Organizational Behaviour Report: Asda's OB Concepts and Theories

This report provides an in-depth analysis of organizational behaviour (OB) within the context of Asda, a major British supermarket chain. It explores the influence of organizational culture, politics, and power on individual and team performance, examining how these factors shape employee behaviour and outcomes. The report delves into various motivation theories, including content and process theories, and techniques employed to achieve organizational goals. It contrasts the characteristics of effective and ineffective teams, highlighting factors that contribute to team success. Furthermore, the report examines key OB concepts and philosophies relevant to Asda's operations, offering insights into how these principles impact the overall organizational environment. The analysis covers topics such as Handy's culture types, organizational politics, and different types of power, such as legitimate, reward, expert, coercive, and referent power. The report also discusses theories like ERG and Equity theory and how they are applied within the organization. The report concludes with a summary of key findings and their implications for Asda.

ORGANIZATIONAL
BEHAVIOUR

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
LO1..................................................................................................................................................3
P1. Influence of organizational culture, politics and power on individual, team and their
performance.................................................................................................................................3
LO2..................................................................................................................................................6
P2. Content & process theories and techniques of motivation that enable effective
achievement of organisational goals...........................................................................................6
LO3..................................................................................................................................................7
P3. Factors that make an effective team different from an ineffective team..............................7
LO4................................................................................................................................................10
P4 Concepts and philosophies of OB........................................................................................10
CONCLUSION..............................................................................................................................11
REFERENCES..............................................................................................................................12
·

·INTRODUCTION
Organizational behaviour is the academic study of human behaviour at the organizational
setting. It is the study of how a human behaves in the organization and the groups. It helps in
developing understanding the behaviour of employees that impacts job structure, performance,
communication, motivation etc. Asda is a British supermarket chain which was founded in 1949
by Peter and Fred Asquith. It deals with all kinds of grocery products, general merchandise and
financial services. It has its headquarters in Leeds, West Yorkshire. It is the wholly owned
division of Walmart. In the further report the following points will be touched upon:
organizational culture, politics, and power of Asda. Theories and techniques of motivation that
enable effective achievement of organizational goals. Also, light will be thrown on what makes
an effective team opposed to an ineffective team and various concepts and philosophies of
organizational behaviour within Asda in a given situation.
·LO1
·P1. Influence of organizational culture, politics and power on individual, team and their
performance.
·Organizational Culture : Organizational culture consist of all the values, beliefs, norms and
assumptions of the organization. Every organization is unique and that uniqueness of Asda is the
culture of it. Asda adopts Handy's culture in their organization which is of following types:
·Power culture – This culture is like spider web and the key to whole organization is centre. In
Asda there are few rules and regulation in power culture and control radiates from the centre.
Individual feels motivated as they have the power of decision-making but sometimes may feel
pressure as they are judged based on their performance which leads to decrease employee morale
and sometimes high turnover. In case of team they get demotivated as decision-making power is
with some people so there comes the lack of creativity in teams which impacts their
performance.
·Role culture - In this culture power comes from the position or role of the person. This
organization are based on rules. Role culture of Asda are build on detailed organizational
structure. Individuals have no confusion regarding roles as it is clearly specified in this culture

therefore performance enhances but in case of team this culture may lead to chaos as every one
wants to use their powers and this will lead to decrease performance (Anitha, 2016).
·Task culture - This culture is adopted to address specific problems or projects. The objective
of Asda to adopts this culture is to bring together the resources and the right people for
attainment of the objective by solving critical problems. As team members will give priority to
the task for which the team is formed so it will enhance performance of both team and
individual.
·Person culture – In this culture individual are given priority and are the focal point in the
organization. In Asda person culture individual believes themselves unique and superior to the
organization.
·Organizational Politics : It is the process to influence decision-making of an individual in an
organization to obtain one's preferred outcome. Asda refers organizational politics as an
influence by individual which serves their personal interest without regarding their effect on
organization. There are two types of politics in an organization which is good and bad. When the
employees of Asda engages in publicizing one's complements, volunteering and complementing
others is a kind of good politics and individual feels motivated to perform better and team unity
also increases which ultimately enhance their performance. When the employees engage in
spreading rumours, not telling important information, building networks for personal gains etc
all comes under bad politics. Politics is the lubricant that oils the gear of organization but if
done only to obtain personal gains can be highly destructive (Jain. and Ansari, 2018). Individual
feel left out if others are talking behind their back and also team may not be able to perform at
its full potential as concentration will be in gaining personal gains.
·Organizational Power : It is the ability of an individual to influence others. Asda defines
power as the possession of authority and to influence others. There are five types of power in an
organization which are as follows:
·Legitimate power – It is the power which is derived from the formal position as per the
hierarchy. In Asda it is held by the top authorities. Individuals can look up to the people with
power as their role model and in case of team if there is frequent interfere then members may get
demotivated and sometimes leaders can also abuse their powers (Сафаров, 2020).
·Reward power – It is the power to give rewards in return of their good performance. In Asda
this reward can be given in monetary as well as non-monetary terms and the role is played by the

