Organizational Behaviour: Analyzing Aston Martin's Culture, Politics, and Power

This report delves into the intricate relationship between organizational culture, politics, and power, and their impact on individual and team behavior within Aston Martin. It explores how different types of organizational cultures, including role culture, influence the company's operations. The report also examines the impact of organizational politics and power on employee motivation and performance. Furthermore, it analyzes various content and process theories of motivation, including Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs, Herzberg's Two-Factor Theory, and Adam's Equity Theory, to understand how they can be applied to enhance employee motivation and achieve organizational goals. The report also discusses the importance of effective teamwork and explores Tuckman's Stages of Team Development, highlighting the key stages involved in team formation and performance. Finally, the report applies concepts and philosophies of organizational behavior to a given business situation at Aston Martin, focusing on the Path-Goal Theory of leadership and its implications for motivating employees and achieving organizational success.

Aston Martin
18
ORGANIZATIONAL
BEHAVIOUR

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................................2
LO1...................................................................................................................................................3
P1, M1 ANALYZE HOW AN ORGANIZATION’S CULTURE, POLITICS AND POWER CAN
INFLUENCE INDIVIDUAL AND TEAM BEHAVIOUR AND PERFORMANCE WITHIN ASTON
MARTIN........................................................................................................................................3
LO2...................................................................................................................................................7
P2, M2 EVALUATE HOW CONTENT AND PROCESS THEORIES OF MOTIVATION AND
MOTIVATIONAL TECHNIQUES ENABLE EFFECTIVE ACHIEVEMENT OF GOALS IN AN
ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT WITH RESPECT TO ASTON MARTIN...............................................7
CONTENT THEORIES OF MOTIVATION....................................................................................7
PROCESS THEORIES OF MOTIVATION......................................................................................9
LO3.................................................................................................................................................11
P3, M3 DEMONSTRATE AN UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT MAKES AN EFFECTIVE TEAM, AS
OPPOSED TO AN INEFFECTIVE TEAM WITH RESPECT TO ASTON MARTIN...............................11
DIFFERENT TYPES OF TEAMS.................................................................................................11
TUCKMAN’S TEAM DEVELOPMENT MODEL..........................................................................13
LO4.................................................................................................................................................15
P4, M4 APPLY CONCEPTS AND PHILOSOPHIES OF OB WITHIN AN ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT
AND A GIVEN BUSINESS SITUATION WITH RESPECT TO ASTON MARTIN.................................15
CONCLUSION.................................................................................................................................17
REFERENCES...................................................................................................................................18
1

INTRODUCTION
Maintaining of appropriate organizational behaviour is highly important for attaining all the
aims and objectives of an organization’s business in the local or in the international market. The
management committee of an organization develops and implements various strategies and
tactics for maintaining the organizational behaviour within the workplace. The role of
appropriate organizational behaviour is highly significant in helping the organization to gain
competitive advantages in the market. This assignment discusses about an assortment of
different factors which depicts the influence of organizational behaviour within an organization
in the international market.
The organization that is selected for this this subsequent report on organizational behaviour is
“Aston Martin”. It is one of the leading manufacturing organizations of the UK which belongs to
the automobile industry. The operations of Aston Martin are expanded in several nations of the
world. The major aim of the organization is to generate higher and higher revenues every year
for the company. The number of employees working within the Aston Martin is very high and
thus it becomes very important for the management staff and committee members to
effectively manage the workforce and operations of the association, so as to achieve all the
organization goals and aims of the company successfully. The following report is discussed in
two parts, in which the concepts of organizational behaviour and its different aspects are
effectively deliberated.
2

LO1
P1, M1 ANALYZE HOW AN ORGANIZATION’S CULTURE, POLITICS AND POWER
CAN INFLUENCE INDIVIDUAL AND TEAM BEHAVIOUR AND PERFORMANCE
WITHIN ASTON MARTIN
A proper organizational structure as well as the organizational culture is developed within an
organization at the time of its start-up in the market by the senior management staff of the
company. The organizational structure and culture of an organization decides the rate of
organization’s success in the market. Thus, it is very important for a company to develop and
adopt the most appropriate organizational structure and culture within the workplace. There
are several different theories and models which explains the different types of organizational
culture which can be followed by an organization like Aston Martin in the market. One such
model which effectively explains about the different types of organizational culture is the
‘Charles Handy Typology” (Alnuaimi, et al. 2010).
