...they grow. Amazon.com is labeled as one of the most innovative companies on the world. Innovation refers to the implementation of creative ideas within organizations. Creativity is a major factor when it comes to innovation continuity. Promoting creativity within the organization by training people to be creative and developing creative work environments seems to factor in the “easiness” of innovation for Amazon.com. Organizations must be creative to remain competitive and continually innovate. Additionally, it appears that Amazon.com can be characterized as having a strong culture, where the core values are held strongly and shared broadly. Subcultures also exist, which are referred to as “two pizza teams” because these teams are small enough where they can be fed off of two pizzas. These are usually based on the project or type or work needing to be done. Again, these concepts reinforce the ease of innovation for Amazon.com Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amzaon.com, has played a major role in instilling the innovative culture at Amazon.com. Innovation requires taking risks. Bezos has definitely taken many risks that most of his competitors have not. Introducing the first major successful reading device, was definitely a risk, as this innovative idea was unheard of at the time. Unsure of how the public would respond to this product, Bezos implemented the innovative design anyway. This is just one of the many innovative ideas that Bezos possesses. In addition, Bezos seems...
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...Viitala 830508-T062 790922-T017 How Culture and Motivation Interacts? - A Cross-Cultural Study ~ Acknowledgements ~ ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS We would like to thank the respondents of Sasken Finland Oy and SYSteam for their participation in our study. Without their involvement this thesis would have never seen the light of day. In addition, we thank our supervisor Per Nilsson for his guidance and advices and Anders Söderholm for his helpful suggestions. Last but not least, we would like to express our gratitude to John Matthews, Jakub Mulac, and Robin Katoen for their supportive contributions and our friends and family for their support and encouragement. Sincerely, Sabine Helou & Timo Viitala Umeå, May 25, 2007 i ~ Summary ~ SUMMARY Motivating employees is essential for any organization aspiring to succeed. However, the process of motivating is not a straightforward one due to the diversity of individual’s needs. The task has been made even more difficult by the fact that personalized needs have altered in recent years. For instance, in many circumstances financial compensation is not considered as the main motivational factor of employees. Due to its innovative and youthful nature, the Information Technology (IT) industry has been considered to be at the forefront of dealing with organizational issues, such as how to motivate employees. Organizations that lie within this industry have adopted various innovative motivational practices. Examples of those include opportunities...
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...Organizational Development (OD) of Apple Inc…………………….……..9 The Organizational Effectiveness (OE) of Apple Inc……………………………9 Effects of Conflict on the OB, OD, and OE of Apple Inc…………………...…..10 Benefits and Weaknesses of Motivation used by Apple Inc…………………..…11 Impact of Culture, Leadership Style and Motivational Style in the Firm………11 Recommendations………………………………………………………..………13 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………..……14 Bibliography…………………………………………………………………...…15 References………………………………………………………………...………17 THE IMPACT OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR ON ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND EFFECTIVENESS Introduction Organizational behavior (OB) is the study of activity as well as the performance of an individual or as a group in an organization. It is concerned with examining human behavior in an environment of work and determining the impact of these human behaviors on the structure of job, communication, leadership and performance. It consists of two theories which show how firms view it, namely: internal perspective and external perspective. Internal perspective theory of organizational behavior embraces the idea of first understanding the personal values, feelings and thoughts of a person so as to apprehend the individual in a company environment. The conduct of an employee in an organization is primarily founded on the experiences, thoughts, feelings and interactions with that person. On the other hand, the external perspective theory is based on the idea that both...
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...sizes; this is evident from the many varieties of leaders in many different organizations. Whenever there is a crisis, all leaders have to step up and become innovative thinkers in order to successfully achieve the goals set forth. But there are some leadership practices that support and foster innovation within organizations. “Among the factors that influence employees’ creative behaviors and performance, leadership has been identified by many researchers as being one of the most, if not the most important” (Jung, Chow, & Wu, 2003, p. 526). Leaders have the ability to affect an employees’ creativity by catering to their needs and motivation, and by setting up an organizational culture and environment that will allow for employees to attempt different methods of thinking and speaking up with ideas or concepts without fear of being punished. (Jung, Chow, & Wu, 2003, p. 526) Leadership Practices Supporting Innovation A few key practices particular, in my opinion, spurs innovation, including leading people, strategic planning, participative management, and change management. A final leadership practice – transformational leadership – is an essential practice in supporting innovation in organizations. Leaders who can effectively lead their members ensures that members are motivated and develops an environment that supports innovation. “Leaders who have good skills in directing and motivating people know how to interact with staff in ways that motivate them. They...
