Enterprise Week

During Enterprise week, there were a number of different events available to attend. One of the events I attended was – Women in Business, which took place on Wednesday 17^th November and lasted for five hours.

Women in Business was information from successful women who have made their mark in business. During Women in Business, there were a number of presentations that I watched.  These ranged from ‘Confidence and Assertiveness’, Dressing for Success and Looking the Business’, ‘ready, Get Set, Go’, ‘Suit the City’ and ‘Brand Yourself to Stand out from the Crowd’.  All of these were very inspiring and helpful but I feel the ones that stood out the most and I feel would help me in the future were -

‘Confidence and Assertiveness’ -  these two key attributes are required for success in business and in life. These can be developed through changing the way we think and by using specific skills. From this presentation, I gained knowledge on how to develop my confidence and assertive techniques so I will not only look but feel and sound more confident and assertive. ‘Being assertive is likely to lead you to feel better about yourself, feel more confident, feel more relaxed and have a greater awareness of your own needs and how to meet them’. (Susan Lock of Key Consultants)

‘Dressing for Success and Looking the Business’ – this was all about your image and the way you present yourself which should be a direct reflection of who you are and the message you are trying to convey. This was presented by Jane and Katherine Russell which run a business called ‘One You’. They assist companies and individuals in developing and maintaining the most effective and beneficial image suited to you through personalised consultative services including Style Guidance, personal Shopping, and Image Development.

I feel after attending this event, I have gained a lot of knowledge within the business sector from any different points of view. As I am looking at getting involved in the restaurant sector, I feel that the most important points are being confident and assertive, looking the part and having the knowledge as all customers will expect this.

Conflict

Conflict is seen as a clash between two or more individuals, groups, organisations etc. It can be when a problem occurs in the workplace, at school, at home etc. 

As I work in a sweet shop, it is all about working in teams and communicating with each other. However, we as a group have targets to achieve each day but sometimes these are not met or achieved. This is as there have been some conflict occurring. For example, two team members not communicating and ‘getting under each other’s feet’. Also, one of our targets is to make a certain amount of money by the end of the day. We will all work together to make sure we achieve this as we all gain a bonus by achieving this specific target. By our managers having this target, it gets me and my colleagues to be motivated and work together. However, the main key is to communicate and if we don’t, it will cause conflict between us. To overcome these conflicts, we made sure that if we had a problem or needed help, we asked for help and communicated with each other. We found that this does work and that we are all able to work together as a team and achieve all our targets.

Is conflict within an organisation healthy or unhealthy?

The Unitarist View –

-          Assumes everyone in organisation has same interests

-          Accepts unquestioningly goals of management and power relations at work

-          Treats conflict between individuals and groups at work as peripheral

-          Solutions to conflict founded in human relations movement

-          Causes of conflict seen as communication failures (Johnson, 2005)

The Pluralist View –

-          Organisations made up of many groups with separate interests - conflict inevitable

-          typically clashes will occur between unions and management but also can be conflict between functions e.g. Marketing and production

-          Organisations can operate within this but system of compromise and negotiation needed

-          Job of management to keep balance between different interest groups i.e. all stakeholders

Sources of Power

-          Coercive Power – This is the ability to apply punishment. Managers have coercive power through their authority to caution, demote, and fire employees. Labour unions might use coercive power tactics, such as withholding services to influence management in collective agreement negotiations.

-          Reward Power – This is originated from the person's ability to control the allocation of rewards valued by others and to remove negative sanctions. Managers have formal authority that gives them power over the distribution of organizational rewards such as pay, promotions, time off, vacation schedules, and work assignments.

-          Expert Power – This originates from within the person. It is an individual's or work unit's capacity to influence others by possessing knowledge or skills that they want. Employees are gaining expert power as our society moves from an industrial to a knowledge-based economy. The reason is that employee knowledge becomes the means of production, not some machine that the owner controls and without this control over production; owners are more dependent on employees to achieve their corporate objectives.

-          Legitimate Power – This is an agreement among organizational members that people in certain roles can request certain behaviours of others. This perceived right, partly comes from formal job descriptions as well as from informal rules of conduct.

-          Referent Power – People have referent power when others identify with them, like them, or otherwise respect them. Like expert power, referent power comes from within the person. It is largely a function of the person's interpersonal skills and usually develops slowly. Referent power is usually associated with charismatic leadership. Charisma is often defined as a form of interpersonal attraction whereby followers develop a respect for and trust in the charismatic individual.

