Master of Business Administration- MBA Semester 1 MB0038 Management Process and Organizational Behaviour - 4 Credits (Book ID:B1127)

Assignment Set- 1 (60 Marks)

Q.1 What is emotional intelligence? Explain Golemans model of emotional intelligence.

Emotional Intelligence (EI) describes the ability, capacity, skill or, in the case of the trait EI model, a self-perceived ability, to identify, assess, and manage the emotions of one's self, of others, and of groups. Different models have been proposed for the definition of EI and disagreement exists as to how the term should be used. Despite these disagreements, which are often highly technical, the ability EI and trait EI models (but not the mixed models) enjoy support in the literature and have successful applications in different domains. Goleman's framework of emotional intelligence Goleman developed a framework to explain emotional intelligence in terms of five elements, he described as self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy and social skills. Each of these elements has distinctive characteristics, as outlined below: 1) Self-awareness: examining how your emotions affect your performance; using your values to guide decision-making; self-assessment - looking at your strengths and weaknesses and learning from your experiences; and being self-confident and certain about your capabilities, values and goals. 2) Self-regulation: controlling your temper; controlling your stress by being more positive and action-centred; retaining composure and the ability to think clearly under pressure; handling impulses well; and nurturing trustworthiness and self-restraint. 3) Motivation: enjoying challenge and stimulation; seeking out achievement; commitment; ability to take the initiative; optimism; and being guided by personal preferences in choosing goals. 4) Empathy: the ability to see other people's points of view; behaving openly and honestly;

avoiding the tendency to stereotype others; and being culturally aware. 5) Social skills: the use of influencing skills such as persuasion; good communication with others, including employees; listening skills; negotiation; co-operation; dispute resolution; ability to inspire and lead others; capacity to initiate and manage change; and ability to deal with others' emotions - particularly group emotions. Goleman claims that people who demonstrate these characteristics are more likely to be successful in senior management, citing research from various sources that suggests senior managers with a higher emotional intelligence rating perform better than those without. He gives several anecdotal case studies to illustrate ways in which emotional intelligence can make a real impact in the workplace.

Q2.What are the hindrances that we face in perception?

Individuals have a tendency to use a number of shortcuts when they judge others. An understanding of these shortcuts can be helpful toward recognizing when they can result in significant distortions. 1. Selective Perception Any characteristic that makes a person, object, or event stand out will increase the probability that it will be perceived. It is impossible for an individual to internalize and assimilate everything that is seen .Only certain stimuli can be taken in selectively. Selectivity works as a shortcut in judging other people by allowing us to speed-read others, but, not without the risk of drawing an inaccurate picture. The tendency to see what we want to see can make us draw unwarranted conclusions from an ambiguous situation. 2. Halo Effect The halo effect (Murphy & Anhalt, 1992) occurs when we draw a general impression on the basis of a single characteristic. For example, while appraising the lecturer, students may give prominence to a single trait, such as, enthusiasm and allow their entire evaluation to be tainted by how they judge the instructor on that one trait which stood out prominently in their estimation of that person. Research suggests that it is likely to be most extreme when the traits to be perceived are ambiguous in behavioral terms, when the traits have moral overtones, and when the perceiver is judging traits with which he or she has had limited experience. 3. Contrast Effects Individuals do not evaluate a person in isolation. Their reaction to one person is influenced by other persons they have encountered recently. For example, an interview situation in which one sees a pool of job applicants can distort perception. Distortions in any given candidates evaluation can occur as a result of his or her place in the interview schedule. 4. Projection This tendency to attribute ones own characteristics to other people which is called projection can distort perceptions made about others. When managers engage in

projection, they compromise their ability to respond to individual differences. They tend to see people as more homogeneous than they really are. 5. Stereotyping Stereotypingjudging someone on the basis of our perception of the group to which he or she belongs. Generalization is not without advantages (Hilton & Hippel, 1996). It is a means of simplifying a complex world, and it permits us to maintain consistency. The problem, of course, is when we inaccurately stereotype. In organizations, we frequently hear comments that represent stereotypes based on gender, age, race, ethnicity, and even weight. From a perceptual standpoint, if people expect to see these stereotypes, that is what they will perceive, whether or not they are accurate.6. First-impression error Individuals place a good deal of importance on first impressions. First impressions are lasting impressions. We tend to remember what we perceive first about a person, and sometimes we are quite reluctant to change our initial impressions. First-impression error means the tendency to form lasting opinions about an individual based on initial perceptions. Primacy effects can be particularly dangerous in interviews, given that we form first impressions quickly and that these impressions may be the basis for long-term employment relationships.

Q3.Describe the bases of power.

