Introduction to organizational behavior: Concept and importance of

organizational behavior, role of Managers in OB, foundations or approaches to organizational

behavior, challenges and opportunities for OB.
Foundation of individual behavior: Biographical characteristics, concept of
abilities and learning , learning and learning cycle, components of learning, concept of values
and attitude, types of attitude, attitude and workforce diversity.

Concept and importance of organizational behavior,:

Organizational behavior (OB) is a broad field of business study that examines

how people behave in an organization and how managers can influence them
to act in specific ways that are beneficial to the organization.

The study of organizational behavior is influenced by many disciplines,

including management theory, psychology, and efficiency analysis. It is difficult
to pinpoint exactly what organizational behavior is or how it works, but key
components are leadership, culture, structure, and communication.

It is very important to study organizational behavior because it provides an

understanding of why people behave as they do in organizations. In any
organization, the importance of organizational behavior has tremendous
necessities.

Organizational Behavior helps us to study human being and their complex

nature in organizations by identifying the causes and effects of that behavior.

1. Organizational Behavior helps in understanding Organization and Employees

in a better way which supports Organizational behavior management.
2. Organizational Behavior helps in motivating employees.
3. Organizational Behavior helps in improving Industrial / Labor relations.
4. Organizational Behavior helps in predicting and controlling Human Behavior.
5. Organizational Behavior helps in the effective utilization of Human Resources
.

role of Managers in OB:

Role of Managers :
1. Interpersonal Role :
• Figure Head –
In this role, the manager performs duties of ceremonial nature,
such as, attending an employee’s wedding, taking the customer
to lunch, greeting the tourist dignitaries and so on.
• Leader Role –
In this role, the manager is a leader, guiding the employees in
the right path, with the proper motivation and encouragement.
• Liaison Role –
In this role, the manager cultivates contacts outside the vertical
chain of command to collect useful information for the
organization.
2. Informational Role :
• Monitor Role –
In this role, manager acts as a monitor, perpetually scanning the
environment for information, keeping an eye on the liaison
contacts and subordinates and receive unsolicited information.
• Disseminator Role –
In this role, manager acts as a disseminator by passing down
privileged information to the subordinates who would otherwise
have no access to it.
• Spokesperson Role –
In this role, manager acts a spokesperson by representing the
organization before various outside groups, which have some
stake in the organization. These stakeholders can be
government officials, labour unions, financial institutions,
suppliers, customers, etc. They have a wide influence over the
organization, so the manager should coin their support by
effectively managing the social impact of the organization.
3. Decisional Role :
• Entrepreneurial role –
In this role, the manager acts as an entrepreneur, always thirsty
for new knowledge and innovation to improve the organization.
Nowadays, it doesn’t matter if the organization is bigger or
better, but it is necessary that it grows consistently. Innovation
is creating new ideas which may either result in the
development of new products or services or improving upon the
 old ones. This makes innovation an important function for a
manager.
• Disturbance handler role –
In this role, the manager acts a disturbance handler, where the
manager has to work reactively like a firefighter. The manager
should come up with solutions to any problem that arises and
handle it in an orderly way.
• Resource allocator role –
In this role, the manager acts as a resource allocator where the
manager must divide work and delegate authority among his
subordinates. The manager should plan out which subordinate
will get what based on the abilities and who will be more suited
into a particular task.
• Negotiator –
In this role, the manager acts as a negotiator where the manager
at all levels has to spend considerable time in negotiations. The
president of a company may negotiate with the union leaders
about a new strike issue or the foreman may negotiate with the
workers about a grievance problem, etc.

• Approaches to Organizational Behavior

Studies
 •

1. Human resources (supportive) approach

The human resources approach is developmental. It is concerned with the growth and
development of people towards higher levels of competency, creativity, and fulfillment
because people are the central resource in any organisation and any society. This
approach recognizes the fact that people are the central resource in any organization
and that they should be developed towards higher levels of competency, creativity, and
fulfillment.

People thus contribute to the success of the organization.

The human resources approach is also called the supportive approach because the
manager’s role changes from control of employees to active support of their growth and
performance.

