Analyzing Primark's Organizational Culture, Politics, and Power

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Organizational Behaviour
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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
LO1..................................................................................................................................................4
LO2..................................................................................................................................................7
LO3................................................................................................................................................10
LO4................................................................................................................................................13
Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................16
Reference list.................................................................................................................................17
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Introduction
Organizations from all sectors are required maintaining proper behaviour within the
organizational context in order to strengthen relationship between people and organization itself.
This organizational behaviour provides accurate direction to firm and assists in understanding as
well as predicting organizational life. This assists to encourage staffs as well as maintain
interrelations within the organization. Companies from small scale to large size business
organization concentrate upon developing their organizational behaviour so that they can
maintain better interrelationship within the organizational context.
“Primark” is one of the leading retail business organizations throughout the UK. The company
was established in 1969 and now the company has more than 70,000 trained employees
(Primark.com, 2019). The influence of the politics, culture and power upon the behaviour of
others within the organizational context of Primark will also be included in this portion of the
study. A number of motivational theories and motivational techniques will be outlined in this
study. Additionally, philosophies of organizational behaviour will be outlined in the context of
Primark.
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LO1
P1 Analyse how an organization’s culture, politics and power influence individual and
team behaviour and performance
This is essential that an organization’s senior manager is capable to encourage and inspire the
staffs for working in unison as well as with adequate amount of togetherness among one other
for influencing the proficiency and performance level of an individual or a particular team.
People must have mutual understanding among each other and adequate amount of self-respect
that is only possible to accomplish if there is an adequate and cohesive working environment,
where employees can work freely and in better manner (Mubin et al., 2014). Additionally, the
culture, politics and people of an organization play one of the most vital roles in order to
influence the work effectiveness as well as increasing team performance as well. The employee
behaviour of the firm plays the most vital role to influence the firm’s organizational culture. In
order to improve the performance the employees and their internal organizational culture and
behaviour, in 1986, Charles Handy proposed a theory regarding the organizational behaviour and
culture. There several important aspects of this theory that is discussed below:
Power: This is regarded as one of the major aspects as this originates from the centre as well as
gradually spreads to rest of the organization. This particular culture assists to reduce down the
bureaucracy standard of a company.
Role: This important culture helps in defining the structure of an organization. The exhaustive
roles and responsibilities of each staff of the company are pre-determined. The staffs are
allocated all the tasks depending upon skills, experience and qualification so that the work
efficiency is raised as well as the organizational productivity is enhanced.
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Figure 1: Four classes of culture of Charles Handy
(Source: Cacciattolo, 2014)
Task
This culture assists in job description and most of the times; this culture concentrates upon firm,
where individuals work as per the knowledge and skills. This is one of the most important
classes of culture of Charles Handy.
Person
This is the last class of culture and this makes the staffs feel superior over their firm. The
exhaustive important decisions about the business are with mutual consistent of the management;
employees and other various authorities (do Carmo Silva and Gomes, 2015).
Most of the successful organizations follow these four classes of culture and the selected
company for this particular study named, Primark that generally follows Power culture of
Charles Handy Model.
Influence of culture of an organization such as Primark
As per the consideration of Bolman and Deal (2017), there are mainly seven characteristics of
culture of an organization such as Primark, which allow accelerating the performance level and
proficiency of the staffs as well as the management. Being one of the leading retail business
organizations, Primark is capable of formulating an appropriate idea of increasing the
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performance level within the organizational context. According to Cacciattolo (2014), this is
important that the firm pay substantial amount of attention to proper team orientation that can
such has the ability of enhancing employee and management performance level. Additionally,
one of the integral concepts of company’s better functioning is providing attention to every
detail.
Furthermore, the sense of positivity and togetherness forwarded through the management of
Primark has already ensured the stability in the employee performance standard as well as
ensure that they are capable of accomplishing the aims and objectives of the organization.
