Challenges and Opportunities for OB

1. 1.5 Identify managers’ challenges and opportunities in applying OB concepts.

Understanding organizational behavior has never been more important for managers. Take a quick look at the dramatic changes in organizations. The typical employee is getting older; the workforce is becoming increasingly diverse; and global competition requires employees to become more flexible and cope with rapid change.

As a result of these changes and others, employment options have adapted to include new opportunities for workers. Exhibit 1-2 details some of the types of options individuals may find offered to them by organizations or for which they would like to negotiate. Under each heading in the exhibit, you will find a grouping of options from which to choose—or combine. For instance, at one point in your career you may find yourself employed full time in an office in a localized, nonunion setting with a salary and bonus compensation package, while at another point you may wish to negotiate for a flextime, virtual position and choose to work from overseas for a combination of salary and extra paid time off.

Exhibit 1-2

Employment Options

Sources: J.R. Anderson Jr., et al., “Action Items: 42 Trends Affecting Benefits, Compensation, Training, Staffing and Technology,” HR Magazine (January 2013) p. 33; M. Dewhurst, B. Hancock, and D. Ellsworth, “Redesigning Knowledge Work,” Harvard Business Review (January-February 2013), 58–64; E. Frauenheim, “Creating a New Contingent Culture,“ Workforce Management (August 2012), 34–39; N. Koeppen, “State Job Aid Takes Pressure off Germany,” The Wall Street Journal (february 1, 2013), p. A8; and M. A. Shaffer, M. L. Kraimer, Y,-P. Chen, and M.C. Bolino, “Choices, Challenges, and Career Consequences of Global Work Experiences: A Review and Future Agenda,” Journal of Management (July 2012), 1282–1327.

The figure titled “Employment Options” gives details of various options made available to employees by Organizations. It groups these options under five headings, shown in five rectangles.

On the extreme left, the rectangle is titled as “Categories of Employment.” It lists the following options:

Employed, Underemployed/underutilized, Re-employed, Unemployed/jobless, Entrepreneur, Retired, Job seeking, Furloughed, Laid off.

The rectangle on its right, titled as “Types of Employment” lists the following options:

Full-time, Part-time, Flextime, Job share, Contingent, Independent contractor, Temporary, Reduced hours, Intern.

The rectangle in the middle, titled as “Places of Employment” lists the following options:

Anchored (office/cubicle), Floating (shared space), Virtual, Flexible, Work from home.

The rectangle to its right, titled as “Conditions of Employment” lists these options:

Local, Expatriate, Short-term assignee, Flexpatriate, International business traveler, Visa employee, Union/nonunion employee.

The last rectangle on the extreme right, titled as “Compensation for Employment” lists these options:

Salary, Hourly, Overtime, Bonus, Contract, Time off, Benefits.

In short, today’s challenges bring opportunities for managers to use OB concepts. In this section, we review some—but not nearly all—of the critical developing issues confronting managers for which OB offers solutions or, at least, meaningful insights toward solutions.

Continuing Globalization

 Organizations are no longer constrained by national borders. Samsung, the largest South Korean business conglomerate, sells most of its products to organizations in other countries; Burger King is owned by a Brazilian firm; and McDonald’s sells hamburgers in 118 countries on 6 continents. Even Apple—arguably the U.S. company with the strongest U.S. identity—employs twice as many workers outside the United States as it does inside the country. And all major automobile makers now manufacture cars outside their borders; Honda builds cars in Ohio, Ford in Brazil, Volkswagen in Mexico, and both Mercedes and BMW in the United States and South Africa. The world has become a global village. In the process, the manager’s job has changed. Effective managers anticipate and adapt their approaches to the global issues we discuss next.

WORKING WITH PEOPLE FROM DIFFERENT CULTURES In your own country or on foreign assignment, you’ll find yourself working with bosses, peers, and other employees born and raised in different cultures. What motivates you may not motivate them. Or your communication style may be straightforward and open, which others may find uncomfortable and threatening. To work effectively with people from different cultures, you need to understand how their culture and background have shaped them and how to adapt your management style to fit any differences.

 ADAPTING TO DIFFERING CULTURAL AND REGULATORY NORMS To be effective, managers need to know the cultural norms of the workforce in each country where they do business. For instance, in some countries a large percentage of the workforce enjoys long holidays. There are national and local regulations to consider, too. Managers of subsidiaries abroad need to be aware of the unique financial and legal regulations applying to “guest companies” or else risk violating them. Violations can have implications for their operations in that country and also for political relations between countries. Managers also need to be cognizant of differences in regulations for competitors in that country; many times, understanding the laws can lead to success or failure. For example, knowing local banking laws allowed one multinational firm—the Bank of China—to seize control of a storied (and very valuable) London building, Grosvenor House, from under the nose of the owner, the Indian hotel group Sahara. Management at Sahara contended that the loan default that led to the seizure was a misunderstanding regarding one of their other properties in New York.26 Globalization can get complicated.