According to the typology of Charles Handy, there are four different types of organizational
cultures that are followed by the organizations in the local or in the international market. These
four organizational cultures are as follows:
TASK CULTURE
According to the Charles Handy’s typology, task culture is a type of organizational culture in
which all the decisions within an organization are made by the combined views of teams at the
workplace. In this type of culture, the management committee of an organization develops
different teams and then assigns tasks to those respective teams (Alshmemri, et al. 2017). Every
team consists of a team leader who guide and support the team to achieve all the assigned
tasks successfully.
POWER CULTURE
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This type of organizational culture is followed by some limited organizations in the international
market. In this type of organizational culture the branch manager or the superior head of the
organization is most powerful person in every decision making procedure within the company.
The final decision within the workplace is taken by the supreme head of the organization in this
type of organizational culture (Anitha, et al. 2016).
PERSON CULTURE
According to this organizational culture of the Charles Handy, every individual within the
organization have equal authorities in the organization’s decision making procedure. This type
of culture is followed by some small scale organizations of the market. The effectiveness of this
organizational culture within large organizations like Aston Martin is very low.
ROLE CULTURE
One of the mostly followed organizational cultures within the market is the Role Culture. In this
type of organizational culture, which was proposed by Charles Handy, the power of an
individual within the workplace depends on the position at which that person is situated within
the organization. Aston Martin follows this type of organizational culture within the workplace
and all the staff members of the company have rights in the decision making procedure of the
company as per that member’s role within the company (Cerasoli, et al. 2014).
Thus, the above mentioned are the four different types of organizational cultures that are
proposed by Charles Handy in his typology. It can be observed from the above analysis that
Aston Martin follows role culture within its workplace. The different aspects within an
organization such as; individuals’ performance and team behaviour are impacted by these
different types of organizational culture which are discussed above. Not only the organizational
culture, but also the organizational power and politics have influence on the different aspects
of business operations within Aston Martin. These influences are as follows:
INFLUENCE OF CULTURE
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There are different types of organizational culture which are followed by organizations of
different industries in the market. As proposed by the Charles Handy, there are four types of
organizational culture and out of those four types; Aston Martin follows the Role Culture within
its workplace. Aston Martin follows this type of organizational culture within the workplace and
all the staff members of the company have rights in the decision making procedure of the
company as per that member’s role within the company. The size, scope, and business
objectives of an organization like Aston Martin are influenced due to the organizational culture
that it follows. Aston Martin used to follow power culture within its workplace, but following of
this organizational culture has led to the downfall of company’s market shares as well as rate of
profit generation in the international market of the United Kingdom (De Jong, et al. 2010).
A lot of issues have to be faced by the Aston Martin when it was used to follow power culture
at the workplace. The issues which were raised within the organization are as follows: conflicts
between the employees and management committees, improper utilization of company’s
resources, ineffective decision making procedure, etc. The management committees of the
Aston Martin develop an assortment of different plans and tactics for the reduction of this
issues that are caused due to organizational culture. In order to overcome from the negative
impacts, the superior management committee of the Aston Martin switched its organizational
culture from power culture to role culture. Adoption of role culture within the workplace had
caused several positive impacts on the individual performance and team behaviour within the
organization.
INFLUENCE OF POLITICS
The individuals of the company, team behaviour, and performance of the individuals within the
association get influenced by the organization’s politics. The process of achieving goals of an
organization by using different approaches within a workplace is known as organizational
politics. The politics within an organization like Aston Martin takes place because of the several
reasons. These reasons are as follows; personalities of stakeholders, interests of management
committee, perceptions of employees, etc. (Harner, 2010). There are different types of
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organizational politics which could affect the organizational behaviour of the company. These
different types of organizational politics with respect to the Aston Martin include; vertical
politics, horizontal politics, communication politics, and cultural politics.
INFLUENCE OF POWER
The individuals, team behaviour, and performance within the Aston Martin are influenced by
the organizational power too along with the politics and organizational culture. The extent to
which a member of staff from the organization influences to make changes within the conducts
of other employees at the workplace is known as the organizational power. Before the
economic crisis within the nation and the downfall of Aston Martin’s business, the organization
used to follow power culture within the workplace. In this type of organizational culture, the
superior manager of the company makes all the decisions within the workplace (Hatch, et al.
2013).