Companies as if Primark uses a verity of models depicted for enhancing the strength and
efficiency of the culture of an organization as well as this has been initiated that stronger work
ethics lead to the lucrative positioning of the firm. Additionally, technology embraces innovation
and this has introduced a number of digital technologies. These digital technologies and the rise
of globalisation are helpful for business organizations to shape and influence the culture of the
specific organization. Organizations have an excellent chance of adopting a number of advanced
technologies for enhancing employee performance, interrelationships and accelerating
productivity. For an instance, software that are used for performance recognition can be a
powerful tool to drive productivity through measuring as well as showing staffs the impact of
their work.
Influence of the power and politics
As per the consideration of Esping-Andersen (2017), this has been identified that the
unfavourable behaviour from the senior management’s side and a verity of organizational
politics affect over organizational performance, leads towards lowering down the proficiency of
the employees, and intends to decrease the productivity level as well. This obvious that enhances
in the unethical behaviour and the negative working culture destroyed the organizational
goodwill of Primark. Thus, for improving the overall scenario of the organization, the HR
director of the Primark tried creating a positive as well as understandable political culture. The
staffs had the authority of providing valuable feedbacks. It helped in developing the company’s
political situation. Additionally, Primark has successfully managed for occupying a transparency
in the exercising of knowledge and communication among the senior manager and the staffs.
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LO2
P2 Evaluate how content and process theories of motivation and motivational techniques
enable effective achievement of goals in an organizational context.
Day by day the competition level in the market place is enhancing and due to this reason, this has
become challenging for the organizations’ management for retaining their staffs. Thus,
company’s management requires ensuring that they are capable of motivating their staffs. For
motivating staffs, companies mainly use extrinsic and intrinsic motivation techniques. There are
mainly two management theories, which assist in management of staffs.
Content theories
Content theory is a special theory that mainly stresses over factors, which directly motivates and
encourages staffs for improving their performance as well as at the same time, deliver their best
class services (Neuendorf, 2016). Herzberg and Clayton, McClelland, Abraham Maslow and
others are the theorists, which assist to contribute the factors of this particular theory.
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
In 1943, Abraham Maslow first time proposed this theory. This theory assists to discuss the
primary needs and requirements of an individual that are required to be fulfilled for keeping
them encouraged and motivated. Additionally, there are five levels including safety,
psychological, esteem, social and self-actualization in the hierarchy of needs of this theory.
Through fulfilling these basic needs of the employees, management of the company can motivate
and enhance their overall performance standard.
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Table 2: Maslow Hierarchy of needs
(Source: Miner, 2015)
Being one of the leading retail chain organizations throughout the UK, Primark is required
providing all the basic needs of the employees so that they can work in better manner and
enhance their organizational performance standard as well. While it comes to psychological
needs, employees of Primark are required pleasant working situation and work atmosphere,
where they can perform and contribute in better manner. Additionally, social needs would
require offering the staffs with posit9ive work environment and healthy working associations.
Self-actualization and safety of the employees are another important considerations that a firm
such as Primark are bound to care about. Esteems are required to be fulfilled through offering
recognitions to the staffs as well as taking the feedbacks and opinions of the staffs.
Process Theory
This theory concentrates upon the evaluation as well as description of staff behaviour and how
this can be used for directing as well as motivating the staffs of the firm (Hernes, 2014). Manly,
there are four process theories such as equity, expectancy, reinforcement and equity, which have
been researched through a certain number of theorists.
Goal-Setting theory
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Edwin Locke developed this Goal-Setting theory in 1968 for the first time ever. This is regarded
as one of the most powerful motivational theory assists to predict the behaviours of the staffs
(Locke and Latham, 2015). Additionally, for the first time, this powerful theory was
conceptualised as a process theory that actually enables management of a company for
considering the workplace motivation for occurring thorough defining targets and goals. For
implementing this effective theory in the most successful way, this is such important to identify
the performance of the employees. Furthermore, a challenging as well as realistic organizational
goal is required to be set, which will motivate and encourage the staff for improving their
performance.
Figure 3: Goal setting theory
(Source: Locke and Latham, 2015)
The management of Primark should set certain challenging and achievable targets as well as
goals for their staffs to encourage and motivate them. Additionally, this theory ill help the
management in making their workers feel valued through collecting their opinions and feedbacks
as well as they will more connection with the firm as well. The HR of the company named,
Primark has already identified the problems of gender pay gap as well as is making utilise of this
selected theory for motivating the workers as well as fix the problems in an effective manner.