I believe the five strategies that organisations use to overcome conflict at work would be –

-          Human Resource Management Policies and Procedures (equal pay, holidays, sick pay, promotions)

-          Good communications and consultation(may include decision making as well)

-          Justify goals and objectives to ensure everyone understands what is expected of them in their job.

-          Ensure that employees have the chance to air grievances and have a grievance policy and procedure.

-          Enforce a disciplinary procedure which everyone is aware of.

References

http://www.strom.clemson.edu/becker/prtm320/notes/power320.pdf

http://www.mariosalexandrou.com/blog/sources-of-power-in-organizations

Leadership

A manager is someone who plans, in control, co-ordinate and they achieve results and a leader is someone who motivates, generates ideas, enthusiastic and inspires employees.

The table below shows the differences between managers and leaders.

Manager	Leader
Good Listener	Part of the team – more involved
People Person	Communication is easier
Does the decision making	More friendly
Keeps track – meeting targets	More respect – given and received
Formal	Informal
More Responsibility	Encourage

Blake and Moutons Managerial Grid provides a basis for comparison of managerial styles in terms of two principal dimension: concern for production; and concern for people. 

Concern for Production is the amount of emphasis that the manager places on accomplishing the tasks in hand, achieving a high level of production and getting results or profits. This is represented along the horizontal axis of the grid. (Mullins)

Concern for People is the amount of emphasis that the manager gives to subordinates and colleagues as individuals and to their needs and expectations. This is represented along the vertical axis of the grid.  (Mullins)

[12manage Online Accessed 8^th January]

The four concerns and the centre of the grid provide five basic combinations of degree of concern for production coupled with degree of concern for people:

-          Impoverished Manager (1,1 rating) – the leader exerts and expects minimal effort and has little concern for either staff satisfaction or work targets. This is a leader who is going through the motions is indifferent, non-committal, resigned and apathetic. They are doing just enough to keep their job. [Leadership and Motivation Training Accessed 8^th January]

-          Country Club Manager (1,9 rating) – This style of leader is most concerned about the needs and feeling of members of their team. These people operate under the assumption that as long as team members are happy and secure then the will work hard. What tends to result is a work environment that is very relaxed and fun but where production suffers due to lack of direction and control. [Leadership and Motivation Training Accessed 8^th January]

-          Authoritarian Manager (9,1 rating) – This leader believes that employees are simply a means to an end. Employee needs are always secondary to the need for efficient and productive workplace.  This type of leader is very autocratic, has strict work rules, policies and procedures and views punishment as the most effective means to motivate employees. [Leadership and Motivation Training Accessed 8^th January]

-          Team Leader (9,9 rating) – This leader achieves high work performance through ‘leading’ their employees to become dedicated to the companies goals. There is a high degree of participation and teamwork which satisfies the basic need of people to be involved and committed to their work. The leader may be characterised as open-minder, flexible and one who inspires involvement. [Leadership and Motivation Training Accessed 8^th January]

-          Middle of the road Manager (5,5 rating) – This styles seems to be a balance of the two competing concerns. It may at first appear to be an ideal compromise however the problem may be when compromising, you give away a bit of each concern so that neither production nor people needs are fully met. Leaders who use this style, settle for average performance and often believe that this is the most anyone can expect. [Leadership and Motivation Training Accessed 8^th January]

I currently have a part-time job working in an old-fashioned sweet shop. It is a sole trader owned by a married couple. They are very concerned for production as they want to succeed and keep their business running and available to the public. However, they believe that all staff are simply a means to an end and can be replaced. They expect all individuals to do what they are told, have no consultation and want no input from employees. This means that they would fit in the Authoritarian styles on Blake and Mouton’s grid. They have a high concern for production and a low concern for people.

I think a strong leader is Margaret Thatcher. She was the first woman prime minster in the United Kingdom and held the office of PM for eleven years. I feel that Margaret was a good leader as she understood what the community wanted and she made sure that all their needs were met. As Thatcher’s first two year in office were not easy, she tried to make the best of what she was given. She brought more of her supporters into the Cabinet and boosted her reputation by leading the county to war. Margaret is famous for her many ‘deeds’ and accomplishments. For example, cutting taxes and some social services in 1979. She held office longer than any other British leader and was the first woman ever to hold office. [Who2 Online Accessed 8^th January]

I feel that leadership is every important in business. This is as it provides an inspirational figure to lead groups of people towards great accomplishments. Leadership can provide a foundation for ideas and excellence, showing others that anything is possible in business.

