Organizational Behaviour and Team Dynamics at BBC

Explore the impact of culture, power, and motivation on team dynamics at BBC. Analyze theories like Handy's cultural typology, Maslow's hierarchy of needs, and Tuckman's team development model. Understand how effective leadership can enhance team performance and productivity.

Organizational Behaviour
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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Part 1................................................................................................................................................4
Task 1...........................................................................................................................................4
Task 2...........................................................................................................................................7
Part 2..............................................................................................................................................11
Task 3.........................................................................................................................................11
Task 4.........................................................................................................................................16
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................20
Reference List................................................................................................................................21
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Introduction
Organizational behaviour is defined as the understanding and study of group and individual
behaviour and the modus operandi with the aim of enhancing the performance and efficiency
level of the overall organization. In the business environment, an organization a complex mix of
varied social systems with a phenomenon of dynamicity. The dynamic nature of an organization
is due to the presence of two distinct factors – internal and external. Apart from that, the
behaviour of an individual when alone and in a group also casts an influence on the
organizational culture and environment. For achieving positive results, it is essential that the
working environment and culture of the company is healthy so that the employees are satisfied
and motivated. In this assignment, the case study of BBC would be used to explain the
significance of organizational behaviour in the success and functioning of the company. in the
past few years, several issues have cropped up in BBC due to which the reputation has
deteriorated. Therefore, using this case study, organizational behaviour would be discussed.
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Part 1
LO1: Analyse the influence of culture, politics and power on the behaviour of others in an
organisational context
Task 1
a) Using Handy’s cultural typology (1986) or an alternative academic cultural model,
identify and discuss the earlier organizational culture within the BBC, as observed by the
Smith review.
The organizational culture of every company is distinct as it is based on the employee behaviour,
ethics, company policies and guidelines. The basis of employee interaction and behaviour in an
organizational setup is influenced by the culture prevailing in the company. Over the years,
several theorists and experts have propagated and proposed models and theories on
organizational behaviour and culture with the aim that it would assist the management of the
companies in improving their internal culture and behaviour (Patnaik, 2011). One of the theories,
popularised by Charles Handy about organizational culture has been discussed below:
Power: The power culture is symbolic of a “web” as it originates from the centre and spreads to
the remaining organization. Adoption of this culture leads to a few people getting the right of
taking decisions, which has to be followed by the entire organization (Cacciattolo, 2014). On the
other hand, the adoption of this culture would reduce the red tape and bureaucracy level as the
environment is more controlled in nature.
Role: under the prevalence of this culture, the organizational structure is defined and
comprehensive as the roles and responsibilities of every employee is pre-defined. The employees
are delegated their job roles based on their qualifications and expertise leading to higher
efficiency and development of a cordial working culture (Uir.unisa.ac.za, 2018). As the
employees are satisfied with their job roles, the culture of the company is healthy and cohesive.
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Figure 1: Dimensions of organizational culture by Charles Handy
(Source: Models of Organisational Culture – Handy, 2018)
Task: The prevalence of this culture leads to job orientation focus and stems in those
organizations where the people work individually based on expertise. Adoption of this culture,
leads the organization to focus on completion of task by citing proper talent and suitable
resources. It is one of the most compliant cultures.
Person: Under this culture, the employees gain a feeling of superiority above the company they
are employed at. The decisions are based on mutual consent and the existence of hierarchy and
control does not seem viable (Cacciattolo, 2014). As per Handy, the people who are accustomed
to work in this culture become difficult to manage as the independency provided to them makes
them less tolerant to powers.
As per Smith’s review, the management at BBC had adopted the power culture where only the
senior management and directors were provided with the right of taking decisions and making
changes in the company policies and guidelines. The employees of the company were bound to
listen and adhere to the decisions of the management, as their feedbacks were not acknowledged.
However, in the past few years, BBC has encountered several issues. Several staffs have
complained of facing issues of bullying and harassment coupled with gender-pay gap and sexual
harassment. However, no actions have been taken as the employees fear being treated as victims
and not being promoted.
b) Analyse how culture, power and politics overall have affected the behaviour within the
BBC in the recent past and today.
