Organisational Behaviour: A Case Study of H&M's Culture & Motivation

This report provides an analysis of organizational behavior within H&M, focusing on its culture and impact on employee motivation. It identifies the culture using the Hofstede model, examining aspects like goal orientation, work discipline, and system openness. The report also evaluates how communication, using the Shannon Weaver model, enhances organizational effectiveness by improving motivation, information flow, and control. Furthermore, it explores the role of culture in employee motivation through Maslow's hierarchy of needs, emphasizing the importance of fulfilling physiological, safety, belongingness, esteem, and self-actualization needs. The study concludes by highlighting how a positive organizational culture can enhance the overall success of H&M.

Organisational Behaviour
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Table of content
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
Identify the culture in line along with a theoretical model.........................................................3
Identify the ways in which the communication improves the organisational effectiveness.......6
Evaluate the role of culture upon the employee motivation of an organisation..........................8
Identify and evaluate the ways in which the organisational culture could enhance the success
of the organisation.......................................................................................................................9
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................10
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................11
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INTRODUCTION
Organisational behaviour is referred to the study of behaviour and interaction among
individuals, Teams and within the organisation as well. The organisational behaviour is an
important component of an organisation as it depicts the operational efficiency of the business.
The organisational behaviour focuses upon improving the job performance, job satisfaction,
encouragement of leadership and further promotes innovation (Balwant, 2018).
The primary organisation that has been considered in the report to conduct the study of
organisational behaviour is H&M. H&M is a multinational organisation that deals in apparels.
The organisation deals in apparels of males and females of all age groups. The organisation
operates in more than 70 countries with its retail outlets over 5000 locations.
MAIN BODY
Identify the culture in line along with a theoretical model.
Organisational culture is referred to the policies and procedures that are adopted by the
organisation in order to provide guidance towards the organisational goals. These help and
facilitate the organisation to have a common belief, assumptions and values that monitor and
control the behaviour of the employees at the organisation. Organisational culture comprises of a
vision statement wherein the statement needs to be brief in order to communicate the essence of
the business along with the future plans to its stakeholders. The organisational culture of H&M
comprises of Artefacts, Values and Assumptions. Artefacts are basically the tangible components
of the organisational structure of H&M. The various artefacts of H&M include open door policy,
official dress code as well as office layout. The values of an organisation are not easily
observable. The values of H&M include shared goals, standards and principles. The core values
of H&M are quality, accountability, collaboration, leadership and integrity. Assumptions are
basically the embedded ideologies that act as a foundation for the organisational culture of
H&M. In most of the situations, the employees are not aware of the assumptions of the
organisation (Chan, 2021).
Hofstede organisational culture model
The Hofstede organisational culture is used by various analysts in order to analyse the
organisational culture of the organisation. The organisational culture of the H&m can be
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analysed with the help of Hofstede Model. The model consists of six dimensions that have been
described below.
 Mean Orientation vs Goal orientation: Mean oriented organisational structure
emphasises upon the way in which the work or task is being carried out while the
goal oriented structure emphasises over the result that can be achieved through the
tasks. The primary organisation i.e. H&M has managed to maintain a balance in
between the goal oriented as well as mean oriented process. While following the goal
oriented approach, the organisation focuses upon encouraging employees to give
their best performance and hence reduces the fear of failure among the employees.
Mean orientation approach at H&M states that the organisation must focus upon
ethical and integrated approach (Collins and et.al., 2020).
 Internally drives vs Externally driven: Internally driven organisation, tends to
focus upon the overall perspective on the basis of knowledge and expertise. An
internally driven organisation believes that it is capable of understanding the internal
as well as external needs of the organisation. An externally driven organisation tends
to focus upon the results in order to meet the needs and demands of the customers.
The organisational culture of H&M is more of internally driven rather than externally
driven.
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 Easy going work discipline vs Strict work discipline: The organisations that follow
an easy going organisational structure are more focussed towards flexibility and
possess lenient hierarchies. These organisational structure have a limited control over
discipline but are favourable for promoting innovation at work. Organisations with
strict work culture are quite certain about the results and tasks. The organisations
with strict work discipline tend to have strong control over the over the work and
employees. The organisational culture of H&M is more of a disciplined work culture
that has a vertical hierarchy. This states that the decision making authority is
withheld by the management of the organisation in order to control the employee
behaviour (Gillam and Cosford, 2021).
 Local vs Professional organisational culture: The employees with high degree of
local culture tends to have a good contact with their organisational units, team mates,
peers, colleagues or with the superiors. It promotes strong social interaction within
the organisation. The organisational culture with professional culture tends to
identify their employees in accordance with the profession or the content of the
work. The organisational culture focuses upon keeping unique identity to continue in
the long term. The organisational culture followed by H&M is professional work
culture as there is no obligation to act as per a specified manner. These kinds of
organisation promote diversity and differences.
