Organizational culture, behavior, and diversity in the workplace

Organizational Behavior Terminology and Concepts

Organizational culture

Over the years, the organizational culture concept has come to gain a wider acceptance as a way and means of understanding the human system. Each part of the organization culture is treated as a valuable environmental factor that affects the system and the subsystems therein hence cannot be ignored. Edger Schein, one of the most renowned theorists on the topic of organizational culture defined culture as "a pattern of shared basic assumptions that the group learned as it solved its problems of external adaptation and internal integration, that has worked well enough to be considered valid and therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think, and feel in relation to those problems." (Symphony Orchestra Institute, 2005). Culture here portrays the values, customs and beliefs of and organization

This means that as groups or organizations advance over a given period of time, they undergo two sets of challenges; the eventual integration of the concerned individuals into an efficient and effective whole, and getting accustomed to the external environment so that the organization can make it through the challenges. As organizations find solutions to the two challenges, the members of the organizations engage in a learning process that is continuous and collective ultimately creating shared beliefs and assumptions that are referred to as 'culture'.

Organizational behavior

Understanding the concept of organizational behavior is very crucial for the HRM especially when they attempt to delegate responsibilities to the employees. There is need to know the organizational behaviors of individuals and even groups within the organization. Organizational behavior can be referred to as the objective study of individuals, their personalities and behavior within the organizational context in a work environment or setting. Apparently organizational behavior cannot be confined in a single discipline approach but is a multi-disciplinary aspect that incorporates psychology, management, sociology and even communication as noted by Debra Lamb (2010), a Dean at Cornell University.

Communication

Communication in the organizations cover all the means and modes, be they formal or informal, by which information finds its ways down, up or even across the organizational network of employees and the management in a given business setting. These modes of communication may contain important information for instance between employees and the managers, to more trivial issues like passing rumors or hearsay from one employee to another as noted by Reference for Business (2011). It is upon the business fraternity to channel the numerous pieces of information passed from one point to the other towards bolstering employee satisfaction, ensuring customers are satisfied with the services, enhance sharing of knowledge among the staff members as well as boost the organizational competitiveness.

Culture and behavior of Microsoft Corporation

The Microsoft Company has a peculiar culture that defines and sets apart the company from other organizations. In order to deal effectively with the external competition, Microsoft picks the top and best talents that are in the market, these people are the trained to act as magnets to attract others of their ilk into the organization and into their research labs. The end effect of this is the formation of a virtuous circle of talents since to Microsoft research work always relies on the brains of the company.

Once Microsoft has attracted the best of the best brains, they are modeled by senior researchers and are involved in numerous researches, even of programs that mat not be used today or tomorrow. Microsoft believes that the research initiations of the young researchers in the firm will benefit the organization in the day after tomorrow (Jia Wu, 2009). This is a way of consolidating the individuals into an efficient and effective whole, as well as tapping the best of the studied individual behaviors and capabilities.

In a nutshell, Microsoft Corporation has a culture of perpetual research doing and talent search and modeling that never ends as well. They are widely accredited for being the organization with one of the best brains in the world and best research in the information technology and computers software, this is as a result of this culture they have formulated and the culture that sets them apart from other organizations.