Management of organization

Perception is important to communication because it helps senders and receivers give meanings to environmental stimuli, including messages. Three perceptual subprocesses are selectivity, organization, and inter pretation. Perceptual defense enables one to screen out irrelevant stimuli, and perceptual set does the opposite. Grouping, figure-ground, and closure help people perceptually organize otherwise meaningless stimuli. Specialists often interpret situations differently because of their restricted perspectives.

Four dynamics of organizational communication are structural consid erations, the grapevine, nonverbal communication, and upward communication. Research suggests a trend toward greater centralization of the overall communication function. The unofficial and informal communication system that sometimes complements and sometimes disrupts the formal communication system has been labeled the grapevine. A sample of managers surveyed had predominantly negative feelings toward it. Recognizing that the grapevine cannot be extinguished, managers are advised to monitor it constructively. Nonverbal communication, including facial, gestural, and postural body language, accounts for most of the impact of face-to-face communication. Managers can become more effective communicators by doing a better job of receiving and giving nonverbal communication. Upward communication refers to a process of systematically encouraging subordinates to share with management their feelings and ideas. It can be stimulated by using formal grievance procedures, employee attitude and opinion surveys, suggestion boxes, an open-door policy, informal gripe session, task forces, and exit interviews.

Process, physical, semantic, and psychosocial barriers and sexist communication are common organizational communication problems. Awareness of the various barriers can improve communication effectiveness. Constructive steps also can be taken to become a better listener, writer, and meeting chairperson.

I. Reading Exercises:

Exercise 1. Read and memorize using a dictionary:

Exercise 2. Answer the questions:

1) What is communication?

2) Why is perception important?

3) How can managers become more effective communicators?

4) What enables one to screen out irrelevant stimuli?

Exercise 3. Match the left part with the right:

Exercise 4. Open brackets choosing the right words:

(Recognizing/disagreeing) that the grapevine cannot be extinguished, managers are (dissuaded/advised) to monitor it constructively.

The speaking module

II. Speaking Exercises:

Exercise 1. Describe communication, noise, grapevine, nonverbal communication, upward communication using the suggested words and expressions as in example:

Exercise 2. Ask questions to the given answers:

1) Question:

Answer: Spe cialists often interpret situations differently because of their restricted perspectives.

2) Question:

Answer: Perceptual defense enables one to screen out irrelevant stimuli, and perceptual set does the opposite.

3) Question:

Answer: Managers can become more effective communicators by doing a better job of receiving and giving nonverbal communication

The writing module

III. Writing exercises:

Exercise 1. Complete the sentences with the suggested words: meaningless, does, screen, perceptual, closure

Three ______subprocesses are selectivity, organization, and inter pretation. Perceptual defense enables one to ______ out irrelevant stimuli, and perceptual set _____the opposite. Grouping, figure-ground, and ______help people perceptually organize otherwise ______stimuli.

Exercise 3. Compose a story on one of the topics (up to 100 words):

“Communication is a social process”

“Perception is essential to communication”

“Four dynamics of organizational communication”

Lesson 9 The reading module

Read the text: Motivation

Motivation refers to psychological process that gives behavior purpose and direction. It is an important area of study for managers because it helps them better understand our most valuable resource, people. (Realistically, motivation is just one of many explanations of work behavior, such as one's knowledge and emotional state and organizational factors.) Even though the employees in one study ranked “interesting work” the highest among the things they wanted from their jobs, their supervisors believed that wanted “good wages” above all else. This type of misperception of employees' needs can cripple a motivation program. Pollster D. Yankelovich contends that traditional motivation tools such as fear, money, strict supervision, and the work ethic are inappropriate for nearly half of today's labor force in the USA.

Among alternative motivation theories, Maslow's needs hierarchy theory, Herzberg's two-factor theory, and expectancy theory stand out as particularly relevant for managers. According to Maslov's message, people always have needs, and when one need is relatively fulfilled, others emerge in a predictable sequence to take its place. His five-level needs hierarchy, although empirically criticized, makes it clear to managers that people are motivated by emerging rather than fulfilled needs. Assuming that job satisfaction and performance are positively related, Herzberg believes that the most that wages and working conditions can do is eliminate sources of dissatisfaction. According to Herzberg, the key to true satisfaction and hence motivation is an enriched job that provides an opportunity for achievement, responsibility, and personal growth. Expectancy theory is based on the idea that the strength of one's motivation to work is the product of perceived probabilities of acquiring personally valued rewards. Both effort-performance and performance-reward probabilities are important to expectancy theory.

Depending on how it is designed, a job can either hamper or promote personal growth and satisfaction. Although historically a key to higher productivity, specialization of labor has been associated with costly human problems in recent years. Managers have the options of fitting people to jobs or fitting jobs to people when attempting to counter the specialization-of-labor dilemma. The first option includes realistic job previews (honest explanations of what a job actually entails), job rotation( periodically moving people from one specialized job to another), and limited exposure (establishing a challenging yet but fair daily performance standard or quota, and letting employees go home when it is reached). Managers who pursue the second option, fitting jobs to people, can either enlarge (combine two or more tasks into a single job) or enrich (redesign a job to increase its motivating potential) jobs. Job enrichment vertically loads jobs to meet individual needs for meaningfulness, responsibility, and knowledge of results. Personal desire for growth and a supportive climate are required for successful job enrichment.

I. Reading Exercises:

Exercise 1. Read and memorize using a dictionary:

Exercise 2. Answer the questions:

1) Why is motivation an important area of study for managers?

