Running Head: Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 1

Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 Venita Boykin, Marcie Davis, Erica King, Daphnee Mondevil, Margit Roberts BUSI 610 Liberty University

Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 2 Why is shared information so important in a learning organization as compared to an efficient performance organization? Discuss how an organizations approach to informationsharing might be related to other elements of organization design, such as structure, tasks, strategy, and culture. An efficient performance organization is based on a vertical organizational structure, where all the strategy formulation and decision-making is done by top executives and handed down the vertical hierarchical chain to be completed by workers (Daft, 2010). This form of organization structure allows top management to maintain control over the information provided to accomplish work processes and procedures necessary to meet organizational goals. A learning organization is based on a horizontal structure, where information is disbursed throughout the organization more openly through various methods. These methods include hiring employees with expertise and conducting training and development, which infuses knowledge throughout the organization to develop new processes and procedures to meet organizational goals (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2010). Learning organizations rely on shared information to formulate the strategies, processes, and procedures necessary to meet organizational goals and objectives. Without the fluid sharing of information, a learning organization would cease to exist. Information-sharing in a learning organization is based on a collaborative strategy where employees achieve outcomes and meet organizational goals by carrying out roles versus completing tasks (Daft, 2010). Kumaraswamy and Chitale (2012) indicated that collaboration is the only way to bring people together to share knowledge. Employees are able to contribute to problem-solving and strategy creation during the collaboration process as they perform their roles. According to Daft, a role has discretion and responsibility, allowing the person to use his or her discretion and ability to achieve an outcome or meet a goal (p. 31).

Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 3 Collaboration in a learning organization contrasts the hierarchical approach in the traditional, vertically structured firm, which relies on the vision, strategies, and handed-down processes and procedures from upper management. For information-sharing to be effective in a learning organization, the organization must be designed in a manner that will accommodate the fluid transfer of information; therefore, many learning organizations develop cultures that encourages openness, equality, continuous improvement, and change (Daft, 2010, p. 33). Contrary to the rigid, closed model of the efficient organization, the learning organization is based on an open-system model, where survival is dependent on constant interaction within the environment (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2010). What are some differences one might expect among stakeholder expectations for a nonprofit organization versus a for-profit business? Do you think nonprofit managers have to pay more attention to stakeholders than do business managers? Discuss. A stakeholder includes everyone and everything that influences an organization. The stakeholder approach involves the activities of corporations impact on individuals and collectivities whose interests are thereby affected both negatively and positively (Cragg, 2002, p. 116). The idea behind this approach is that a balance should be achieved among everything and everyone affected directly and indirectly by a company. There are primary and secondary stakeholders. The primary stakeholders are those who are directly affected by the companys decisions, such as shareholders and employees. Secondary stakeholders are those who are indirectly affected by the company but hold the capability of destruction (Cragg, 2002). Secondary stakeholders expect nonprofit organizations to achieve social goals and resolve issues within certain social divisions. Nonprofit organizations focus on providing a service which would positively impact people and the community (Daft, 2010). Funding for a non-profit organization

Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 4 comes from donations, government appropriations, and grants, which places the stakeholders in a relationship for a marketing strategy for managers (Knox & Gruar, 2009). For-profit businesses often concern themselves with primary stakeholders, since their influence is the monetary outcome of the companys decisions. For-profit businesses are also concerned with their reputation among stakeholders and focus on creating a return on investment for shareholders through their products and services. Stakeholders in a for-profit business consider a return on capital, where profit, growth, and the overall performance of the company are important. Whether success is measured financially or otherwise, management should focus on getting the best results with as little amount of resources as possible on the path of achieving the organizations critical success factors. While stakeholder interest may be different in a nonprofit versus a for-profit organization, management has the same duty to do the best job with the resources available for the good of the company in the most efficient and effective manner possible. All organizations must consider stakeholders when seeking success in todays market. How might a companys goals for employee development be related to its goals for innovation and change? To goals for productivity? Can you discuss ways these types of goals might conflict in an organization? Employee development often falls under the category of operative goals. Operative goals state the primary responsibilities of an organization (Daft, 2010). Operative goals are often interrelated. Employee development highly relates to goals for innovation, change, and productivity. Innovation and Change In todays market, organizations must continue to adapt to new changes. A new product or service may require new, innovative training procedures for employees. Changes in time-

Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 5 management strategies may involve restructuring the companys training program. New government regulations may require continuing education within the company. These types of changes directly affect employee development. Investing in ways to increase emotional intelligence in employees greatly benefits an organization (Lam & OHiggins, 2012). As employees gain education and skill, they feel confident in contributing to further research and development of production and services. Productivity Employee development is also directly related to productivity goals. The accumulation of knowledge capital, like employees training, enhances the firms ability to assimilate and exploit existing external information (Marrocu, Paci, & Pontis, 2012, p. 397). A company will increase its productivity when employees receive superior training. An organizations productivity goals may include increasing or perfecting the skills of its employees in order to increase production. Also, if a company focuses on developing employees, then the employees will take pride in efficiently producing a quality product. When it comes to productivity, a well-trained and content work force will more eagerly produce at peak levels, thus increasing output. In addition, as employees feel more competent and confident in their positions, they refrain from seeking employment elsewhere. Job satisfaction increases productivity due to decreased turnover and reduction of new-hire training. Conflicts Within any organization, conflict arises when goals and available resources collide. A company may have high goals for employee development, innovation and change, or productivity; however, it may not have enough available resources to allocate to each area. For example, suppose an organization sets a goal to increase productivity by twenty percent within the next year.

Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 6 In order to achieve this goal, the company must invest in innovations or changes in equipment or employee training. Updating equipment will be costly, and furthering employee training will require a considerable amount of time. The companys overall goals and resources among the sectors will lead to a management decision that may impede one or more goals. Employee development may also conflict with other goals due to the uncertain outcome of the development. The company cannot guarantee that the employees, after becoming better trained and more developed, will remain with the company and keep the newly acquired knowledge internal. If employees do not stay with the company after the development goal has been attained, the companys productivity will most likely decrease, and the companys competitors will then receive new, highly-qualified employees. This risk of losing investments in employee development keeps some companies from profiting from the substantial gains (Bernier & Cousineau, 2010). Suppose you have been asked to evaluate the effectiveness of the police department in a medium-sized community. Where would you begin, and how would you proceed? What effectiveness approach would you prefer? To begin evaluating the police department effectiveness, the group would first look at the goals of the department and then review the roles and responsibilities by understanding its organizational structure. To measure the effectiveness, the balanced scorecard would be an appropriate approach. Developed by Robert Kaplan and David Norton, the balanced scorecard is a performance measurement tool that includes strategic non-financial performance evaluations to the customary financial performance indicators to provide a balanced view of effectiveness (Sharma, 2009). The approach allows for a review in financial performance, customer service, internal business processes and capacity for learning and growth (Sharma, 2009). In addition to the balanced scorecard approach, an evaluation of the police chief will be performed; an organizational

Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 7 environment is based on the tone at the top, thus the police chief should be evaluated for fairness, ethics, and possibility of bias or racism. In the evaluation process, a careful analysis of the police department rules, regulations, and policy would be included to determine if they are being followed. If the processes and procedures help the employees meet the goals and objectives of the department, the next step would be to make required improvements. If the processes and procedures do not help the employees meet the goals and objectives of the organization, changes would be made in order to make the goals strategically aligned with the departments goals and objectives. Financial Performance The police department would be evaluated on its financial performance. An evaluation of financial performance cannot be disregarded in order to effectively assess a companys performance (Sharma, 2009). The evaluation would include the allocation of funds, the costs used by various divisions within the department, the money brought in by certain activities, and an analysis of cost-benefit data. Customer Service The customer service section of the balanced scorecard approach is based on the increased realization that customer satisfaction is important to the success and effectiveness of a business and is an important measurement tool (Sharma, 2009). In this situation, the customers would be the community in which the police department operates. The evaluation would consider how the community views the police department and how satisfied community members feel with how the department performs. Questionnaires could be given out to the community to ask questions about safety and other general questions pertaining to the effectiveness of the police department. Internal Business Processes

Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 8 The police departments internal business processes would also be evaluated. The effectiveness of current procedures and activities would be analyzed in order to discover ways to increase efficiency and lower costs. This portion of the evaluation would also indicate whether the police departments service fulfills the mission of the department and conforms to customer requirements (Sharma, 2009). Learning and Growth In an organization such as the police department, employees must undergo extensive training in a variety of circumstances. Learning and growth is a vital component in a successful organization (Sharma, 2009). In order to evaluate the effectiveness of the department, employee retention, satisfaction, and training would be measured. What types of organizational activities do you think are most likely to be outsourced? What types are least likely? Outsourcing occurs when a company uses external partners to perform tasks at a cheaper rate or in a more efficient manner (Daft, 2010). As McIvor (2010) pointed out, due to the increase in globalization, companies thrive to be more efficient and reduce their costs by specializing in key areas and outsourcing the remaining activities. Activities such as manufacturing, credit processing, logistics, maintenance and equipment repair, accounting, marketing and distribution, human resources and payroll, market research and date collection, public relations, delivery of goods, call centers, credit processing, secretarial services, as well as other support functions are most likely to be outsourced in order to save time or money. However, information systems and technology is the most outsourced area (Elmuti, Kathawala, & Monippallis, 1998). Even research and development, which is a vital part of the firms innovation, has the potential to be outsourced to give the company access to resources they may not have internally (Grimpe & Kaiser, 2010).

Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 9 Dekkers (2011) found that in a manufacturing environment, the decision to outsource is mainly driven by cost factors; contracting out certain portions of the manufacturing activities leads to reduced production cost and thus promotes economies of scale. Activities least likely to be outsourced are those related to the organizations core competencies and are critical to achieving or maintaining a competitive advantage. McIvor (2010) stated that valuable resources, which are the capabilities that allow a firm to stay competitive and defy threats, should be kept in-house to maintain their uniqueness and integrity and to reduce chances for imitation. The closer the activity is to the core of the business, the less likely it is for the activity to be outsourced (Jenster & Henrik, 2000). The core, as described by Jenster and Henrik (2000), includes resources, either human or technical, and the financial assets that set the company apart from competitors. In addition, organizational activities that can be performed with little cost or time within the company are less likely to be outsourced, because contracting out these tasks or functions would not give the company an advantage over competitors or help the bottom line.

Group 2 Discussion Board Forum 1 Part 2 10 References Bernier, A., & Cousineau, J. M. (2010). The impact of training on productivity in Canadian firms: Estimating distributed lags from the WES 1999 2005. International Journal of Interdisciplinary Social Sciences, 5(7), 231 239. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/login.aspx? direct=true&db=a9h&AN=66384551&site=ehost-live&scope=site Cragg, W. (2002). Business ethics and stakeholder theory. Business Ethics Quarterly, 12(2), 113142. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.liberty.edu:2048/login.aspx? direct=true&db=bth&AN=6660261&site=ehost-live&scope=site Daft, R. (2010). Organizational theory and design (10th ed.). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning. Dekkers, R. (2011). Impact of strategic decision making for outsourcing on managing manufacturing. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 31(9), 935-965. doi: 10.1108/01443571111165839 Elmuti, D., Kathawala, Y., & Monippalli, M. (1998). Outsourcing to gain a competitive advantage. Industrial Management, 40(3), 20. Retrieved from http://proquest.umi.com/pqdlink? did=31921898&Fmt=2&clientId=20655&RQT=309&VName=PQD Grimpe, C., & Kaiser, U. (2010). Balancing internal and external knowledge acquisition: The gains and pains from R&D outsourcing. Journal of Management Studies, 47(8), 1483 1509. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-6486.2010.00946.x Jenster, P. V., & Pedersen, H. (2000). Outsourcing Facts and fiction. Strategic Change, 9(3), 147 154. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1099-1697(200005)9:3<147::AID-JSC456>3.0.CO;2-8 Knox, S., & Gruar, C. (2007). The application of stakeholder theory to relationship marketing strategy development in a non-profit organization. Journal of Business Ethics, 75(2), 115 135. doi: 10.1007/s10551-006-9258-3 Kreitner, R., & Kinicki, A. (2010). Organizational behavior. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin. Kumaraswamy, K., & Chitale, C. (2012). Collaborative knowledge sharing strategy to enhance organizational learning. Journal of Management Development, 31(3), 308 322. doi: 10.1108/02621711211208934 Lam, C., & OHiggins, E. (2012). Enhancing employee outcomes. Leadership and Organization Development Journal, 33(2), 149 174. doi: 10.1108/01437731211203465 Marrocu, E., Paci, R., & Pontis, M. (2012). Intangible capital and firms productivity. Industrial and Corporate Change, 21(2), 377 402. doi: 10.1093/icc/dtr042

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McIvor, R. (2010). The influence of capability considerations on the outsourcing decision: The case of a manufacturing company. International Journal of Production Research, 48(17), 5031 5052. doi: 10.1080/00207540903049423 Sharma, A. (2009). Implementing balance scorecard for performance measurement. ICFAI Journal of Business Strategy, 6(1), 7 16. Retrieved from http://proquest.umi.com/pqdlink? did=1948666341&Fmt=2&clientId=20655&RQT=309&VName=PQD