Question:
Outline and analyze the problems confronting Pluto Telecommunications and offer recommendations for their resolution.
Pluto is a vast organisation based on the provision of telecommunication services to its customer. With the high demand for these services as technology continues to advance, Pluto is, therefore, dealing with a large number of customers. This implies that there is a need to employ a large number of workers in an attempt to attend to these large numbers that are growing day after day. In an organisation or any institution, an increase in its population makes it hard to manage. Pluto is facing similar problems.
2.1 Lack of teamwork
Andrew Carnegie defines teamwork in his quote as, “the ability to pursue a common goal in work. The ability to focus on organisational accomplishments in working as one. This drives different people to achieve the same results.” Teamwork is lacking in the three departments of this organisation. Veronica, a managing director, reports that the three departments do not only have a bad association amongst themselves but also they work counter each other. This means that they don’t share the same vision and mission. They are serving their own interest and trying to show themselves better than the members of the other departments. in an organisation bringing different people from different geographies to pursue a common goal, if they split then they will be divided in views since they cannot share a common view basing on a certain matter.
Due to a large number of customers served, this lack of teamwork possesses a great hindrance to the development of the organisation as a whole. Different departments are driven by different interest and this is the major cause of division here. Manktelow et al, (2016) state in the team assessment survey that these days almost everybody is a member of some team. They add that if you do not participate actively in a team then, there are possibilities that you participate within one in some way for it’s very important to know your weaknesses and strengths as far as teamwork is concerned so that you may further the development of your career. This challenges the Pluto work staff and explains their differences in opinion regarding matters of organisational development.
There are also major coordination issues among the three departments. they are totally losing it as far as coordination is concerned. This is well illustrated by the sales department where they promise the customers installation without consulting the customer service department that has the engineers responsible for the installation process. The marketing team also releases a new product to the market without communicating and passing relevant information to the sales and customer services department giving the latter hard time dealing with customers linked to this new product. These departments have their roles linked up whereby information from one department is passed to the other department for implementation. Their lack of coordination only means that a lot of work is going to be left unattended for since the other departments have no idea what is going on. It is a well-known fact that information is power, therefore, failing to pass the same to the other departments only means more harm than good to this Pluto organisation.
Sharief (2016) in his opinion shares that if coordination is lacking in an organisation then this reduces its productivity, makes processes complicated and completion assignments gets delayed. He further states that for one to manage the entire organisation’s efforts, a system of integration of events that creates organisational accountability is required, just as Tim Bobby called for. He further adds giving these processes implementations gives room for coordination within the departments in the entire organisation among employees. This is why Veronica complains about the decrease in the productivity. Even a small organisation cannot survive if there are instances of lack of coordination amongst its members.
With this lack of coordination, it is obvious that most of the work might end up being done more than one time since one department has no idea what the other was working on. This will consume the resources of the organisation drastically and reduce the output by a high value due to the time wasted as one work is repeated. This is going to incur the organisation great losses for it is always a primary objective of any business entity to reduce the cost as much as possible in order to enjoy god profits. Pulling a lot of resources towards one task will only see this business suffer a blow of losses.
Information is not passing accordingly through the departments. This is going to make the organisation lose a lot of data in the process. Without this data, a lot of work is going to be left undone or done poorly since data forms a part of the input, for any organisation, that is manipulated to produce the desired output. This, in turn, is going to delay a lot of operations in the organisation. Any delay on a job to be done in an organisation comes with a loss in the process. This is because a lot of time is concentrated on working on one thing, a time that could be used to attend to some other job to gain more profit. Time is money and for any business entity to see good progress, they must keep this in mind always and forever.
Upward communication is discouraged in this Pluto organisation. This is well illustrated when Mr Wensley is told to wait outside the boardroom by his boss, Veronica. Mr. Matthew is also interrupted as he calls for integration by the boss. The Business Communication (2015) states that upward communication results to a good labour-management relationship whereby employees lower level executives bring forth information and top executives use such information, after analysing it, to come to a common decision which results in the subordinates being at good terms with their superiors a factor that improves the operations of the whole organisation.
When the upward communication is discouraged then it means that the superiors don’t get relevant reports from their subordinates. This means that they lose track of how those they are to supervise are doing their job. That friendly environment between the boss and the worker is necessary for easy passage of information that can lead to the development of the organisation. Luthans supports this in his work as he reports that,
Feedback makes communication a two-way process and is a big problem with much of e-mail that turns out to be only one-way. As electronic communication becomes more interactive, such problems can be overcome. There is continuing research evidence that feedback not only improves communication but also, in turn, leads to a more effective manager and organisational performance (2011, p.254).
