Organisational Behaviour Problems in the Workplace

Question

What are some organisational behaviour problems in the workplace?

Answer

Organisational Behaviour is a field of study that investigates the impact that individuals, groups and structure have on behaviour within an organisation. It covers three determinants of behaviour in organisations: individuals, groups, and structure (Robbins and Judge 2012) Organisational Behaviour covers the core topics of motivation, leadership behaviour and power, interpersonal communication, group structure and process, learning, attitude development and perception, change process, conflict, job design and work stress. As such, there are a great deal of different problems in organisations which are related to organisational behaviour. Below are some of these:

Organisation-Wide Problems - This can lead to high staff turnover. High staff turnover means that the staff are not satisfied with the work, and the compensation is not enough to retain the employees. Employee dissatisfaction is connected with low pay, insufficient training in the workplace, limited advancement opportunities and other facts (Price et al. 2007)

Employee and Managerial Issues - This covers aspects such as workforce diversity and changing demographics of the workforce. Workforce diversity brings new challenges with respect of communication, team dynamics and dysfunctional conflict. Employee issues – these can be supervisor issues, personality conflicts, interpersonal communication issues etc.

Global Challenges due to Internationalisation - Today’s managers have to deal with employees from different cultures and this can be a challenge due to language barriers and cultural differences. In addition, there are business and ethical considerations such as: How does an organisation do business on a global scale without leaving a negative footprint on the world? Other poor interpersonal communication issues include unequal level of wages, unequal gender relations, racial abuse, low level of ethical and moral education, dishonesty of employees and distrust in the workplace.

References

• Price, W., Kiekbusch, R., Theis, J. (2007) Causes of Employee Turnover in Sheriff Operated Jails. Journal of Public Personal Management. Vol.36, Issue:1.
• Robbins, S., and Judge T. (2012) Organizational Behaviour. 15th edn. Prentice Hall