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FUN WORKPLACE

Society encourages and provides many ways in which people can play and have fun in their
recreational lives. Play typically has a number of common elements –immersion in the activity, surprise,
variety, choice, experience of progress, and the opportunities to make personal contribution and to “win.”
Most of these features can also be incorporated into the daily life of employees, many o whom also despire
to have fun at work. A fun work environment is a unique and increasingly popular organizational culture in
which supervisors encourage, initiate, and support variety of playful and humorous activities. A fun
workplace culture has several key features:

 It easily recognize (by observing the presence of laughter, smile, surprise, spontaneity)
 It means different things to various people
 It is relatively easy to create at work
 It elicits broad range of personal and organizational payoffs

Hundreds of approaches have been used to simulate fun at work. Key categories include unique
ways to provide recognition for personal milestone (birthdays and anniversaries of hiring dates). Hosting of
special social events, public celebrations of professional and department achievements, games and friendly
competitions, entertainment, and the use of humor in newsletters and correspondence. Specific tactics
used in various organizations include costume (dress up) days, cartoons tailored to employees,
exaggerated job titles chosen by each worker, distribution of the “joke of the day,” or the use of modified
board games and TV show formats to engage and stimulate creativity. No magic formula ensures success;
the for managers is to be experimental, make it a continuous process, and encourage others to come up
with new ideas.

Employees like to work in an environment that satisfies their economic and security needs,
makes them feel listened to, and recognize their time effort, effort, and results. Beyond that, however,
many employees value and appreciate the opportunity to relax and play a little, laugh, have fun
occasionally, and generally enjoy themselves at work. Unless the playfulness results in physical harm or
personal feelings becoming hurt, fun at work can help decrease stress, reduce boredom, stimulate
friendships, increase satisfaction, and produce several beneficial physiological results for employees (e.g.,
lower blood pressure, greater immunity to infection, and more positive energy).

The organization benefits from a fun workplace culture, too. A comprehensive survey by the
Society for Human Resource Management showed that employee enthusiasm and creativity rise, attracting
and retaining new employees is easier, the company’s values and norms (culture) become clearer, and
costumer satisfaction improves as a reflection of how they are treated by energize employees. Common
reservations about the risk inherent in having fun at work generally prove to be groundless. Most the valid
reasons for managerial resistance of having fun at work revolve around the fear that one’s superior (and
the overall organizational culture) won’t condone it and the possible lack of creativity needed to make it
happen. On balance, however, powerful arguments supporting allowing employees
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ADVICE TO FUTURE MANAGERS

1. Look at your organization as social workplace. Is the culture strong or weak?

system, and ask your self whether it is Describe what you could do to clarify and
balance or not. If it is not, is the strengthen your firm’s culture.
disequilibrium functional for 7. Since the best time to install cultural
organization? values into employees is while they are
2. Seek to understand, and actively still new receptive, study how your
manage, the physiological contract you organization socializes its new hires into
have with each of your employees. the values and norms of the firm.
3. Inventory the positive ways in which 8. Examine the level of commitment to the
each of your employees is different. ethic among your employees, and
Make sure that your work-place search for ways to communicate your
capitalizes on these aspects of diversity. performance expectations to them.
4. Find, and use, at least one active mentor 9. Start to accumulate reservoir of tales,
for your-self. Also, offer yourself as a myths, slogans, and anecdotes that
mentor to at least one person who does support the kind of organizational culture
not reported directly to you. you wish to convey. Develop, polish, and
5. Analyze the status symbols that are apply your storytelling skills s a means to
apparent in your organization. Decide reinforce the culture.
whether they are functional or 10. Examine the current and desired level of
dysfunctional for employees morale and fun in your workplace. Involve employees
performance. in developing a fun work environment
6. Paint a comprehensive verbal portrait of that also contributes to organizational
the organizational culture t your goals.