The subordinate staff is very close to the customers more than their superiors. This means that they are rich in ideas which can make the organisation improve its productivity because they know the taste of the customers and share the feeling of the customers on certain products. With this experience, they are more innovative and can bring forth ideas that will see the organisation thrive beyond the grasp of its competitors. This means that if such information is passed to the superiors then the organisation will, in turn, enjoy much more benefits. This lacking in Pluto and it is a serious blow to them.
The upward communication is also key to a favourable working environment. If the employees are free to talk to their superiors, then they will be motivated to work even hard because they cannot afford to lose that relationship. This will result in the workers being at great harmony and simplify work in the organisation. Most human beings work best when they a peace of mind. Here their self-esteem is boosted and they gather a lot of confidence that will enable them to work even much better. In the absence of this, the output they bring forth is undesirable.
Mowday, et al. defines an organisational commitment to be the tendency of an employee’s oversight and relations that shows his loyalty to his work. Other than this, he says that commitment to an organisation entails the willingness of an individual to do all that it takes to see the goals of an organisation achieved (1979). The workers of this organisation do not show commitment to the job they are doing. The commitment of workers is one factor that is paramount that if met then any organisation shows a great success. This missing commitment is seen when Mr. Matthew says, “I know not the happenings outside my department because (a) it is none of my business and (b) There is no time to find out.”
A committed worker would gather any relevant information that may benefit the organisation he is working for not only from his department but also from other departments so that he is well updated on the operations going on in his workplace. The sales personnel are also reported that they are mostly after the bonuses they receive on the sales they make such that once they make one transaction, they are much eager to jump to the next for more bonuses.
These employees should, on the other hand, put more efforts in the development of the organisation. Commitment enables the worker to operate till late hours. They readily volunteer to duties even those outside their departments for the good of the organisation. A workplace with employees driven their commitment thrives even their competitors are stiff. There is nothing good as working with a passion. This can see you achieve a lot of things in your working career. This gives your supervisors less work thus releasing you from working under great pressure. UK Essays (2013) reports that if benefits and support is offered to the employees by the organisation then absenteeism will be reduced and, in addition, they feel appreciated for the services they offer. This will automatically make the employees develop much interest in their work and show surprising commitment for the betterment of the organisation.
This is the spirit whereby top officials in an organisation are the only ones responsible for major decision making. Landry addresses the topic on bureaucracy in his book stating,
Bureaucracies exist in the public, private and community spheres in various forms. They can be complex in their precise characteristics depending on their purpose, mission, scope and size. A bureaucracy is the organisational structure of larger organisations which have systematic procedures, protocols and regulations to manage activity. These dictate how most processes are executed as well as the formal division of powers, hierarchies, and relationships intended to anticipate needs and improve efficiency. Here the focus is on the public domain, yet it has as much relevance to how large corporations operate as to public institutions. Key principles have evolved in how they operate such as neutrality or leaving vision making to politicians. This can constrain initiative, motivation and creative potential (2011).
We are told that managers from higher grades are reticent to communicate with other managers from a lower grade. This is very uncalled for since for an organisation to meet its set goals, then all the opinions and suggestions must be taken into consideration.
Due to the division of labour and specialisation, that is seen in most organisations, a worker may develop a feeling that he is entitled to all the major decisions around his area of specialisation. This is wrong since other employees from a different department may provide better ideas as well. For good progress, every employee should be taken into consideration as far as opinion is concerned.
3.1 Lack of teamwork
Lack of teamwork adversely affects on tasks, which cannot be completed without effective teamwork thus, the teamwork must be improved and for this the team members must be chosen sensitively, so that the tasks would be completed in appropriate way.
3.2 Poor coordination
In order improve the efficiency of the product and services the coordination among the different section of the organization must be improved, that help the organization in improving the efficiency of the product and services of the organization thus help in improving the prospectus of the organization.
3.3 Inefficient upward communication
For better outcome as well as to achieve the goals and objectives the upward communication is most important as it help to know the management about the performance along with performance issues so that they can take important steps in order to minimize the issues and improve the performance of the employees thus performance of the organization.
3.4 lack of commitment
The entire employees of the organization must be committed towards their requisite duties and responsibilities so that all the vital tasks would be completed within the predefined time and standard, which help the organization to achieve the goals and objectives of the organizations.
3.5 Bureaucratic ethos
Bureaucratic ethos must be avoided by the management staffs as in current scenario the effective coordination between the top and middle management is most important and it is necessary for the successful accomplishment of the goal and objectives of the organization.
4.1. Encourage teamwork
Chalmers (2016) emphasises on teamwork in his statement where is states, “it doesn’t matter if you are a boss or planning to lead, you should push for teamwork, in your workplace, for it builds skill in business. He clarifies that this is not just put the best guys together, it is more than just that” In an effort to promote teamwork, the superiors should always make sure that those whom he heads share in the future plans of the organisation. By so doing, the members will work as a team achieve the goals of the organisation.