Consequently, the above mentioned are the influences of culture, power, and politics on the
individual, team behaviour, and performance within the Aston Martin.
6

LO2
P2, M2 EVALUATE HOW CONTENT AND PROCESS THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
AND MOTIVATIONAL TECHNIQUES ENABLE EFFECTIVE ACHIEVEMENT OF
GOALS IN AN ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT WITH RESPECT TO ASTON MARTIN
In order to successfully accomplish aims and objectives of life, an individual needs motivation
by any possible means. Similarly, in order to accomplish all the goals of the organization, it is
very important for the employees of that organization to be appropriately motivated. The
superior management committees as well as the HRM department of the organization like
Aston Martin must develop and successfully implement the strategies within the workplace to
provide motivation to the employees which could enhance their performance and aids the
organization’s business to attain higher growth in the market. There is an assortment of
different means which can be used by the HR manager of the Aston Martin as well as the
management staff of the organization to provide motivation to the company’s human
resources. These different means of inspiring and motivating company’s human resources
include; arranging training sessions, providing incentives and rewards for the better outcomes
in tasks, giving motivational lectures to the workforce, etc. (Krueger, 2014).
The following section of this report discusses about the different types of motivational theories
and the categories to which these motivational theories belongs. The two categories of
motivational theories that are discussed in this particular section of the report are; content
theories of motivation and process theories of motivation. These two categories of motivational
theories and the different theories of motivation that lies under these categories are as follows:
CONTENT THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
There are several different content theories of motivation that depicts the factors through
which an individual can be motivated within a workplace. The researchers from different parts
of the world have carried out several researches to determine the facts that lead to the
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motivation of company’s employees. The different types of content motivational theories are as
follows:
MASLOW’S THEORY OF MOTIVATION
It is the mostly used theory of motivation by the HR manager of an organization like Aston
Martin to motivate the company’s employees. According to the Maslow’s motivational theory,
the needs of an individual are categorized into five different stages. If these different needs of a
person get fulfilled, then he/she may get motivated. According to the Maslow’s theory of
motivation, the first stage of needs is the basic needs of humans, while the last stage of needs is
the self-actualization needs of the people (Lane, et al. 2016).
ALDERFER’S ERG THEORY
This content theory is the extended version of Maslow’s motivational theory because it depicts
three more stages of needs that motivate an individual. Alderfer’s ERG theory is a type of
content theory according to which the three extended needs of an individual include; Existence,
Relatedness, and Growth. The HR manager and the department of Human Resource
Management of Aston Martin utilize this theory to motivate their organization’s employees
effectively.
HERZBERG’S TWO FACTOR THEORY
It is a type of motivational theory that deliberates about the two different factors that leads to
the generation of motivation among the people. The two factors of motivation which was
proposed by Herzberg in his two factor theory are; hygiene factor and motivational factor.
These two factors aids the human resources of an organization like Aston Martin to successfully
achieve all the aims and objectives of an organization’s business in the international market.
The level of satisfaction as well as dissatisfaction within an organization is also depicted by this
motivational theory (Lazaroiu, et al. 2015).
Thus, the above mentioned are some of the important content theories of motivation.
8

PROCESS THEORIES OF MOTIVATION
As discussed above, there are several different content theories of motivation. The ways
through which the different content theories of motivation motivate the employees within a
workplace are known as the process theories of motivation. There are several different theories
that lie under this category. These different process theories are as follows:
ADAM’S EQUITY THEORY OF MOTIVATION
Out of all the different process theories of motivation, this theory is the mostly used one by
several leading organizations of the world like Aston Martin. The Adam’s equity theory of
motivation is based on the concept of performance review and reward management system
within a workplace. According to this motivational theory, it is very important for the
management committee of an organization like Aston Martin to provide appropriate rewards
and incentives to the company’s employees who performs better in the tasks allotted to them.
This theory also states that if an employee is not provided with the appropriate reward or
incentive for his/her performance within the workplace, then it might demotivate that
employee and may result in the reduction of that individual’s performance within the
workplace (Legault, et al. 2016).
REINFORCEMENT THEORY OF MOTIVATION
According to the reinforcement theory of motivation, if employees of an organization like Aston
Martin are provided with appropriate rewards and incentives for their good performances
within the workplace. The major concept behind this process theory of motivation is the law of
effect. If an individual receives positive responses from the senior staff of the company, then
that individual gets motivated and repeats the same actions within the workplace.
