Analytical Argumentative Essay on Organisational Behaviour and Leadership in Amazon
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This essay explores the concepts of organisational behaviour, leadership, and diversity in Amazon. It discusses the leadership style of Jeff Bezos, the culture of innovation and risk-taking, and the importance of teamwork in the company. The essay also examines the impact of diversity on Amazon's success.
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ANALYTICAL ARGUMENTATIVE ESSAY
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Organisational behaviour may be considered to be one of the most crucial aspects of the business studies as the process of managing organisational behaviour and culture involves consideration of different factors that are not only internal but also external to the business. The instant essay deals with different facets of the subject of organisational behaviour in details in the subsequent sections of the paper. It has been identified thatteamwork is usually followed across several unlike sectors to enhance employee unity, performance and organizational culture. In the consideration ofNitaet al.(2016), it can be stated that organizations which frequently need to generate fresh ideas or product lines by applying a project-related approach accumulate teams with the purpose of diffusing accountability and to enhance the pace of diversified ideas for every project.McCaffery (2018) also defined that team member employ teamwork to rebound relative sides of one another prior to choosing an expansion pathway for the projects.Teamwork is significant as a result of the problem-solving synergy attained from numerous thoughts functioning on a single solution. The present project focuses on the context of leadership, organisational power and diversity. Moreover, it also specifically centres on the subject of team performance in Amazon.com Inc. It can be stated thatJeff Bezos the founder of Amazon.com Inc. had led to the establishment and expansion of the biggest dealing achievement stories in the e-commerce trends.Bezos also hadprecious support from the organization’smanagement team in terms of guiding the progress of its $825 billion market capital brand (Varty, 2019). It has been recognized that Bezos and its other key executives within the organization have productively supervised recurrent development and growth of the organizations’ business lines, emergent it commencing an e-commerce bookseller to one of the leading digital purveyors. As per the claims of employees, working for Jeff Bezos is not always an easy task. The management of the brand follows a situational Page2of13
leadership style, where the functions and operational criteria are altered as per the market requirements. However, management preferentially encourages employee participation in the decision-making process, where creative thinking abilities are appreciated. In the opinion of Renz (2016), the resources in the chosen company have always been encouraged to come up with creative ideas and discuss with the management in order to arrive at a definite solution. Hence, innovation has always been the focal point the company, where employees are also allowed to use their individual ideas and thoughts in their works to maintain task authenticity. On the other hand,McCaffery (2018)specified that the management sometimes also followed autocraticleadershipstyles, where employeesweredirectedunder strictsupervision. For example, it has been identified that in the year 1999, Amazon had a resource-based of 500 for the task of answering emails. Each of the employees was expected to reply to 12 emails per minute and they were possible given threats of being fired in case the figure dropped below 7 (Blazek, 2019). This has been a clear indication of the employee exploitation that was followed in the organization. On contrary to the previous statement,Nitaet al.(2016) claimed that every origination set a standard goal for its employee to maintain its final productivity, similarly, the management of the chosen company has set a target based on the minute for its employees. Hence, the context of employee exploitation is not applicable in this case. Furthermore, it has been assessed thatby keeping high expectations from his resources, Bezos had developed an extremely competent machine that is presently well-known for being competent of making similar day product deliveries more than a dozen in the US cities (Thorpe, 2016). Hence, it can be stated that devoid of his affinity for incessantly raising the benchmark for his resources, this achievement of the company would have never been attained. Moreover, the evolvement of the organisation and its continuous growth are also helping its employees to receive several financial Page3of13
benefits other than the basic compensation. As a result, the work performance and the team effort of each employee are estimated to enhance with the passage of time. Thus, according to Hallinger and Wang (2015), in the rapidly changing market dynamics,leadership in almost every company needs gallant thinking and readiness of disrupting the status quo, even while operations seem to have been working smoothly. It is a considerable fact that not each innovation process works out effortlessly, but breakdown to innovate develops process stagnation, and this leads to limit market share on an immediate basis and, eventually, incurs loss and failure. Therefore, to suit the ever changing market dynamics it is vital for the leaders to support prophet thought and apply them in the final tasks (Blazek, 2019). The employees ‘enthusiasms for creative aspects and innovation inspire others to sustain the ideas and assist in implementing them in the final work to retain uniqueness and process authenticity. In the opinion ofMcCaffery (2018), risk- taking attitude merely come naturally to any leader. In case a leader or organizational model demands for further steady and risk-averse circumstances, they would require making an attempt to modify the give up attitude. The realism of employment in the very 21stcentury need every resource to be the right innovators and risk-takers. The principal cause that is driving teamwork reluctant of taking required risks is the panic of being let down due to the mistakes made out of risks taking attitude. The management of this chosen organization believes in learning from past mistakes and not repeating those ever at work (Blazek, 2019). Thus, it can be claimed that the leadership principles at Amazon revolve through the contexts like employees encouragement, innovation, applying creative solutions to projects and risk-taking methods to sustain the market uncertainties and retaining the profitable nature of the business. In the earlier periods of Amazon, Jeff Bezos introduced a statute, where each internal team shall be formed small enough so that it can be regularly fed with at least two pizzas (Hern, 2019). The Page4of13
