Blog eight- Personality

Personality can be defined as ‘the characteristic patterns of thoughts, feelings and behaviors that make a person unique’ (about psychology 2011). It explores ways in which individuals react and interact with others and describes the concept of growth and development within the psychological system.

Personality is subject to much debate as to whether it is inherited or developed as a response to environmental conditions. This is known as the nature versus nurture debate. Both play at part in an individual’s personality and are considered to both be right but it is still unclear how much is determined by DNA and how much is by life experiences. It is clear that physical characteristics such as eye colour are hereditary yet genetically speaking it is not so clear when it comes to an individual’s behavior and intellect.  

The nature theory of human behaviour refers to the nomothetic approach which suggests that individuals behave in certain manners due to genetic predispositions, inborn abilities and traits. Mullins (2010) suggests that this approach is measurable as it identifies characteristics that can be subjected to observation and tests. It has already been determined that certain traits are encoded in each human cell as specific genes however the nature debate takes this a step further and suggests that other traits such as personality and sexual orientation are also encoded in an individuals DNA. This approach suggests that these traits or characteristics are fixed; i.e. cannot be changed as they link to heredity, biology and genetics. It claims that it is possible to predict the ways different personality groups would behave in certain situations. In order to do so they would conduct a statistical study of groups, conduct objective questionnaires and then sort individuals into different personality types. Eysenck and Cattell both created theories to support the nomothetic approach as they believed that personality was largely inherited. Ensenck’s personality questionnaire defines four distinctive personality types; stable extraverts, unstable extraverts, stable introverts and unstable introverts. This questionnaire appeals to managers in organisations for both selection and promotion to preface an employee’s future behaviour. Cattell’s work was very similar in that he analysed data to understand the dimensions of personality. He identified the two main personality traits as surface and source. Ensenck’s model can be seen below left and Cattell’s 16 factor theory can be seen below right.



Cattel's 16 factor theory



Ensenck's personality model







However some scientists believe the nurture theory is correct as individuals behave and think in certain ways due to the way they were raised based on environmental factors. According to Mullins (2010) ‘idiographic approaches are concerned with understanding the uniqueness of individuals and the development of the self concept’. This concept suggests that an individual’s personality development is open to change as they respond to the environment and people around them which plays a crucial part in shaping their personality. Within this approach individuals are often influenced by social and cultural processes for example at school or church. Carl Rodgers idiographic theoretical approach suggests that personality is embedded within individual’s personal relationships. The ideographic approach greatly differs to the nomothetic approach in that it sees measuring traits inappropriate as it is not always possible to compare one individual’s responses to another. They believe that the depth of an individuals personality cannot be judged by a questionnaire especially when the categories are to narrow in both scope and depth.  

I feel that both the nomothetic and idiographic approaches are correct to a certain extent. Many of our genetic traits cannot be changed as they are heredity. However I support the idiographic view in that if two identical twins were separated at birth and put in two completely different environments I don’t think they would have the same personality as each other. Environmental factors and the way they were brought up would have also had an effect.

The BBC website contains a personality test which puts together a portfolio of your personality based on five attributes these being; openness, conscientiousness, extroversion, agreeableness and Neuroticism. After completing the test the results are presented in a graph, my results can be seen below.

Openness scored lowest which means that I tend to have a smaller range of interests and would rather stick to what I know than try new things. The highest score was conscientiousness, this suggests that my life is well-planned and I prefer to approach things in a thorough and organised manner. This trait is considered to be the most consistent indicator of job success. I feel that this description does fit my personality as I am very organised when I approach tasks and work. However I disagreed when it states that individuals who are more conscientious are more disciplined about diet and exercise. Extroversion is related to positive emotions and the risk people take within their lifestyles. A medium score suggested that I am comfortable in social situations but wouldn’t lead a risky lifestyle in pursuit of rewards. Other qualities connected to this trait include leadership qualities and a healthier lifestyle i.e. a non-smoker. Scoring highly on agreeableness suggests that I am likely to get along with others and excel at teamwork situations. It measures how sympathetic and considerate a person is and suggests that those who score highly are more considerate to others feelings. The final personality trait is neuroticism which relates to responses to threatening and stressful situations. My score suggests that I may often experience changeable moods due to stress or anxiousness. However it also states that a combination of high Neuroticism and conscientiousness can result in a power work ethic. Based on the questions asked in the personality test I found it very interesting as to how they reached their results as in my opinion they provided an accurate profile of my personality.