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...software company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan. SAS prides itself in creating a utopian environment for its employees by offering unique benefits such as an on site gym, cafeteria, preschool, medical care, casual dress code, private offices, and flexible work hours. These benefits have led to a less than 4% turnover rate for employees, which is well below the average for the competitive software industry. SAS believes it is providing an environment that frees its employees from outside distractions and will allow them to be as efficient and creative as possible. The focus is on teamwork where everybody is an equal and nobody is a stand out. Individuals who desire praise, promotion and status need not apply. However, when we take a closer look at the culture being generated, concerns begin to surface. The environment SAS is creating could actually be detrimental and less innovative without additional intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and by changing the egalitarian workplace. Intrinsic motivation is based solely on the interest or enjoyment of the task itself, apart from any external incentives or forces. While the current environment at SAS is designed to eliminate outside forces and allow the employee to focus on his work, this does not meet the true definition of intrinsic motivation. We learn from the article “Motivating Creativity in Organizations,” that intrinsic motivation is maximized when an employee matches skills and experience with something they truly love to...
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...TITLE OF THE STUDY : A STUDY ON MOTIVATION FACTORS TOWARDS EMPLOYEE COMMITMENT AT BANK ISLAM MALAYSIA BERHAD SOUTHERN REGION CONTENTS 1. CHAPTER 1 : 2.1 Introduction 2.2 Statement of the problem 2.3 Research questions/objevtives 2.4 Scope of research 2.5 Significant of the study 2.6 Key terms /concepts. 2. CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW AND CONCEPTUAL 3.7 Literature Review 3.8 Conceptual/research framework 3.9 Hypothesis 3. CHAPTER 3 : RESERCH METHODOLOGY 4.10 Research design 4.11 Sample size 4.12 Sampling technique 4.13 Data collection technique 4.14 Data collection 4.15 Data analysis 4. DATA ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS 5.16 Introduction 5.17 Profile of respondent 5.18 Pilot test 5.19 Tests for normality of data 5.20 Findings 5. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION 6.21 Introduction 6.22 Discussion 6.23 Limitation 6.24 Recommendation 6.25 Conclusion 6. REFERENCES 7. LIST OF TABLES 8. APPENDIXES BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY 1.1 Introduction At one time, employees were considered just another input into the production of goods and services. What perhaps changed this way of thinking...
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...noticed that now organisation's culture have great importance in the management of human resources for having a growth in corporation or organisations performance and for the better achievements. In many developed countries organisation's culture has been recognised as main source of difference in performance practices. organisation's culture helps us to identify the organisation's beliefs, meanings, values, norms and rituals in which things are done in the organisation. The concept of culture is the environment and executions that organisation develop around their employees working, or to promoted values and statement of beliefs of an organisation (Schein, 2004). In short organisation's culture contains what it has been good at and what has worked in past. these executions and practices are easily accepted by the long term employees often called legends of organisation. these legends helps to new employees to learn things. apart from practices, norms have its own importance within organisation. A norm is a expected behaviour pattern that is part of culture. employees worked according these norms under a organisation. As personality and character shows a person's behaviour similarly, behaviour of a group through the shared norms of organisation shows its culture. The two types of cultures that exists in organisation are visible culture and invisible culture. visible culture contains slogans used in corporation, ceremonies that occurs in corporation, dress and physical appearance...