 Open system vs closed system: An open system organisational structure is more
likely to have a work culture that welcomes and attracts more employees towards the
organisation and possess inclusive work culture where the employees feel more
comfortable to adjust in the organisation. The organisations which follow a closed
system tends to make it difficult for the new employees to adjust in the business
environment. This means that these organisations do not encourage diversity at
workplace. The organisational culture followed by H&M is more inclined towards
the open system as it promotes open communication and is more likely to be flexible
(Hunter, 2018).
 Employee orientation vs Work orientation: An organisation that is employee
oriented tends to focus upon the philosophy of the employees where the employees
consider their employees before the customers and shareholders. The organisations
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that follow the organisational culture of work orientation are likely to have focus
upon the work completion and it might lead to excess pressure upon the employees.
The organisational culture followed by H&M tends to prioritise its employees and
their motivation and satisfaction. The management of the organisation focuses upon
reducing the stress of the employees while the are assigned with challenging goals.
Identify the ways in which the communication improves the organisational effectiveness.
Communication is helpful as it facilitates the organisation to perform and accomplish the
desired goals and tasks of the organisation. The process of communication act as a basic step for
planning that states that it is important to communicate or pass on the essential information so
that the organisation can work in order to implement the various plans. Communication plays a
major role in enhancing the organisational effectiveness. The ways in which the communication
can enhance the organisational effectiveness of H&M are discussed below.
 Communication acts as the key to promote motivation at the organisation.
Communication will help the management of H&M to to inform and clarify the
employees regarding the aims and tasks that are to be performed by the employees of the
organisation. Also the communication process allows the employees to monitor the
performance and improve in case improvement is required.
 Communication acts as the medium to pass or convey the required information to the
various employees and members of the organisation. This helps H&M to formulate the
decisions at the workplace in an effective and efficient manner.
 Communication will help in order to promote socialising at the organisation. It is
considered that communication is the only aid that is required by the individuals. Also it
won't be wrong to say that communication is mandatory in order to survive or have a
healthy work environment at H&M.
 Communication is a way that promotes and helps the organisation with the controlling
process. Communication acts as an important process in order to control the behaviour of
the employees at H&M. It states the various principles and guidelines that are required to
be followed by the employees and the organisation in order to accomplish the
tasks(Jacobs and Manzi, 2020).
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Shannon Weaver Model
Shannon Weaver model is a communication model that can be used by H&M in order to
promote and enhance communication at the organisation. The Shannon Weaver Model comprise
of five basic components. The components of Shannon Weaver communication model are
sender, encoder, channel, decoder and receiver. The model focuses upon significance of
encoding and decoding the messages that are being transferred from one person to another.
Communication is referred to the process of transferring message or information from
one person to another through a specific medium while there is a probability of communication
barrier to occur during the communication process. The components of Shannon Weaver Model
are explained below.
 Sender- The sender is the person who aims to transfer or pass on the information to
another person.
 Encoding- Encoding is referred to the process of converting the information in form of
message so that it can be delivered to another person.
 Channel- Channel is basically a medium through which the message is transferred from
one individual to another (Kim, Kim and Reid, 2017).
 Decoder- Decoding is referred to process of extracting the information from the message
that has been delivered.
 Receiver- Receiver is the person to whom the message is transferred and he/ she further
provides a feedback for the message.
In the whole process of communication, there is a possibility of noise that can occur at any point
of the communication process.
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Evaluate the role of culture upon the employee motivation of an organisation.
Culture plays a dominant role in enhancing employee motivation at an organisation.
Abraham Maslow's Hierarchy of needs is a model of motivation that outlines the desire of living
a well-satisfied life. It is very important for an organisation to provide advancement
opportunities to their employees that act as a motivation for the employees. The role of culture
has a prominent role to play in employee motivation at the workplace. The employee motivation
at H&M is explained with the help of Maslow's need hierarchical theory of motivation.
According to Maslow, there are five basic needs such as physiological needs, safety needs, love
and belongingness needs, self esteem needs and psychological needs.
The components of Maslow's need hierarchical theory are explained below-
 Physiological needs: Physiological needs are also referred as survival needs. The
survival needs are fulfilled by an organisation until and unless the organisation is paying
their employees. Survival or the basic physiological needs comprise of food, water,
shelter, clothes etc. These are the basic needs that are required for the survival of an
individual. An organisation who focuses upon fulfilling the basic needs are not likely to
retain the the employees until and unless they have something better to offer (Kitchin,
2017).
 Safety needs: Safety needs are also termed as security needs wherein the organisation
focuses upon providing safety to their employees. If the organisation fails to make their
employees feel secure, then the employment turnover rate is likely to be high for the
organisation. In order to retain the employees at the organisation, the organisation must
focus upon building a strong and ethical leadership in order to guide and support the
employees. The work place must focus upon formulating strict laws for harassment,
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bullying and hostility. The organisation must focus upon developing transparency among
the employees regarding the performance of the organisation that generates a sense of
security among the employees.
