Chapter 1 - Intro

Question 1

Organisational behaviour

Answer 1

study of what people think, feel and do in organisatiosn

Question 2

Organisations

Answer 2

groups of people who work interdependently towards a purpose

Question 3

OB theories help people to:

Answer 3

1) make sense of the workplace
2) question and rebuild their personal mental models
3) get things done in organizations

Question 4

OB knowledge is:

Answer 4

important for the organization’s financial health

Question 5

Organisational effectiveness - Open systems perspective

Answer 5

Views organizations as complex organisms that live within an external environment. They depend on the external environment for resources, then use organization subsystems to transform those resources into outputs that are returned to the environment. Organisations receive feedback from the external environment to maintain a good fit with that environment. Fit occurs by adapting to the environment, managing the environment, or moving to another.

Question 6

Organisational effectiveness - Organisational learning perspective

Answer 6

Organisational effectiveness depends on the organization’s capacity to acquire, share, use and store valuable knowledge. The ability to acquire and use knowledge depends on the firm’s absorptive capacity. Intellectual capital consists of human capital, structural capital and relationship capital. Knowledge is retained in the organizational memory; companies also selectively unlearn.

Question 7

Organisational effectiveness - High-performance work practices (HPWP) perspective

Answer 7

identifies a bundle of systems and structures to leverage workforce potential. Most widely identified HPWPs are employee involvement, job autonomy, developing employees competencies, and performance/skill based rewards. HPWPs improve organizational effectiveness by building human capital, increasing adaptability, and strengthening employee motivation and attitudes.

Question 8

Organisational effectiveness - Stakeholder perspective

Answer 8

states that leaders manage the interests of diverse stakeholders by relying on their personal and organizational values for guidance. Ethics and corporate social responsibility (SSR) rely on values to guide the most appropriate decisions involving stakeholders. CSR consists of organizational activities intended to benefit society and the environment beyond the company’s immediate financial interests or legal obligations.

Question 9

Globalisation

Answer 9

refers to various forms of connectivity with people in other parts of the world.

Responsible for work intensification and reduced job security. However - various economic and social benefits.

Question 10

Workforce diversity

Answer 10

may give competitive advantage by improving decision making and team performance on complex tasks, yet brings challenges such as slower team performance and interpersonal conflict

Question 11

Emerging employment relationship trends are:

Answer 11

Call for more work-life balance

Virtual work - particularly from home

Question 12

Systematic research anchor

Answer 12

states that OB knowledge should be based on systematic research, which is consistent with evidence-based management

Question 13

Multi-displinary anchor

Answer 13

states that the field should develop from knowledge in all other disciplines as well

Question 14

Contingency anchor

Answer 14

states that OB needs to consider different consequences in different situations

Question 15

Multiple levels of analysis anchor

Answer 15

states that OB topics should be viewed from the individual, team, and organizational levels of analysis