The functional conflicts in an Organisation

The functional conflicts in an Organisation The term conflict has grown to become a very imperative word in Organisations and in everyday human life. Thomas (1976) proclaimed that conflict has become a popular management topic. This statement is further strengthened with the amount of research carried out on the subject matter as well as books, articles and journals published on conflict. Conflict refers to events ranging from inner turmoil produced by competing needs or desires to open violence between entire societies (Greenberg Baron 1995). Conflict is that process that begins when one party has negatively affected, or is about to negatively affect something the first party cares about (Buchanan Huczynski 2007). Conflict in the organisation is defined as the overt struggle between 2 or more people or groups in an organisation. It is usually centered on a state or condition that favours an individual over the other or a group over the other (Hatch 1997). Oceanic Bank Intl (OBI) stands out amongst our banks in Nigeria because of its excellent service delivery culture and that, has earned the bank a top 5 overall ranking in the Nigerian Banking industry. Conflict between Marketing and Operations Service departments is a common phenomenon in the Nigerian banking industry. This analysis will look at the view of various theorists on conflict and relate the Functional Theory to the OBI experience. In describing the OBI experience, we will analyse the HAND of management and demonstrate how functional conflict in OBI resulted in creative problem solving following proper management and increased innovation to seek solution to problems. Furthermore, the analysis actually will show that conflict in the organisation is positive and can be used to improve on service delivery, relationship management and ultimately organisational goals (Feldman Arnold 1983). Conclusively, emphasis on implementation and monitoring of Functional conflict will be suggested. CONFLICT Views and Theories Theorists all over, have different views on conflict. There is a school of thought that views it as Dysfunctional; saying that it is negative in the Organisation and a sign of incomplete social structure. They propose that taskforces, committees and liaison roles are ways to manage and respond to conflict in the organization (Hatch 1997). Another group of theorist view conflict as neutral, saying that it is negative to organizational goals but it is however inevitable and that it is a part of the organization. Pondy (1967), says that conflict as neutral may be regarded as negative and dysfunctional but as a neutral condition, its unavoidable and should be accepted. A more recent set of theorists view conflict as Functional and that it supports organisational goals and objectives. This view was promoted by the realisation that conflict can stimulate innovation and adaptability in the Organization. This view of conflict challenged the assumption that organisations are or should be co-operative systems (Hatch 1997). This theory of Functional conflict can be traced to Chester Barnard. Merits and Demerit Conflict in the Organization could degenerate and affect how the conflicting groups or individuals relate, perceive and behave towards each other. It can induce a win-lose orientation (Filley 1997; Mac Callun et all 1985). This Win-Lose orientation can de-motivate employees and of course affect performance. Rifts between employees or departments within an organisation if not promptly or properly managed could also lead to loss of quality employees. The negative effects may translate to poor performance of the organization. Though conflict has several demerits including de-motivation and employee turnover, if properly managed, can help create arousal among employees, energize and mobilize them to become more aware of their job functions and expectations from management. It can also help increase and develop innovative solution. Hall (1971) suggests that when properly managed, conflict may not only increase the innovation to seek solution to problems, it can often result in more creative solutions to problem solving. It is in such situations that conflict will be viewed as Functional. The growing complexity in Organisations has provided increased empirical support for a positive relationship between conflict and group performance (Bourgeois 1980), organisational learning (Fiol 1994) and high quality decision making in the Organization (Schwenk and Valacich 1994). The competitive orientation that comes with Functional conflict can institute an employee audit system, increase in productivity and quality of output and customer satisfaction as can be seen in my experience working with OBI in Lagos, Nigeria. THE OCEANIC BANK INTL (OBI) EXPERIENCE. Service Quality Gaps OBI is one of top 5 banks in Nigeria with a strong brand name that is based on its excellent service delivery culture and prompt response to customer request. Over the years, the very factors that built the strong brand name were on the decline. Service and Operations department with the back-end responsibility of