Alignment of employees with the organisation

This time Dr. Mandi used a magnet to teach us another concept of management. As the magnet induces the magnetic force in soft metals, the same way a manager can influence the behaviour of its employees towards the organisation. It can be done by aligning them with the organisation. This alignment can happen in the following ways:

·         Alignment of Roles

·         Alignment of People

·          Alignment of Goals

Alignment of Roles is necessary to make a coherent organisation so that each position of responsibility play a strategic part. People must be aligned to generate, improve and retain skills and knowledge which is important for organisation.

Alignment of Goals is the most important part of alignment. It is a humanitarian aspect of management which is captured by Henry Fayol. Any organisation cannot reach to its full potential until individual interests of its employees are aligned with organisational interest.

It is not an exaggeration to say:

Goal attainment is equal to goal alignment

In the above figure, all the arrows are assumed to be the factors of production. In absence of magnetic field, all factors works hap hazardously according to their individual aspirations. But a good manager can have the magnetic influence and is able to align all the factors of production with the organisation. Dr. Mandi’s concept of teaching management by using just a simple magnet is very well taken by the students.

For aligning the goals, following three must be aligned:

Aspirations

Beliefs

Action

All in all, to integrate the employees in the organisation structure and to enjoy maximum productivity, all the individual aspirations, beliefs and Actions of Employees must be aligned with the goal of organisation

Learn different types of Managers

Theory X and Theory Y in Management

An Introduction

The two Theories in management represent two set of assumptions about human nature and human behaviour. On one hand, Theory X represents a negative view of human nature, it assumes that individuals generally dislike work, are irresponsible, and require close supervision to do their jobs. On the other hand, Theory Y represents a positive view of the human nature and assumes individuals are responsible and are self motivated to do their jobs. Managers who exhibit behaviour in accordance with Theory X have a managerial style quite different than managers who exhibit behaviour in accordance with Theory Y.

Scenarios Discussed

Theory X and Theory Y apply to managers, the scenarios discussed in the session considered another dimension. This dimension was the actual motivation level of the employees under a manager. The following four scenarios were discussed.

1.   My Employees are lazy and I assume that they are lazy (Theory X)

This situation occurs in those organizations in which the organizational goals are not clearly laid down. The employees are not motivated to work, also the manager thinks that the employees are incompetent and does not believe in his employees. As a result, the productivity decreases.

2.   My Employees are good and I assume that they are lazy (Theory X)

This situation is the most dangerous of all the four. The employees are self-motivated and do their job with utmost sincerity, but the manager thinks them to be incompetent. As a result, it might be possible that the employees get de-motivated because ultimately they are not appreciated for the work done and they feel that their efforts are going in vain.

3.   My Employees are lazy and I assume that they are good (Theory Y)

This situation is a model situation of all the four. Though the employees are not motivated and do not want to do their job, the manager thinks that the employees are very competent. As a result, the manager is able to motivate the employees as he believes in them. The employees also start performing since the manager expects them to perform.

4.   My Employees are good and I assume that they are good (Theory Y)

This situation is a perfect situation. The employees are self-motivated to perform their job, and the manager also believes in his team. As a result, the employees are able perform to their potentials and their effort are equally appreciated and the employees get a sense of achievement.

Summary

In my opinion, the third scenario is the best scenario, wherein the managerial skill and expertise of a person is tested to the hilt. A manager in the third scenario believes in his employees and expects them to perform. This expectation of the manager from employees motivates them to perform and help in improving productivity.

Learn the Principles of Scientific Management using “NAVARANG”

Dr. Mandi came to the class with those two rubick cubes. Everyone was in a thought of what are we going to do with them. We thought them to be a normal rubick cube but it was a special detachable rubick cube made of 9 colours , thats why “NAVARANG”. He started explaining to us some principles of scientific management by following a step by step approach.

He asked the class to draw on paper a cube with few conditions These were:

·                     There were 27 blocks in all, they were to be arranged in form of a cube of 3*3*3 fashion

·                     Each face of the cube should contain 9 different colours, i.e. none should be repeated and hence the name 'NAVARANG'.

He asked many students to perform the activity but none succeed.

It was then Dr Mandi took over and explained the whole process. He explained how we must have a purpose and a procedure to carry out the tasks to achieve the goal. He reminded us one of the four statement of Frederick theory of scientific management i.e. we should use a well defined scientific method to carry out any job and we should figure out a way which gives us maximum utilization and efficiency. 

Dr. Mandi also has an algorithm to solve this puzzle, he demonstrated the solution of this puzzle by first segregating the blocks in 3 each (each having same color). Thus total nine groups of colors were formed. He then arranged these groups into a cube.

Again he asked for two volunteers to repeat the task. This time, with a well defined scientific method, the students were able to build NAVARANG and that too with speed and accuracy.

This was the live demonstration of Taylor’s Scientific Management Principles.

Similarly an Organizational Structure consists of activities such as task allocation, coordination and supervision, which are directed towards the achievement of organizational aims. An organization can be structured in many  different ways, depending on their objectives. The structure of an organization will determine the modes in which it operates and performs.

This of course leads us to the next idea. Unity of Objectives stands for the philosophy according to which every individual and every process in an organization should aim to fulfill the organization's Objectives and Mission Statement.

Thus we should use scientific method of study and determine the most efficient way of performing the tasks to achieve our goals.