assignment 2151

ASSIGNMENT 3: POWER, POLITICS, AND CULTURE

In Assignment 2, you created a professional development plan using EI building blocks and motivation. In this last assignment, you will examine how politics and power influence an organization and its culture.

In business, power and politics greatly influence an organizational culture and may hinder organizational productivity. In your role as consultant you observed power and politics influence on the corporate culture.

INSTRUCTIONS

Following SWS standards, write a 5 to 7 page report that addresses the following: 1. Influence of Politics and Power

○ Explain how politics and power-play may have influenced the organization’s culture.

2. Sources of Power

â—‹ Explore the sources of power and describe how management could use this influence to

benefit the department and improve organizational performance.

3. Leadership Behavior and Culture

â—‹ Make recommendations that support how the study of power and politics could influence

leadership behavior and improve the organization’s culture.

4. Leadership Influence

â—‹ Discuss the importance and complexity of leadership behavior in solving the issue you

identified. How does it influence organizational structure and performance?

5. References and Citations

â—‹ Go to https://research.strayer.edu to locate at least two resources.

â—‹ In-text citations are required when paraphrasing or quoting another source.

6. Formatting and Writing Standards

â—‹ Formatting and writing standards are part of your grade. Align your formatting to the

Strayer Writing Standards.

*Grading for this assignment will be based on the following criteria and evaluation standards:

Below is assignment 2 that will enable you to do assignment 3

Introduction

Today’s world is quite competitive when it comes to the required workforce and also the skillset. The agility present in the global space demands that organizational leaders strive to improve their employees continuously. This ensures that they are prepared for competing on a worldwide scale, putting their organization at a competitive advantage. That is the reason why most organizations of today are coming up with professional development programs. These are the programs that ensure employees continuously look for ways to improve and develop their skills either at a personal level or under the facilitation of their companies. This paper aims to come up with a professional development program that will focus on emotional intelligence in the organization.

EI and Motivation

Emotional intelligence ensures that people can use their emotions appropriately. A person with emotional intelligence can control their feelings and ensure that they guide their thinking and behavior. Summarily emotional intelligence for leadership is a different way of being a smart leader. It has four building blocks, namely self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management (Goleman et al., 2017). All of these building blocks are significant to interpersonal relationships and management of organizations. However, it is essential to note that self-awareness and self-management are critical for leading ‘the self.’ At the same time, social awareness and relationship management put into account the leadership of the self and also of other people.

In light of this, relationship management would be the emotional intelligence building block that is most suitable for enhancing job satisfaction and employee performance.Relationship management entails working well with others through an understanding of their emotions and also personal feelings. It brings into the culmination of self-awareness, self-management, and social awareness. A person exercising the relationship management building block will be good at conflict management, inspirational leadership, and have high levels of organizational knowledge (Goleman et al., 2017).

Through an understanding of the emotions of all people in the organization, the manager can be in a position to deal with any arising conflicts. A manager will understand that not all people can have the same feelings at the same time. They also understand the challenges of the job and how they lead to the fluctuation of emotions in the workplace. A manager with excellent relationship management skills also has good communication skills. Thus, they can converse and address issues in the workplace through inclusive leadership. When a manager involves all people, especially in conflict situations, they feel valued in the organization. This will motivate them to work harder to take the organization to greater heights. It will also lead to advanced levels of job satisfaction.

After the research, the conclusion for the best motivation theory for this case was Hertzberg’s two-factor theory. The theory suggests that two imperative factors contribute to the motivation of an employee. They include motivators, which are present in the workplace will encourage the employee to work harder. Then there are the hygiene factors that do not help employees to work harder, but their absence leads to the demotivation of the workforce. In the case of Uber, there are several recognizable hygiene factors, such as company policies, relationships, and work terms and conditions. The motivator factors are recognition, advancement, and growth. The research team settled on the use of positive reinforcement for the application of the two-factor theory.

There will be a focus on the work terms and conditions, which are part of the hygiene factors. For instance, the engagement of drivers permanently rather than the usual independent contracting. There can also be the provision of bonuses to motivate the employees further. On the motivator factors, there could be the introduction of awards for the most outstanding drivers to ensure that all strive to provide the best level of service. Inclusiveness in the company decision making could also increase the level of job satisfaction and further motivate the drivers as they feel valued by the company.

EI and Social Skills and Decision Making

The core concepts of emotional intelligence should always come to play when making decisions and promoting social interactions within an organization. Self-awareness helps managers to understand their changing emotional responses. They know a particular emotion and why they are feeling that way at a specific time. Here, the aspect of self-management also comes in where the manager, after understanding emotions, knows how to control them. Thus, they see whether it is the right time for making decisions or not. They also appreciate whether their feelings will have an effect on how they relate to other people at that particular time and therefore have control over their negative impacts. In the end, the manager can make relational and organizational decisions with a clear mind that propels the organization forward.