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LO3
P3 Explain what makes an effective team as opposed to an ineffective team.
Team assists to achieve the objectives and goals of a company in an effective manner.
Organization categories and groups their workers depending upon their qualification and skills so
that they can easily enhance the firm’s productivity. Primark is one of the leading retail business
firms across the firm and the company has already categorized their workers on the basis of the
workers’ the exhaustive strengths and weaknesses for forming effective teams, which will
enhance the entire workforce efficiency of the firm. Additionally, teamwork assists to enhance
the employee skills and performance as well as assist to encourage and motivate them. Different
teams across the Primark are as follows:
Project teams
Being one of the leading retail chain organizations across the globe, Primark such requires
completing a certain numbers of projects in order to keep their market position and brand image.
Company’s management forms an effective team that consist of diverse groups of workers for
working over certain number of important projects (Mueller, 2014). Additionally, these teams
are responsible for completing their projects over time as well as effectively contribute for the
betterment and growth of the firm.
Functional teams
According to this type of team, organization’s members are divided into various departments
based on their job roles. All the employees in the Primark have been segmented into different
departments like Marketing, Human Resource Management, Finance and others.
Problem solving teams
This is obvious that every organization has to face a number of certain organizational issues
during conducting the various business operations. For fixing those issues effectively, a team is
created that consists of several workers (Bardach and Patashnik, 2015). This type of team is also
known as cross-cultural team that consists of several people from different background and
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interest those are brought together for fixing the actual crisis, which are facing through their
organization.
Virtual teams
Employees that are included in this type of team are often located in several geographic locations
and they are connected with the company through using internet. This is also observed that
various branches of the firm such require coordinating for completing a particular project.
Therefore, for meeting such situations, the management of Primark has already implemented
technological advancements, which help to connect them to their various firms.
Another important consideration is Team Dynamics that refers to the circumstance, which
influences the working circumstances and behaviours of a specific team as well as its team
members. However, teamwork is a mutual procedure that such require contribution from all
around the team. This obvious that behaviour of an employee such can affect over the behaviour
of other employees within the organizational context of Primark.
In order to make their team more effective, the company has tried to implement certain positive
changes throughout the organizational premises of Primark by using a number of effective
theories. The initiative has been taken through the company with the aim of creating new team
for enhancing the employees’ coordination level at large. This is obvious that creation of
effective new team will assist to improve the performance of Primark.
Tuckman’s Theory
This is a theory upon team building that assists to explain the importance of new and effective
team building in accelerating the productivity as well as efficiency of the overall performance of
the organization. Details regarding this effective theory have been displayed below:
Forming
Forming is regarded as the first or initial stage of building a team. However, no goals and
missions of the specific team are clear during this stage and workers are not familiar with each
other (Couchman, 2015). This stage such requires proper guidance and monitoring so that they
can build the most effective team.
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Storming
In this particular stage, the mission of the company is unfolded clearly to employees and they are
aware regarding their several roles and responsibilities. The workers show resist to managerial
power as the team is newly form. This is resulted in a number of unnecessary organizational
conflicts. HR of the firm manages this kind of conflicts.
Performing
Specific targets are allotted to the teams as well as the workers are encouraged and motivated.
Coordination among the employees is another important consideration. Workers coordinate
among themselves to achieve the organizational goals and objectives. Additionally, employee
performance is also increased that actually alternatively allows accelerating productivity of the
firm and improving the efficiency rate (Hod and Ben-Zvi, 2015).
Norming
Norming is another important stage that helps to develop camaraderie among the employees as
they admit sense of purpose of a team. Members of the team are capable of undressing one
another.
Adjourning
Teams are abandoned during this stage as their objectives are accomplished and all their tasks
are over. Primark has already taken decision of avoiding this specific stage as they wish to build
an effective paramagnet team for improving the organizational productivity.
However, leading retail chain organization named, Primark has used this effective theory to
build effective team.
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