Chapter 01- L03

Debate the organizational opportunities and

challenges of globalization, workforce,
diversity, and emerging employment
relationships.
Globalization
 Refers to economic, social, and cultural connectivity
with people in other parts of the world.

 It is when the organization actively participate in

other countries and cultures.

 Information technology and transportation system

allow a much more intense level of connectivity and
interdependence around the planet.
Globalization
 There is considerable debate about whether
globalization benefits developing nations, and
whether it is primarily responsible for increasing
work intensification as well as reducing job-security
and work-life balance in developed countries.

 It is now well entrenched, so the most important in

organizational behavior is how corporate leaders and
employees alike can lead and work effectively in this
emerging reality.
Increasing Workforce Diversity
 Surface-Level Diversity – the observable
demographic and other overt differences in people,
such as their race, ethnicity, gender, age, and physical
capabilities.

 Deep-Level Diversity – differences in the

psychological characteristics of employees, including
personalities, beliefs, values, and attitudes.
Differences exist due to age not cohort. . .
 Millennials are more self-confident and more narcissistic (self-
centered) and have less work centrality (i.e., work is less of a central life
interest) when compared with Boomers

 Generation X employees typically average somewhere between these

two cohorts.

 GenXers prefer leisure significantly more than do Boomers, and

Millenials prefer leisure significantly more than GenXers.

 Millenials and GenXers value extrinsic rewards significantly more than

do Boomers.

 Millenials value intrinsic motivation significantly less than Bommers.

 Millenials value social interaction significantly less than do Boomers or

GenXers.
 Consequences of Diversity
 It is an advantage because it provides a broader spectrum of
knowledge.

 Teams with some forms of diversity (particularly occupational

diversity) make better decisions on complex problems than do
teams whose members have similar background.

 Companies having a diverse workforce improves customer service

and creativity. As a company serving customers around the globe
greatly value the diverse opinions and experiences.

 Diversity is also a source of conflict, which can lead to lack of

information sharing and, in extreme cases, morale problems and
higher turnover.

 Workforce diversity is the new reality and organizations needs to

adjust to this reality both to survive and to experience its potential
benefits for organizational success.
Emerging Employment Relationships

 Work-Life Balance– occurs when people are able to

minimize conflict between their work and non-work
demands.

 Most employees lack this balance because they

spend too many hours each week performing or
thinking about their job, whether at the workplace,
at home, or on vacation. This focus on work leaves
too little time to fulfill non –work needs and
obligations.
 Emerging Employment Relationships
 Virtual Work– whereby employees use information
technology to perform their jobs away from traditional
workplace.

 Occurs when employees are connected to the office while traveling or

at client’s offices.

 The most common form involves working at home rather than

commuting to the office (often called telecommuting or teleworking).

 Telework/Telecommuting is clearly better suited to people who are

self-motivated and organized, can work effectively with broadband
and other technology, and have sufficient fulfillment of social needs
elsewhere in their life.
 Chapter 01- L04
Discuss the anchors on which organizational
behavior knowledge is based.
 Systematic Research Anchor

 OB knowledge should be based on systematic

research, which typically involves forming research
questions, systematically collecting data, and testing
hypothesis against those data.

 Evidence-based management– occurs when people

are able to minimize conflict between their work and
non-work demands.
 Multidisciplinary Anchor
 OB is anchored around the idea that the field should welcome
theories and knowledge in other disciplines, not just from its
own isolated research base.

Creating an Evidence-Based Management Organization

 Stop treating old ideas as if they were brand new.

 Be suspicious of “breakthrough” ideas and studies.
 Celebrate and develop collective brilliance.
 Emphasize drawbacks as well as virtues.
 Use success (and failure) stories to illustrate sound practices,
but not in place of a valid research method.
 Adopt a neutral stance toward ideologies and theories.
 Contingency Anchor

 People and their work environments are complex,

and the field of organizational behavior recognizes
this by stating that a particular action may have
different consequences in different situations.
Multiple Levels of Analysis Anchor
 OB events should be understood from three levels of analysis;
individual, team, and organization..

 Individual Level. Includes the characteristics and behaviors of

employees as well as the thought processes that are attributed to
them, such as motivation, perceptions, personalities, attitudes,
and value.

 Team Level. It looks on the way people interact. This includes

team dynamics, team decisions, communication, influence, social
networks, conflict, and leadership.

 Organizational Level. It focuses on how people structure their

working relationships and how organizations interact with their
environments.