Topic 1: Introduction to Organizational Behavior

• What is organizational behavior?

o A field of study that investigates the impact of individuals, groups, and
structure have on behavior within organizations, for the purpose of applying
such knowledge toward improving an organization’s effectiveness
o To simplify: It is the study of WHAT PEOPLE DO in an organization and the
way their BEHAVIOR AFFECTS the organization’s PERFORMANCE.
o Ponder on the following situation:
▪ James is the secretary of ABC Company President. He always
badmouths his boss whenever he is with his friends. How do you think
James’ behavior affects the company he is working for? Is it wrong
for James to badmouth his boss when he is with his friends?
▪ Since James is badmouthing his boss, he is creating a negative
image not only for the president himself or herself but also the
company since his boss is at the top of his company. His behavior
can create a negative reputation for the company. This impact is
what is being studied in organizational behavior.

• What do we need to study organizational behavior?

o Behavior of individuals is very hard to accurately measure or study. To
address this inaccuracy, SYSTEMATIC STUDY is needed.
▪ A systematic study is the pursuit of knowledge methodically through
use of step by step procedures.
▪ Through this type of study, you can conclude based on scientific
evidence and eliminate the randomness of behavior.
• How?
o Look at relationships, cause and effects and other
evidences
• How can organizational behavior contribute to organizations?
o Companies with good reputations often have superior financial
performance
▪ A good reputation starts with good behavior from the individuals in
an organization.
▪ Example: Google is known as a creative and flexible organization
because of their encouragement for recreation and relaxation. This
makes people want to work at Google or enjoy services offered by
Google.
o Having good interpersonal skills attracts employees and ensures their
commitment
▪ Example: When an organization knows how to interact with their
internal and external environment, it makes them very attractive for
applicants or employees just like the example for Google above.
o High quality of workplace increases job satisfaction and decreases work
stress
▪ Employing principles of organizational behavior in an organization
makes it conducive to success and learning
o Positive work relationships enhance social responsibility awareness
 ▪ Positivity starts from within an organization and spreads outwards to
society
• What or who are the focus of organizational behavior?
o What is an organization?
▪ A consciously coordinated social unit
▪ Composed of 2 OR MORE people
▪ Functions on a regular basis to achieve a common goal/s
▪ Examples:
• Manufacturing firms
• Service firms
• Schools
• Hospitals
• Churches
• Military units
• Non-profit organizations
• Police departments
• Governments
• Government agencies
o Who are the managers and what are their roles?
▪ Managers are the people who get things done through other
people.
• Their vast social relationship with others makes them a focus
of organizational behavior.
▪ They make decisions, allocate resources, and direct activity of others
to attain goals.
▪ A manager for non-profit organizations is called an ADMINISTRATOR.
▪ What are the activities of managers??
• Planning

Formulate strategies to develop and coordinate

Define goals
achieve goals activities to reach goals

o Example:
▪ Goal: Increase employee recruitment
▪ Strategy: Promoting the company
▪ Activities: Feature articles in newspapers, social
media posts, posters, ads
 • Organizing
Who
should do
it?

What
Whom to
report? Tasks should be
done?

How to
do it?

o Example:
▪ As the manager, you divide your team into 2
groups with 1 leader each. Group A will be in
charge of offline ads promoting the company
while group B will be in charge of online ads.
• Leading
o Direct and coordinate people, motivate employees,
resolve conflicts
o Examples:
▪ Praises to motivate employees
▪ Feedback to help employees improve
performance
▪ Advices to help employees resolve issues
• Controlling
o Monitor progress and make sure plans or goals are
being met
o Organize organization to get back on track
o Example:
▪ Problems may distract employees or original
plans may change so the manager should
remind them of the goals and tasks to be done.
▪ What are the roles of the managers that they have to perform?
• Interpersonal
Symbolic head; required to perform a number of routine duties of a
Figurehead
legal or social nature
Example Principal giving out diplomas, supervisor touring guests at a company
Leader Responsible for the motivation and direction of employees
Example A department head selecting which applicant to employ
Maintains a network of outside contacts who provide favors and
Liaison
information
Knowing someone from the different government agencies for
Example
speedy information and updates
 • Informational