Consequently, from this section of the report it can be analyzed that there is an assortment of
different process as well as content theories of motivation that can be used by the department
of human resources management of an organization like Aston Martin to motivate the
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company's human resources so as to improve the level of performance of the employees within
the workplace. If the employees of the company are effectively motivated then the chances of
organization's success in the international market gets increased. Since Aston Martin follows
the role organizational culture, therefore the team behaviour, individual, and performance
within the organization also gets enhanced if the company's employees are effectively
motivated. There are basically two types of motivation, i.e. intrinsic motivation and extrinsic
motivation. In order to achieve these types of motivation within an organization like Aston
Martin, the different content as well as process theories of motivation can be effectively used
(Russo, 2013).
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LO3
P3, M3 DEMONSTRATE AN UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT MAKES AN EFFECTIVE
TEAM, AS OPPOSED TO AN INEFFECTIVE TEAM WITH RESPECT TO ASTON
MARTIN
There are several different factors which makes an effective team within the workplace. The
development of teams within an organization is done for several different purposes. Working in
teams or in partnerships within a workplace enhances the rate of success and development
growth rate of the association like Aston Martin in the international market. The primary
motive of the Aston Martin is to attain higher amount of market shares by providing best
quality services to the customers in the market.
In order to increase the market shares and achieve high level customer satisfaction, the
developments of team within the workplace is very important. The researchers from different
parts of the world have carried out several researches on analyzing the different aspects that
are either directly or indirectly allied to the concept of leadership. From the outcomes of those
researches it can be analyzed that the rate of success of an organization where the concept of
team working is executed practically is double as compared to the rate of success of an
organization where team working is not performed. The motives behind the formation of a
team within an organization can be different, but the stages that are involved in the formation
of a team remain same (Salehi, et al. 2015).
DIFFERENT TYPES OF TEAMS
Depending on the purpose for which a team is formed in an organization, there are different
types of teams that can be classified as follows:
SELF-MANAGED TEAMS
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This type of teams is formed within an organization for carrying out particular tasks or projects.
The role of every team member is equally important in the self-managed teams. The team
members are provided equal rights in the decision making process of the team. They have all
the rights to propose ideas for the execution of a project within the workplace. The
management committee of Aston Martin forms this type of team to execute special tasks.
VIRTUAL TEAMS
When the task or project related activities of an organization are to be executed from the long
distances, then this type of teams is formed. When a virtual team is formed, the team members
are assigned with their respective roles and then the work is carried out from the long
distances. There is an assortment of different ways through which the communication between
the members of virtual teams carries out. These different types of communication ways
include; social media interactions, voice messages, emails, video calls, etc. (Suifan, et al. 2010).
PROBLEM SOLVING TEAMS
A problem solving team is a type of team that is formed to execute specific tasks within a
workplace. The management committee of an organization likes Aston Martin develops this
types of teams when an organizational issue arises within the association. The issue that rises
within the organization like Aston Martin could be due to any possible situation. Thus, it is very
important to develop a team of employees with problem solving skills so as to overcome any
kind of organizational issues. The members that are present in this type of team are given
proper training by the company’s Human Resource Management department so that they can
develop the required skills for solving an organizational problem.
CROSS FUNCTIONAL TEAMS
A cross functional team is team that is formed within an organization by taking members from
different departments of the company. In this type of teams, the team leaders of the teams are
responsible for guiding the teams towards the successful achievement of assigned tasks and
projects. The leader of a team has all the rights to make decisions in the decision making
12

process. A cross functional team is formed for a long time purpose and are permanent in
nature. In order to successfully accomplish all the organizational goals of the company, the
board of directors of the organization likes Aston Martin provides power and special authorities
to the company’s cross functional teams.
Consequently, the above mentioned are four different types of teams that can be formed
within an organization like Aston Martin. The effectiveness of team working within an
organization is thus highly important to fulfill aims and objectives of the company. There are
different types of teams that can be formed within an organization. In order to form these
teams, there are some stages involved. The researchers from different parts of the world have
carried out researches to identify the different aspects of team formation within a workplace.
The team development model which was proposed by Bruce Tuckman can be used to
comprehend about the different stages that are involved in forming a team.
