Leadership Organizational Culture and Conflict in Organization Theory

Organization Theory and Design

Abstract

This paper explains the various theories of organization and design by looking at historical theories, modern theories, symbolic theories and postmodern theories. It then compares and evaluates six major concepts central to organizational theory: organizational culture, leadership, motivation, scientific management, change management and conflict. It shows how each concept has to be understood in terms of the organizational environment and how theory to practice can be applied in the real world of today. It also provides a reflection on these concepts and how a leader can most effectively plan an organization that addresses each one while enabling the organization to maximize potential based on an assessment of its resources, internal and external environment, and mission and vision.

Introduction

Theories of organization have changed over history, with traditional or classical theories serving as the bedrock for most approaches to organization. However, with the application of humanism and postmodern perspective, these approaches have altered over time to include more of a focus on the interaction of people with their surroundings, how people relate in times of conflict, the role that leaders play, and the impact of culture on an organization. This paper examines the theories in the study of organization and six central concepts at the heart of these theories—organizational culture, motivation, leadership, scientific management, change management, and conflict.

Theories in the Study of Organization

Historical

Classical and neo-classical theories best represent the historical theories in the study of organization. These approaches refer to the formal structures of organizations and permit personnel specialists to plan the organization. The structure is developed so as to facilitate the achievement of the goals of the organization, but the principles of classical organization are essentially proverbial in nature rather than distinctly scientific (Onday, 2016). In classical organizational theory, a best-way for achieving results is identified and implemented and everyone is expected to adhere to it. In neoclassical theory there is more emphasis on internal-external organizational relationships.

Modern

Modern structural organizational theory posits that organizations are rational institutions that have clear aims, rules for operations and formalized authoritative structures. It is similar to classical theory in that a best-way of operations is identified; structure is important, and the division of labor, as depicted by Smith (1776), is implemented to optimize resources and maximize efficiency.

Symbolic

Symbolic organization theory is based on the idea of symbolic conditioning, itself a response to pre-established beliefs in which there is an unconscious link between a physical thing and the actions that are expected in response to that thing (Hatch, 2018). Symbolic organization is important in considering intuition and how emotions play a part in interactions. Social and emotional intelligence are strong qualities of value in this approach.

Postmodern

The postmodern perspective is such that it implies that no meaning can be constructed outside of language, which grants all context and clues as to a thing’s worth. Without language, there is no context for the meaning of a thing’s substance (Hatch, 2018). Culture plays a large role in applying the postmodern perspective as culture is viewed as setting the tone and underscoring the importance or value of rituals.

Explanation and Comparison of Six Theoretical Concepts about Organizations

Organizational Culture

Organizational culture plays a major role in how organizations are viewed in the postmodern perspective of organizations. Culture focuses on values, artifacts and the thought processes that go into the actions and beliefs of the people involved (Schein, 2001). Hofstede (2011) provides a cultural dimensions model that allows organizations to understand the values of the environment in which they are situated. The elements of the organizational culture will essentially impact the behavior and performance of stakeholders. Examples abound: for instance, at Enron, the organizational culture was decidedly inauthentic, which fostered a spirit of deception and corruption that collapsed the organization before long. At Tesla, there is a culture of innovation that is promoted so as to create new opportunities for the organization in an old industry. Compared to motivation, leadership, the use of the scientific method, change management and how organizations address the concept of conflict, organizational culture can be said to be no less important. It lays the foundation for expectations, ideals, principles, ethics, and performance. The values of stakeholders should be represented in the organizational culture and vice versa so as to create harmony internally and externally. Culture is likely to change whenever there is a merger or acquisition, so it is imperative that attention be given to the maintenance of culture so as to prevent the development of silos, which can lead to miscommunication, breakdowns in process efficiency and internal conflict (Schein, 2017).

Motivation

Motivation is a major factor from the symbolic perspective, as it has to do with how people respond to stimuli. Gerhart and Fang (2015) explain that there intrinsic and extrinsic types of motivation. Intrinsic motivation refers to the self-actualized drive of the individual to be self-motivating. Extrinsic motivation refers to the need for external stimuli, such as the promise of reward (bonuses, vacations, recognition, etc.). Maslow’s (1943) theory of human motivation and the hierarchy of needs shows how one attains self-actualization—namely by having lower level needs met first, such as the human need for shelter and stability, friendship and love, and self-esteem. Motivation is an important concept in overall picture of how an organization develops, particularly from the symbolic perspective because it focuses on the things that motivate people to behave. It is relevant in every theory of organization, from classical to postmodern, because at root, each theoretical approach relies on the motivation of workers in order to be successful in achieving its goals.

Leadership

Leadership is an essential concept in the organization, but leadership theories have changed over time, from the Great Man Theory to trait theories to servant leadership, transformational leadership, transactional leadership and many others. The key to understanding how essential leadership is in organizational theory is to look at how leaders have changed the course of organizations in the past, from Elon Musk at Tesla to Putin in Russia’s government following the end of the Soviet Era. Leadership makes a tremendous difference in how organizations develop and grow because leaders typically represent the vision and the nuance needed in making critical decisions and venturing in new directions. De Vries (1996) for example shows how charismatic leaders have had tremendous impacts in developing organizations that stakeholders want to be part of, and he uses the leadership styles of Richard Branson at Virgin Group and Percy Barnevik at ABB to prove that point.