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The presence of culture, politics and power affect the decision-making function of the company
and even casts a huge influence in the ways an organization operates. Based on the culture
prevalent and power given to them, the employees decide on behaviour they exhibit. The
changes that the presence of power, culture and politics brought about in BBC are:
Influence of power: BBC earlier had a negative impact of power in their company, as the
management ignored the views of the employees before taking decision. These lead to several
issues like high rate of employment turnover, frequent cases of sexual harassment, bullying and
gender pay gap. However, Valerie Hughes-D’Aeth, the HR director, made several positive
changes in the company by reducing the levels in hierarchy and providing the employees
opportunities to provide their views (Kotter, 2010).
Influence of culture: The management at BBC adopted power culture and reserved the right of
taking decisions and amending policies to a few individuals. The employees’ feedbacks and
views were not considered and leading to increased rate of unethical practices. The culture of the
company deteriorated as the female employees were being paid less compared to their male
counterparts and were even facing sexual harassment. Cases of bullying were also reported
where some employees were being treated badly and hence, were resigning in quick succession.
Hence, to protect this, the HR director made reforms in the company and developed a safe and
inhibition free environment where employees could discuss their issues (Neagu and Nicula,
2012).
Influence of politics: The goodwill of BBC was destroyed with rise in unethical practices and a
negative working culture. Therefore, to improve the present scenario, the HR Director created a
understandable and positive political culture, which encouraged efficiency and productivity
levels. The complexity of the structure has been simplified and departmental divisions have been
made clearer.
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Task 2
LO2: Evaluate how to motivate individuals and teams to achieve a goal
a) Explain what is meant by content and process theories of motivation.
With the intense competition in the global business markets, it has become increasingly
important for the organizations to retain their talent from activities of poaching and employee
turnover. Therefore, the management of the organizations have to ensure that they keep their
employees motivated by concentrating on two parameters – extrinsic and intrinsic motivation.
Some employees are motivated by extrinsic factors like – rewards, promotions and some by
intrinsic factors like – appreciation and recognition (Kougija, 2014). The two most important
theories that lend into the understanding of motivation theories are:
Content Theory: The content theory emphasizes on the factors that directly motivates and
encourages a person to deliver his/her best performance based on full capabilities. The theory
focuses on specific needs by explaining reward system, job satisfaction and behavioural
concepts. The aim is on targeting the specific needs of the employees to motivate them further.
The theorists who contributed to this are – Abraham Maslow, David C. McClelland, Herzberg
and Clayton P. Alderfred (Rudestam and Newton, 2014).
Figure 2: Content and Process Theories
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(Source: Rudestam and Newton, 2014)
Process Theory: The process theory emphasizes on the detailed description and evaluation of
employee behaviour and how it can be directed and motivated. The four main process theories
are – expectancy, goal setting, reinforcement and equity (Rudestam and Newton, 2014). All the
four models have been researched in details by several theorists and are considered essential
while deciding on motivational techniques.
b) Evaluate how these, along with other motivational techniques, may have helped to
improve the effectiveness in the teams within the BBC.
The HR Director of BBC has brought about several positive changes in BBC by using a
combination of both content and process theories of motivation. The growing attrition rate
alarmed the management of the company to introduce proper motivational techniques in their
company so that they can increase the rate of employee engagement and eliminate the problems,
which the employees are facing in the company. two of the motivational theories being used by
the management of BBC are as follows:
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs: Conceptualized in the year 1943 by Abraham Maslow, the theory
discussed about the basic needs of an individual, which had to be fulfilled to keep them
motivated (Kachalla, 2014). The hierarchy of needs consisted of five levels – physiological,
safety, social, esteem and self-actualization (Singh and Behera, 2016). It is the responsibility of
the organization to start with the fulfilment of basic needs so that they can motivate their
employees.
For instance, the physiological needs would be fulfilled by providing pleasant working
conditions and proper compensation. On the other hand, the social needs would be covered with
amicable work environment and healthy professional associations. As per the case study, BBC
should provide its employees with security and safety needs most importantly. The employees do
not feel safe in the organizational culture, as several cases of bullying and harassment have been
reported; female employees have also complained of facing sexual harassment at workplace.
