Cultural studies of Organization communication Essay Example for Free

Cultural studies of Organization communication Essay According to Saran and Kalliny (2009), there are many theories which explain the organizational behavior relative to changes in the structures. Saran and Kalliny (2009, para. 4) continue to explain that there are many variables potentially affecting the implementation process including corporate culture issues, such as formalization, decentralization, functional differentiation, leadership, job satisfaction and job involvement and organizational dynamic issues, such as resources and communication. The review of literature about this topic focuses on these key areas by providing historical and contemporary issues that have been captured within the scope of this research. Communication is one of the most essential things that an organization requires to prosper in any market especially during turbulent business environments. Dubrin (1997) was of the opinion that communication is a very important aspect that unites all systems of the organization. Managers spend most of their time communicating with different stakeholders to create an efficient flow of activities. Knowledge management is very vital to managers since the efficient operation of any organization depends on how information is managed. The long term survival of any organization depends on the ability to manage information and knowledge for the efficient communication. People exchange, process and use information through the system of knowledge management (Bakan et al, n. d. ). Organizational structure defines the various divisions within an organization and establishes a system of coordinating the various resources for the achievement of the goals and objectives. Decision making process follows the structure of the organization to ensure all responsible individuals make the appropriate decisions. The managers create a system of collecting information and ideas from all stakeholders during the process of decision making to ensure all parties are included in the decisions of the organization. All the forces to the organization must be considered during the decision making process, that is, environmental forces, technological forces and the strategies being adopted by the organization. The restructuring process must ensure that the managers create systems which make maximum use of the resources available to the organization. The definition of tasks, allocation of different resources and the arrangement of resources as well as tasks should match the structure, goals and objectives of the organization. Organizational structure provides the systems to be followed during division of labor, when delegating authority and responsibilities, when establishing units of command, and the span of control. The structure of the organization defines the strategies to be adopted when delegating authority and responsibilities (Porter, 1985). The use of technology is encouraged in developing organizational structures which match the needs of an organization. The use of information communication technology has increased as the need for efficiency in both private and public corporations intensifies. Technology helps people learn about the use of better knowledge about improving their systems. Good governance in organization requires the establishment of a clear organizational hierarchy to define the roles of each individual involved in the activities of the organization (Wade, 2002). The use of technology has been encouraged by many organizations to adjust the existing structures to fit new strategies that are required for improved performance. When new technologies are adopted, the management must introduce other structures to ensure their implementation takes place efficiently. The people working in an organization need to be educated and persuaded about the new technologies being adopted by the organization to ensure they utilize them for the benefits of all stakeholders (Evan Black, 1967). The technology must be relevant to the goals and objectives of the organization. The organizational factors must be well studied and analyzed to introduce a better system which is in line with all systems of the organization. Increase in technological innovation has attracted much attention especially due to the existence of scarce resources within the organization. Managers reshuffle the workers in their organization as well as creating other structures to ensure the organization adopts the new technologies being introduced (Rogers, 1995). Saran and Kalliny (2009) are of the opinion that implementing new technologies is complex and involves uncertainty. The uncertainty brings about conflicts between different stakeholders of the organization due to the new structures introduced. The uncertainty may create resistance from the people involved in the activities of the organization. The management must conduct adequate research about the best strategies to implement the technologies to ensure minimum resistance emanates from the individuals working in the organization (Rogers, 1995). However, Gill (2003, pg. 316) identified that many organizations do not conduct adequate research before implementing their new technologies and this has led to â€Å"low success rate, given the importance of the same in a very dynamic and ever changing business environment, where customers not only demand new products and services but also newness in the product offering. † Implementing new technologies requires introducing changes within the structure of the organization and behavior change is essential to ensure all stakeholders readily accept the new ideas. Behavior change is difficult where there is uncertainty about the technologies to be adopted. This may hinder implementation of the innovations. Organizations take a longer period to adapt to new changes compared to individuals. Fariborz (1991) suggested that the revolution in technology being observed today requires organizations to integrate the variables of the organization with implementation strategies. He continued to explain that technologies are the main vehicles of change and that individual, organizational and environmental factors affect the implementation of many technologies and innovations. Accepting change is the basis of introducing new technologies within the organization (Saran Kalliny, 2009). For an organization to adapt to new technologies there is need to link the organization to the appropriate technologies which match the structures within the system. The innovations and technologies adapt to the organizational and industrial structures with time and the management must be patient enough to allow the new systems become incorporated into the processes of the organization (Van De Ven, 1986). There is a learning process involved in the adoption of new strategies. The old systems must be done away with to ensure the people do not revert to them. The culture of the organization should be adjusted to accommodate the new changes. Changing the culture requires changing the attitudes and values of the people involved in the activities of the organization. Changing the culture is not an easy thing and many people will become opposed to these strategies since there are gains and losses to many people when new systems are introduced. The culture of an organization defines the values, norms, and attitudes that people have. The management must create structures which match the culture of the organization. The culture determines the best strategies to be adopted by the people working in an organization. The managers have a responsibility to