Employee Development and Learning

Chapter 1: Why is shared information so important in a learning organization in comparison to an efficient performance organization? Discuss how an organization’s approach to sharing information may be related to other elements of organization design such as: structure, tasks, strategy, and culture.

One of the most notable aspects of Chapter 1 is the ways in which it illustrates the failures of organizations like Xerox and Kodak, which struggled to learn organizationally (Daft, 2016). During their heyday, both organizations performed efficiently, but they were unable to be sufficiently responsive in terms of altering their organizational offerings to suit the needs of the new marketplace, after their core product lines became obsolete. This failure to re-strategize can be traced back to an inflexible organizational structure: Xerox’s was described as “slow to adapt” and “almost totally paralyzed by politics” (Daft, 2016, p.6). At some organizations individual departments or entities may attempt to hoard information out of a spirit of competition. Ideally, in a learning organization, dialogue is facilitated to enhance mutual dialogue and adaptability, breaking down barriers to building new knowledge (Hussein, et al., 2014). As technology changes the world more quickly than before, free and open communication channels via a variety of media, including social media, is critical.

Chapter 1: What are some differences that one might anticipate among the expectations of stakeholders for a nonprofit organization versus a for-profit business? Do you believe nonprofit managers have to pay more attention to stakeholders than business managers?

It is true, as Daft (2016) states, “problems occur when all organizations are treated as similar,” and all organizations are not necessarily responsive to scientific management or even total quality management (TQM) approaches (p.36). But paying attention to stakeholders is critical for all businesses, at least in today’s day and age. In previous eras, the for-profit firm may have been conceptualized largely as an entity which only had responsibility for enhancing the profit of shareholders in the organization. Today, even for-profit businesses are held responsible for the impact they have upon employees, the environment, customers, and even the wider world outside of the immediate sphere of the business. For-profit entities must still make money to remain in business, of course, and there are often higher expectations regarding growth. But even not-for-profits must still manage their money to stay solvent, market themselves to donors as well as raise awareness about their causes, and both types of entities are increasingly using their social conscience as a marketing or promotional technique (think The Body Shop and Starbucks, to name just two).

Chapter 2: How might a company’s goal for employee development be related to its goals for innovation and change? How might a company’s goals for employee development be related to its goals for productivity? Explain the ways that these types of goals may conflict in an organization?

Today’s economy is a service-based economy. Quality of service, whether the employee is in a call center in India, or someone close by taking the time to properly install a refrigerator in a customer’s home, can mean the difference between a consumer selecting one company over another. But to provide quality of service requires an investment in employees. Employee development, spanning from technical workplace training, to support for higher education, to simply training employees how to interact better with individuals from diverse backgrounds, are all examples of how improved productivity and investing in employee development can be beneficial. “Employee learning goals have been found to be related to higher levels of department performance” (Daft, 2016, p. 56). However, many employees are change resistant and may view such intensive training with suspicion, or, conversely, use their education as a springboard to a career at another organization.

Chapter 2: Suppose you have been asked to evaluate the effectiveness of the police department in a medium-sized community. Where would you begin? How would you proceed? What effectiveness approach would you prefer?

Evaluating effectiveness first demands understanding the purpose of the organization, and the organization’s current level of performance. All organizations can and should have clear mission and goal statements to guide them forward. It is also vitally important to differentiate between strategies and goals: “goals define where the organization wants to go and strategies define how it will get there” (Daft, 2016, p. 59). The goal may be a specific reduction in crime, but the strategy must emphasize prevention in a specific manner as well as the number of arrests. A strong effectiveness approach also demands soliciting information from community stakeholders, including the persons the department is attempting to protect. Holistic, multifaceted approaches which view productivity in terms of goodwill, not simply the number of arrests, is critical.

Chapter 3: What types of organizational activities do you believe are most likely to be outsourced? What types are least likely? How can/should a biblical worldview be applied?

In an ideal world, the organization will outsource the activities which it is least capable of performing, and which demands large amounts of organizational resources with relatively little reward. For example, an organization which is primarily technical in nature, and which services sophisticated, technical businesspersons might benefit from outsourcing its call center abroad, to staff which are trained in such work. But an organization which requires translating the language of IT into layperson’s language for irate customers who cannot figure out an instruction manual might find such outsourcing more of a liability than an asset, if the call center employees abroad are not well-versed in dealing with customer psychology. Core components of the organization’s business model, or ones which require careful monitoring for the sake of safety, are not wise to outsource. The organization must keep tight control over the aspects of its performance that generated consumer trust in the first place, like the guaranteed safety of a toy or personal care product: “Lack of coordination and collaboration is a tremendous problem for many organizations today” (Daft, 2016, p.87). A biblically conscious worldview in business is synonymous with good stewardship and shepherding.