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...and example-based use of this theory presented by others must be reviewed. Similarly, company leaders must review the history of leadership practices and develop methods that have the highest potential for success in the environment associated company-specific operational activities. Douglas McGregor developed his theory of X and Y leadership in the 1960s at the MIT Sloan School of Management. He believed companies can achieve quality leadership through basic employee motivation. The X and Y styles of motivation are opposite one another and in direct contrast. The X style of leadership and employee motivation states employees lack motivation and are lazy in nature. Essentially, individual employees lack motivation and must be supervised by leaders on a continual basis because those employees avoid responsibility whenever possible. This close supervision narrows employee versatility and requires extensive time and guidance by specific leaders. To establish employee motivation, incentives must be provided and supervisors or leaders must document quality work periods to ensure incentives are earned. This theory of leadership is often implemented in large companies where the number of employees is high (Cunningham, 2011). The Y style of leadership and motivation states employees are motivated, enjoy responsibility, and maintain ambitious personal goals. These...
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...Snacks Problem Solution Stephanie Vickers MMPBL/550 March 23, 2012 Best Snacks Problem Solution For the past 100 years, Best Snacks, Inc. has been in the top two leading positions in the snack industry, making them an ideal investment for stockholders. Recently, in the last couple of years Best Snacks sales have declined, resulting in decreased stock prices, market share, and in second place in the industry. Contributing to these issues in the company is the lack of strong leadership, capable managers, and innovative work environment. Employee morale has suffered because staff does not feel encouraged to be creative or that their opinions are valued. By benchmarking other companies, Best Snacks can determine which strategies they can implement to continue their previous successful history. Best Snacks has the opportunity to reorganize their structure to promote innovative ideas, improve management skills, and realign the vision with a new organizational culture. There have been no product or service innovations in the past 5 years; instead, previously successful marketing methods have been improved or extended. For example, the most recent product information had new package sizes. Best snacks needs to remain competitive and an industry leader by researching, analyzing, and surveying today’s consumers in order to develop new products. The previous corporate security of sustainable market strength based on a track record...
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...objective of this paper is to create a plan for positive influence that may be applied in a business setting and that would increase a group or team’s motivation, satisfaction, and performance. The topics of discussion will concentrate on specific attitudes, emotions, personalities, and values that the members of the team will collaborate with, and address how each difference influences behavior within the business setting. In a business setting there are three essential factors that team members need so that they increase productivity and a constructive business environment. Additionally, the leader in the team setting must make certain that the members are inspired to complete the task by motivation. Next the norms must be set so that the team understands what is acceptable and what will not be, and agreed upon by each member. The agreement on the acceptable standards will influence the members’ behavior with the least amount of external controls. According to (Robbins & Judge, 2011, pg. 285-286), “norms are acceptable standards of behavior within a group that are shared by the group’s members.” Motivation The three key elements of motivation are direction, intensity, and persistence. Intensity describes the passion a person has about the designated task; this is the element most individuals focus on when thinking about motivation. However, the intensity alone does not lead to a favorable job-performance outcome unless the effort is channeled in a direction in alignment with...
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...Motivation Theories And Motivational Programs JEANA ANGELICA L. ANGELES MK3A March 28, 2016 COMPANY BRIEF INTRODUCTION ARM is the world’s leading semiconductor intellectual property (IP) supplier. It was founded in the year 1990 and now they have offices around the world. The ARM business model involves the designing and licensing of IP rather than manufacturing and selling of actual semiconductor chips. Their innovative technology is licensed by ARM Partners who have shipped more than 60 billion Systems on Chips (SoCs) containing their intellectual property since the company began. ARM is a knowledge intensive business focused on innovation. This innovation comes from the whole business and not just its research and development team. MOTIVATIONAL THEORIES AND ARM MOTIVATIONAL PROGRAMS * Maslow (Hierarchy of Needs), Abraham Maslow developed a theory of motivation in which it is arranged in a hierarchy of importance, Basic needs (physiological, security, belongingness) to Growth needs (esteem, self-actualization). * ARM provides employees with opportunities to fulfill higher order needs such as those esteem and self- actualization through challenging and interesting work. Recently it is more than 120 employees of ARM were involved in developing ideas to improve in managing the company. Ideas are led to wide varieties of initiatives and an increased use of social networking, such as ARM TV (an internal YouTube). The responsibilities associated with the...