To conclude an individual’s personality is what makes them unique from everyone else. Everyone has different traits and characteristic which make up their personality from both genetic and environmental sources. The nature versus nurture debate has been ongoing between scientists for some time but what has been agreed is that although certain genes may increase the chances that an individual will act in a certain way it does not make people do things. Individuals still make decisions based on their upbringing and their environment. There are many theories which support both the Ideographic and the nomothetic approaches providing may personality assessment and questionnaire tools for organisations.

References

Books

Mullins, L. (2010) Management and organisational behaviour.9^th ed. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Websites

About psychology (2011) What is Personality [online]. Available from: http://psychology.about.com/od/overviewofpersonality/a/persondef.htm [accessed 1 March 2011].

About genealogy (2011) Nature vs nurture [online]. Available from: http://genealogy.about.com/cs/geneticgenealogy/a/nature_nurture.htm [accessed 1 March 2011].

BBC (2010) The big personality test [online]. Available from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/humanbody/mind/surveys/whatamilike/index.shtml [accessed 1 March 2011].

Chimaera Consulting (1999) Cattell 16PF Profile [online]. Available from: http://www.chimaeraconsulting.com/16pf.htm [accessed 1 March 2011].

Kheper (2008) The Four Humours [online]. Available from: http://www.kheper.net/topics/typology/four_humours.html [accessed 1 March 2011].

Blog seven - Perception and communication

Robbins et al (2010), defined perception as “the process by which individuals organise and interpret their sensory impressions in order to give meaning to their environment.” Perception can be influenced by many different factors for example past experiences, attitudes, behaviour and backgrounds. Individuals relate to certain stimuli because of internal and external factors that relate to the individual and the environment respectively.

I have encountered many situations where my perception of someone was incorrect; the most surprising experience took place at Wallis in my part time job. Working in retail, one of the most important aspects of your job is to be alert for shop lifters. Stereotypically I thought of a shoplifter as somebody that looked quite scruffy, acted in a suspicious manner and was either a teenager or in their early twenties. One day at work a manager of mine came and whispered that that famous mother and daughter shoplifters were in our store and told me to follow them round casually. When I looked over I stereotypically was expecting to see a mother and daughter acting unusual wearing a tracksuit and trainers. Instead I saw a 40 year old lady who I recognised as a friends mum. She was fashionably dressed, well spoken and had immaculate hair and make-up. The way that she looked made her seem very respectable not somebody that would shoplift. I assumed that she was the mother however I was wrong again when I saw she was linking arms with a little old lady who seemed harmless. There behaviour was not that of a typical shoplifter as they were both extremely confident and were asking my advice on outfits which further indicated to me that my manager had misidentified them. It wasn’t until I witnessed them shoplift that I realised that my perception of them had been wrong. They were extremely subtle in the way they did it right under our noses as they knew they would never be suspected. From this experience I have therefore learnt not to be influenced by appearance and stereotypes as looks can be deceiving!

Communication is a key skill involved within the workplace as its involved within nearly 70% of employees time at work. Communication is important to keep control and inform employees of what’s happening within the organisation, this in turn helps to motivate employees.  People management created an article about ‘How to improve staff communication’, using these recommendations it is possible to relate these ideas to improving communication between Buckinghamshire New University and its students. The CIPD employee outlook survey provided some interesting results regarding how well employees felt they understood what was going on in their firms. According to the survey less than half the respondents felt well informed within their organisation. People Management magazine have therefore put together a plan to create an effective communication strategy.