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objective behind this approach was not of cutting down on the company’s catering bill. It has been like approximately the whole thing Amazon performs, emphasized on two notions: competence and scalability. The earlier one is apparent; however, the later one is dependent to an extent. The management used to believe in the fact that a minor team incurs less time organizing timetables and keeping the resources up to date and also help them in using right time and effort to get their work done with efficiency. Considering the statement ofRodriguez and Stewart (2017), it can be claimed that the fad of having lots of smaller numbers of teams within workplace requires them with the need of working with a collective effort, and enable to way in the general resources of the corporation, with the purpose of attaining their given long term goals and short term goals. This is what turns the current organization into, in the words ofBenedict Evans, the venture capital organization, “a machine that makes the machine” (Evans and Evans, 2019).It can be identified that the management of the company definitely carry a risk-taking attitude and also drive the similar approach amongst its resources, where they get the positive vibes and confidence of applying their own creative solutions at work to gain an indifferent outcome. According toElsmore (2017), the culture and power of Amazon rely on the concept of creating unique models to launch new product lines in the market. The internal culture of the selected organization basically supports adding new relative products in their product lines or by way of adding up any new internal structure or including the direct reports in the process of e-commerce functions. The management has been efficient in terms of applying right and accurate technology that maintainthe records of every operationsand transactionwithin the systemwithout hampering the time schedule of resources. As a result, employees can explicitly focus on the operational activities and make additional efforts in terms of using their creative aspects at work Page5of13
to retain the concept of uniqueness that is major encouraged by the management of Amazon (Taştanand Davoudi, 2017). For example, the management claims that one does not require conducting a bunch of meetings to get their resources implementing support for launch in their new product lines in a potential market. Employees can be made updated with the support of definite technology, where they just require following the daily up to date status in terms of the business process (Elsmore, 2017). Employees through the application of advanced technology at work receive adequate support to use their quality time in generating innovative ideas and coming up with useful through that may turn up to be beneficial for the business model as well. Hence, the team members at Amazon receive adequate support to not using their valuable time in unnecessary works and applying them on finding creative solutions using which they can design and improvise their own assignments to get the desired outcome. The organization claims this approachto be the “flywheel” since it considers the level that can suffocate a distinctive multinational and utilizes it to offer growing impetus assisting up its whole business. In a similar context,Rodriguez and Stewart (2017) placed the opinion that the quicker the flywheel rotates and the heavier it is, the harder it would get for an external force to discontinue it. Perhaps the most fitting instance of this current approach would be the action of the birth and also the enlargement of the AWS (which was previously termed as Amazon Web Services). That has been the dissection of the present organization that offers the cloud computing services, both outside and within the business and for further businesses –counting the ones that are rivals to Amazon in rest of the genres (for example both Tesco and Netflix utilize the podium, in spite of Amazon selling its most famous and appreciated grocery items and streaming videos) (Hern, 2019). Moreover, Amazon follows a very systematic culture and function as well within its work culture.The direction of instruction of the management begins Page6of13
where team members are required working with each other merely following a structured and also a systematic method. For example,McCaffery (2018) highlighted that in case an advertising team required few relative data on the category of shoe sales to fix on the method to best to expend their resources, they faced difficulties in sending accurate email analytics and ask for it. The team members were required to reach the analytics dashboard themselves and get the work done. In case that dashboard failed to exist, the resources were also required to develop one for the purpose of meeting the standard process of the word line. And this approach required coveringeverything. As per the consideration ofRodriguez and Stewart (2017), this has been an unnecessary and most ineffective utilisation of resources, where the resources are burdened with redundant methods of working. Disturbances in the work process is a part of daily life activity, therefore, the management of every organization needs to imply effective solution that can be used a back up to the hindrances. However, Amazon’s culture partially follows an exploitation approach where employees were engaged in unproductive methods to get their work done for the purpose of maintaining a systematic approach. This can lead to sever team demotivation and dissatisfaction, where employees might get exhausted with the repetitive slow and unproductive attempts at work, which ultimately incurs huge time and energy as well. As a result, the chances of deriving process efficiency might reduce with this attempt. Therefore, it is worth to note that the sense of employees and management’s power is directly related with the organisational culture and the management should make a consistent effort to use such power politics for the purpose of betterment of workplace and not for exploiting the human resources. It can be stated that Amazon has always been committed to the concept of diversity and enclosure. The management of the band ensures of seeking its resources from every possible cultural background to unite with its existing teams, and the culture of the organization also Page7of13
