Contents

• Introduction 2
• Critical Analysis of Theory and Practice of Organizational Behavior (OB) and Human Resource Management (HRM) 3
• Organizational Behavior 3
• Influence of Individual Behavior and Organizational Culture on Organizational Behavior 4
• Strategic Human Resource Management 6
• Analysis and Discussion 7
• Conclusion and Recommendations 10
• References 12

Description

This report is based on the following case study -
Case study: DNT industries inc.
Note: Given that not all the relevant facts can be included in this short document. Therefore, you can assume you may add in your own detail to where necessary for your writing – so long as this does not contradict the brief given.
New job, new challenges!
Chris is excited but also concerned about the task that lies in front of her. She has just achieved an ambition, having been appointed to the post of Director of People and Organisational Development (DPOD for short) at the company she has worked at for the past ten years. Today is her first day in the new post.
What the boss wants
Chris’s new boss Jean, the Managing Director has asked her to draft an Organisational Development plan to help the company achieve a new strategic plan. The company is looking to expand abroad over the next two years and will need to make huge savings to generate enough money to fund these new offices and staff.
Early messages for the team
Last week she focused on moving her files and books into the Director's large, corner office with spectacular views across the city. In the next month or so she will address the thirty or so people in the team of HR officers, trainers and administrators that she is now tasked with leading for the first time. Many of these people have been colleagues of hers for years. She knows them well, but realises that these relationships will now have to change. She worries that they will find it difficult to accept her in her new role. She needs to think in detail about what she is going to say to them at the meeting.
This will be her big chance to make a good impression and set the tone for what she hopes will be a long-term job as DPOD. She decides to reflect on the experience she had working for her predecessor as DPOD Director, Ahmed and his predecessor, Ella. Her aim is to continue what they achieved and also do the job better than either of them.
How things have been done by HR
Chris has pleasant memories working for Ella; she remembers being appointed by her after leaving university and then two promotions after that. She remembers how supportive Ella had been when Chris’s first child was ill and how helpful she was in easing her return to work after a difficult time. Ella wasn’t just a supportive manager, she also took time to push Chris into taking on new responsibilities and challenges. Consequently, they had become and now remain friends – even after Ella retired.
As DPOD Director, Ella had always been able to deal with conflicts and challenges without getting personally involved. It helped that she had both a strong personality and sense of humour. True, she didn’t have all the HR qualifications but after a lifetime's experience in lots of roles she has the confidence to respond to any new crisis. Her approach was straightforward and practical - no theories, nothing fashionable, just workable solutions. As she used to say ‘The Board may love their strategy but HR is all about operations’.
Ella knows her personality offers something special to the organisation – she has lots of innovative ideas and has always been able to challenge her teams to think about new ways of doing things. She has a clear intelligence that allows her to assess people and situations quickly – it’s rare for her to find she was wrong about a person or situation afterwards. Unfortunately, this did sometimes make her unpopular with colleagues; she made enemies and was quite happy fighting them. People either seemed to like her or hate her, including members of her own team. Chris, unlike some of her colleagues, had always got on well with Ella and so was happy to work hard for her.
Ahmed had taken over after Ella's retirement. At first Chris remembers finding the adjustment very difficult to deal with because things changed so quickly. Ahmed was a quieter, more introverted person. He was less easy to talk to and it was hard to work out what was going on in his head. He preferred to be separate from those who worked for him and rarely asking them about home or social activities.
Chris felt that she lost influence when Ahmed assumed the Director of People and Organisational Development’s role. There were fewer team meetings held and not many personal chats with individual team members. Communication was by e-mail so there wasn’t much discussion before decisions were made. Chris never learned to like Ahmed as she had Ella, but over time he had earned her respect. She admired the way that he gathered as much evidence as he could before making decisions and issuing new policies. She could see he was very conscientious and was a real HR expert; she was really impressed by his ability to get on well with other senior managers.
Ahmed had an understanding of detail and always worked long hours. Everyone always knew what he expected of them because he set them very clear objectives and targets which he expected them to meet. If they failed to do this, they would be in no doubt that he was unhappy with their performance. He could sometimes be very sharp and critical and could be difficult to please, but he took tremendous pleasure in departmental achievements and made sure he thanked people for a job well done.
The dilemma
Reflecting back now Chris has mixed feelings about what her two predecessors achieved during their time in the DPOD’s chair. In her view neither had been able to motivate the whole team as effectively as they might have done. Under Ella's leadership some people, including Chris herself, had been highly engaged, while others had been actively disengaged. Poor performance had not been tackled effectively. By contrast, under Ahmed's more downbeat leadership, a firmer grip on standards had been achieved – for instance, they had really improved the speed of recruitment and decreased the number of grievances against managers. However, the HR team had never demonstrated much by way of pride in or, commitment to their work. She wonders now if they have been too focused on operations rather than strategy?
In summary, Chris feels the HR department has not performed well enough for too long. As a consequence, she thinks the department has never enjoyed enough influence at senior levels in the organisation. She sees her job to be reversing this situation and make senior people listen to HR but needs a plan of action to do this.