How Organization Behavior Affects Work Performance And How To Manage It

Organization Culture

Organization behavior is the study of people working in groups and aims at identifying areas which may need intervention to improve operations. The field of study has been adapted into business as an effective way of gauging employee performance by identifying factors which influence their performance while working. Organization behavior is also directly influenced by organization policies and how the management and staff interact with each other (Farmer, Smith, & Yellowley, 2012).  It involves the use of scientific approaches to research on employee behavior which can be used to manage their performance and increase morale and productivity.

An organization’s culture directly influences employee behavior and this has been identified to have a major impact on new employee retention rates at an organizations. The organization must promote a culture which sees new employees being welcomed and supported by collogues and the management. They should help comfort the individual during their probation period when they are still observing the organization and judging if the position is suitable for them to work. The organization must thus promote a friendly; open and a supporting culture which will helps the new joiners build a bond with the organization and help reduce employee turnover rates (Mawhinney, 2013). Organization culture also helps determine how hierarchy is viewed and respected by the staff which is critical towards positive organization behavior.

Motivation directly impacts good organization behaviors thus it’s important for the management and higher ranked staff to acknowledge each staff member for their contribution. It’s critical for the team lead and management to constantly audit employee performance and be able to identify areas an individual is excelling which need to be acknowledged and praise given to boost motivation (Pinder, 2014). It’s also important to identify areas of weakness and provide support and guidance to improve in these areas so as to avoid demotivating the employees.

Decision making is another aspect associated with positive organization behavior where employees should be consulted and involved in decision-making to a certain level. The level at which employees are involved in decision making must be determined by the task in question. Individual employee is responsible for operational tasks should be given full control over decision in that area (George & Jone, 2009).

Change is never an easy process for any organization and change can have direct and adverse effects on an organization performance. This makes it important for the organization to involving all its staff members towards change management which helps identify important areas that require being addressed before any changes are implemented (Reiss, 2012). Each staff member will be able to contribute important information and input towards change which can be used to help reduce the negative effects of change on the organization’s performance.

Motivation

Negative events at the workplace are likely to have a direct effect on staff behavior which can have detrimental effects on the organization’s performance. This makes it important to be able to identify primary negative event responses at workplace and react to them immediately. This helps neutralize the response before it is escalating into a major concern or problem (Ashkanasy, Härtel, & Zerbe, 2016). Key negative responses to events at the workplace include:

The first response employees have on negative events experienced at the workplace is withdrawal behavior which involves both physical as well as psychological withdrawal and interest in their work (Koslowsky & Krausz, 2012). Team leaders and managers should be able to identify withdrawal behavior in an individual or group by observing certain negative behavior traits after a certain event.

Job role neglect is the first sign of an individual or team experiencing withdrawal behavior whereby interest and focus towards the job role is lost entirely. Individuals exhibiting this behavior will usually demonstrate extremes whereby they focus very intensely towards their work but suddenly lose all interest and begin neglecting their role. This is commonly exhibited among quality control employees who are pushed by the organization to focus on quantity rather than quality related issues.

Avoidance and exiting behavior is another withdrawals sign which can be observed after certain events occur. Employees stop contributing their knowledge and skills and will begin demonstrating avoidance behavior with team leaders and managers rather than remain open to meet and communicate their concerns.

Another primary response to negative events at work is absenteeism whereby the affected employee and team will begin registering higher rates of absenteeism. This is due to the individual having lost their interest in the job role which results in them wanting to avoid attending job due to it being more of a burden as opposed to exiting. The rate of Absenteeism rate will usually begin increasing a few weeks after withdrawal behavior has been identified and the rate of absenteeism is likely to increase over time. Affected employees will also take this opportunity to begin searching for alternative employment opportunities.

The final response related to negative events at the workplace will usually be the employee demonstrating the inability to execute their work or job role and even presenting their resignation letter. This is the final stage of final response to negative events experienced at the workplace and by this stage; there is little that can be done to regain the individual’s interest in their work. Work ethics and focus have been identified to have a direct effect on employee responses to negative events thus it’s important for the management to control how negative events are handled so as to regain employee interest before the responses to the negative events overwhelmed their employees interest in their work.

Decision Making

Stress Audit refers to the format approach utilized to identify areas which may be triggering and spiking stress at the workplace. The audits help identify the stress locations, causes and effects on the employees of an organization. It can also be defined as an evaluation of stress triggers at the workplace and allows the organization to develop strategies to manage the stress (Weinberg, Sutherland, & Cooper, 2015). A Stress Audit does not aim at resolving stress related concerns instead it only identifies areas and factors which may be causing the stress. These can then be listed to develop strategies to manage and reduce the stressors and strains.

Causes of stress are referred to as stressors and strains and to effectively reduce stress it is critical for the organization to identify and address stress sorts and strains. This requires the direct intervention of the affected employees as well as the corporation of the leaders and managers to understanding the concerns. It’s important to keep in mind individuals will have their own preferences related to work ethics, interactions, and behavior which can all trigger stress. This makes it important to first identify the cause of stress after which the stress management tools and strategies can be infused to the situation to help manage the stress. In some situation the cause of stress may be an individual within the team or department. In such situations it’s critical for the management to identify the individual cousin the stress and either move them further away or transfer the individual to a different department or branch altogether.

Stress can be managed also by encouraging affected individuals to implement and doing their work as per their work ethics but this also requires to be implemented in a timely manner to avoid triggering withdrawal behavior. It’s important to understand once withdrawal behavior and responses have been triggered it is unlikely to regain the individuals’ interest and focus on their job role thus it’s critical that stress triggers are managed well in advance. There are strategies, tools, and activities which can be utilized to help reduce stress among employees, but these usually have short-term effects. The stress is likely to resurface once the employees return to their workstations thus rendering many of the extra-curricular activities to manager stress ineffective. This makes it very important to first identify the root cause of the stress which may be linked to the way of working or the hierarchy and management over exhorting pressure on an individual or team which results in spiking stress levels.

Conclusion:

An organization must encourage behavior in which all team members are acknowledged for their contribution towards the organization’s development equally. It should also ensure all staff remains optimistic and open towards building the organization and more importantly communicating opening among each other which promote a positive organization behavior. This ultimately results in encouraging stable and comfortable employment conditions which will have a positive effect on the organization’s overall growth and development.

References:

Ashkanasy, N., Härtel, C., & Zerbe, W. (2016). Emotions and Organizational Governance. Bingley: Emerald Group Publishing.

Farmer, M., Smith, P., & Yellowley, W. (2012). Organizational Behaviour. Oxon: Routledge.

George, J., & Jone, G. (2009). Understanding and Managing Organizational Behavior. New Delhi: Pearson Education India.

Kiniki, K. (2016). Organizational Behavior, Key Concepts, Skills and Best Practices. Cram101 Textbook Reviews.

Koslowsky, M., & Krausz, M. (2012). Voluntary Employee Withdrawal and Inattendance: A Current Perspective. New York: Springer Science & Business Media.

Mawhinney, T. (2013). Organizational Culture, Rule-Governed Behavior and Organizational Behavior Management. Oxon: Routledge.

Pinder, C. (2014). Work Motivation in Organizational Behavior. New York: Psychology Press.

Reiss, M. (2012). Change Management. Books on Demand.

Weinberg, A., Sutherland, V., & Cooper, C. (2015). Organizational Stress Management: A Strategic Approach. Springer.