To have occasional fun at work and engaging them in the process of creating a fun workplace culture

Summary

When people join a work group, they become part of that organization’s social system. It is the
medium by which they relate to the world of work. The variables in an organizational system operate in a
working balance called equilibrium. Individuals make a psychological contract that defines their personal
relationship with the system. When contribute to the organization’s success, we call their behaviour
functional.

The environment that people live in their social culture. People need to accept and appreciate the
value that a diversity of cultural backgrounds can contribute to the success of organization. Other important
cultural factors include the work ethic and corporate attitudes toward social responsibility.
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Role is the pattern of action expected of a person in activities involving others. Related ideas are
role perception, mentors, role, conflict, and role ambiguity. Status is the social rank of a person in a group,
and leads to status systems and possibly status anxiety. Status symbols are sought as if they were magical
herbs, because they often provide external evidence of status for their possessors.

Organizational cultures reflect the assumptions ad values that guide a firm. They are intangible
but powerful influences on employee behaviour. Participants learn about their organization’s culture
through the process of socialization and influence it through individualization. Organizational cultures can
be changed but the process is time consuming. Fun at work can be legitimate part of a firm’s culture and
can produce personal and organizational benefits.

TERMS AND
CONCEPT FOR REVIEW

Cultural diversity, 78 Organizational Social responsibility, 80

Discrimination, 78 Socialization, 90 Social system, 75

Dysfunctional Prejudice, 78 Status, 84

Effect, 76 Psychological, 76 Status anxiety, 84

Functional effect, 76 Role, 80 Status deprivation, status

symbols, 85
Fun work environment, 93 Role ambiguity, 84
Status systems, 84
Individualization, 91 Role conflict, 83
Storytelling, 91
Mentor, 82 Role perceptions, 81
Valuing diversity, 78
Open system, 75 Social culture, 78
Work ethic, 79
Organizational culture, 87 Social equilibrium, 75

Discussion Question

1. What psychological contract do you feel is present in this course? Describe its key features.
2. Look around your classroom, dormitory, or student organization. In what ways does it reflect
cultural diversity? Suggest ways by which resources represented in that diversity could be used to
greater advantage for the benefit of all participants.
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3. A management specialist recently commented about the work ethic, saying, “you can discover if
you personally have of work ethic if you think more about the salary you make than about the
quality of the product you make (or the service you provide).”
4. What does social responsibility mean to you? Does it apply to people as well as institution?
Describe three acts of social responsibility that you have seen, or performed, in the last month.
5. Describe a situation in which you experienced role conflict or role ambiguity. What cause it? How
are the two ideas related, and how are they different?
6. Interview a manager to discover what that person believes to be the five most important status
symbols in the work situation. Identify whether the importance of status symbols is increasing or
decreasing there.
7. Describe the organizational culture that seems to exist in your class. What are some of the implicit
or explicit norms, values, and assumptions?
8. Reflect on your first few days in college, or in a part time or summer job. In what ways were you
socialized? How did you feel about what was happening to you?
9. Now look at the reciprocal process of individualization. In what ways did you an impact on the
college, or on the job?
10. The beneficial effects of having fun at work are relatively easy to see. What are some of the
possible dysfunctional effects of such culture?

Assess your

Own skill

How well do you exhibit good mentoring skills?

Read the following statements carefully. Circle the number on the response scale that most
closely reflect the degree to which statement accurately describes you when you have played a role to
someone else as a mentor. Add up your total points and prepare a brief action plan self improvement. Be
ready to report your score for tabulation across the entire group.

Good Description Poor Description

1. I make myself available for contact 2. I give constructive feedback whenever it

whenever my protégé needs me. is appropriate.
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3. I share tales of my own successes and
failures when I think examples are
needed. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

4. I provide emotional support when I sense

the timing is right 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
.
5. I follow through on any commitments I
make, to establish an image of integrity. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

6. I view all information gained as personal

and confidential, disclosing it to no one.

7. I work hard to remain open to my needs 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

and objectives of my protégé.

