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Modern Corp > Chapter 2 > Flashcards

Chapter 2 Flashcards

1
Q

How are manage. and org. linked?

A

Although all economic activities require managing, nature of modern management is directly linked to issues of org.

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2
Q

What are org. socially constructed for?

A

Socially constructed for exercising control over their diverse resources to achieve goals.

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3
Q

How do org. undergo change? (2 ways)

A
  1. When managers make decisions

2. When org’s change, managers must adapt to new environments

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4
Q

An example of a new management system for orgs.?

A

The “delaying trend”

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5
Q

What is the “delaying trend”?

A

i) Taking out middle management layers thus lower employees get more control
ii) Outsourcing e.g cleaning, catering, recruitment leads to decrease in man. control over important internal functions, thus impacting on how org. is managed

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6
Q

What do new orgs. lead to?

A

New management systems

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7
Q

How are org. different according to its’ society?

A

Org. and managing work differs from country to country it’s socially and culturally defined.

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8
Q

What is managerial capitalism?

A

Term used by Marris 1964 to refer to distinct patterns and structures that arise when powerful corporations owned by millions of shareholders and controlled professionally by layers of management.

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9
Q

2 facts about management in relation to its’ society?

A
  1. Right and wrong ways of managing are not defined by impersonal rules of logic and efficiency, it’s very empirical
  2. What is good management depends upon society and culture
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10
Q

Managements are..?

A

A very important social group

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11
Q

What did Friedman (1990, p.179) say about Management power in orgs.?

A

There are many stakeholders in a business, but usually “primary dynamic influence on the org. of work is normally exerted through initiatives of managers”

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12
Q

Why does inequality exist in orgs.?

A

According to Friedman’s view, it makes managers important people due to corporate authority, means orgs. are a vertical hierarchy of power, thus inequality does exist.

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13
Q

What influences the management power of societal structures?

A

1.Managers are the most powerful group within this org. structure : enjoying the most benefits and prestige. The power just increases over wider societal structures if firm is more economically significant.

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14
Q

In practicality there are no simple divisions between..?

A

social
economical
political

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15
Q

What is the summary of Perrow on managers and power?

A

Senior managers wield enormous amounts of social power in subtle ways:

  1. Tend to be rich, well connected, educated and wise about how to use power and resources to get things done
  2. Clear business and personal agendas
  3. Best social positions to achieve their goals
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16
Q

What are the two types management control according to Huczynski and Bachanan, 1997?

A
  1. Control as establishing order

2. Control as domination

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17
Q

Basic description of org. as an establishing order?

A

Control as a technical term is good to prevent the chaos and anarchy.

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18
Q

When did the “establishing order” start and by who?

A

By early classical thinkers in the 20th century

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19
Q

How did “classical thinkers” view management as?

A

A rational and logical principle that can be applied to bring order from the complexity. Believed that you can use universal principles to maximise control for efficiency rationally.
This view is shared my accountants, micro economists. Views management as a technical situation rather than a social phenomenon.

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20
Q

What is the role of management in establishing order?

A

Understood to be neutral, serving goals of the org. and in turn society. These followers believe designing organisational structures or imposing right work procedures etc. are related to logic & efficiency not of values and power.

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21
Q

What has the view of establishing order become the backbone of?

A

Prescriptive or normative perspectives - a neutral way

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22
Q

What is control as domination?

A

Control can also mean domination/ manipulation and absence of this control may lead to freedom and individuality

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23
Q

Why are orgs., in nature, structures of inequality ?

A

Due to vertical hierarchies of power breeds an unequal environment thus bound to be disagreements/ different views and issues over leadership etc.

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24
Q

What is the main issue of management?

A

Exercise control over employees to achieve collective goals

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25
Q

How do sociologists support the domination view?

A

They write that management are not supposed to be neutral/fair. They have personal wealth and power interests, and are a distinctive social group allied w the rich and powerful.
Thus their neutral behaviour only extends up to maximising efficiency and profits for shareholders/company; due to personal interests. However, exploits labour in order to do so.

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26
Q

2 ways through which managers exercise control?

A

Direct mangement control

Indirect, legitimising strategies

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27
Q

According to Richard Edwards (Contested Terrain, 1979) what is the real issue for managers?

A

Overcoming conflict of ordinary employees.

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28
Q

How can the main problem of management be solved through direct control?