Bases of Power: Power can be categorized into two types: Formal and informal A. Formal Power:

It is based on the position of an individual in an organization. Formal power is derived from either ones ability to coerce or reward others or is derived from the formal authority vested in the individual due to his/ her strategic position in the organizational hierarchy. For example, a manager may threaten to withhold a pay raise, or to transfer, demote, or even recommend the firing of a subordinate who does not act as desired. Such coercive power is the extent to which a manager can deny desired rewards or administer punishments to control other people. The availability of coercive power also varies across organizations. The presence of unions and organizational policies on employee treatment can weaken this power base significantly. Formal power may be categorized into four types which are as follows: 1. Coercive Power: The coercive power base is being dependent on fear. It is based on the application, or the threat of application, of physical sanctions such as the infliction of pain, the generation of frustration through restriction of movement, or the controlling by force of basic physiological or safety needs. In an organization one can exercise power over another if they have the power to dismiss, suspend, demote another assuming that the job is valuable to the person on whom power is being unleashed. 2. Reward Power: The opposite of coercive power is reward power. Reward power is the extent to which a manager can use extrinsic and intrinsic rewards to control other people. Examples of such rewards include money, promotions, compliments, or enriched jobs. Although all managers have some access to rewards, success in accessing and utilizing rewards to achieve influence varies according to the skills of the manager. 3. Legitimate Power:

The third base of position power is legitimate power, or formal authority .It stems from the extent to which a manager can use subordinates internalized values or beliefs that the boss has a right of command to control their behavior. For example, the boss may have the formal authority to approve or deny such employee requests as job transfers, equipment purchases, personal time off, or overtime work. Legitimate power represents a special kind of power a manager has because subordinates believe it is legitimate for a person occupying the managerial position to have the right to command. The lack of this is legitimacy will result in authority not being accepted by subordinates. Thus this type of power has the following elements: It represents the power a person receives as a result of his/her position in the formal hierarchy. Positions of authority include coercive and reward powers. Legitimate power, however, is not limited to the power to coerce and reward. It encompasses the acceptance of the authority of a position by members of an organization. 4. Information Power: This type of power is derived from access to and control over information. When people have needed information, others become dependant on them. (For example, managers have access to data that subordinates do not have). Normally the higher the level, the more information would be accessed by managers. B. Personal Power Personal power resides in the individual and is independent of that individuals position. Three bases of personal power are expertise, rational persuasion, and reference. Expert power is the ability to control another persons behavior by virtue of possessing knowledge, experience, or judgment that the other person lacks, but needs. A subordinate obeys a supervisor possessing expert power because the boss ordinarily knows more about what is to be done or how it is to be done than does the subordinate. Expert power is relative, not absolute. However the table may turn in case the subordinate has superior knowledge or skills than his/ her boss. In this age of technology driven environments, the second proposition holds true in many occasions where the boss is dependent heavily on the juniors for technologically oriented support. Rational persuasion is the ability to control anothers behavior, since, through the individuals efforts, the person accepts the desirability of an offered goal and a viable way of achieving it. Rational persuasion involves both explaining the desirability of expected outcomes and showing how specific actions will achieve these outcomes.

Referent power is the ability to control anothers behavior because the person wants to identify with the power source. In this case, a subordinate obeys the boss because he or she wants to behave, perceive, or believe as the boss does. This obedience may occur, for example, because the subordinate likes the boss personally and therefore tries to do things the way the boss wants them done. In a sense, the subordinate attempts to avoid doing anything that would interfere with the pleasing boss subordinate relationship. Followership is not based on what the subordinate will get for specific actions or specific levels of performance, but on what the individual represents a path toward lucrative future prospects. Charismatic Power is an extension of referent power stemming from an individuals personality and interpersonal style. Others follow because they can articulate attractive visions, take personal risks, demonstrate follower sensitivity, etc.

Q4. Explain sensitivity training.