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...Multiculturalism and the Project Manager For: Dr. Sleeda Grantum By: Don C. Johnson Walden University Organizational Leadership (6110-1) Spring-Session B January 27, 2012 Abstract The Project Manager is at the centre of everything relating to the project; controlling the contributions of stakeholders, clients, and project team members is just as important as managing the work of the team (Stadtmiller, 2004). The project manager's skills are essential from the beginning of the project; because the project manager provides direction and pulls together each aspect of the project. A project manager must understand human factors as well as the scope and components of a project itself. Biases, cultural assumptions, and more can impede the effectiveness of project management if the members of a team feel disconnected from a project for cultural reasons. As a project manager, you should be aware of the underlying cultural assumptions that pervade your team, as well as your own perspective. Emotional intelligence promotes positive relationships as well as interpersonal skills to assist the PM in making strategic decisions for the organization. Utilizing personal assessments and previous work related experiences, I will identify the bases of effective project management and leadership. My definition of a project manager (PM) is: that the PM provides direction and pulls together all aspects and resources...
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...important factor regarding the outcome is motivation of the employees. Over many years, there have been varied perspectives on this yet they all seem to center on the theory of efficiency, whether it be through machine productivity or employee productivity. The focus shifted and management became aware that the motivation of employees was a key element in the level of both efficiency and productivity. (Sarker, 2013) The Equity theory of Motivation is the consciousness that employees value themselves with comparisons of workers with similar jobs. They will also compare how they are rewarded for their efforts and if comparisons are equal. When the comparisons are equal, there is equity within the organization if it is not fair there is inequity and unhappiness among the workers, which decreases morale and effects the workers ability to produce. Workers can adjust their own inputs or outcomes and can also adjust the inputs and outcomes of other employees therefore it best benefits the company to seek to motivate. If workers decide, there is inequity it can result in their resignation. The history of the equity theory of motivation in that in 1963 John Stacey Adams decided fairness and equity are factors to motivate an individual when inequity is determined and individual’s will seek to adjust their inputs and outcomes to reach equity. When there is a higher perception, there is higher motivation, in a perceived unfair environment there is demotivation. Examples of this...
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...has earned international acclaim and generated an annual earnings of $46 million. Attention to detail, extreme precision and enthusiastic quality control are the hallmarks of Riordan. With facilities in San Jose, Calif., Albany, Ga., Pontiac, Mich. and Hangzhou, China, Riordan is wholly owned by Riordan Industries, a Fortune 1000 enterprise with revenues in excess of $1 billion (UOP, 2006). Because of diminishing sales and uneven profits over the last two years, Riordan is faced with implementing new strategic plans to increase its profitability with an innovative customer relationship management system (UOP, 2006). The strain from the decline in sales has impacted employee morale adversely with little to motivate the workforce as its contribution has been overlooked and outright neglected. Riordon must reclaim its most valuable asset – its 550 people employees – by maintaining an innovative and team-oriented working environment and by assuring the employees are well-informed and properly supported. Situation Analysis Issue and Opportunity Identification Riordan was founded by Dr. Michael Riordan, a professor of chemistry, who had obtained several patents relative to processing polymers into high tensile strength plastic substrates. Sensing the commercial applications for his patents, Dr. Riordan started Riordan Plastics, Inc. in 1991. Initially, the company’s focus was on research and development and the licensing of its existing patents, but in 1992, Dr. Riordan...
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...excellence within and outside the organization, it is a privilege to present a plan that seeks to increase the three most important factors in any company: Motivation, satisfaction, and performance of each member. Discussed in previous opportunities, human capital in any organization is the most important asset in achieving company objectives. The role as managers and leaders is to understand that we are working with people who have their own way of thinking and behaving. For this reason this time we are given (one year) we must use our energy, creativity, knowledge, and experience to enhance the three factors mentioned above. Our plan must be clear to understand, transparent in their actions and to establish clearly the role of each team member. The way we approach each of the different attitudes, emotions, values and personalities allow us to improve and identify the mechanisms that we use to create a productive work environment. Team Performance and Effectiveness Teamwork is essential to the performance of a team and is necessary for most development programs as it needs multiple skills to manage any development project (Biswas, 2008). When a team is formed several factors must be considered in order to determine if a team is able to succeed. They are personality, values, attitudes, and emotions. Personality Personality traits are individual characteristics that describe a person’s behavior. The characteristics are a result of heredity or environment that influences...
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