Within this strategy one of the key points was to ‘ensure that leaders realise the importance of communication and take time to share their vision’. Within any organisation it is important that a shared sense of purpose is established  as it enables employees to understand the goal they are working towards. A common problem in many organisations is that senior management often deligate communication to junior managers. Employees like to be able to put a face to management and feel like they can approach them if there is a problem. This can also be applied to Buckinghamshire New University and its students. Students tend to only be aware of their lecturers and personal tutors, in order for the student to feel more involved within the university it would be better if the senior management were made more well known by attending certain university events for example. If senior management were to arrange a meeting once a term held in one of the lecture halls where students are able to attend then they would feel more involved and would understand more about what is going on within the university.

The second key point made in the article by people management was to ‘Create communication that is two-way, not only top-down.” This would be an effective form of communication to implement within the University so that students could easily talk to the correct member of staff. Top down communication refers to Handy’s role culture which suggests a chain network where the person at the top directs the flow of information to the bottom of the chain. Mullins (2010) suggests that Handy developed the ideas of Harrison to create four types of organisational culture one of which being role culture. This can be described as a beaurocracy as the job description is often more important than the individual. Within a role culture position is power. A greek temple has been used as imagery to support Handy’s theory of role culture with the apex of the temple being where the decisions are made, this can be seen in the diagram below. The pillars then reflect the functional aspect of the organisation which takes orders from the apex. According to Handy role culture it is most appropriate within organisations which that not constantly change in examples of these include; local authorities, government departments, public utilities and the public sector in general. This sort of culture finds it extremely difficult to change rapidly. The role culture is typified by rationality and size.

 Two way communications however is where there is no set way in which employees communicate. This means that everyone is active within the communication process. If this system were to be implemented within Buckinghamshire New University then it would mean that students would be able to approach management and have their say. This will help students feel more involved within the university and would therefore improve communication between students and the university.  A diagram of a chain network can be seen below.

Using the article from People Management it can be identified that the third way in which Buckinghamshire New University can improve communication with its students would be to measure the success of the universities actions. The article suggested that it is important for organisations to conduct surveys to understand the effectiveness of the organisations internal communications. Relating this back to Buckinghamshire New University and its students it would be useful for the university to conduct regular surveys so that they can measure its success.  Currently the university asks students to complete surveys on the modules in their course but not about the university as a whole. For the university to improve its communication with its students it would be advisable to create a survey about how students think communication could be improved. The university could then use these results to make the necessary improvements.

In conclusion perception can be influenced by many different factors and in many cases provides an incorrect image of an individual based on stereotypes. Perception and communication are both essential tool within the business environment as it has a significant impact on how the organisation is run. With regards to improving communication between the university and its students it can be concluded that firstly a two way communication system should be implemented so that students can have their say. The university management needs to make itself more well known so that students can feel a part of the bigger picture and understand the common goal and finally the university needs to measure its success by conducting surveys to receive the students opionions.

References

Books

Mullins, L. (2010) Management and organisational behaviour.9^th ed. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Websites

People management (2010) How to improve staff communication. [online]. Available from: http://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/pm/articles/2010/07/how-to-improve-staff-communication.htm [accessed 28 February 2011].

Managing change toolkit (2009) Culture- Charles Handy. [online]. Available from: http://www.lindsay-sherwin.co.uk/guide_managing_change/html_overview/05_culture_handy.htm [accessed 28 February 2011].

Blog six- Enterprise Week

During enterprise week I attended ‘Ella’s kitchen’, which was held on the 9^th November 2010 in the old boardroom. The presentation by Paul Lindley, the managing director of the company, lasted approximately one hour and consisted of a PowerPoint presentation which was then explained in further detail. ‘Ella’s Kitchen’ was set up by Paul to encourage his daughter and other children to eat healthier food. ‘Ella’s Kitchen’ (2010) passionately believes that children should have the opportunity to learn that healthy food can also be tasty and fun. The company is innovative and different, using unusual combinations of fruit and vegetables to create tasty snacks. The presentation explored the company’s journey from initial start-up to the products being stocked by major retailers such as Tesco.

