HCM 433 MANGEMENT AND ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR.pdf

According to Mullins 92000), continued technical change is inevitable and likely to develop at an
even greater rate. Managers must be responsive to such change. Information technology and
automation create a demanding challenge. The systems nature of organisations emphasises the
interrelationships among the major variables or sub-systems of the organisation. The
implementation and management of technological change needs to be related to its effect on the
task, the structure and the people.
Managers need to develop working practices based on an accurate understanding of human
behaviour and the integration of people’s needs with organisational needs. It is important to avoid
destructive conflict, alienating staff including managerial colleagues, or evoking the anger and
opposition of unions. At the same time, it is important to avoid incurring increasing costs or a
lower level of organisational performance caused by delays in the successful implementation of
new technology.
What needs to be considered is the impact of technical change on the design of the work
organisation, and the attitudes and behaviour of staff. It will be necessary for managers and
supervisors to develop more agile skills in organisation. This calls for the effective management of
human resources and a style of managerial behaviour which helps to minimise the problems of
technical change. The management of conflict and organisational change is discussed in detail in
other units.
3.8 PROBLEMS OF WORK ORGANISATION
As observed by Mullins (2000), the important point is not so much whether competing sub-groups
and conflict are seen as inevitable consequences of organisation structure, but how conflict, when
found to exist within the structure, is handled and managed. There are many potential sources of
conflict arising from structure, which include the following:
1. Differences in perception.
Individuals see things in different ways. They all have our own, unique picture or image of how
we see the ‘real’ world. Differences in perception result in different people attaching different
meanings to the same stimuli. As perceptions become a person’s reality, value judgements can be
a potential major source of conflict.
2. Limited resources.
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