establish a culture which suits the needs of the workers and other stakeholders of the organization (Bridges, 1991). The implementation of innovations and technologies requires a process to ensure all the stakeholders respond to the new systems successfully. The process starts from acquiring knowledge about the new systems, forming attitude about it, adopting or rejecting the new decisions, implementing and confirmation. Until the decisions are implemented, all activities prior to this involve mental processes. The installation of the ideas into real sustainable process is the final stage which determines the success of the management to implement its strategies (Pierce and Delbecq, 1977). Corporate restructuring allows the managers bring changes within the organization to accommodate new and better structures which improve the performance of an organization. The need to globalize domestic markets has forced many organizations to adopt better structures to create new market opportunities, overcome threats from organizations and diffuse models of business that relate to globalization. To improve the costs and revenue structures of the organization, managers have developed variety of objectives to ensure all aspects of management are captured (Jones, 2002). Formalization within the organizational structure provides the procedures to be observed when conducting the various activities by the individuals working in the organization. Organizational hierarchy describes the jobs and the amount of freedom provided to the stakeholders of the organization (Cohn Turyn, 1980). For the effective adoption and implementation of new technologies, the formal structures must be followed when performing duties within the organization. All systems of the organization should be properly coordinated to ensure the implementation of the new ideas is successful (Kim, 1980). Formal procedures are introduced within the organization to reduce stress which may originate from confusion that occurs when systems are not properly coordinated. Formal structures provide the lower level employees of the organization with equal opportunities to avoid discretion in the allocation of duties and rewards. The planning process requires the management to create a properly coordinated system that will bring about successful implementation of new technologies (Zaltman, Duncan Holbek, 1973). The use of communication is expressed in the organizational hierarchy where formal communication procedures are established. All people must adhere to the communication structures that the management has established for effective operation of activities. The organizational chart provides the flow of authority, information and other resources. The managers restructure the organizational structure as need arises and provide new roles to different individuals. Restructuring the organization requires creating a proper system so that all individuals can adjust accordingly (Bakan et al n. d. ; Porter, 1985). The global recession that affected all global economies in the world forced many organizations to adopt new strategies to improve their performance as well as ensure the corporate survival in the global markets. Many organizations have restructured their systems to adapt to the new changes brought about by the effects of the recession. To reduce the increasing costs of production, managers are adopting a downsizing strategy (Harman, 2009). The reduction in sales volume in the global markets provides managers with the decision to create better systems and structures which improve the image of the organization in the global markets (Dewar and Dutton, 1986). Hitt et al (1994) established that over the last two decades, many organizations have carried out extensive re-structuring process to cope with the changing global markets. The media and communications industry has been characterized by increasing competition in both local and global markets. Organizations need to restructure their activities to accommodate the changes in the global markets. Gregory (1999) provides that â€Å"corporate downsizing has been implemented by a large number of American firms in an effort to become more flexible and responsive to increased competition. † The strategy to down size many organizations have not been responsive to the strategy of reducing the costs of production. The impacts of downsizing upon the employees of these companies have been worse. Cases of stress among the remaining employees have been reported by organizations which have used downsizing as a strategy to restructure their systems. Other negative impacts related to downsizing are reduction in career opportunities and reduction in the loyalty to the company by the employees. The loss of very important employees is another risk associated with downsizing organizations (Hitt et al 1994). Decentralization of authority is an important aspect when implementing better hierarchies which ensure the organization is successful in its efforts to create a better structure. Decentralization allows all members of the organization to participate in the decision making process. Employees are able to translate the decisions made by their managers into specific plans of actions. For effective communication, the management should introduce a decentralized system to ensure all members of the organization contribute towards the activities of the organization. Decentralization ensures that all decisions are implemented successfully by establishing different work centers where different individuals can contribute their ideas. Workers are ready to own decisions when they participate in the decision making as well as implementation process (Jones and Jennifer, 2003). Proper leadership strategies within the organization should be adopted when implementing the new technologies. Leadership refers to the ability of the management to influence the subordinates to contribute willingly to the goals of the organization. The managers should have the skills of influencing others to accept the new structures for the success of the organization. Managing change within the organization requires proper leadership skills so that the managers can influence their followers about developing new behaviors to adapt to the new systems of the organization (Robbins, 1998). To ensure the employees accept the new technologies, the management should ensure the employees are satisfied in the jobs assigned to them. Job satisfaction creates the willingness to perform duties without being forced and motivates the employees to improve their performance (Herzberg, Mausner and Synderman, 1959). Functional differentiation allows the management to introduce better systems within the organization. Kimberly and Evansisko (1981, pg. 693) define functional differentiation as a process which represents the extent to which an organization is divided into different units, normally measured by the different number of units under the top management. The extent to which an organization differentiations its structures determines the success in implementing technologies. The communication process is made efficient by a high differentiation of the processes. The top management has the role of ensuring all employees comply with the established rules for the efficient operation of the differentiated units of the organization (Baldridge and Burnham, 1975). To ensure employees are satisfied by the various duties assigned to them, the management should differentiate the organizations units and allocate jobs according to the skills and experience of the individual employees. 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