Receives a wide variety of information; serves as nerve center of

Monitor
internal and external information of the organization
Example Updated with trends in the economy or of products
Transmits information received from outsiders or form other
Disseminator
employees to members of the organization
Example Relays information from top management to lower employees
Transmits information to outsiders on organization’s plans, policies,
Spokesperson
actions, and results, serves as expert on organization’s industry
Example Represent company to outsiders, speaker on media
• Decisional
Searches organization and its environment for opportunities and
Entrepreneur
initiates projects to bring about change
Example Oversees new and relevant projects
Disturbance Responsible for corrective action when organization faces important,
handler unexpected disturbances
Example Decides how to deal with problems especially unforeseen events
Resource
Makes or approves significant organizational decisions
allocator
Example Deciding who will get resources or where they come from
Negotiator Responsible for representing the organization at major negotiations
Example Negotiate for the advantage of the organization
o What skills to managers need?
▪ Technical Skills
• Ability to apply knowledge or expertise
• Example: Use marketing knowledge in assessing the market
trend and deciding which products to launch
▪ Human Skills
• Ability to understand, communicate with, motivate, and
support other people, both individually and in groups
• Example: Giving feedback directly, specifically but not
forgetting to encourage employee
▪ Conceptual Skills
• Mental ability to analyse and diagnose complex situations
• Example: Knowing different options or solutions to address
problems
• What are other disciplines that contribute to organizational behavior?
o Psychology
o Social Psychology
o Sociology
o Anthropology
o How do these disciplines contribute to organizational behavior?
Science that seeks
to measure and
explain behavior

Focuses on the
influence of people
on one another

Study of people in
relation to their
social environment
or culture

Study of societies
to learn about
human beings and
their activities
 THE ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR MODEL (OB MODEL)
• What is a model?
o A simplified representation of some real world phenomenon.
• How does the OB Model look like?

• What is included in the OB Model?

o NOTE: The model has 3 components – inputs, processes, and outcomes with
3 levels each – individual, group and organizational.
o *PLEASE REFER TO THE ILLUSTRATION ABOVE AS YOU ARE BROWSING THE
DEFINITIONS AND EXAMPLES BELOW.
o Inputs
▪ Determined in advanced because these are factors that set the
stage for what will happen in an organization later
▪ Individual level
• How individuals are different from each other based on their
genes or the environment they grew up in
▪ Group level
• Groups are formed when individuals come together
▪ Organizational level
• These are the results of years of development change as the
organization adapts to its environment and builds up customs
and norms
o Processes
▪ Actions that individuals, groups, and organizations engage in as a
result of inputs and that lead to certain outcomes
▪ Individual level
• If a person is an introvert, how will she act in the company?
▪ Group level
• Are the groups all males and all females only? How will
communication be smoother between groups?
 ▪ Organizational level
• Practices of the organization based on established rules and
norms
o Outcomes
▪ Key variables that we want to explain or predict, and that are
affected by some other variables
▪ Individual level
• Task performance
o The combination of effectiveness and efficiency at
doing core job tasks
o Examples:
▪ Factory worker: task performance would be the
quality of product produced by the worker in an
hour
▪ Teacher: task performance would be the level
of education that the students would obtain
• Organizational citizenship behavior (OCB)
o Voluntary behavior that contributes to the
psychological and social environment of the
workplace
o Doing more than what is asked for
o Example:
▪ Helping other team members in their tasks
▪ Doing things for others when same goals are
shared
• Withdrawal behavior
o Set of actions employees take to separate themselves
from the organization
o Examples:
▪ Showing up late
▪ Failing to attend meetings
• Effect: workflow is affected, costing the
organization
▪ Group level
• Group cohesion
o Extent to which members in a group support and
validate one another
o When a group sticks together
o How to increase?
▪ Icebreakers
▪ Picnics
▪ Parties
• Group functioning
o Quantity and quality of a group’s work output
o How can we say that a group is functioning?
▪ Achieving goals
▪ Working together
▪ Flexible to changing situations
 ▪ Organizational level
• Productivity
o Achieving goal by transforming inputs into outputs at
the lowest cost
o Effectiveness x Efficiency
o Effectiveness
▪ Degree to which an organization meets its
needs
o Efficiency
▪ Degree to which an organization can achieve
its ends at low costs
• Organizational survival
o Degree to which an organization is able to exist and
grow over the long term

o To put the OB Model into perspective, look at the example below

INPUT PROCESS OUTCOME

Jane is an introvert. Because Jane is an Jane is unable to
introvert, she is perform properly
always anxious because she
Individual
when meeting with cannot work with
her team mates. others and may
decide to quit.
John and Jack John and Jack are The group of John
were assigned to always arguing and Jack was not
form a team and about what to do able to function
Group pursue a project since they both properly and
even though they think that they are performed poorly.
are both dominant right.
people.
ABC Company was The HR is required ABC company is
founded by a to disregard gender able to continue
feminist group who or sex when and grow because
Organizational
emphasizes recruiting of its reputations of
equality. applicants. being diverse and
open.