2) What can cripple a motivation program?

3) What is the key to true satisfaction, according to Herzberg?

4) What idea is expectancy theory based on?

Exercise 3. Match the left part with the right:

Exercise 4. Open brackets choosing the right words:

Expectancy theory is based on the idea that the (weakness/strength) of one's motivation to work is the product of perceived probabilities of acquiring personally (valued/rejected) rewards.

The speaking module

II. Speaking Exercises:

Exercise 1. Describe motivation, needs hierarchy theory, two-factor theory, expectancy theory, limited exposure using the suggested words and expressions as in example:

Exercise 2. Ask questions to the given answers:

1) Question:

Answer: Job enrichment vertically loads jobs to meet individual needs for meaningfulness, responsibility, and knowledge of results.

2) Question:

Answer: Depending on how it is designed, a job can either hamper or promote personal growth and satisfaction.

3) Question:

Answer: Managers have the options of fitting people to jobs or fitting jobs to people when attempting to counter the specialization-of-labor dilemma.

The writing module

III. Writing exercises:

Exercise 1. Complete the sentences with the suggested words: misperception, though, above, from, ranked

Even _____the employees in one study _____“interesting work” the highest among the things they wanted _____their jobs, their supervisors believed that wanted “good wages” ______all else. This type of _____ of employees' needs can cripple a motivation program.

Exercise 2. Compose a story on one of the topics (up to 100 words):

“Motivation is an important area of study for managers”

“Motivation theories”

“Job design”

Lesson 10 The reading module

Read the text: Group dynamics

Managers need a working understanding of group dynamics because groups are the basic social building blocks of organizations. Both informal (friendship) and formal (work) groups are made up of two or more freely interacting individuals who have a common identity and purpose. After someone has been attracted to a group, cohesiveness--a "we" feelings encourages continued membership. Roles are social expectations for behavior in a specific position, whereas norms are more general standards for conduct in a given social setting. Norms are enforced because they help the group survive, clarify role expectations, protect self-images, and enhance the group's identity by emphasizing key values. Compliance with role expectations and norms is rewarded with social reinforcement; non-compliance is punished by criticism, ridicule, and ostracism. Ostracism, or rejection from the group, is figuratively the capital punishment of group dynamics. Informal groups derive much of their power over individual through the ever present threat of ostracism.

Mature groups that are characterized by mutual acceptance, encourage ment of minority opinion, and minimal emotional conflict are the product of a developmental process with identifiable stages. During the first three stages - orientation, conflict and challenge, and cohesion - power and authority problems are resolved. Groups are faced with the obstacle of uncertainty over interpersonal relations during the last three stages - delusion (members believe that all the difficult emotional problems have been solved), disillusion (the delusion of unlimited goodwill wears off, and there is a growing disenchantment with how things are turning out), and acceptance (greater personal and mutual understanding helps members adapt to situations without causing problems). Committees have a widespread reputation for inefficiency and ineffectiveness because they tend to get stalled in an early stage of group development.

Trust is a key ingredient of effective group action that is clearly evident in Japanese management but often underutilized by American managers. When work group members trust one another, there will be a more active exchange of information, more interpersonal influence, and hence greater self-control. Managers who prefer either/or thinking, rely solely on hard data, and envision the world as basically an unsafe place foster a climate of mistrust. Political tactics such as posturing, empire building, making the boss look good, creating power and loyalty cliques, and destructive competition need to be kept in check if a healthy degree of trust is to be achieved.

Although a fairly high degree of conformity is necessary if organizations and society in general are to function properly, blind conformity is ultimately dehumanizing and destructive. Research shows that individuals have a strong tendency to bend to the will of the majority, even if the majority is clearly wrong. Cohesive decision-making groups can be victimized by groupthink when unanimity becomes more important than critically evaluating alternative courses of action.

I. Reading Exercises:

Exercise 1. Read and memorize using a dictionary:

Exercise 2. Answer the questions:

1) What obstacles are groups faced with?

2) What is compliance with role expectations and norms rewarded with?

3) Why is trust a key ingredient of effective group action?

4) Why are norms enforced?

Exercise 3. Match the left part with the right:

Exercise 4. Open brackets choosing the right words:

Compliance with role expectations and norms is (stalled/rewarded) with social reinforcement; non-compliance is (punished/accepted) by criticism, ridicule, and ostracism.

The speaking module

II. Speaking Exercises:

Exercise 1. Describe mature groups, trust, ostracism, norms, disillusion

using the suggested words and expressions as in example:

Exercise 2. Ask questions to the given answers:

1) Question:

Answer: Committees have a widespread reputation for inefficiency and ineffectiveness because they tend to get stalled in an early stage of group development.

2) Question:

Answer: Groups are faced with the obstacle of uncertainty over interpersonal relations during the last three stages .

3) Question:

Answer: Managers who prefer either/or thinking, rely solely on hard

data, and envision the world as basically an unsafe place foster a climate of mistrust.

The writing module

III. Writing exercises:

Exercise 1. Complete the sentences with the suggested words: victimized, majority, than, tendency, shows.

Research _____that individuals have a strong ______ to bend to the will of the majority, even if the ______ is clearly wrong. Cohesive decision-making groups can be ______ by groupthink when unanimity becomes more important _____ critically evaluating alternative courses of action.

Exercise 2. Compose a story on one of the topics (up to 100 words):

“Formal and informal groups”

“Mature groups”

“Trust and mistrust in groups”