LESSON 1
ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEM AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR
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Human Behavior
• Any act of an individual person which is considered human behavior is a reflection of his thoughts, feelings, emotions, sentiments whether conscious or not. • It mirrors his needs, values, motivation, aspirations, conflicts and state of life.
Behavior
• Consists of all human activities.
• Human behavior occurs anywhere and everywhere o o o o o o

At home
In school
In the work setting
In church
In a social clubs
In a professional organization

Therefore, it is universal and is at the core of leadership, followership, communication, decision making and the process in the organization. v The principle and concepts that underlie behavior are basic. It is their implementation and practice that differ from group to group or from one country to another it is known as culture-laden behavior.
Ex: the Americans offer flowers to their dead; while the Chinese placed food on top of the tomb. Note: Reverence for dead is universal. It is how each culture manifests it that spells the difference. v Human Behavior is also called Human Act which is different from Act of Man.
• Human Act – when man/person performs an act with free will; he is responsible for such act which is performed with alternatives to choose from. • Act of Man – is performed by one who is forced to do so at the risk of his own life, if he does otherwise; he does not have any other alternatives to choose from.
Reasons for studying Human Behavior
• In order to have an understanding of the actions of people.
• The need to understand the behavior of others, especially those we come in contact with, and the need to anticipate and predict how others may act in certain situation are important since we are affected by their actions.

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LESSON 1
ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEM AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR
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It provide data and information which may be needed for improved productivity, for rational decision and policy making, for better planning and organizing personnel and human resources recruitment, screening, selection, promotion and development .
We look not only into the personality of others but into our own personalities as well. To know the reason why we think, feel, act, speak and talk in certain ways.

Organizational Behavior
• The study and application of knowledge about how people as individuals and as groups act and behave within the organization.
• It strives to identify ways in which people act more effectively.
• Provides a useful set of tools at many levels of analysis to help managers look at the behavior of individuals within the environment.
• It also aids them in their understanding of the complexities which affect the interpersonal relations of the people as they interact.
GOALS OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR
1. To describe – how people behave as they interact with one another.
2. To understand – why people behave in varied manners.
Ex.“Manager should be able to understand the reasons behind the actions of their employees”.
3. To predict – to predict the future employee behavior so that an appropriate course of action maybe employed.
4. To control – for the manager to develop human activity at work.
Note: if you are the Manager or Boss of a company, you are held responsible for performance results of the employees within the organization; they should be interested in every employee’s behavior, attitude, skill development, team effort and productivity.
Two main approaches to the study of human behavior
1. Philosophy – base on speculation and logic
2. Physiology – base on experimental observation
Methods use in studying human behavior
1. Experiments
2. Surveys
3. Case methods

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It makes use of: 1. Observation 2. Interview 3. Interview schedule 4. Questionnaire
5. Check list 6. Scales psychological test 7. Statistics
4 forces or elements affecting Organizational Behavior
1. People – make up the internal social system in an organization; the system consists of individual and groups, large or small, with different values and orientation. o Organizations exist to serve people; people do not exist to serve organizations. 2. Structure – defines the formal relationships and use of human resources in an organization. o People have to be related in some structural way so that their tasks can be effectively coordinated.
3. Technology – technology has a tremendous influence on working relationships. It provides the resources with which people work and affect the tasks they perform. o The great benefit of technology is that it allows workers to perform much better work.
4. Environment – All organization operates within an internal and external environment. o Organization is a part of a bigger system that contains many other related components such as government, military, school, family and other organizations. People
Environment

Environment
Organization

Structure

Technology
Environment

Note: When people join together in an organization to accomplish an objective, some kind of structure is required; people also use technology to help get the job done; so there is an interaction of people, structure and technology, these elements are influenced by their environment.

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Basic concept of organizational system and human behavior
1. Individual differences – a person is a distinct individual; he is unique and different from others. o Every individual experiences after birth tend to make people even more different from one another.
2. Perception – is the act of faculty apprehending by means of the sense or of the mind. o It is the unique way in which an individual perceives, organizes and interprets with his eyes things around him.
3. Whole person – when a person joins an organization, he is hired not only because of his brains but, as a whole, person possessed with certain characteristics. o Different human traits and other characteristics can be studied separately; but in the final analysis; they are part of one human system, making up a whole person with different skills, knowledge and social and cultural backgrounds. 4. Motivated person – this may be as a result of a normal behavior that has certain causes and these may relate to an individual’s need. o People are motivated by want. o John Maxwell
“Self motivation is the power that raises a man to any level he seeks”
“Successful people are self starters, they are internally motivated and hard working even if no one is supervising them”
5. Desire for involvement – every person wishes to feel good himself. This personal human desire is reflected in his drive for self-efficacy. o This is the belief that everybody has the necessary capabilities to perform a certain task, fulfil role responsibilities and expectations, make meaningful and rewarding contributions to the organization, and meet challenging situations successfully.
6. Value of persons – People want to be given preferential value for their skills and abilities with opportunities for their development. o People are the most difficult to control in any type of organization, therefore they deserve to be treated with extra care because they have feelings and emotions. 4

LESSON 1
ORGANIZATIONAL SYSTEM AND HUMAN BEHAVIOR
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Organizations and Social System
• Organizations are social systems for they are organized on the basis of mutual interest. Ex: Employer and worker relationship.
Social system
• A complex set of human relationships interacting in many and different ways.
• His behavior is influenced by the group he belongs to and by his personal drives and aspirations.
Mutual interest
• Organization needs people and people also need organization.
• Mutual interest provides super ordinate goals for employees, for the organization and for society.
Ethics
• It is a system of moral principles.
• The rules of conduct recognized in respect to a particular class of human actions or a particular group.
Ex. Many companies and corporations have established codes of ethics and also publicized statements of ethical values
• When organizational goals and actions conform with ethical standard, organizational and social objectives are met.
Four basic approaches in organizational behavior
1. Human Resources Approach o The philosophy of this approach is developmental. o Specifically designed and concerned with the growth and development of people in order to achieve higher levels of competency, creativity, and fulfilment. o In order for this approach to be successful, employers should be more responsible by creating an organizational climate conducive for all members. o Under this approach, the manager’s role changes from control of employees to active support of their organizational growth and development. 5