The organisation should also set targets to be met by the different departments and for the members of the departments as well. By so doing, the members of the departments will have to work together in order to hit the target. Rewards should be promised to teams that do great not individuals for this will nature the togetherness in the organisation.
The employees should always be made to feel as part of the organisation. A firm trust should be developed between the employees and their bosses. If this is done, every information that regards the organisation will be shared equally and no employee will be left in the dark. Being informed is enough motivation to work even harder for you will feel that the organisation values you and every service that you have to offer them. This openness will enable the superiors to pay attention to whatever other employees have to say. This, in turn, moulds a bond so strong.
4.2. Encourage coordination
When teamwork is fully encouraged, coordination between the departments will follow promptly. This is because, with the teams in place, coordination of the different departments will be needed in order for the set targets to be met. With these in place, all the operations of the organisation will fall back to normally and work done smoothly. In addition, harmony and unity will be achieved. The unitary Pluto culture will be brought back to life once again. This is the secret to the successes seen by many organisations globally.
With coordination at hand, employees can work in the areas where they specialise in much easily. Business Management reports that,
In modem organisation, diversification and complexities of technology give rise to specialisation. The organisation hires specialists who that they are competent to handle their jobs. They do not consult departmental heads. This often leads to conflict among specialists and departmental heads. Therefore, coordination is needed to reconcile differences to ensure unity of action achieve the organisational objective (2013).
By doing this, the production will be improved and time saved. This means that resources will be pulled towards achieving a goal are utilised accordingly and result seen. The organisation will enjoy great profits in return. Success is not all about doing everything possible, sometimes it is all about doing just the little things.
4.3. Create a conducive environment for working
Begumisa (2014) while writing on building a conducive environment for working reports that,
creating the right environment for working entails knowing how to motivate the employees and this would depend on the behavioural and the physical factors. They are as follows: facilities and equipment, atmosphere and workspace, an environment free of noise (although this could vary from one profession to another), encouragement to foster creativity, and ability to make the workplace fun.
The environment that you are working in defines how best you will perform in it. Giving the employees a good pay improves their working environment. They will feel motivated and produce their best. This will also see the sales personnel stop going just after the bonuses but do a job with a lot of passion. Providing the working allowances in time and hearing out your employees when they ask for a day or two off with genuine reasons will improve their working environment. Every employee works to their level best when they are at ease with everything around them. This is how you can grant them this.
5.1 Lack of teamwork
In order to improve the teamwork between the members, the members of a team would be selected sensitively and there several workshops will be arranged for the teams so that they can understand each other’s, their capabilities and weakness, which help in planning the task accordingly. Besides this, it helps in improving their personal relationship and bondage that improve their coordination so that the work would be done more efficiently.
In order to improve the coordination between the different sections of the organization the organization will plan several joint conventions for the sections which related to each other so that the communication and relation between the employees of different sections can be improved and thus the coordination between the different sections would be improved.
5.3 Inefficient upward communication
For improving the upward communication between the employees, middle manager and top level managers, the organization must plan some meeting, get together, conventions among the different level of employees of the organization, which help in improving the relation among them and thus the upward communication of the organization will be improved.
5.4 lack of commitment
In order to improve the commitment of the employees the organization must take adequate motivational strategies so that the employees will be motivated towards their work and improve their commitment towards their work.
5.5 Bureaucratic ethos
The Bureaucratic ethos must be prohibited, as it hinder the growth of the company so a frequent meeting between the top level management officials with middle management staffs will be arranged, where the middle managers freely discuss the issue, which they face in order to obtain certain performance from the employees.
Conclusion
It is very evident that Pluto is facing a lot of managerial issues. These are not permanent though; they can be all stopped and a new chapter opened that will see this organisation to the skies. Listed above are a number of resolutions that if followed step by step then Pluto can get to the place Veronica desires it to be. With all these resolutions in place, Pluto will definitely take a new turn and achieve all it goals. It will not only prosper as an organisation but also the employees in it will develop their careers and achieve their dreams as they work together as one big family. United they shall stand.
References
Begumisa, L. J. (2014). Building a conducive working environment.
Business Management Ideas (2013). Importance of proper coordination to achieve organisational objectives.
Chalmers, E. (2016). 13 Ways to encourage teamwork.
Landry, C. (2011). The creative bureaucracy: A think piece.
Luthans, F. (2011). Organisational behavior. 12th ed.
Manktelow, J. et al, (2016). Team effectiveness assessment: How good is your team?
Mowday, R. T., Richard M.S. & Lyman W. P. (1997). The measurement of organisational commitment; Journal of Vocational Behavior.
Sharief, S. (2015). How can bad coordination between departments affect the sales process?
The Business Communication (2015). Advantages and disadvantages of upward communication.
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