Moreover, social needs should also be looked after by creating a cohesive and open work
environment where the employees feel free to communicate their views. Esteem needs should
also be fulfilled by providing recognition and taking feedbacks from employees.
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Figure 3: Applying Maslow’s hierarchy in a work situation
(Source: Singh and Behera, 2016)
Goal-Setting theory: Advocated by Edwin Locke in the year 1968, is a motivational technique
enabling the prediction of work behaviour of an employee (David et al.,2016). In specific terms,
this theory is conceptualized as a process theory, which considers that workplace motivation is
influenced by goal specificity, difficulty and outcome determination. For useful application of
this theory, the specific performance needs have to be identified and a combination of realistic
and challenging goals has to be set (Locke and Latham, 2015). Moreover, employee participation
has to be encouraged for timely and successful completion post, which accurate and true
feedbacks have to be attained.
The management at BBC should set achievable and challenging goals for their employees to
motivate them. The employees at BBC are not satisfied as their views are not considered. Hence,
application of this motivational technique would help the company to gather meaningful
feedbacks from the employees and honour their views making them feel like a part of a
company. Based on this tool, the HR Director identified the gender pay gap and helped in
eradicating this issue leading to motivation of employees.
c) How will improved levels of motivation within the BBC help to achieve its organisation’s
goals?
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High level of motivation at workplace along with prevalence of satisfaction level, leads to
improvements in productivity and efficiency of the overall organization. As BBC is losing its
market reputation and goodwill, they need efficient performance from the employees. The
benefits of increased level of motivation on BBC are as follows:
Employee retention: With the use of appropriate motivational tools, the HR Director of BBC
would be able to reduce the attrition rate in the company. The employees are uncomfortable and
feel unsafe within the organization as they face sexual harassment and bullying. Therefore, by
making the environment safer, the company would be able to retain more employees and use the
experienced talent to achieve organizational goals (Schein, 2010). The employees would be
motivated and perform better based on their expertise.
Increased levels of co-ordination: If the employees were motivated, then they would perform
better and co-operate with each other. After the working environment and culture of the
company is made more transparent and open, the employees would be able to share their ideas
more clearly with each other and management promoting improved levels of co-ordination and
co-operation, which would bear better results.
Prevention of lackadaisical nature: If the employees are motivated then they will not be lazy
and complacent in their approach. The change in their approach of executing their duties and
responsibilities would gain higher productivity for the company leading to good reputation and
more profits. The employees would collaborate more easily with each other and garner results
that are more positive in nature for the company.
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Part 2
Task 3
LO3: Demonstrate an understanding of how to cooperate effectively with others
a) Identify and explain the different types of teams, within the BBC and why having
different types of teams is important.
Presence of teams in an organization is an important aspect of organizational structure as it
allows faster achievement of organizational goals. Every company ensures that they group their
employees with similar expertise and skills in teams so that they can maximize the performance
level (Katzenbach and Smith, 2015). Similarly, BBC also has created teams within their
organizational structure by clubbing the expertise, strengths, weaknesses, skills and knowledge
of the workforce. Separate teams for separate tasks ensure higher level of efficiency in achieving
the organizational goals. Moreover, teamwork helps in ascertaining higher levels of motivation
in the company. The various teams within BBC are as follows:
Functional Teams: Based on the organizational structure, the management of BBC has divided
the company into separate departments based on the job roles. Every employee has been
segregated into the departments based on the job function – finance, marketing, human resource,
sales, marketing and others. A manager who manages a group of subordinates leads every team
in the functional department. The employees are segregated based on their capabilities and skills.
Problem-solving Teams: Every company faces problems in their organizational processes for
which they need to bring together a team consisting of several employees. The members of the
problem solving team consist of employees with varied skills, knowledge and expertise so that
problem of any kind can be solved by getting several perspectives. Precisely, it is a cross-
functional team as people with different interests collaborate to solve the issues being faced by
the company and hampering the normal workflow.
Project Teams: Operating in the entertainment business, BBC has to meet several projects and
cover news, which can be urgent in nature. For completing a specific project, the management
forms a team of employees with different skill sets. For instance, for broadcasting a news, people
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with various skills are required and for that the management of BBC would ensure that they
create a new team. The work responsibility within the team would be divided as per the skills of
the employees and their interests so that maximum efficiency is achieved.