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supports its employees to carry their genuine, innovative, and finest selves to employment. In the statement ofSunet al.(2017), it is always Day, when it comes to Amazon. This indicates the fact that the company hardly discontinues construction or seeking methods to innovate its internal functions to meet the ever-changing demands and requirements of its potential and dailycustomers. The similar concept is applicable when it comes to the perception of diversity. Using its steady leadership principlesand guidelines the management prefer to help direct its employees to retain the customs of innovating diversity, insertion and maintaining equality like we the brand does in every genre of its business: with the application of its internal ad useful data and construction of disruptive solutions (Cropley and Cropley, 2017). Amazon seeks varied builders from every possible area of being to join its teams and encourage every team member to maintain their positive approach towards each other and helping one another to understand the nature and concept of work followed within Amazon hence, the culture of equality is followed within the organization alongside the notion of team diversification. On the other hand, further data collected from credible sources underscores the fact that employees within the organization are strongly outraged by its management’s opposition towards the preparation of adding more diversity to its board (Ray, 2019). It has been recognized that in the year 2018, Amazon had been considered as a replica for production superiority in several ways. However, when the focus is paid to its track evidence for assortmentand diversity of genderandraceinitsgreatestranks,thebrandhasbeenanidlerandfewof itsindividualresourceshad to come across severe struggles to fit the scenario of diversity. Tensions surfaced few spans earlier where the management received an employee email thread, following the brand’sresistance to its shareholder suggestion that would necessitateAmazon’s Page8of13
board to officiallydeemminority candidates and women whilechoosingfresh board members (Ray, 2019). Further information gathered from a similar source highlights the fact that the suggestion made by the CtW Investment Group, instructs the management of Amazon to put into practice a ‘Rooney Rule’ that promotes cultural diversity within the organization. The rule primarily emphasizes the selection and election of persons in colour within the Board (Ray, 2019). The Rooney Rule was first applied in the National Football League groups to interview at least a single marginal applicant for the position of general manager and head coaching openings. Presently, the ten Amazon’s entire director’s boards are the white members. 7 are men and 3 are women. In the similar concept,Huntet al.(2015) denoted that theshareholders associated with thespecificorganizationcarryasteadybelievethatmanagerialapprovalofcultural diversification would definitely benefit Amazon by offering superior access to more talent, elevating active talent more successfully and recuperating its decision-making process by dipping groupthink and alike emotional biases(Cropley and Cropley, 2017). In this context, it may be noted that the diversity is a crucial concept in the study of organisational behaviour and includes several approaches as to the gender discrimination, employees’ composition, Boards' structure,traininganddevelopmentprogramandorganisationalculture.Eachofthese dimensions is critical for the successful running of the business and hence, the management may need to formulate efficient strategy in order to take care each of these facets of the organisational diversity so that the culture of inclusion is maintained and sustained within the workplace. Based on the discussion and analysis performed in the preceding sections of the essay, the researcher of this argumentative essay with the reference to Amazon’s human resource activities has arrived at a concluding statement that the concept of leadership and organisational diversity Page9of13
is very success-critical aspects of the business. Such findings underscore both its shortcomings and possible scopes for the upcoming periods. The management of Amazon has managed to apply the accurate leadership styles, cultural aspects and diversity approach within its system, which led the brand to maintain its profitable position in the fiercely competitive market. However, the strive of reaching ultimate success and leadership position in the market sometime drive the management to include certain unnecessary employee exploitation methods, which often leads to dissatisfaction. The degree of competition in the market is increasing gradually, hence, it is high time for Amazon to focus on its disputes leading to employee demotivation and replace the method with much simpler solutions that can derive both systemic and efficient team outcome.Thoughtherehavebeenlotsofexternalitiesthatmayadverselyimpactthe organisational performance, it is up to management to strategically plan the same and undertaken the necessary corrective and remedial actions in order to those mitigate risks associated with the same. Therefore, it may be concluded that a well-designed and efficient human resource policy and effective organisational culture supported by competent and determined leadership will significantly contribute towards the corporate goal of attainment of sustainability in the long-run in most time and cost effective manner. Page10of13
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Varty, A. (2019).Who Is Driving Amazon's Management Team? (AMZN). [online] Investopedia. Available at: https://www.investopedia.com/articles/company-insights/090416/who-driving- amazons-management-team-amzn.asp [Accessed 17 Feb. 2019]. Page13of13