The supportive approach contrasts with the traditional management approach.

2. Contingency approach
.

The contingency approach (sometimes called the situational approach) is based

on the premise that methods or behaviors which work effectively in One
situation fail in another
For example, Organization Development (OD) programs, the way work
brilliantly in one situation but fail miserably in another situation.

Results differ because situations differ; the manager’s task, therefore, is to

identify which method will, in a particular situation, under particular
circumstances, and at a particular time, best contribute to the attainment of the
organization’s goals.

The strength of the contingency approach lies in the fact it encourages analysis
of each situation prior to action while at the same time discouraging the habitual
practice of universal assumptions about methods and people.

The contingency approach is also more interdisciplinary, more system-oriented,

and more research-oriented titan any other approach. ▸

Productivity Approach
• Productivity which is the ratio of output to input, is a measure of an
organization’s effectiveness. It also reveals the manager’s efficiency in
optimizing resource utilization.
• The higher the numerical value of this ratio, the greater the efficiency.
• Productivity is generally measured in terms of economic inputs and
outputs, but human and social inputs and outputs also are important.

For example, if better organizational behavior can improve job satisfaction, a

human output or benefit occurs.

In the same manner, when employee development programs lead to better

citizens in a community, a valuable social output occurs. ▸

Systems Approach
The Systems Approach to OB views the organization as a united, purposeful
system composed of interrelated parts.

This approach gives managers a way of looking at the organization as a whole,

whole, person, whole group, and the whole social system.

In so doing, the systems approach tells us that the activity of any segment of an
organization affects, in varying degrees, the activity of every other segment. A
systems view should be the concern of every person in an organization.
The clerk at a service counter, the machinist, and the manager all work with the
people, thereby influencing the behavioral quality of life in an organization and
its inputs.

Managers, however, tend to have a larger responsibility because they are the
ones who make the majority people-oriented.

The role of managers is to use organizational behavior to help build an

organizational culture in which talents are utilized and further developed,
people are motivated, teams become productive, organizations achieve their
goals, and society reaps the reward.

Inter-Disciplinary Approach
Organizational behavior is an integration of all other social sciences and
disciplines, such as psychology, sociology, organizational theories, etc.

They all are interdependent and influence each other. Man is studied as a whole,
and therefore, all disciplines concerning man are integrated.

challenges and opportunities for OB:

Challenges and opportunities for organizational behavior are massive and
rapidly changing for improving productivity and meeting business goals.

Although the problems with organizations and the solutions over the ages have
not changed, the emphasis and surrounding environmental context certainly
have changed.

Although the resulting lean and mean organizations offered some short-run
benefits in terms of lowered costs and improved productivity, if they continued
to do business, as usual, they would not be able to meet current or future
challenges.

The nature of work is changing so rapidly that rigid job structures impede the
work to be done now, and that may drastically change the following year,
month, or even week.

challenges and opportunities of organizational behavior are;

Improving People’s Skills

Improving Quality and Productivity

Total Quality Management (TQM)

Stimulating Innovation and Change

The emergence of E-Organisation & E-Commerce

Improving Customer Service

Improving Quality and Productivity

Quality is the extent to which the customers or users believe the product or
service surpasses their needs and expectations.

For example, a customer who purchases an automobile has a certain

expectation, one of which is that the automobile engine will start when it is
turned on.

If the engine fails to start, the customer’s expectations will not have been met
and the customer will perceive the quality of the car as poor. The key
dimensions of quality as follows.

Performance: Primary rating characteristics of a product such as signal

coverage, audio quality, display quality, etc.

Features: Secondary characteristics, added features, such as calculators, and

alarm clock features in handphone

Reliability: The probability of a product’s falling within a specified period

Durability: It is a measure of a product’s life having both economic and

technical dimension

Services: Resolution of problem and complaints, ease of repair

To improve quality and productivity, they are implementing programs like total
quality management and reengineering programs that require extensive
employee involvement.

Total Quality Management (TQM)

Total Quality Management (TQM) is a philosophy of management that is driven
by the constant attainment of customer satisfaction through the continuous
improvement of all organizational processes.