immediate boss or authority. Individuals get motivated and shows loyalty towards the
organization. In case of team if the goal is attained and fair rewards are not given then it can
demotivate members.
·Expert power - The people having more experience, skills and knowledge exerts this power.
In Asda this power is practised by people having experience and are at the higher authorities
from a longer period. Individuals can take advantage of their superior skills and knowledge and
learn from them and enhance their performance. In case of team if there are people with more
skills, they will exert this power and will not listen to others this can create conflicts among team
members and can deteriorate the team performance.
·Coercive power – This is the power to give punishments and threatening employees if they
does not comply with the orders. In Asda this power is exercised when employees are required
to meet the deadlines. As this power is helpful in attainment of organizational goals but can
increase employee turnover both at individual and team level.
·Referent power – The power generally remains with the people who are most liked by other or
team members. In Asda it is usually practised by charismatic people over the team. Individuals
get motivated to follow that person as they are been liked and respected by others. In case of
team if one employee is appreciated for all the work then it can decrease the morale of other
members and have a bad impact on their performance.
Asda adopts power and role culture in the organizational. They try to indulge in good
politics and also ask their employees to indulge in the same. Combination of legitimate,
coercive, expert and reward powers are used in the organization.
·LO2
·P2. Content & process theories and techniques of motivation that enable effective achievement
of organisational goals.
Content Theory
This theory is concerned with factors that are internals to the individual that motivates
them to fulfil their needs. Asda says it defines the “what” aspect of motivation. This theory

includes various theories like McGregor's theory x and theory y, ERG theory, Herzberg
motivation-hygiene theory, need hierarchy theory etc. one among them is discussed below:
ERG theory – This theory was introduced by Clayton Alderfer and is an extension of
Maslow's need hierarchy theory. He suggests three core needs of an individual which are:
·Existence : These needs includes all the basic or physiological and safety needs. Asda provides
their employees with all these needs which are necessary for survival of the employees like air,
food, water, shelter as well as health, job security etc.
·Relatedness : These needs include the relationship aspect of an individual. Asda defines this as
the social needs which the aspiration employees have for maintaining significant interpersonal
relationships. Organization also takes care of these needs and provide their employees with
recognition and also ensures that they feel safe and secure and as a part of a group of Asda
(Guclu. and Guney, 2018).
·Growth : This need includes the personal development of an individual in Maslow it is known
as the self-actualization needs as well as esteem needs which are internal to the individual. Asda
believes that these needs are necessary to explore employees maximum potential because if
employees get stuck in doing same job everyday then there will be lack of motivation among
them.
·
Process theory
This theory is concerned with the process of motivation. It is concerned with the “how
and why” of motivation. Asda believes that this theory is concerned with the initiation and
direction of the motivation, determining how individual behaviour is energized and maintained
in the self-directed human cognitive theories. There are three theories in process approach like
Vroom expectancy theory, equity theory and goal-setting theory. One among them is discussed
below:
Equity theory – This theory was given by John Stacey Adams in 1963 therefore it is
also known as Adam's equity theory. He believed that employees are motivated by the fairness at
the workplace. Asda also tries to strike a balance between employees input and output in the
workplace. They believe that if the employees are paid fair according to the work done by them
this will uplift them and improve their performance. Equity is measured by comparing the ratio
of contribution or costs and benefits or rewards for each person.