I found ‘Ella’s Kitchen’ very informative as Paul Lindley’s presentation explained that he had used his daughter as the model for the products to build an emotional brand based on his family. I thought it was unusual that they have successfully aimed the product at two consumers, the mum and the children, as most competitors only target the parents. ‘Ella’s Kitchen’ uses colourful packaging and imagery on their adverts for the children as well as including all the nutritional information parents would be interested in. In my opinion the company is unique as it uses an unusual marketing technique.

To conclude, i found this presentation extremely beneficial because, after having recently created a business idea as part of my degree, I found it interesting to see how this could be put into practice in the real world. After listening to Paul Lindleys presentation it has inspired me to follow my dreams of setting up a beauty salon in the future. The knowledge that Paul Lindley provided was therefore invaluable advice as it explained how to ensure that your business is not one of the many that fails every year.

References

Ellas Kitchen (2010) Homepage [online]. www.ellaskitchen.co.uk [accessed 29 December 2010].



Blog 5- Power and Conflict at work

Conflict can be defined as behaviour that is intended to obstruct another individual from achieving their goal. Brooks (2006) stated that ‘conflict is apparent when at least one party perceives that it exists and where an interest or concern of that party is about to be compromised or frustrated.’

I experienced conflict at school when I was put into a group for geography to create a presentation relating to the formation of volcanoes. I was put with people that I wouldn’t normally work with as our teacher would usually let us work with our friends. This meant I found myself having to motivate others that weren’t interested in doing the work whereas I on the other hand wanted to get a good grade. Subsequently are group was not able to achieve its purpose to the best of our ability as only 50% of the group were pulling their weight. I didn’t think it was fair that only a few people were doing the work and the rest were being carried and would get the same grade. We decided to delegate everyone in our group aspects of the presentation that they would need to research individually and then present in front of the class. This worked effectively as they didn’t want to look bad in front of their classmates when we presented. From this conflict I learnt that it is best to deal with it straight away rather than waiting for it to progress. Also some people like to follow and be given tasks to do rather than using their initiative and just getting on with it.

French and Raven suggested the sources of power theory in 1959. There are five different sources of power, these are coercive, reward, expert, legitimate and referent. Coercive power is when people are afraid of their managers so their power is based on fear. Reward power is achieved when individuals have the perception that they will be rewarded in the future. The saying all knowledge is power can be related to expert power, this is when an individual has the expertise to carry out the job so is therefore rewarded with the power. Legitimate power is when somebody has achieved the right to be power, for example they have worked their way up the company’s hierarchy structure rather than coming through the back door at managerial level. Finally referent power is when somebody wants to be like somebody else and idolises them.

In order to overcome conflict at work there are many different strategies that organisations can use. The first strategy is the use of human resource management and procedures. As Mullins (2010) suggests areas of conflict can be reduced by paying careful attention to HRM policies and procedures such as equal pay and opportunities for example. By adhering by these policies and procedures it makes it a lot harder for somebody to complain and say that they are being treated unfairly. Another strategy is to clarify goals and objectives, this helps to avoid misunderstandings and conflict. By having clear goals this ensures that staff are aware what is expected of them. The third strategy is to ensure there are good communication, consultation and involvement in decision making between staff and management. It is important that if there is going to be a change that staff are prepared for this change to occur. To overcome conflict it is also important that employees have the chance to air grievances and have a grievance policy and procedure. The final strategy is to ensure there is a disciplinary procedure that all employees are aware of. All disciplinary procedures have three stages and it is important that employees understand what these are in order for conflict to be avoided in the workplace.