TUCKMAN’S TEAM DEVELOPMENT MODEL
The five stages that are proposed by Tuckman in his team development model with respect to
the formation of team within Aston Martin are as follows;
FORMING
It is the initial stage according to the Tuckman’s model of team development. The superior
committee members of an organization like Aston Martin select different employees and then
form different teams as per the organization’s requirements. The team members are new to
each other and thus their behaviour is usually polite and positive. In this stage of team
development, the team leaders introduce the team members to each other within the teams so
as to develop understanding among each team member.
STORMING
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The next stage of the Tuckman’s team development model is storming. In this stage of team
development, the team members of a team start to know each other, and then the chances of
arising conflicts between them also increases in this stage.
NORMING
According to the Tuckman’s model of team development, Norming is the third stage that is
involved in the development of a team within the organization. The strengths and weaknesses
of the team members are identified in this stage. The role of a team leader is highly significant
in this stage, as the team leader motivates the members to enhance their level of confidence
(Terziovski, et al. 2010).
PERFORMING
It is the fourth stage of team development as per the Tuckman’s model. Once the above
mentioned three stages get accomplished, this stage of team development comes into the
action. In this stage the members of the team as well as the team leaders start performing their
respective job roles in the team. It is the most crucial stage, as the success or failure of the tasks
depends on the ways in which the team members perform in this stage of team development.
ADJOURNING
The last stage of Tuckman’s team development is Adjourning. There are some teams formed
within the workplace that are formed to achieve any specifics tasks and projects. Once those
tasks and projects get accomplished, the senior management committee of the organization
like Aston Martin adjourns the team. This stage of Tuckman’s model is applicable only for those
teams within the organization that are formed for the execution of special tasks and projects.
Consequently, the different stages that are involved in the formation of teams within the Aston
Martin are discussed above in this section of the report.
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LO4
P4, M4 APPLY CONCEPTS AND PHILOSOPHIES OF OB WITHIN AN
ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT AND A GIVEN BUSINESS SITUATION WITH
RESPECT TO ASTON MARTIN
After carrying out appropriate market research to analyze the needs and requirements of the
customers within the market, the researchers from different parts of the world have developed
and implemented several philosophies and concepts of organizational behaviour. Since Aston
Martin follows role organizational culture within the workplace, therefore there are several
different teams formed within the workplace for successfully accomplishing the assigned tasks.
As discussed in the previous section of this report, there are five major stages that are involved
in the formation of a team inside the organization like Aston Martin. The role of team leaders is
very significant in successfully managing the teams as well as leading them towards the
completion of tasks and projects within the desired deadlines. In order to understand the
concept of leadership properly, the “Path-Goal Theory” of leadership can be taken into
consideration (Williams, et al. 2011).
There is an assortment of different leadership styles that lies under this theory. These different
types of leadership styles include; directive leadership, supportive leadership, participative
leadership, achievement oriented leadership, etc. The different leaders of the company follow
different leadership styles as per their skills and abilities. The role of leaders of an organization
like Aston Martin is not only limited to the accomplishment of tasks or leading the teams, but
also their role is to motivate the company’s employees so as to enhance their level of
performance progressively. Most of the leaders at Aston Martin follow the participative
leadership styles within the workplace. In this type of leadership style, the leaders of the
company also participate in the team working procedures.
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The rate of business development of Aston Martin has drastically enhanced since the last
couple of years due to the following of role organizational culture within the workplace.
Adoption of Path-Goal Theory of leadership by the company’s leaders has also led to the
increment of company’s shares in the international market. This theory allows the leaders of
the company like Aston Martin to determine the characteristics of organization’s employees as
well as it also aids the leaders to motivate the human resources of the company appropriately.
There are several different aspects of Path-Goal theory of leadership which provide benefits to
the leaders who follow this theory. These different aspects with respect to Aston Martin are as
follows: employee satisfaction, management of rewards, productivity within the workplace, etc.
(Williams, et al. 2011)
Consequently, it can be analyzed that the following of different leadership styles of the Path-
Goal Theory can lead the organization like Aston Martin towards the achievement of higher
success in the international market of the United Kingdom.
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CONCLUSION
There are several different factors such as; organizational culture, power, and politics that could
potentially influence the team behaviour, individual, and performance of an association like
Aston Martin. It can be concluded from this assignment that the concept of organizational
behaviour is very important and is needed to be managed appropriately by the management
committee of the organization. It is recommended to the leaders of the Aston Martin to adopt
different types of leadership styles that are depicted by the Path-Goal theory of leadership so as
to successfully accomplish organizational goals and objectives.
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