References -

Mullins, L. (2010) management & Organisational behaviour. 9^th ed. Essex: Financial Times Pitman Publishing.owHo

12Manage Online http://www.12manage.com/images/picture_blake_mouton_managerial_grid.gif [Accessed 8th January]

Leadership and Motivation Training Online http://www.leadership-and-motivation-training.com/blake-and-mouton.html [Accessed 8th January]

Mind Tools Online http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_73.htm  [Accessed 8th January]

Who2 Online http://www.who2.com/ask/margaretthatcher.html [Accessed 8th January]

Number10 Online http://www.number10.gov.uk/history-and-tour/prime-ministers-in-history/margaret-thatcher [Accessed 8th January]

Organisational Culture

Organisational Culture is all about the different cultures that you have in an organisation and how they can all change depending on staff, managers, customers and the environment.

The visible aspect of organisation are features of a company that can be seen by the public. Visible aspects of Marks and Spencer are their uniform, the building structure, friendly and helpful staff, their products on show and also available on the internet, their accounts.

Handy came up with four different types of culture

-          Power Culture – This depends on a central power source with hints of influence from the central figure through the organisation. A power culture is frequently found in small entrepreneurial organisations and relies on trust, empathy and personal communication for its effectiveness. Control is exercised from the centre by the selection of key individuals. There are few rules and procedures and little bureaucracy. It is a political organisation with decisions taken largely on the balance of influence. (Mullins, J)

-          Role Culture – This is often stereotyped as a bureaucracy and works by logic and rationality. Role culture rests on the strength of strong organisational pillars – the functions of specialists in finance, purchasing and production. Role or job description is often more important than the individual and position is the main source of power. (Mullins, J)

-          Task Culture – This is job-oriented. In terms of structure the task culture can be related to a net, some strands of which can be stronger than others and with much of the power and influence at the openings. This culture seeks to bring together the right resource and people and it utilises the unifying power of the group. (Mullins, J)

-          Person Culture – This is where the individual is the central focus and any structures exists to serve the individuals within it. When a group of people decide that it is in their own interests to group together to do their own thing and share office space, equipment. Although it is found in only a few organisations, many individuals have a preference for person culture. (Mullins, J)

I feel the problems of trying to classify culture into one of the four types of Handy’s culture can be difficult. Every organisation has its own unique culture and most large businesses are likely to be something of a mix of cultures.

Different people enjoy working in different types of organisation culture and they are more likely to be happy and satisfied at work if their attributes and personalities are consistent with the culture of that part of the organisation in which they are employed.

There is also French and Bell’s 1990 Theory – Organisational Iceberg. This is seen as two contrasting aspects to organisation.

-          Formal Organisation is known to be visible and formal showing all their goals, strategies, their structure, systems and procedures and their financial resources.

-          Informal Organisation is more hidden and is what goes on despite the formal structure such as their values, attitudes and beliefs, their leadership style, norms of behaviours, power and politics and informal groupings.

However, Schein came up with the levels of culture. Schein suggests a view of organisational culture based on distinguishing three levels of culture from the shallowest to the deepest,  artefacts and creations, values, and basic assumptions.

-          Level 1 – Artefacts – The most visible level of the culture is artefacts and creations, the constructed physical and social environment. This includes physical spare and layout, the technological output, written and spoken language and the overt behaviour of group members.  (Mullins, J)

-          Level 2 – Espoused values – Cultural learning reflects someone’s original values. Solutions about how to deal with a new task, issue or problem are based on convictions of reality. If the solution works, the value can transform into a belief. Values and beliefs become part of the conceptual process by which group members justify actions and behaviour.  (Mullins, J)

-          Level 3 – Basic assumptions – When a solution to a problem works repeatedly, it comes to be taken for granted. Basic assumptions are unconsciously held learned responses. They are implicit assumptions that actually guide behaviour and determine how group members perceive, think and feel about things. (Mullins, J)

Schein suggests that the basic assumptions are treated as the essence – which culture really is – and values and behaviours are treated as observed manifestations of the culture essence.  

From all of this, I found that not everyone works in the same way and in the same culture. As there are a few different types of culture, pointed out by handy, it shows that’s not every organisation is the same and they are all most likely to have a mix of cultures. I believe that if an employee is happy with that organisation and the way they work, culture wise, then they will stay with them for a extensive time.

References

Mullins, J. (2010) Management & Organisational Behaviour. 9^th ed. Essex: Financial Times Pitman Publishing.owHo

http://www.lindsay-sherwin.co.uk/guide_managing_change/html_overview/05_culture_handy.htm