 Love and belongingness needs: Love and belongingness are basic human needs that are
very important to be fulfilled and act as a significant motivation among the employees. In
order to enhance motivation at the organisation with the help of organisational culture,
H&M can aim to identify and pay attention to the various on boarding and training needs
that are required to be fulfilled by the organisation. The organisation can further embrace
diversity at the workplace by encouraging the individuals to take initiatives. The
organisation can encourage open lines of communication between the employees, peers
and management in order to support socialisation at the workplace.
 Self esteem needs: Self esteem needs are basically the importance needs that are a
required to be fulfilled once the financial needs of the employees are met. An
organisation culture must be such, that it recognizes and highlights the various employees
who have performed well at the work place. This makes them feel engaged in the
organisational aspects and needs. In order to fulfil the self esteem needs of the individual,
H&M can focus upon an organisational culture that felicitate recognition programs in
order to awards people for their achievements. Various success stories can also be
published through newsletters.
 Psychological needs: The psychological needs are all about self actualization. In order to
help the employees attain the pinnacle point of the motivational theory pyramid, H&M
can assist the employees through educational assistance along with various wellness
programs and also indulge in corporate social responsibility initiatives (Larijani and
Saravi-Moghadam, 2018).
Identify and evaluate the ways in which the organisational culture could enhance the success of
the organisation.
Organisational culture has a major role to play in the success of an organisation. There
are various ways through which H&M can make use of its organisational culture in order to
achieve success. The various ways are discussed below-
 Transparency: The organisation must focus upon developing transparency among the
employees regarding the performance of the organisation that generates a sense of
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security among the employees. It enhances trust among the employees regarding the
performance of the organisation.
 Employee recognition programs: An organisation culture must be such, that it
recognizes and highlights the various employees who have performed well at the work
place. This makes them feel engaged in the organisational aspects and needs. In order to
fulfil the self esteem needs of the individual, H&M can focus upon an organisational
culture that felicitate recognition programs in order to awards people for their
achievements.
 Flexibility to employees: The organisational culture must be such that it offers remote
work opportunities to the employees in order to help them cope with their employment
needs. This will enhance employee engagement and further result in better performance
and productivity.
 Prioritise timely and respectful feedback: Employees of an organisation look towards
feedbacks from the side of the employer. The feedbacks can be positive as well as
constructive. Feedbacks help the employees to identify the needs and areas for
improvement. A timely feedback at the workplace is likely to promote performance
reviews (Wood and et.al., 2019).
CONCLUSION
It can be concluded from the study that Organisational Behaviour plays an important role
in the success of the organisation. The organisational behaviour is an important component of an
organisation as it depicts the operational efficiency of the business. The report has highlighted
the concept of organisational culture in context of the primary organisation while considering
Hofstede Organisational culture model. The report further highlights the importance of
communication in highlighting the organizational culture of the organisation. The model
considered for the study is Shannon- Weaver communication model. The report also signifies the
role of culture upon the employee motivation along with the Maslow's Need hierarchy model of
motivation. In the end, the report consists of an evaluation of the culture of the primary
organisation in order to enhance growth and success of the organisation.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Balwant, P. T., 2018. The meaning of student engagement and disengagement in the classroom
context: Lessons from organisational behaviour. Journal of Further and Higher
Education, 42(3), pp.389-401.
Chan, M., 2021. The role of strategic motivation, organisational behaviour and social
mechanisms in collaborative contracts (Doctoral dissertation, Queensland University of
Technology).
Collins, C. and et.al., 2020. Looking back and looking ahead: Applying organisational behaviour
to explain the changing face of work.
Gillam, S. and Cosford, P., 2021. Organisational behaviour. In Leadership and Management for
Doctors in Training (pp. 32-39). CRC Press.
Hunter, M., 2018. What lies beneath organisational behaviour: the role of hidden and
unconscious processes at work(Doctoral dissertation, London Metropolitan University).
Jacobs, K. and Manzi, T., 2020. Conceptualising ‘financialisation’: governance, organisational
behaviour and social interaction in UK housing. International Journal of Housing
Policy, 20(2), pp.184-202.
Kim, M., Kim, A. C. H. and Reid, C., 2017. Positive organisational behaviour in NCAA
Division I football: a head coach's authentic leadership and assistant coaches'
psychological constructs. International Journal of Sport Management and
Marketing, 17(1-2), pp.121-143.
Kitchin, D., 2017. An introduction to organisational behaviour for managers and engineers: A
group and multicultural approach. Routledge.
Larijani, F. and Saravi-Moghadam, N., 2018. The effects of positive organisational behaviour on
entrepreneurial personality and innovation. International Journal of Productivity and
Quality Management, 23(2), pp.247-272.
Wood, J. and et.al., 2019. Organisational behaviour: Core concepts and applications. John Wiley
& Sons Australia, Ltd.
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