In conclusion conflict can occur in the workplace for a number of reasons for example limited resources, role conflict, differences in perception and inequitable treatment. This can have a very negative impact on the workplace so it is important that strategies like the five mentioned previously are followed in order for conflict to be avoided. From my own experience I have learnt that conflict will always arise within a workplace but its how you overcome this conflict that will affect the outcome

Resources

Books

Mullins, L. (2010) Management and organisational behaviour.9^th ed. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Websites

Mind tools (2011) French and Ravens five forms of power [online], Available from: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_56.htm [ accessed 22 January 2011].

Blog four- Leadership

The term leadership can be interpreted in many different ways. Simply leadership is others following an individual. Leadership is sometimes a behavioural characteristic of an individual’s personality or can be an attribute of their job role, knowledge or wisdom. According to Mullins leadership ‘ is a relationship through which one person influences the behaviour or actions of other people (2010, p.373). The term management is also subject to many interpretations, it can be seen as an everyday activity that involves people interaction. It can be said that to an extend everyone is a manager as we manage our own time and make decisions as to whether or not to do something. The two terms leadership and management often interlink however management usually refers to one individual carrying out an objective through others and relates to a management role within an organisation. Leadership on the other hand is based on interpersonal behaviour, where followers are more than happy to just follow. This differs to management as there aren’t many individuals that are enthusiastic about being managed. Leadership does not necessarily take place within a hierarchy in an organisation as many managers outside an organisation are not seen in a leadership role.

The Blake and Mouton managerial grid is a method of evaluating different styles of management. The grid uses two principles in order to compare different managerial styles. These principles are concern for production and concern for people. Concern for production is represented on the vertical axis of the grid and relates to the level of production and emphasis on completing the tasks. Concern for people is represented on the vertical axis of the grid and relates to the level of emphasis the manger gives to their colleague’s needs and expectations. The conclusion that can be drawn from the grid is how the manager expresses concern about people or production. The four corners and the centre on the grid make up the five combinations of degree of concern for people and production these include the impoverished manager, the authority-compliance manager, the country club manager, the middle of the road manager and the team manager.

I have identified the leadership style of Philip Green and Partners as the team manager, which has a 9,9 rating. This means that they have a high concern for both production and people. As Mullins suggests ‘team managers create a situation whereby people can satisfy their own needs by commitment to the objectives of the organisation’ (2010, p.462).    Any problems are handled with staff directly to ensure any issues are resolved quickly. By discussing the problem staff are provided the opportunity to suggest their ideas. I believe that after reading the five different combinations of leadership style that this best describes Philip Green and Partners. As it is a small company all issues are resolved quickly to enable the team dynamics to remain constant. They believe it is important that the staff are recognised for their hard work rather than just focusing on the job itself.

Martin Luther King is a well know leader that revolutionised the way our society is seen today. He is greatly remembered for his leadership role during his campaign for peace and justice. He was an inspirational speaker who delivered the well known 'I have a dream speach at the civil rights march on August 1963. His non-violent approach to challanging white oppression grew him a large following which in turn helped to change society. I believe Martin Luther King is a strong leader beacuse he fought for his beliefs and as a result created equal rights for hundreds of thousand of black americans.

References

Books

Mullins, L. (2010) Management and organisational behaviour.9^th ed. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Websites

BBC history (2003) Martin Luther King [online]. Available from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/recent/martin_luther_king_01.shtml Accessed 8 January 2011].

Google images (2011) The managerial leadership grid [online]. http://www.google.co.uk/imgages [accessed 8 January 2011].

Blog three- Organisation Culture

Organisational culture was defined by Hofstede (1984) as ‘a body of learned behaviour, a collection of beliefs, habits and traditions, shared by a group of people and learned by people.’ People working within an organisation develop their own culture in the same way a national identity is developed in societies. Culture normally refers to group of people that follow the same behaviour, when relating this to an organisation it gives a sense of identity for example ‘what we do’ and ‘how we should behave’. According to the CIPD, companies with strong cultures tend to perform better than those that are weaker.