·Inputs by the employees : Inputs are the contribution of the employees to the organization.
The inputs include their time, education, experience, effort, loyalty, hard work, commitment,
ability, adaptability, determination, personal sacrifice, skill etc.
·Outputs by the employees : Outputs are the outcomes or the results of employees inputs and
it includes job security, salary, employee benefit, expenses, recognition, reputation,
responsibilities, sense of achievement, praise etc (Trivikram, 2016).
·
Employees at Asda always tries to adjust their inputs so that balance can be maintained
between inputs and outputs. Therefore, if the employees believes their outputs are lower than
their inputs relative to others around them they will be demotivated.
·LO3
·P3. Factors that make an effective team different from an ineffective team.
A team is a group of individual with distinguish behaviour and skills comes together to
achieve common goal. Teams have members which have skills and generate synergy through
coordinated efforts. All the members of the team are dependent on each other and work towards
interchangeable achievements and exerts a sense of involvement.
Basic Effective team Ineffective team MeaningAn effective team is one in which there is
effective communication among members and everyone strives to achieve organizational goals.
An ineffective team is one in which there is no clear line of command and the communication is
not effective and organizational goals are not achieved on time. Relationship among the
membersMembers of the team trust and respect each other. Team members of effective team in
Asda are collaborative and supportive for each other. Members of the team are suspicious and
pragmatic. Team members in of ineffective team in Asda are competitive and have withholding
attitude. Decision-makingThe decision-making in effective team is done after consent from all
the members. In Asda's effective team decision-making is by consensus and there is full
commitment by all the members (Butchibabu. and et.al., 2016). The decision-making in an
ineffective team is done by voting system. In Asda's ineffective team majority votes wins and
there is confusion and dissonance. Flow of informationThe information in effective team flows
freely in all directions. Asda's effective team shares full information among the team members

and are open and honest. The information in an ineffective team mainly flows downwards. Asda
ineffective team flows incomplete and ambiguous information among the members and the flow
is mainly downward and weak.
Bruce Tuckman theory
This theory focuses on the way a team is build for a particular task, the way they tackle
that task and after completion of the task how they separate themselves. This theory was given
by Bruce Tuckman in1965. He says that there are various phases of a team building and all of
the stages are inevitable in order to grow a team (Black. and et.al., 2019). The following are
various stages of team formation:
·Forming – This stage is the initial stage of group formation, the members behave politely and
all are new. In Asda this stage is known as orientation stage in which all members are made
familiar with the work and also with each other. Maximum time is spent on planning, collecting
information and bonding.
·Storming – It is the second stage of team development. Members start to keep their opinion
and start to raise their voice. Asda believes that in this stage different ideas may compete,
relationship between members are made and sometimes broken. As status and power is assigned
to team members, conflicts arise between them as everyone wants to exercise their powers.
Disagreements and personality clashes are some characteristics that exist in this stage.
·Norming – In this stage, the team moves towards harmonious working practices. Conflicts,
personality clashes and disagreements turns into cooperation between members. In Asda, their
team members takes the responsibility of the work, accept other members opinion and focus to
prevent conflict.
·Performing – The fourth stage of team development is performing stage in which the team
members are competent and autonomous. In Asda leaders in this stage can now delegate roles
and responsibilities without conflicts. The team is now in the optimal state and members
communicate effectively and become efficient (Tang, 2019).
·Adjourning – This stage is the last stage of team development in which task is completed and
the members starts breaking up with the team. In Asda members share their experience of the
working together in a team with each other. Disengagement between the team members and
sometimes recognition process or rewards are also given for achievement of the goals.

