The Hawthorne experiment, McGregor's theories, and workplace management evolution

Organizational Behavior: Past Present. Discuss statements. • The Human Relations Movement. Discuss Hawthorne Experiment implications a legacy workplace; compare contrast McGregor's Theory X Theory Y assumptions employees, personal experiences Theory X & Y managers, prefer.

Organizational behavior: Past and present

Discuss the Hawthorne Experiment and its implications as a legacy in the workplace

The Hawthorne Experiment suggests that when subjects are aware that they are being observed, they behave better than they do under regular circumstances. The implications of this experiment in the workplace are fairly obvious: workers are often regularly watched by managers, as a way of improving employee productivity and enhancing compliance. When workers cannot be watched through the use of human agency, then mechanized means are used to engage in surveillance. Time clocks, 'blocking' controls upon unsupervised employee web-surfing, sitting workers in open environments where they can be easily monitored and other efforts to make employee behaviors more transparent are all manifestations of how the principles of the Hawthorne Experiment are used in the workplace.

Q2. Compare and contrast McGregor's Theory X and Theory Y

Theory X assumptions seem congruent with the principles of the Hawthorne Experiment. They suggest that workers will only perform if controlled and motivated by fears of punishment and tangible rewards. Theory Y assumptions suggest that workers are motivated by self-actualization and if employees are given the right internal motivations, they will want to do their jobs. Almost every worker at a retail establishment has encountered a Theory X environment, in which workers must 'punch in' and 'punch out,' are criticized for even the most minor infractions of rules, and must follow standardized requirements to the letter. In contrast, Theory Y managers whom I have encountered actively solicit employee suggestions and motivate employees by making workers feel like valued participants in the process of improving the organization. A worker feels much more enthusiastic about learning a new way of doing things if he or she originally provided concrete suggestions to improve the process.

Q3. The Total Quality Management movement

Deming's '85-15 rule' suggests that a worker's efficacy is determined only 15% by his or her own initiative, and 85% by the efficacy of the organizational environment (Mead 1996). This means that an organization must strive to optimize its functioning, which, according to the principles of TQM should focus on customer satisfaction, continuous improvement, empowerment, and teamwork (Schmidt 1998). The contingency approach likewise stresses the situational nature of human behavior, and believes that managerial approaches must be tailored to the emotional makeup of the employees, the needs of a specific objective, and the character of the organization as a whole. POB stresses the need for creating a positive workplace culture as well, to enable workers to flourish.

Q5. How would you describe the organizational culture that exists at Apple?

It has been said of Apple: "By leveraging their culture of innovation toward product as well as internal processes, they have been able to survive -- despite incredible competition -- as well as venture into new and profitable markets" (Tharpe 2007). Apple is fundamentally a creative culture, driven by the need to generate new products and also new methods of marketing. "Success now was envisioned in terms of innovation and creativity with a future-forward posture. An entrepreneurial spirit reigns where profit lies in finding new opportunities to develop new products, new services, and new relationships" (Tharpe 2007).