Visible aspects of organisational culture relate to the physical and social environment. There are two main theories which explore the levels of culture within an organisation these are Schein and French and Bell. According to Mullins (2010) Schein suggested in 1992 that ‘the most visible level of culture was artefacts and creations.’ This level includes technology, language both written and spoken and the behaviour of group members. This theory is often related to an onion as the outer layers are visible aspects of culture, the middle layers are deeper aspects of culture and the centre is the basic beliefs on which the organisation was built. The second theory is French and Bell’s organisational iceberg.  French and Bell (1990) suggested that there were two contrasting aspects to organisations; the first is visable and formal whereas the second is more hidden and refers more to what goes on despite the formal structure.

 

            Shein (1992)                                                                                                                                      French and Bell (1990)

Using my own work experience at Philip Green and Partners estate agents I am able to provide examples of a few ‘visual’ aspects of culture in their organisation. Firstly estate agents use different language and certain phrases that are specific to this industry for example, vendor and probate. There are also many phrases that are written in short hand for example first time buyer is always written as FTB and everyone within the organisation uses this shorthand.  Aside from language there are certain unwritten rules and expectations that employees are expected to follow. When an employee is showing applicants around a property for example they are expected to take their shoes off and treat the house with respect like they would their own. There are many other examples of visual aspects of culture within this organisation that I could comment on but the final aspect I have chosen is atmosphere. Philip Green and Partners is a professional business so members of staff are expected to act accordingly. This means if a customer is to walk into the office a member of stands up to greet them and talks to them in a formal manner. As well as having a business attitude staff are expected to dress formally in business suits.

 

Organisational culture can be classified in many different ways. Handy developed the ideas of Harrison and came up with four types of organisational culture; power culture, role culture, task culture and person culture.

Power Culture

Within a power culture there are a selection of powerful figures at the centre and few rules and procedures. Decisions are often made quickly as communication is made in person. According to Mullins (2010) ‘A power culture is often found in small businesses as it relies deeply on trust, empathy and personal communication.‘

Role Culture

A role culture is typical of a beurocracy as work is decided via rules and regulations. The job role or title is often seen as more important than the individual and therefore power is based on the level in the company hierarchy. People in a role culture work to a job description, these are often seen in the public sector for example hospitals and local governments.

Task Culture

A task culture is a project based organisation that involves a lot of team work. This type of culture utilises the right resources and people to create a unique business. A task culture is based more on expert power rather than personal power as it is the task that is key rather than the individual or company rules. Within this type of culture there is a lot more freedom and flexibility.

Person culture

Within a personal culture the individuals are the main focus of the organisation. This means that there isn’t a hierarchy as the company only exists to serve the interests of those within it. Examples of this type of organisation include barristers, architects, consultants and doctors.

Every organisation will have its own unique culture so some businesses are likely to be a mix of cultures for example in different parts of the organisation there may be different cultures. This will make it hard to classify this culture under just one of the types mentioned previously.

To conclude organisation culture refers to the behaviour, beliefs and traditions of a group of people within an organisation. It can be said that it is the glue that holds an organisation together. There are a few theories that explore organisation culture further two of which I have mentioned previously. These are both based on a similar concept but Schein splits an organisation into three layers whereas French and Bell only split it into two. These visual layers can be applied to culture in organisations such as Philip Green. Not all organisations will have the same visual aspects as it depends on the type of company. Every organisation is unique and will therefore have a different culture. These can usually be classified under by the four types of culture suggested by Handy however this is not always possible as many organisation contain different aspects of all four cultures.  

References

Books

Mullins, L. (2010) Management and organisational behaviour.9^th ed. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Websites

Google images (2010) Organisational iceberg [online]. Available from: www.google.co.uk/images [accessed 22 December 2010].

Philip green and partners (2010) home page [online]. Available from http://www.philipgreen.co.uk/ [accessed 22 Decemeber 2010].

Value based management (2010) Three levels of culture edgard schien [online]. Available from: http://www.valuebasedmanagement.net/methods_schein_three_levels_culture.html

[accessed 22 December 2010].

