Management And Communication

Question 1
In this question I shall briefly explain the relevant organizational theories which are to be found in the text and discuss how they influence the organization and staff commitment.
In the text “Commitment in Chester”, we clearly see two different approaches of organizational management, which are practices simultaneously in the organization. Below I shall be discussing each one ofthem.
In the beginning of the text, already while reading the introduction, we learn a lot about the organization. The managers of the organization are used to get away for a couple of days in order to discuss the problems and possible solutions and strategies within the organization. There are several types of managers present at these so-called away days, some with higher managing positions thanothers. It is then clear that managers are the ones who make the important decisions in the organization without involving the employees with posts lower than theirs in the decision-making. The hierarchy is very visible in this particular organization, as even between the managers, as some have higher managing posts than others, the top level managers do not take into consideration the wishes ofthe managers with a level somewhat lower than theirs, which is clearly illustrated by the example of the discussion between Graham, the unit manager and Eric and Steve, managing- and personnel directors. The whole discussion in the text is based on Graham’s resenting about Steve moving one of his main men away from his unit without talking to him about it first. Graham’s immediate response was“He is my man, in my unit, working for me.”.
In the case it seems like from what we read in the text that Eric, Steve and Roger altogether as a team of higher position managers are unhappy about Graham’s way of running his unit, blaming him for lack of commitment in his unit. To Eric, Steve and Roger commitment from the employees seems to be very important, while Graham on the other hand stronglydisagrees saying “What’s all this crap about commitment and team spirit?(…)It’s no big deal”.
Graham, the unit manager, does not see commitment as something relevant for the business that they are running. To him the most important thing is to reach the goals set for one particular day/month/year and go home. “I don’t want to be in the office at seven in the morning and leave at nine or ten atnight. I do not want to spend time here.”, he says. His management approach inclines a lot to Henri Fayol’s theory of classical management (Fayol (1949) in Miller (2009:18). Henri Fayol’s theory of classical management has five elements: planning, organizing, command, coordination and control. In Fayol’s theory the organization needs to be highly structured with each individual knowing exactly where hebelongs. The structures are clear. Graham in this case does not understand how come Steve and Eric have interfered in his unit and made changes without involving him, as in his eyes, he is the manager of the unit and he is supposed to run it the way he wants, without any interference from others. Fayol’s theory and Graham’s perception of how the business should be run has somewhat resemblance toMorgan’s Machine Metaphor (Morgan (1986,1997) in Miller (2009:17). Morgan’s machine metaphor compares organizations with machines, where employees are replaceable, their work is the same all the time and there is no interference between the employees and departments. there is a so-called “Do your job and do not interfere in others’” moral. Exactly this Graham implies in his long monologue aboutSteve and Eric interfering in his business running. The advantages of this way of running business is that everyone’s jobs are specified to the last detail. The workers know the company’s goals and their personal ones as well. However “Do your job and do not interfere in others’” moral can be very discouraging and can lead to demotivation and lack of commitment from the employees – exactly...