Answer of Explain sensitivity training: Sensitivity Training is a form of training that claims to make people more aware of their own prejudices, and more sensitive to others. According to its critics, it involves the use of psychological techniques with groups that its critics, e.g. G. Edward Griffin, claim are often identical to brainwashing tactics. Critics believe these techniques are unethical. Sensitivity training (also known as T-group, T standing for training).: This approach evolved from the group dynamics concept of Kurt Lewin and the first sensitivity training session was held in 1946 in State Teachers College, New Britain, USA. Since then, it spread to numerous training centers in USA and other countries. Sensitivity training is a small-group interaction process in the unstructured form which requires people to become sensitive to others feelings in order to develop reasonable group activity. The objectives of sensitivity training are as follows: 1. To make participants increasingly aware of, and sensitive to, the emotional reactions and expressions in themselves and others. 2. To increase the ability of participants to perceive, and to learn from, the consequences of their actions through attention to their own and others feelings. 3. To stimulate the clarification and development of personal values and goals consonant with a democratic and scientific approach to problems of personal and social decisions and actions. 4. To develop achievement of behavioural effectiveness in participants. 5. To develop concepts and theoretical framework for linking personal values and goals to actions consistent with these inner factors and situational requirements. Process of Sensitivity Training: Sensitivity training focuses on small group (T-group) with number of members ranging from ten to twelve. T-groups are designed to provide members with experiential learning about group dynamics, leadership and interpersonal relationships. The basic T-group training or sensitivity training is to change the standards, attitudes and behavior of individuals by using psychological techniques and programs. Based on the sources from where these members are drawn, there may be three types of T-group: stranger-lab, cousin-lab, and family-lab. In the stranger-lab, all participants are from different organizations and they are strangers to each other. In cousin-lab, all participants are from the same organization but from different units. According to his biographer, Alfred J Marrow, Kurt Lewin laid the foundations for sensitivity training in a series of workshops he organised in 1946 to carry out a 'change' experiment, in response to a request from the Director of the Connecticut State Interracial Commission. This led to the founding of the National Training Laboratories in

Bethel, Maine in 1947. Kurt Lewin, who met Eric Trist in 1933, influenced the work of the London Tavistock Clinic, both in its work with soldiers during the second world war and in its later work with the Journal Human Relations jointly founded by a partnership of the Tavistock Institute and Lewin's group at MIT. The nature of modern Sensitivity Training appears to be in some dispute. Its modern critics portray its origins and function in negative terms. Others view the approach as benignly beneficial in many of its historical and contemporary implementations. During World War II, Psychologists like Carl Rogers in the USA and William Sargant, John Rawlings Rees, and Eric Trist in Britain were used by the military to help soldiers deal with traumatic stress disorders (then known as Shell Shock). This work, which required service to large numbers of patients by a small number of therapists and necessarily emphasized rapidity and effectiveness helped spur the development of group therapy as a treatment technique. Rogers and others evolved their work into new forms including encounter groups designed for persons who were not diagnosably ill but who were recognized to suffer from widespread problems associated with isolation from others common in American society. Other leaders in the development of Encounter Groups, including Will Schutz, centered their work at the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California. Meanwhile, Training Groups or T-Groups were being developed at the National Training Labs, now part of the National Education Association. Over time the techniques of TGroups and Encounter Groups have merged and divided and splintered into specialized topics, seeking to promote sensitivity to others perceived as different and seemingly losing some of their original focus on self-exploration as a means to understanding and improving relations with others in a more general sense.

Q5. Explain the different leadership styles as per Managerial Leadership Grid Theory Answer: The Managerial Grid was the original name which was the modifications were made by Robert R Blake and Anne Adams McCanse. After the modifications it was named as Leadership Grid. Figure: Leadership Grid

Leadership Grid an approach to understanding a leaders concern for results (production) and concern for people The five major leadership styles specified as per Managerial Leadership Grid Theory: 1. The impoverished style (1, 1). The indifferent Leader (Evade & Elude) In this style, managers have low concern for both people and production. Managers use this style to avoid getting into trouble. The main concern for the manager is not to be held responsible for any mistakes, which results in less innovative decisions. A leader uses a delegate and disappear management style. Since they are not committed to either task accomplishment or maintenance; they essentially allow their team to do whatever it wishes and prefer to detach themselves from the team process by allowing the team to suffer from a series of power struggles. 2. The country club style (1, 9). The accommodating Leader (Yield & Comply) This style has a high concern for people and a low concern for production. Managers using this style pay much attention to the security and comfort of the employees, in hopes that this would increase performance. The resulting atmosphere is usually friendly, but not necessarily that productive. This person uses predominantly reward power to maintain discipline and to encourage the team to accomplish its goals. Conversely, they are almost incapable of employing the more punitive coercive and legitimate powers. This inability results from fear that using such powers could jeopardize relationships with the other team members.