delivering prompt service and delighting the customer and Marketing department with the responsibility of managing the relationship between customers and the bank as well as responding to customer requests promptly, both lost focus and developing a nonchalant attitude towards their job functions. They believed that the strong brand name of the Organisation would continually attract the customers irrespective of the quality of service and the sort of relationship that existed between the organisation and the customers. There were numerous complaints from customers bordering on basic service issues and relationship gaps; the prompt cheque confirmation process had been ignored, and relationship officers had become too lazy to upload customers confirmation online for cash officers to view bank-wide, a requisite for cheque payment. This resulted in customers having to waiting up to 30 minutes or more to get their third party cheques paid, even when the account holder had called in advance to confirm such cheques to the relationship officers. There were also cases in which the relationship officers had uploaded the customers cheque confirmation online as is required but rather than the service officer check the online mandate, but decided to call the relationship officer who could not be reached because he was in a meeting; this again resulted in delayed payment to the customer. A third scenario also experienced were customers inability to operate their accounts because they had not been issued cheque b ooks 4 weeks after account opening and fulfillment of all requirements. The service and relationship issues were countless and the result, dissatisfied customers. Resultant Conflict While relationship officers took the flak for the lapses of the operations department for failure to provide back-end support, the cash officers also took the flak for the laxity of relationship officers. This resulted in rifts between both departments; an illustration of (Buchanan Huczynski 2007) definition of conflict in (1) above. Effect on Corporate Performance Organizational goals were not being met, the profit had significantly declined following a decline in business volume as frustrated customers had moved to competition. The HAND of Management Following the stimulation of conflict and its resultant dwindling financial results, management came up with several policies to realign the focus of employees toward excellent customer service and dependable relationship management. The polices included improving the service time allocated to a transaction; completion of service excellence forms by customers after each transaction in the banking hall; daily relationship reports used to track marketing staff and their relationship with customers. The most significant and most effective strategy was the use of employees to appraise employees in their various units as well as outside their units. Employees were made to escalate to the highest level, service and relationship gaps noticed in the course of service to the customer. If an employee had to deliver quality service to a customer, and encountered challenges due to the negligence or irresponsibility of another employee, irrespective of the department of the employee involved, the erring employee was instantly reported to the task force and immediate action was taken against that employee. This policy was very effectively managed, monitored and the integrity of this reports and escalations were very well verified. The policy was priority to management and this was emphasised when an executive director was drafted to head the task force. He got a day-by-day heads up on the activities of the taskforce and he reported directly and made recommendations as regards disciplinary measures to the CEO. The effect and indeed benefits of this stimulated Functional conflict led to an astronomical increase in the volume of business; the feedback from customers on relationship management was indeed very satisfying and the profit margin grew immensely. The organization began to achieve its general goals once again, and management was happy with the positive results CONCLUSION. This review tried to capture how existing conflict can become Functional forcing organisations to innovatively seek solutions to problems leading to a boost in performance through improved customer service, profit and achievement of organizational goals using Oceanic Bank Intl Plc as reference. It also showed that Functional conflict required proper and effective implementation and monitoring to achieve desired result. The use of a taskforce, intra and inter-departmental appraisals and customer feedback mechanism worked well for OBI. Though conflict may exist with negative effects as opined by Hatch (1997) and Pondy (1967), management can make it favourable by initiating competition. Service level agreements should be agreed between departments with KPIs to which rewards and penalties are attached. SLAs should also cover escalations and to what levels. Beyond reports from customers, intra and inter-departmental appraisals and mystery shoppers can also be introduced as part of the feedback mechanism.