Virtual teams: People in these teams are situated in different geographical locations but are
connected through the internet. It is often necessary that the various branches of the company
need to collaborate to execute a project and hence, the management has implemented advance
technology in their company. Social media platforms also contribute to the teamwork.
b) Explain what makes an effective team in the BBC.
Team dynamics refers to the situations and processes taking place in a team affecting the
behaviour and work of the team members. Teamwork is a mutual process where the behaviour of
one individual affects the behavioural traits of another individual; the behavioural traits
comprising team dynamics are – required behaviours, emergent behaviours and intergroup
dynamics. The goal of forming teams is to achieve a common goal by using all the expertise and
skill sets as with mutual consent of other team members.
As Valerie Hughes-D’Aeth, the HR Director of BBC is trying to make positive changes in the
organizational culture and structure of the theory; he has decided to make new teams. As per the
new directives issued by the HR Director, new teams have been formed within the company
based on the skills and interests of the employees. Changes made in the teams would help BBC
to improve the efficiency and performance level of the overall organizational processes.
Experts and theorists explaining the importance and contribution of teamwork in increasing
organizational performance have proposed several theories. One of the most popularised theories
is Tuchman’s theory of teamwork, which has been discussed below:
Forming: This is the first stage where the team mission and goals are unclear and the employees
are not acquainted with each other. Being the first stage, the employees are directionless and
require constant guidance from the leaders or the managers (Tuckman Model, 2018). As the
members are new to each other, no relationship of trust exists along with a team commitment.
The HR Director has created new teams in order to make positive developments in the
organizational culture of BBC.
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Storming: In this stage, the roles and responsibilities of the employees are stated and delegated
and the agendas are also declared. As the team is new, the members resist managerial powers and
how hostility. Therefore, to ensure that unnecessary conflicts are ignored, the HR Director has
eliminated the unnecessary layers in the organizational hierarchy motivating the employees to
share their views and complains openly without any barriers.
Figure 4: Tuckman’s theory of teamwork
(Source: Tuckman’s Team Development Model, 2018)
Norming: Camaraderie is developed among the employees as they get a sense of team purpose.
The team members develop an understanding towards each other. Significant improvements have
been witnessed in BBC as the rate of employee engagement has increased and the culture is also
improving with employee behaviour.
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Performing: The team goals are given precedence over individual goals, as the motivation level
among the employees is high. The employees collaborate with each other and strive hard towards
achieving the goals of the team. After the formation of new team, BBC has witnessed a more
collaborative working environment within the organization as the understanding and dynamics
among the employees have changed for the better.
Adjourning: In this stage, the groups are abandoned after the completion of the goals. However,
BBC would not follow this step, as they want to make their teams permanent in nature for
ensuring high levels of productivity.
Figure 5: Tuckman’s theory of teamwork
(Source: Salvos.org.au, 2018)
Even after using the steps proposed by Tuckman in his teamwork theory, BBC is still facing
issues in creating an optimistic work environment. However, if the problems persist, then the HR
Director can refer to Belbin’s theory of teamwork also wherein the teams are divided based on
individual expertise. Belbin segregated the team roles into nine categories - plant, coordinator,
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resource investigator, monitor evaluator, sharer, team worker, complete finisher, specialist and
implementer (Belbin, 2012). Each role carries a separate set of roles and responsibilities, which
are delegated based on the expertise, skills and knowledge levels of the employees in that field of
work.
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Task 4
LO4: Apply concepts and philosophies of organisational behaviour to a given business
situation
a) Using an appropriate organizational concept/theory suggest how team performance and
productivity could be improved within the BBC.
The deteriorating culture and productivity of the organization forced the HR Director to form
new teams within the company and eliminate the unnecessary organizational layers by 40%. The
HR Director took cue from the path goal theory proposed by Robert House to ensure higher
levels of team performance and productivity within the organizational structure of BBC. The
path goal theory focuses on the behavioural characteristics and traits of the leaders, which would
guide the employee to reach the organizational goals. It is the responsibility of the leader to
execute behaviour as per the situation so that they can gauge the employee behaviour and guide
them in a manner that they understand the best. As per the theory, the leadership style to be
adopted depends on the situation and employee behaviour.