A

Cant’ assume all employees are good due to their personal interests thus involves trying to make sure collective goals are achieved
However, may lead to oppression as it’s hard to gauge of you’re trying to dominate or just get work done

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29
Q

What were Edward’s 3 main stages of control? (History that labour process went through)

A

Direct Personal Control
Technical Control
Bureaucratic Control

30
Q

What is Direct Personal Control?

A

Early days of capitalism before initial labour division when owner-manager was successful to control - due to small n’ employees. Became an issue when firms became corporations

31
Q

Explain Technical Control?

A

Entrance of tech. shaping space, content and time of work. Labour loses skills for hire and bargain power
Tech. is a direct impersonal constrain ton labour and their method of work (e.g Fordism MAL)

32
Q

Explain Bureaucratic Control?

A

Rules, procedures, rewards. Controls discretion and behaviour of employees. Has impersonal constraints this, better and no need for managerial interventions

33
Q

Why do Edward’s phases of control raise arguments?

A
  1. Management is largely related to controlling companies to overcome resistance/opposition to corporate regime as management can’t trust the employee’s goodwill
  2. Assertion of new management control is likely to bring forth new ways of resistance thus demanding new methods of continuos management inventiveness
34
Q

What is organisational control (1st definition)?

A

A distinctive social process arising from management and employee interactions

35
Q

What did Freidman (1977) have to say about the 3 strategies?

A

Called it examples of “direct control”
Because they decrease choices and discretion of employees by imposing constraints and limiting responsibility. Implication is that management can’t rely on employees to work hard thus rules/machines are hemmed w force.

36
Q

What is control through indirect legitimating strategies?

A

Freidman : This is “responsible autonomy” where employees are given more responsibility, treated w trust and loyalty and identification w org. goals.
Usually w skilled workers it is assumed that they would have a +”ve” response, commitment and identify ww org goals.

37
Q

Managing w a common cause is a….?

A

Subtle way of control - paradoxically letting go

38
Q

How did Burawoy (1979) describe Hegemonic Control?

A

Burawoy (1979):

managers exercise control by attempting to shape the ideas, values and knowledge that employees hold.

39
Q

Why did Buchanan&Huczynski (3rd edition p.726) describe Hegemonic control as “insidious”?

A

Because they imply an attempt to control the way people think and what they believe in w/out them knowing.

40
Q

Why is legitimating strategy a weapon of management control?

A

Management by definition - to serve interests of shareholders and not those of wage thus donning control in ways to enhance its’ legitimacy (e.g appealing to norms of econs rationality) is a weapon of management control.

41
Q

What did Salaman (1981, p.167) have to say about being “neutral”?

A

Primacy of control within capitalist..organisations requires, if it is to succeed, that it appear neutral, a requirement of neutrally designed jobs, or the reflection of some natural ordering of individual qualities and achievement.

42
Q

What is organisational control?

A

Organisational control is a dynamic social process - involves managers and employees not one-sided

43
Q

How do all the strategies tie employees closer to org. goals?

A

Bureaucratic, technical and ideological (insidious, Hegemonic, indirect) - all want to increase control by tying employees closer to org. goals:
1. Direct strategies - restricts chance of opposition and deviance
2. Indirect - appeals to staff loyalty and allegiance
Yet they don’t pan out smoothly

44
Q

What did Selznick 1949 say about the failure of control?

A

100% control over humans is impossible as they have their own minds. People are uncooperative tools of action - they resist control n assert freedom.
You can control material things but humans would throw a fit and upset your plans.

45
Q

According to sociological studies why does control fail? Why does direct control fail often?

A

Sociological studies of effects of structural and tech. changes in work and work systems - identifies wide ranges of dissatisfaction w nature of work experience.

46
Q

Why does direct control fail?

A

More likely to produce backlash.

Capitalist work patterns involving impersonal constraints dehumanises work processes - creating a negative reaction

47
Q

What are the psychological implications of deskilling labour for control?

A

Deskilling labour might increase short run economic benefits but may not be worth long term because labour feels like a machine and no dignity.

48
Q

Which 2 studies highlighted the psychological implications of control?

A

Walker and guest’s 1950 studies of the “Man on the Assembly Line” & Blauner’s (1964) work on the “alienating potential” of diff. production systems; both highlight these psychological implications.

49
Q

Has there been attempts to mitigate “-ve” effects of control?

A

Alienation has become more recognised in modern management. e.g Redesigning jobs to empower/re-skill employees while decreasing the pressure of direct control

50
Q

Why an increase in management control might lead to a decrease in control?