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2. Contingency Approach o The strength of this approach is that it encourages a thorough analysis of every situation prior to action and at the same time, discourages virtually habitual practice based on universal assumptions about people. o Many management experts and practitioners perceived that there is no longer one best way. o This approach is also more interdisciplinary, more system-oriented and more research-oriented than the traditional approach.
3. Result-oriented Approach o All organization whether political, social, economic or religious, needs to accomplish desirable results. o The principal objective for organizations to survive is to produce the necessary output. o Productivity is measured in terms of economic inputs and outputs. o Better organizational behavior can naturally improve job satisfaction.
4. System Approach o This approach is a type of behavioural approach in which the manager takes a holistic perspective of the whole subject. o Holistic organizational behavior interprets people-organization relationships in terms of the whole person, whole group, whole organization and whole social system in its total cooperative effort to understand as many of the intervening factors as possible that affects an individual’s behavior in the work environment. o Existing problems are analyzed in relation to the total condition affecting the entire organization rather than treating the problem in an isolated case. v Effective management can best be achieved through the proper understanding and utilization of the human resources, contingency, result-oriented and system approaches. v Organizations are social systems; it combine science and people, technology and humanity. v There are no simple cookbook formulas for working with people. all that can be done at present is to increase understanding and skills so that human relationships at work can be upgraded.

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Characteristics of a Healthy Organization:
1. Objectives are so widely shared by the members and there is a strong and consistent flow of energy towards those objectives.
2. People feel free to signal their awareness of difficulties because they expect the problems to be dealt with and they are optimistic that these problems can be solved.
3. Problem-solving is highly pragmatic. In attacking problems, people work informally and are not preoccupied with status, territory, or second guessing “what higher management will think.” A great deal of non-conforming behavior is tolerated.
4. The judgement of people lower down in the organization is respected.
5. Collaboration is freely entered into. People readily request the help of others and are willing to give in turn. Ways of helping one another are highly developed. Individuals and groups compete with one another, but they do so fairly and in the direction of a shared goal. 6. When there is a crisis, the people quickly band together in work until the crisis departs.
7. Conflicts are considered important to decision making and personal growth. They are dealt with effectively, in the open. People say what they want and expect others to do the same.
8. There is a great deal of on-the-job learning based in the willingness to give, seek, and use feedback and advice. People see themselves and others as capable of significant personal growth and development.
9. Joint critique of progress is routine.
10. Relationships are honest. People do care about one another and do not feel alone.
11. People are “turned on” and highly involved by choice. They are optimistic. The work place is important and fun.
12. Leadership is flexible, shifting in style and person to suit the situation.
13. There is a high degree of trust among people and a sense of freedom and mutual responsibility. People generally know what is important to the organization and what isn’t. 14. Risk is accepted as a condition of growth and change.

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15. “What can we learn from each mistake?”
16. Poor performance is confronted, and a joint resolution sought.
17. Organizational structure, procedures, and policies are fashioned to help people get the job done and to protect the long term health of the organization, not to give each bureaucrats his due. These procedures are also readily changed.
18. There is a sense of order, and yet a high rate of innovation. Old methods are questioned and often give way to new ones.

Characteristics of an Unhealthy Organization:
1. Little personal investment in organizational objectives except at top levels.
2. People in the organization see things going wrong and do nothing about it. Nobody volunteers. Mistakes and problems are habitually hidden or shelved. People treat each other in a formal and polite manner that masks issues – especially with the boss. Non conformity is frowned upon. People talk about office troubles at home or in the halls, not with those involved.
3. People at the top try to control as many decisions as possible. They become bottlenecks, and make decisions with inadequate information and advice. People complain about manager’s irrational decisions.
4. Managers feel alone in trying to get things done. Somehow, orders, policies and procedures do not get carried out as intended.
5. The judgement of people lower down in the organization is not respected outside the narrow limits of their jobs.
6. Personal needs and feelings are side issues.
7. People compete when they need to collaborate. They are very jealous of their area of responsibility. Seeking or accepting help is un-thoughtful. They distrust each other’s motives and speak poorly of one another; the manager tolerates this.
8. When there is a crisis, people withdraw or start blaming one another.
9. Conflict is mostly covert and managed by office politics and other games, or there are interminable and irreconcilable arguments.

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10. Learning is difficult. People don’t approach their peers to learn for them, but have to learn from their own mistakes; they reflect the experience of others. They get little feedback on performance, ad much of that is not helpful.
11. Feedback is avoided.
12. Relationships are contaminated by marksmanship and image building. People feel alone and lack concern for one another. There is an undercurrent of fear.
13. People feel locked into their jobs. They feel stale and bored but constrained by the need for security. Their behavior, for example, in staff meetings, is listless and docile. It’s not much fun. They got their kicks elsewhere.
14. The manager is a prescribing father to the organization.
15. The manager allows little freedom.
16. Minimizing risks has a very high value.
17. “One mistake and you’re out.”
18. Poor performance is glossed over or handled arbitrarily.
19. Organizational structure, policies, and procedures encumber the organization. People take refuge in policies and procedures, and play games with organizational structure.
20. Traditional.
21. Innovation is not widespread but in the hands of a few.
22. People swallow their frustrations: “I can do nothing. It’s their responsibility to save the ship.” 9