Shannon Jordan

Professor Wagner

MGMT 3500-02

May 2nd, 2019

Exam 2

Sources of stress at work

The significant sources of stress in the workplace include role demands, information overload, and work-family conflict. Under role demands, stress can increase or reduce significantly based on the role that an employee plays in their place of work. One example of role demand causing stress is role ambiguity which often happens with new employees. When a person is hired, but they have no clear definition of their role, they end up stressed. This is the worst stressor, “research shows that role ambiguity is the strongest predictor of poor performance” (Organizational Behavior 81). Information overload occurs when a person receives too much information; both professional and personal, and the employee has no time to process it all. The third stress of stress at work is a work-family conflict which happens when work and family life interfere with each other.

Some of the tactics that managers can use to control these stressors include making their expectations of employees very clear. “Workers who have clear descriptions of their jobs experience less stress than those whose jobs are ill-defined.” (Organizational Behavior 87) the other tactic is to give employees autonomy so that they feel more in control of their environment.

Bruce W. Tuckman’s Five-stage model

The five stages of development in a group according to Tuckman are forming, storming, norming, performing and adjourning. In my place of work, I have been a part of a group tasked with researching customer satisfaction. First, we had to come up with an effective method to do this such as filling questionnaires, approaching customers directly or sending them emails. We would then come up with recommendations on how to improve customer satisfaction. In the forming stage, the team leader who was our manager assembled a team from our department, so we were already familiar with each other. In the storming stage, we voted for members who would take up different positions in the team. We also began to brainstorm on several approaches to our task and realized that there were many different views. The third stage is the norming stage where positions were already established. The book explains that “Since the group’s energy is running high, this is an ideal time to host a social or team-building event.” (Organizational behavior 92) This worked for us. In the performing stage, we supported each other towards getting our task done. After completion of the task came the adjourning stage.

3. Mistakes during negotiations

The first mistake common during negotiations is failing to negotiate. An example of this is in salary negotiations where women tend to negotiate less compared to men. Women are also quick to take up the first offer which results in them earning lower than men for the same job. To avoid this, people can get training to improve their negotiation skills. The second mistake is allowing your ego to disrupt the negotiation. The best outcome is one that benefits both parties so a person should also think of the other party. The solution to this mistake is to learn how to listen more and think of others when negotiating. The third common mistake is setting unrealistic expectations. To solve this predicament, the best approach is “Setting reasonable goals at the outset that address each party’s concerns will decrease the tension in the room and will improve the chances of reaching an agreement.” (Organizational behavior 108) Another common mistake made during negotiations is allowing past failures to influence current negotiations. If a person had a failed consultation in the past, then they are likely to walk into a new negotiation with a negative mindset.

Situational Leadership and Transformational Leadership

Situational leadership dictates that leadership style should change to adapt to the level of employees’ maturity. The two styles that a leader can apply based on this type of leadership is directive and supportive behavior. Supportive behavior is applied mainly when employees are highly committed but have low levels of competence (Organizational Behavior 118). Supportive behavior is applied as the employee gains more competence. Transformational leadership, on the other hand, focuses on aligning employee and leaders’ goals. Both focus on doing the best for the company rather than their individual goals. To enhance the commitment of the employees to the company, a transformational leader applies four tactics; charisma inspirational motivation, individualized consideration and intellectual stimulation (Organizational Behavior 125). The main similarity between the two forms of leadership is that they both focus on styles of leadership applied by managers in their places of work which are designed to produce specific results. The difference is that transformational leaders tailor their approach more towards the employee by inspiring them at the individual level. The transformational leader employs the four tactics that make the employees admire their leader and enhance their commitment to achieving company goals.

Common influence tactics

Rational persuasion is the most common and effective tactic used to influence others. This form of persuasion involves using data and facts to convince people. The information presented should be factual, accurate and timely. The second influence tactic is inspirational appeals that tap into people’s emotions and values to convince them to do something (Organizational Behavior 129). Such appeals are usually enthusiastic, authentic and very persona. The third tactic is a consultation which is most effective in democratic institutions. Here, a person asks other people for help in trying to influence a particular group of people. The ingratiation tactic entails the use of flattery that makes the target person feel good about themselves. For the tactic to be effective, it should be honest, uncommon and genuine. Another influence tactic is personal appeal which is useful in people that you like and are familiar with you. Coalition tactics are used by a group of people working together to influence others (Organizational Behavior 133). It is a form of peer pressure. Pressure is an influence tactic that involves demanding that someone do something that you want or else some negative consequences will follow. It is most useful when employed in a crisis situation.

Developing organizational cultures

The cultures of an organization are shaped and developed by the challenges that it faces both internally and externally. One of the ways of developing organizational culture is the founders’ values. In the early years, the founders of the organization impart their values which are then kept as the organization grows. The second method of developing organizational values is industry demands (Organizational Behavior 142). The industry in which the organization works influences its culture; for example, the tech industry requires an innovative culture.

Maintaining organizational culture is also an important component. One of the ways of preserving culture is the attraction-selection-attrition process. This involves employees being attracted to organizations and the employers selecting employees with desirable characteristics and rejecting those who do not fit through attrition. The second way of maintaining organizational culture is onboarding where new employees are trained on the cultures, attitudes, values, and norms of their new place of work to help them gain understanding and confidence. The type of leadership practiced in an organization also influences the culture (Organizational Behavior 147). Depending on how a leader works with their employees, the organization’s culture can be people oriented or performance oriented. The reaction of leaders to their employees also shapes the organization culture; for example, a leader can praise people for jobs well done to boost confidence and morale.

Works Cited

BIBLIOGRAPHY Organizational Behavior. Washington: Saylor Academy, 2012.