·LO4
·P4 Concepts and philosophies of OB
Currently there are various concepts and philosophers of organizational behaviour
presents in market place which upper management of Asda has highly required to consider
within its workplace. This is very necessary task to this business for always positively affecting
performance and behaviours of different employees in workplace.
Path-Goal Theory
This is very useful model to different businesses to affect performance of employees in positive
manner (Qureshi, 2017). There are some elements of this theory has been described below which
can support to Asda for improving individuals and teams’ behaviours and performance.
Directive path
There are generally leaders need to provide a specific path to its employees which can enable
them to give their productive input in the workplace. The path needs to be visible for employees,
so that they will gain their objectives on time.
Supportive leaders
Leaders within Asda’s workplace should be very supportive to its various employees and
team members, because this is very necessary to positively influence performance, productivity
and behaviour aspects of individuals and teams.
Participative leaders
In each activity of the team work, a team leader has to show its proper existence by using
various styles of leadership, like; servant leadership, transformational leadership etc. A leader
responsible to manage different conflicts also in the workplace.
There are some key concepts and philosophies of organizational behaviour has been discussed
below;
Individual Differences
There are top-level management of this company have to understand one basic thing that,
currently there are thousands of employees works in the Asda’s daily operations, and these all
employees not came from the same background (Giessner, 2016). For example; all employees
have different ethnicity, religion, caste, hobby and interest, and their background always
influence their performance and productivity in workplace. The management have to avoid

various negative attempts in its daily operations. Suppose, many times managers and leaders
discriminate their employees on the basis of their background, so this factor negatively affect to
employees’ behaviours and performance. That’s why this is very necessary to top-level
management of Asda to always remove this type of negative factors from its business operations.
Human Dignity
Every person always like to have an extra-ordinary level of dignity. In this situation,
different employees within Asda also always tries to improve their levels of dignity. Basically,
there are different factors always exists within workplace which increase employees’ dignity
(Ruck, Welch and Menara, 2017). For example; when upper management of a company
appreciate and reward an employee who has performed very well in the previous operations,
then this factor very highly increases the levels of dignity in employees. After having higher
level of dignity, an employee gets motivated to develop its performance, productivity and
behaviour as well.
Evaluation
These all are prime concepts and philosophies of organizational behaviour, and these can
affect an employee’s performance and behaviour in both terms positively and negatively. For
example; when an employee has negative motivation, then this factor will affect Asda negatively
and when employee has positive motivation, then this affect this company positively. In this
situation, the management of Asda should try positively impact behaviours of employees by
using these all concepts and philosophies of OB.
·CONCLUSION
Organizational culture, politics, power influences the individual and team performance.
In Asda power and role culture is followed and leaders try to adopt good politics in the
organization and suggest their employees to indulge in good politics. The power used by Asda is
the combination of legitimate, coercive, reward and expert power. They also use various theories
and techniques to motivate the employees like content 's ERG theory and process's equity theory.
They believe that an effective team is one that makes a decision after taking consent from all the
members and there is free flow of information. Bruce Tuckman theory is applied in team
development like starting from forming stage till the last stage which is adjourning.

·REFERENCES
Books & Journals
Anitha, J., 2016. Role of Organisational Culture and Employee Commitment in Employee
Retention. ASBM Journal of Management. 9(1).
Black, S. and et.al., 2019. Team Development Over Time. Organizational Behavior.
Butchibabu, A. and et.al., 2016. Implicit coordination strategies for effective team
communication. Human factors. 58(4). pp.595-610.
Giessner, S., 2016. Organisational mergers: a behavioural perspective on identity
management (No. EIA-2016-067-ORG).
Guclu, H. and Guney, S., 2018. The effect of the motivation techniques used by managers to
increase the productivity of their workers and an application. Business Management
Dynamics. 7(7). p.1.
Jain, L. and Ansari, A.A., 2018. Effect of perception for organisational politics on employee
engagement with personality traits as moderating factors. The South East Asian Journal
of Management.
Ruck, K., Welch, M. and Menara, B., 2017. Employee voice: an antecedent to organisational
engagement?. Public Relations Review. 43(5). pp.904-914.
Tang, K.N., 2019. Team Development. In Leadership and Change Management (pp. 37-46).
Springer, Singapore.
Сафаров, Б., 2020. DEVELOPMENT OF THE THEORY OF LEGITIMATE
POWER. Вестник Таджикского национального университета. Серия социально-
экономических и общественных наук. (1). pp.299-304.
Online
Trivikram, S., 2016. Techniques and Theories of Employee Motivation. Accessed
through<https://myventurepad.com/techniques-theories-employee-motivation/>