3. The produce or perish style (9, 1). The Controlling Leader (Direct & Dominate) This believes in the authority-obedience. With a high concern for production, and a low concern for people, managers using this style find employee needs unimportant; they provide their employees with money and expect performance back. Managers using this style also pressure their employees through rules and punishments to achieve the company goals. This dictatorial style is based on Theory X of Douglas McGregor, and is commonly applied by companies on the edge of real or perceived failure. This is used in case of crisis management. People who get this rating are very much task-oriented and are hard on their workers (autocratic). There is little or no allowance for co-operation or collaboration. Heavily taskoriented people display these characteristics: they are very strong on schedules; they expect people to do what they are told without question or debate; when something goes wrong they tend to focus on who is to blame rather than concentrate on exactly what is wrong and how to prevent it; they are intolerant of what they see as dissent (it may just be someones creativity), so it is difficult for their subordinates to contribute or develop. 4. The middle-of-the-road style (5, 5). The Status Quo Leader. (Balance & Compromise) It is Organization man management approach, which believes that the adequate organization performance is possible through balancing the necessity to get out wprk with maintaining morale of people at satisfactory level. Managers using this style try to balance between company goals and workers needs. By giving some concern to both people and production, managers who use this style hope to achieve acceptable performance. 5. The team style (9, 9). The Sound / Team Leader (Contribute & Commit) This is based on the aspect that work accomplishment is from committed people; interdependence through a common stake in the organization purpose leads to relationships of trust and respect. In this style, high concern is paid both to people and production. As suggested by the propositions of Theory Y, managers choosing to use this style encourage teamwork and commitment among employees. This method relies heavily on making employees feel as a constructive part of the company. This type of person leads by positive example and endeavors to foster a team environment in which all team members can reach their highest potential, both as team members and as people. They encourage the team to reach team goals as effectively as possible, while also working tirelessly to strengthen the bonds among the various members. They normally form and lead some of the most productive teams.

Q6.Mr. Suresh Kumar is the VP- HR of a leading Financial services company. He is having a meeting with Ms. Rejani Chandran leading HR consultant. Mr. Suresh is concerned about creating an environment that helps in increasing the job satisfaction amongst employees. Assume that you are Ms. Rejani, the HR consultant. What suggestions you will give to Mr. Suresh, for creating an environment that increases job satisfaction? Answer: Job satisfaction is the sense of fulfillment and pride felt by people who enjoy their work and do it well. For an organization, satisfied work force ensures commitment to high quality performance and increased productivity. Job satisfaction helps organizations to reduce complaints and grievances, absenteeism, turnover, and termination. Job satisfaction is also linked to a healthier work force and has been found to be a good indicator of longevity. And although only little correlation has been found between job satisfaction and productivity, it has also been found that satisfying or delighting employees is a prerequisite to satisfying or delighting customers, thus protecting the bottom line. Below are the suggestions that as a leading HR consultant I will give to Mr. Suresh, for creating an environment that increases job satisfaction: Mentally Challenging Work: Employees tend to prefer jobs that give them opportunities to use their skills and abilities and offer a variety of tasks, freedom and feedback on how well they are doing. Under conditions of moderate challenge, most employees will experience pleasure and satisfaction. Personality-Job Fit: People with personality types congruent with their chosen vocations should find they have the right talents and abilities to meet the demands of their jobs; and because of this success, they have a greater probability of achieving high satisfaction from their work. It is important, therefore to fit personality factors with job profiles. Equitable Rewards: Employees want pay systems and promotion policies that they perceive as being just, unambiguous, and in line with their expectations. When pay is seen as fair based on job demands, individual skill level, and industry pay standards, satisfaction is likely to result. Similarly, employees seek fair promotion policies and practices. Promotions provide opportunities for personal growth, more responsibilities and increased social status. Individuals who perceive that promotion decisions are made in a fair and just manner are likely to experience job satisfaction. Supportive working conditions: Employees prefer physical conditions that are comfortable and facilitate doing a good job. Temperature, light, noise and other environmental factors should not be extreme and provide personal comfort. Further, employees prefer working relatively close to home, in clean and relatively modern facilities and with adequate tools and equipment. Supportive Colleagues: Employees have need for social interaction. Therefore, having friendly and supportive co-workers and understanding supervisors leads to increased job satisfaction. Most employees want their immediate supervisor to be understanding and friendly, those who offer praise for good performance, listen to employees opinions and show a personal interest in them.

Whistle blowing: Whistle-blowers are employees who inform authorities of wrongdoings of their companies or co-workers. Whistle blowing is important because committed organizational members sometimes engage in unethical behaviour in an intense desire to succeed. Organizations can manage whistle blowing by communicating the conditions that are appropriate for the disclosure of wrongdoing. Clearly delineating wrongful behaviour and the appropriate ways to respond are important organizational actions. Social Responsibility: Corporate social responsibility is the obligation of an organization to behave in ethical ways in the social environment in which it operates. Socially responsible actions are expected of organizations. Current concerns include protecting the environment, promoting worker safety, supporting social issues, investing in the community, etc. Managers must encourage both individual ethical behaviour and organizational social responsibility.