8. I make sure that I listen attentively to 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

both the words and feelings of my
protégé.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
9. I try to be available for immediate contact
whenever my protégé needs me.

10. I recognize to need to provide support

and encouragement to my protégé.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Scoring and interpretation

Add up your total points for the 10 questions. Record that number here, and report it when it is required.
_______ Finally, insert your total score into the “Assess and improve your own organizational behaviour
skills” chart in the appendix.

 If you scored between 81 and 100, you appear to have solid capability for demonstrating good
mentoring skills.
 If you scored between 61 and 80 points, you should take a close look at the items with lower self-
assessment score and explore ways to improve those items.
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 If you scored under 60 points, you should b aware that a weaker skill level regarding several items
could be detrimental to your future success as a mentor. We encourage you to review relevant
sections of the chapter and watch for related material in subsequent chapters and other sources.

Now identify your three lowest scores, and write the question number here: ________, ________,
__________. Write a brief paragraph, detailing to yourself an action plan for how you might sharpen each
of these skills.

Incident

Liberty construction company

Liberty construction company is a small company in Colorado. Over half its revenue is derived from the
installation of underground water and power lines, so much of its work is seasonal and turnover among its
employees is high.

Michael Federico, a college student, had been employed by liberty as a backhoe operator for the
last three summers. On his return to work for the fourth summer, Federico was assigned the second
newest of the company’s five backhoes. The owner reasoned that Federico had nine months of work
seniority, so according to strict seniority, he should have the second backhoe. This action required the
present operator of the backhoe, Pedro Alvarez, a regular employee who had been with the company
seven months, to be reassigned to an older machine. Alvarez was strongly dissatisfied with this; he felt that
as a regular employee he should have retrained the newer machine instead of having to give it a temporary
employee the other employees soon felt into two camps, one supporting Alvarez and one supporting
Federico. Job conflicts arose, and each group seemed to delight in causing work problem for the other
group. In less than a month Alvarez left the company.

Question

Discuss this case in terms of the social, equilibrium, the psychological contract, role, status, and status
symbols.

Experiential Exercise

Role Perceptions of Students and Instructors

consider yourself as the subordinate in this class, with the instructor as your manager.

1. (Work individually). In the student-instructor relationship in this class, identify:

a. Your perception of your student roles
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b. Your perception of the instructor’s roles
c. Your perception of the instructor’s perception of your roles as a student (At the same time, the
instructor should be identifying his or her perception of the instructor’s role, the instructor’s
perception of the students roles, and the instructor’s perception of the students’ perceptions of his
or her roles.)
2. Meeting in small groups of students, combine your ideas into collective statements of perceptions.
3. Report your group perceptions to the class on all three factors. Request that the instructor share
his or her perception with the class.

Generating
OB in sight

An insight is a new and clear perception of a phenomenon, or an acquired ability to “see” clearly
something that you were unaware of previously. It is something simply referred to as an “ah ha! Moment,”
in which you have a mini revelation or reach a straight forward conclusion about a topic or issue.

Insights need not to necessarily be dramatic, for what is an insight to one person may be less
important to another. The critical feature of insights is that they are relevant and memorable for you; they
should represent new knowledge, new frame works, or new ways of viewing things that you want to retain
and remember over time.

Insights, then, are different from the information that you find in the “Advice for Future Manager”
boxes within the text. That advice is prescriptive and action-oriented; it indicates a recommended course of
action.

A useful think of OB insights is to assume that you are the only person who has read the current
chapter. You have been given the assignment to highlight, in your own words, the major concepts (but not
just summarize the whole chapter) that might stand out for a naive audience who has never heard of the
topic before. What 10 sights would you share with them?

1. (Example) Employees are egocentric and hungry for information that reinforces their self-image
and state.
2. ________________________________________________________
3. ________________________________________________________
4. ________________________________________________________
5. ________________________________________________________
6. ________________________________________________________
7. ________________________________________________________
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8. ________________________________________________________
9. ________________________________________________________
10. ________________________________________________________