A 
Resistance
Stubbornness
Apathy
Indifference
thus leads to paradox of control
51
Q

Why are management and orgs. full of paradoxes?

A

Due to human behaviour unpredictability

52
Q

Orgs and its members are affected by PESTLE?

A 
Orgs - affected by a wider context:
Political
Economic
Social
Technical
Legal
Ecological
53
Q

What are the 4 factors that can explain 2 outcomes?

A

Factors:

  1. Individual
  2. Group
  3. Structural
  4. Management

Outcomes:

  1. Organisational Effectiveness
  2. Quality of working life.
54
Q

Why is it important to explain org. behaviour in relation to time?

A

Org’s aren’t static they have pasts, present and futures. They use their past to make actions in the present for the future
Thus important to explain behaviour in relation to time

55
Q

What is fundamental attribution error?

A

Tendency to explain the behaviour of a person based on their personality while overlooking the influence of wider contexts. - leads to assumptions that can give us false explanations on behaviour

56
Q

What are the 5 other influencers that can cause Fundamental attribution behaviour?

A
  1. PESTLE Context: Local population falling? Social issues?
  2. Individual: Boring job
  3. Group: Secluded by group
  4. Structural: Bureaucratic/Slow info process org. (hierarchy problems)
  5. Management process factors: Initiative factors (can’t handle change in system) Can’t cope?
57
Q

2 factors that are the causation the “other 5 factors”?

A
  1. These issues can all affect organisational effectiveness and experience of working long term
  2. They are all linked and one can lead to another
58
Q

For commercial companies org. effectiveness usually means profit, however?

A
  1. Timescale is important as temporary profit may damage future profitability
  2. Some orgs. forgo short term profits for increase marketshare - for increased corporate survival and growth
59
Q

2 aspects for corporate survival and growth?

A
  1. Shareholders want returns

2. Employees want to increase salary/good working conditions/ job security etc.

60
Q

What is 1 approach to establish org. effectiveness?

A

balanced scorecard

61
Q

What is a balanced scorecard?

A

Approach to defining org. effectiveness using both qual. and quant. methods to measure performance.
E.g shareholder value /internal efficiencies/employee development and environmental concerns

62
Q

10 types of org. intervention and their attempt on control?

A
  1. Staff training and development - staff skills/knowledge
  2. Psychometric Assessment - Characters of people employed
  3. Employee commitment - Worker understanding of org goals
  4. Job redesign - Employee motivation/performance/commitment
  5. Teambuilding - Team collaboration
  6. Structure change/Reorganistaion - Ability of org. to react to external probs.
  7. Org. Change - Speed of change, reduction of conflict/resistance
  8. Org. culture change - Values, attitudes, beliefs,goals shared by management and employees
  9. HR Management - High employee performance
  10. Leadership style - Commitment to an overarching vision
63
Q

What is HRM?

A

Function responsible for establishing integrated personnel policies to support org. strategy

64
Q

What is the basic HRM Model?

A 
If you apply people polices
(HRM policies - independent variables)
THEN
Performance will improve 
(Quality of working life, org. effectiveness - dependent variables)
65
Q

What is the Bath Model of HRM?

A

Basic HRM model needs more detail to work:
The Bath people and performance Midel was developed at the University of Bath, UK (Purell et al. 2003)
Focuses on the processes through which HR policies influences employee behaviour and performance
Argues that for people to perform above min. requirement AMO is required

66
Q

What is AMO?

A

Ability
Motivation
Opportunity
Important as if 1 or more factor is missing performance will be poor. Probably not go the “extra mile”

67
Q

What is discretionary behaviour?

A

Freedom to decide how work is performed. Behaviour can be + or -

68
Q

Whats is -ver behaviour the response of ?

A

Often response of an employees perception that org. doesn’t care about them
(See more in notes)
1 employee goes bad example

69
Q

What are the 4 components of alienation?

A
  1. Powerlessness
  2. Meaninglessness
  3. Isolation
  4. Self-estrangement - loss of personal identity
70
Q

Results of Robert Blauner (1964) on Tech and Alienation?

A 
Study of impact of tech on work:
Printing - Not alienated
Chem. Processing - Not alienated
Textile - Although conditions were alienating Blauner argues that these workers lived in close rural communities w values and way of life overcoming alienation
Car assembly - alienated
71
Q

Example of treating workers well leads to increase in profits?

A

Evidence suggests that HR practices can increase org. stock market value by US 20K to 40K per employee (Pfeffer, 1998)

Modern Corp (5 decks)

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