Blog two- Improving staff performance

Motivation can be separated into two different types of theories; these are content and process theories. Content theories explore the factors that actually motivate an individual whilst at the workplace. It identifies the goals an employee wishes to achieve in order to satisfy their needs and progress within their role. Process theories on the other hand refer to the relationship between variables of motivation and the steps taken in order to influence behavior.

‘Wallis is part of the Arcadia group which is the Uk’s largest privately owned clothing retailer’ (Wallis, 2010). Wallis target their distinctive products at the middle age business woman, who is 30 +. Conducting research into Wallis proved an insight into the many different techniques Wallis use to motivate their staff. Wallis follow a ‘shine’ training scheme which incorporate the levels; trainee, standard, advanced, top level, deputy manager and manager. Certain tasks, for example stock take, must be completed in order for employees to complete each level. Employees are motivated to complete each level in the scheme as they receive a pay rise, £75 bonus and more responsibility. Wallis pride themselves on their training scheme as they think it is important to allow employees to work themselves up the ‘ladder’ rather than employing new members of staff at a supervisor level for example. Staff are also given regular incentives to help improve the store performance. These incentives include; £35 worth of clothes, a night out for the team, capital bonds, jewellery and an extra 30 minute paid break. Being part of the Arcadia Group Limited, all Wallis staff receive 25% discount in all seven arcadia stores and 20% in BHS. These techniques used by Wallis enable a good working atmosphere and relationship between members of staff.

The ‘shine’ training scheme used by Wallis can be applied to Locke’s goal setting theory, which explores how goals can motivate an individual. Mitchell and Larson suggest that ‘An organisation can have a strong influence on the work behavior of its employees by influencing their goals’ (1987, p.165). These goals need to be SMART goals for them to be achievable, this stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time bound. If a goal is set following these criteria then it is likely that the employee will reach it, however it has to be a challenge, there is no point setting a goal that can be achieved too easily. Arnold et al (2005) believed that by setting goals that are specific and difficult but not impossible, it will improve an individual’s performance at work as long as they receive feedback and recognition. Once a goal is achieved it is essential for recognition to be received in order for the employee to be motivated when aiming for their next goal. The ‘shine’ training scheme follows the SMART targets mentioned in Locke’s goal setting theory. Each employee is given 3 months to complete the trainee, standard and advance levels and 6 months for top level, deputy and manager. The tasks that need to be achieved in order to be signed of a level are relevant to the job and work commitment involved in the next level. The job role is broken down into bullet points, which are then ticked off when the employee shows the manager over time that they have mastered this skill. By making off those that have already been achieved the employee can track the progress they are making. This motivates employees as they always have a goal to work towards and can choose to stay at the level that suits them they don’t have to keep progressing up the management ladder.

Process theories help to provide further understanding relating to work motivation. Many theories are not able to be linked to just one writer but the main theories include; Vrooms Expectancy theory, Adams Equity theory and Locke’s goal setting theory. From the research I conducted into Wallis it can be seen that they use motivation theories effectively in order to ensure their members of staff perform to the best of their abilities. Although I feel Locke’s goal setting theory is best applied to Wallis many other process theories are also used in practice by this organisation, for example Vroom’s Expectancy theory.

References

Books

Mitchell,T and Larson,J.(1987) People in organisations: An introduction to organizational behaviour.3^rd ed. Singapore: McGrow-Hill Book Co.

Mullins, L. (2010) Management and organisational behaviour.9^th ed. Essex: Pearson Education Limited.

Websites

Arcadia group limited (2010) Arcadia brand history [online]. Availible from: www.arcadiagroup.co.uk/about/wallis.html [Accessed 5 January 2011]

Wallis (2010) Wallis History [online]. Available from: www.wallis.co.uk [Accessed 5 January 2011]

HR Zone (2010) If I make the effort do I meet my goals [online] Available from: http://www.hrzone.co.uk/blogs/brendanwalsh/360-degree-appraisal-and-performance-reviews/if-i-make-effort-do-i-meet-my-goals [Accessed 22 December 2010]