Socialization Activity
Socialization is an important component to the success and effectiveness of an organizational setting. Workplace socialization or social interaction is associated with numerous benefits for both the individuals and the organization. However, organizations are sometimes faced with socialization issues that negatively impact employee engagement and productivity. An example of an organizational situation relating to socialization is the integration of new members. Organization X has established human resource policies and plans to integrate new members into the workforce. However, these policies and practices are seemingly ineffective because new employees report of role uncertainties as they are not adequately informed of their specific duties. Consequently, the participation or engagement of new employees in the organization’s workplace is significantly affected. New employees state that they do not feel a sense of belonging and face numerous uncertainties in this working environment.

Relevant Research

Korte (2007) states that socialization in an organization is associated with four major benefits i.e. reduced turnover, transfer and maintenance of organizational culture, positive employee attitudes and behaviors, and learning organizational political and social norms. Despite these benefits, many organizations face challenges in integrating new employees. Existing socialization practices for new employees focus on the traditional view of learning, which is ineffective. As a result, many new employees experience difficulties in acquiring knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors that are necessary to engage effectively in an organization. Formal practices are not entirely effective in enhancing socialization and integration of new employees in an organization. Van Kleef, Steen & Scott (2017) state that informal practices should be combined with formal practices to enhance socialization and integration of new employees.

Practical Application

As shown in existing research, the organization can benefit from adopting suitable interventions that would help enhance socialization of its new members in the workplace. Existing literature shows that a combination of formal and informal socialization practices is the most effective approach. Therefore, the intervention for this organization is the adoption of formal and informal socialization practices. In this regard, training programmes and orientation processes to help new employees learn about their specific duties and roles in the workplace were established. These processes focused on promoting acquisition of the required knowledge, attitudes and behaviors. Informal socialization opportunities like team-building exercises and daily fun routines were also adopted.

Pros and Cons of the Intervention

The advantages of the intervention include reduction of role uncertainty among new employees, improved understanding of specific duties, enhanced interactions with other employees, and more employee engagement. However, the intervention was also associated with some disadvantages including reduced personal productivity, increased operational costs brought by team-building exercises, and disruptions in operations. Therefore, the implementation of the intervention could have been carried out in a different manner to avoid these disadvantages. If this was to happen again, changes would be made to the informal socialization activities since they affected daily operations and operational costs of the organization. In this regard, informal socialization activities that would be adopted would focus on enhancing employees engagement without compromising personal productivity. Some of the changes that would be made include changing the design of workspaces to enhance face-to-face interaction, employee recognition, and promoting interactions with superiors and colleagues (Njegovan & Kostic, 2014).

Work-Family Conflict

The modern society has become hectic to an extent that finding work-family balance is increasingly difficult. Work-family conflict is a term used to refer to a situation where the responsibilities from work seem incompatible with family roles. A 35-year-old African American woman recently divorced and has to take care of her three daughters. Despite having a full-time job, she experiences financial difficulties that have forced her to accept another...…help manage stress in the workplace. The interventions should be focused on addressing potential causes of work-related stress and establishing measures to lessen workplace stressors.

Practical Application

Organizational interventions are among the most suitable approaches to deal with workplace stressors. This situation requires the use of an organizational intervention that will help lessen workplace stressors. In this regard, a flexible work schedule was implemented in the organization to help lessen work overload and reduce working hours. Following the implementation of a flexible work schedule, appropriate nursing shifts were established. Nurses at the facility are required to carry out their responsibilities during their shifts and ensure smooth transition of work responsibilities between them. The nursing shifts were established depending patient demands for healthcare services and other activities carried out in the acute care setting. After creating the flexible work schedules, the management provided information to nurses regarding their specific roles and responsibilities to help lessen uncertainty and confusion.

Pros and Cons of the Intervention

The intervention played a critical role in reducing workplace stressors at the facility and enhancing employee engagement. Some of the advantages of this initiative include reduced workload, reduced long working hours, better employee engagement, and enhanced employee autonomy. However, the intervention was characterized by some disadvantages include reduced organizational productivity due to staff shortage and increased demands for patient care services. Despite reducing workplace stressors, the effectiveness of the intervention could be enhanced through some changes. First, the intervention could be enhanced through hiring more staff to promote continuity of services provided to patients. Nursing shifts exacerbated the current shortage of nurses faced by the facility. Hiring more staff would help enhance the effectiveness of the intervention in reducing the impact of workplace stressors. In addition, changes in organizational culture would help accommodate the new work schedules.