Directive leadership: The leaders or the management set guidelines for the employees, which
they have to adhere to. The directions provided involve expected outcomes and steps to achieve
the objectives with a detailed procedure (The Path–Goal The Path–Goal Theory of Leadership,
2018).
Supportive leadership: The leaders support their employees and use an amicable approach while
dealing with the employees. This boosts the employees self esteem and morale of the employees
of the organization.
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Figure 6: Leadership styles as per path goal theory
(Source: Created by the learner)
Participative leadership: The leaders take active participation in the group activities and takes
inputs from the team members before taking any decision. The employees’ feedbacks and ideas
are also given importance.
Achievement-oriented leadership: The leader or the management sets realistic but challenging
goals for the employees with the view of making them work harder. This helps in raising the
productivity levels (Pdfs.semanticscholar.org, 2018).
As per the understanding of the case study provided on BBC, it can be stated that the
management of BBC should adopt directive and supportive styles of leadership to manage the
unsatisfied employees. As the teams formed by the HR Director are new, they need a specified
path and direction laid down by a supervisor for which the directive style of leadership would be
most appropriate. The teams would get a sense of direction and purpose under the leaders
making them efficient in operations. On the other hand, the supportive leadership style would
help the leaders and the HR Director to motivate the employees and decrease the rate of
turnover. The employees are facing issues, which they are hesitant to communicate and being
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supportive in nature, the leaders would be able to identify and understand the common employee
issues prevalent within the organizational structure.
b) What have been the main barriers to effective performance within the BBC?
A slight level of dissatisfaction prevailing among the employees severely affects their individual
and team performance (Dartey-Baah and Harlley, 2010). The case study of BBC is an example
of this phenomenon where the employees were not satisfied with the organizational culture and
hence, were leaving the company or were not performing up to their full potential. The several
barriers affecting the performance within the BBC are:
Lack of proper communication: The organizational hierarchy of BBC contains several
unnecessary layers. Existence of a rigid organizational structure creates a barriers and makes the
employees hesitant in approaching the senior management levels. For instance, the employees of
BBC were resisting in sharing their problems with the management in lieu of not being promoted
in their job roles or being misinterpreted in their complaints. This communication gap creates
barriers to effective performance, as the employees are not sharing their views leading to de-
motivation (Tseng, 2010).
Undefined goals: The performance of the employees is deterred by undefined goals. The
management at BBC have been unable to lay down specific goals in the company. Due to this,
the performance of the employees is not guided towards a specific direction lacking perspective
and aim. This has decreased the efficiency of the employees and hampered the normal flow of
teamwork.
Improper policy implementation: The management at BBC has lacked the skill of being strict in
implementation of their rules and policies. The employees do not feel safe within the company,
as they have encountered issues of bullying and harassment. Especially the female employees
have been facing repeated cases of sexual harassment making them uncomfortable. Hence, the
lack of strictness and rigidity in implementing and enforcing the behavioural policies and ethic
standards has led to lack in attaining efficient performance from the employees.
Pessimistic culture: The organizational culture of BBC is pessimistic in nature as the employees
are not satisfied with the treatment they receive and the improper company guidelines. The
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employees are dissatisfied and hesitant in nature leading to an unhealthy working culture and
environment. The lack of proper motivation has decreased the efficiency levels of the employees
making them lethargic and lackadaisical in their approach towards their duties and
responsibilities assigned.
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Conclusion
Presence of a healthy organizational culture contributes to the success of the company in the
industry. Based on the culture prevalent within the company, the behaviour of the management,
employees and other entities of the organization are determined. At the completion of the
assignment, it can be concluded that the culture, politics and power does influence the behaviour
of the employees and their attitude towards the roles and responsibilities assigned to them.
Handy’s theory on culture has been used to evaluate the impact of the factors listed above. The
assignment also contains detailed discussion on the importance of motivation along with its two
branches of theory – content and process. Further, the assignment contains information on
significance of teamwork and Tuckman’s and Belbin’s theory of team effectiveness in
consideration of the BBC case study. The path goal theory proposed by Robert House has also
been discussed to propose the suitable leadership style within the organizational structure of
BBC.
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Reference List
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