Social awareness and relationship management enable a manager to understand the feelings of the other people in the team. Therefore the manager can read the non-verbal cues, the emotions and consequently understand their needs. This understanding allows the manager to handle any conflicts arising and also to become an influential leader as they know the strengths and weaknesses of the team (Gunu & Oladepo, 2014). It is crucial to ensuring that they create a conducive workplace for employees to perform the best. When employees get a manager who understands them, they feel appreciated motivating them to work harder. It also leaves them at a more satisfying level in terms of the job.

Effective Teams

Teamwork is an essential part of a successful organization. One of the core attributes of a capable team is communication. This is the channel through which management can express the goals and objectives that they have for the organization. The employees, in turn, can communicate the challenges and any ideas that they may have for the growth of the organization. The management also tracks performance through communication, which ensures that the organization remains on the right track(Alghamdi & Bach, 2018). Through these exchanges, the organization can grow exponentially and overcome any hurdles that may come their way. Communication is also the means through which organizations experience continuous development and organization as people exchange ideas and weigh out which would work and which ones would not.

Another core attribute of a capable team is diversity and the ability to appreciate the same. Organizations need to have people who are from different opinions, different temperaments, and also those with diverse ideas (Alghamdi & Bach, 2018). Through this, it is possible to get various ideas. It also helps to create higher tolerance for divergent opinions, which builds stronger teams. Diversity also ensures that there are a variety of strengths and weaknesses, meaning that team members can complement each other well to achieve organizational objectives. The backbone of any capable team is good leadership. A good leader will act as the glue of the organization. They will inspire change through the provision of encouragement and ensure that each team member gives their best for the progress of the team.

A good leader will also help in conflict management as organizations are bound to have disagreements at one time or another. The leader also has the responsibility of ensuring that members meet deadlines. Therefore they allocate tasks equally and demonstrate the proper ways to achieve objectives by setting the pace.

On team dynamics, there are some strategies that organizations could employ at the top of the list is the manager knowing their team. A manager should understand the weaknesses and strengths of the group. They should also understand the different phases that organizations go through and relate these to their teams to identify any positive or adverse effects that may come with it (Alghamdi & Bach, 2018). The understanding of these ensures that the manager can plan for any hiccups that may emerge or slightly forecast the future and plan accordingly. Another strategy is for the manager to define roles and responsibilities. The lack of these in teams can lead to the loss of direction, which is detrimental to the team members. They may feel disoriented and, therefore, back off from the group.

Reward Systems

The reward systems for organizations could be both intrinsic and extrinsic. The reward system for Uber here will include both of these classifications of rewards. The company will embrace rewarding employees based on their performance that month. The concert will be extracted from the customer reviews that are available on the completion of each ride. Extrinsic rewards will include monetary and fringe benefits. The intrinsic rewards will consist of words of praise and appreciation from the top management (Eerde, 2015). It could also include recognition, such as having the world Uber driver of the year award.

The company will employ a couple of strategies for employee motivation. One of the approaches to motivate employees will be the provision of meaningful feedback. When an employee receives positive feedback, they tend to feel that the company values them, leading to motivation. Negative feedback delivered in the right way is also meaningful as the employee understands that the company wants to promote its growth and development. The other motivation strategy will be to provide opportunities for growth for the employees(Selakovic et al., 2017). This could be through on the job or even off the job training. The employee continues to grow and feels motivated to apply what they have learned to the company. It is also essential to recognize and reward good work to motivate staff.

References

Alghamdi, A., & Bach, C. (2018). Developing Teamwork at Workplace. International Journal of Business and Management Invention (IJBMI)

Eerde, W. (2015). Motivation and Reward Systems. Wiley Encyclopedia of Management

Goleman, D., Boyatzis, R., Davidson, R., Druskat, V., & Kohlrieser, G. (2017). Empathy: A Primer (Building Blocks of Emotional Intelligence Book 6). Florence: More than Sound LLC

Gunu, U., & Oladepo, R. (2014). Impact of Emotional Intelligence on Employees’ Performance and Organizational Commitment: A Case Study of Dangote Flour Mills Workers. University Of Mauritius Research Journal

Selakovic, M., Runic, M., & Qureshi, T. (2017). Employee motivation strategies and the creation of a supportive work environment in societies of post-socialist transformation. Polish Journal of Management Studies. 15. 205