Scientific Management

Frederick Taylor (1914) developed the concept of scientific management in response to Weber’s bureaucratic management concept. The idea behind this concept is that people cannot be trusted to operated efficiently at all times; therefore, it is in the best interests of the organization to streamline functions by using available relevant data so that processes are structured and formalized and decision-making is removed as much as possible from the individual human being. It is a very classical approach to organizational theory and one that has been very influential in the development of formalized structures and processes within organizations. However, when compared to other important concepts such as leadership and organizational culture, it falls short in terms of allowing for those moments of genius, innovative inspiration, and human ingenuity that propel organizations forward in positive ways. The point of scientific management is to minimize risks associated with end users in an organization—but there is also a risk of missing opportunities due to the limitations placed on human beings within organizations when they are reduced to mere automatons, expected to operate in a specific manner, day in and day out, like Smith’s workers in the pin factory. Compared to leadership and the need for change management that organizations often have to address so as not to stagnate, scientific management comes across as a limited concept that poses as many liabilities as it does benefits. However, the concept does have utility in terms of reducing the risk of conflict and addressing issues of motivation, as the organization relies on structured processes based on scientific analysis of data to develop the manner in which workers engage in their tasks, thus potentially eliminating the need for self-actualized employees. Compared to the concept of organizational culture, scientific management is less focused on the values and sentiment of individual stakeholders and more focused on processes that remove human decision-making; organizational culture, on the other hand, is much more focused on how humans relate and how humans are inspired and motivated to act. It can be used to reduce tribalism that might otherwise appear when cultures clash in a workplace (McGee-Cooper, 2005).

Change Management

Change management models abound, from lean management to Six Sigma (Schein, 2017). Others, such as Kotter’s 8-step model, focus more on how a leader can manage change through the fostering of relationships (Kotter, 2012). Change management is a core concept in any organization that is looking to implement a new process, a new culture, a new code of ethics, a new strategy, a new system, or anything else that has not yet been incorporated and requires all-hands-on-deck to achieve and cement the change. Change management is the idea that change has to be implemented, overseen, monitored and evaluated to make sure that the change has been introduced most effectively and that necessary steps have been taken to overcome resistance to change and reduce obstacles or barriers to the implementation of the change. This concept compares well with the concept of organizational culture, motivation, and conflict because it incorporates all these concepts into its understanding of how organizations work. It can be used in conjunction with scientific management as well and it also relies a great deal on leadership, particularly transformational leadership (Kotter, 2012).

Conflict

Conflict is an issue in organizational management that many researchers have examined from different perspectives, but nearly all focus on the role that communication plays in resolving conflict and eradicating the development of silos, which foment conflict (Gilmore, 2010). In a traditional organization, conflict tends to be resolved through the formal structures of the hierarchy and the application of authority within the organization. The leader or administrative will exert influence to resolve conflict, at least in theory; however, in a large organization with many departments this can be more difficult in practice, especially if each department has erected a silo in which the influence of external forces is muted. However, in a learning organization like that described by Senge, conflict is resolved through a process of collaboration and communication, in which silo effects are reduced and various views are integrated so that personnel become instrumental in resolving their own conflicts (Hansen, Jensen & Nguyen, 2020). Conflict is a concept that organizations typically seek to reduce, which is one of the reasons the concept of scientific management was introduced by Taylor (1914); it is also why leadership is important, along with understanding the concepts of motivation and organizational culture. Conflict resolution approaches should be observed and incorporated in any organization seeking to maximize output.

Reflection

In the public workplace environment, each of these concepts can be seen as having an impact, no matter the organization or its mission. In the public workplace environment, actions of the organization are often under the microscope of the public because the role of stakeholders is amplified and the public organization is accountable to the public more than in a private organization. Organizational culture will often come under the microscope first, when competent leadership is installed, especially when it is a change management situation. In the experience of this writer, change management is applied in a public organization when there is a need, stressed by the public, for transformation so as to produce better efficiency.

Change management has to be guided, however, by an adequate model, and this writer has seen the utility of Kotter’s 8-step model in action. It facilitates change most effectively when used by a competent transformational leader. The model shows how to enlist stakeholders to reduce the risk of conflict and resistance by getting them to buy-in to the change and to promote it to others.

Motivation and Scientific Management are two concepts that have also been seen by this writer to come into play in public organizations in positive and negative ways—positive when they are addressed competently and negative when they are not understood in terms of strengths and weaknesses. Motivation theories should be assessed in terms of applicability to the environment, and scientific management approaches are not necessarily going to work in an organization where human engagement is vital to success. In a bureaucratic setting, scientific management concept is more fitting; but in an organization where workers have to be able to use critical thinking to apply knowledge in a fast-paced setting, scientific management can be a liability. Motivation concepts are more helpful in such situations, as they can be used to motivate workers to stay engaged and on top of strategic decision making.