The components of TQM are;

(a) An intense focus on the customer,

(b) Concern for continual improvement,

(c) Improvement in the quality of everything the organization does,

(d) Accurate measurement and,

(e) Empowerment of employees.

Stimulating Innovation and Change

Today’s successful organizations must foster innovation and be proficient in the

art of change; otherwise, they will become candidates for extinction in due
course of time and vanished from their field of business.

Victory will go to those organizations that maintain flexibility, continually

improve their quality, and beat the competition to the market place with a
constant stream of innovative products and services.

For example, Compaq succeeded by creating more powerful personal computers

for the same or less money than EBNM or Apple, and by putting their products
to market quicker than the bigger competitors.

The emergence of E-Organisation & E-Commerce

It refers to the business operations involving the electronic mode of

transactions. It encompasses presenting products on websites and filling the
order.

The vast majority of articles and media attention given to using the Internet in
business are directed at online shopping.

In this process, the marketing and selling of goods and services are being
carried out over the Internet.
In e-commerce, the following activities are being taken place quite often – the
tremendous numbers of people who are shopping on the Internet, business
houses are setting up websites where they can sell goods, conducting the
following transactions such as getting paid and fulfilling orders.

Improving Customer Service

OB can contribute to improving organizational performance by showing drat

how employees’ attitudes and behavior are associated with customer
satisfaction.

In that case, service should be the first production-oriented by using

technological opportunities like a computer, the internet, etc.

To improve customer service we need to provide sales service and also the
after-sales service.

Biographical characteristics:

Biographical Characteristics
1. Age: The age of individuals, which impacts their perspectives,
experiences, and preferences. Age diversity promotes
intergenerational collaboration and knowledge sharing.
2. Gender: The biological and social characteristics that distinguish
individuals as male, female, or non-binary. Gender diversity
promotes gender equality and a more inclusive workplace.
3. Race and Ethnicity: The racial and ethnic backgrounds of
individuals, influencing their cultural perspectives and experiences.
Embracing racial and ethnic diversity enhances cross-cultural
understanding.
4. Nationality: The country of origin or citizenship of individuals,
contributing to their global perspectives and cultural identities.
5. Religion: The belief systems and practices followed by individuals,
which shape their values and behaviors. Religious diversity
promotes religious tolerance and understanding.

Concept of abities and learning:

ability refers to the skills and qualities that enable individuals to achieve goals. Let’s
explore this further:
1. Intellectual Ability: This capacity involves mental activities such as thinking,
reasoning, and problem-solving. It’s often measured through intelligence tests
 and includes dimensions like verbal comprehension, inductive reasoning, and
memory1.
2. Physical Ability: This pertains to an individual’s motor skills and physical
capabilities. It encompasses aspects like strength, flexibility, and
coordination.
The concept of learning in Organizational Behavior (OB) includes the following
points1
• Learning is the permanent change in behavior due to direct and indirect
experience.
• It involves the acquisition of knowledge, skills, and behavior through study
or experience.
• Learning is universal, continuous, and purposeful.
• Organizations need people with learning capacity to adapt to changing
environmental forces and new technology.
Learning cycle:
Learning Cycle (Kolb, 1984) Kolb developed a model of learning considered as
‘experiential learning’ which begins with a concrete experience and learning
takes place through a further three stages of reflection, analysis and
evaluation. This then leads on to a new experience from the learning and the
cycle begins again
components of learning:

concept of values and attitude:

types of attitude:
Types of Attitude
These are the three major types of attitude:

1. Job Satisfaction
2. Job Involvement
3. Organizational Commitment

Types of Attitude
Job Satisfaction
The term job satisfaction refers to an individual’s general attitude towards his
or her job. A person with a high level of job satisfaction holds a positive
attitude towards the job, while a person who is dissatisfied with his or her job
holds a negative attitudes about the job.

Job Involvement
The degree, to which a person identifies with his or her job, actively
participates in it, and considers his or her performance important to self-worth.

Organizational Commitment
The degree to which an employee identifies with a particular organization and
its goals and wishes to maintain membership in the organization.