collective terms sometimes, lack of effort and responsibilities are seldom intended (Contributor, 2020).

Enhanced Evaluation Performance

Managers in traditional organizations, which may have a restricted perspective, usually assess the performance of all subordinates. One distinction between traditional and new organizations is that the new companies conduct more informative performance assessments.

Teams offer a more realistic image of the strengths and shortcomings of the individual since input is requested not only by management, but also by colleagues, subordinates and business partners. In particular, small enterprises benefit from team-based performance assessments since their accuracy contributes towards identifying performance gaps which may be rectified faster than in traditionally organized companies (Contributor, 2020).

Build effective teams in organization

• Set objectives and priorities for the team. The essential feature of clear objectives is supported by this phase. Team members require comprehensive explanations as to how their individual activities help to accomplish the team objectives. Priorities for team members should be set so that they may know when and where to offer extra assistance, if necessary. Individuals need to understand how their individual SMART objectives support their team objectives and how helping the team also enables them to achieve their own personal goals. If individual objectives and team objectives are not linked (for instance, if a team objective is not explicitly related to a personal goal), then the employee would very probably concentrate on his own wants, to the disadvantage of the team. Good communication abilities are necessary to ensure that the objectives are clearly defined and that the team members are aware of their achievements influence the team goal and therefore the performance of each other.
• Carefully choose the team members. When choosing individuals for a team, three things should be considered: individuality, average level of experience and skill and the degree of diversity.
• It is a truth that certain individuals create team members that are better than others. It is also a truth that anybody can learn to work on a team with dedication. In general, individuals put themselves first and prefer autonomous jobs where they work alone. they work independently. The collectivist is on the other side of the range, who likes collaboration rather than competition and works best in a group. While collectivists usually make themselves better, many cases occur when individual activities are part of a broader cooperative effort. However, it may require more effort to interact with others.
• Team members’ experience and capabilities must be balanced in order to distribute assignments with high expectations of their performance. At the same time, new workers must become a fully functional employee and may do so by working with more experienced individuals. Choosing individuals based on their talents and leadership potential is also essential.
• Team diversity does not only reflect a variety of talents and experiences but also the working relationships between individuals of different cultures, ethnicities, races and sexes. Diversity is a good defense, due to a distinct belief system and perspective that challenges conventional assumptions(Lumen, 2017).