Homework&Elementary school Essay

Homework can be defined as the tasks given to the students by their class teachers, which has to be completed outside of the class. Homework usually has features that some amount of reading should be performed, writing to be completed, problems to be solved, and other skills to be practiced based on the nature of the assignments. Homework could be designed carefully to fulfill the needs of the academic curriculum, and prepare the students for upcoming lessons, extend what they know by having them apply it to new situations, or to integrate their abilities by applying many different skills to a single task. Homework also provides an opportunity for parents to participate in their children’s education (Richards-Babb, Drelick, Henry, & Robertson-Honecker, 2011). Purposes of Homework The purpose of the homework is that it should reinforce ideas, concepts, and knowledge of the subject matter taught. It is necessary in case of teaching a subject such as math, physics or chemistry. Through homework, students should review and practice what they have learned in the classroom, and prepare for the forthcoming lesson. It should offer to the students to study a subject in depth. Homework should let students investigate on their own, and learn how to find answers to questions. It should allow students build, work as a team, on their own time, with their own schedule. So that they can plan out themselves how much effort they need to supply in order to carry out the assignments successfully (Homework: is it worth it?, 2012). Home work also helps the teacher for the continuous monitor and evaluation of the progress of the students. Homework facilitates teachers to find out student’s organizational skills, time management. Another purpose of the homework is that it makes the students to be responsible and accountable. It should create an opportunity for parents to involve in their child’s learning and progress. Homework strengthens the home-school links (Heitzmann, 2007). Amounts of Homework The amount of homework varies based on the course and the ability level of the students. An investigation conducted by the United States Bureau of the Census (1984) found that â€Å"public elementary school students reported  spending an average of 4.9 hours and private school elementary students 5.5 hours a week on homework. Public high school students reported doing 6.5 hours and private school students 14.2 hours (Mendicino, Razzaq, & Heffernan, 2009). Recent research studies by the Brown Center on Education Policy concluded that the majority of U.S. students (83% of nine-year-olds; 66% of thirteen-year-olds; 65% of seventeen-year-olds) spend less than an hour a day on homework, and this has held true for most of the past 50 years. In the last 20 years, homework has increased only in the lower grade levels, where it least matters (and indeed, may be counterproductive)† (â€Å"Homework: is it worth it?† 2012). Amounts of Homework As a saying revels ‘too many cooks spoil the broth’, too much time spending on homework may lightly have the negative effects. It is said that generally homework does appear to result in higher levels of achievement for older students (at the secondary level). At the same time to the students aged between 11 to13, homework appears to be of benefit, but not to the same degree as for older students. For these students, spending more than an hour or two on homework does not result in greater benefit. So, it is a vital factor for the teacher to ensure that homework assignments are an appropriate length for the developmental level of their students (Too Much Homework Can Be Counterproductive, 2005). In America, NEA and the National PTA recommendations are in line with those suggested by Harris Cooper: 10 to 20 minutes per night in the first grade, and an additional 10 minutes per grade level thereafter (giving 2 hours for 12th grade). In Britain, the Government has laid down guidelines, recommending that children as young as five should do up to an hour a week of homework on reading, spelling and numbers, rising to 1.5 hours per week for 8-9 year olds, and 30 minutes a day for 10-11 year olds. The primary motivation for the Government policy on this seems to be a hope that this will reduce the time children spend watching TV, and, presumably, instill good study habits. Two researchers from Penn State say that instead of improving educational achievement in countries around the world, increases in homework may actually undercut teaching effectiveness and worsen disparities in student learning (Too much homework can be counterproductive, 2005). Effects of homework Harris Cooper, Ph.D., a psychology professor at the University of Missouri, has reviewed more than 100 studies on the effectiveness of homework. In general, he has found that the benefits of doing homework seem to depend on the student’s grade level. He also points out that â€Å"In high school, students who regularly do homework outperform those who do not, as measured by standardized tests and grades. In middle school, homework is half as effective, and in elementary school it has no apparent measurable effect on achievement† (Molland, 2012). Students’ self regulation processes also developed through the homework along with its effect on academic achievements. Zimmerman says that Self-regulation of learning involves learners setting goals, selecting appropriate learning strategies, maintaining motivation, and monitoring and evaluating academic progress Darshanand Ramdass and Barry J. Zimmerman (2011) points out that â€Å" a longitudinal study with fifth-grade students showed that doing homework fosters self-regulation skills and reading achievement†. Types of homework Academically, there are four kinds of assignments or homework. They are, practice homework, preparation homework, extension homework and creative homework. Practice homework meant for repeating the same kind of work again and again in order to remember a skill, especially while learning mathematics, vocabulary and spelling. Preparation homework intended to the preparation of the next day lesson. The purpose of extension homework is to make the students to be able to connect and separate topics. Creative homework is a challenging one which meant for using different skills to show what the students have learned in the classroom. Online Homework

On Wenlock Edge Poem Analysis - 1324 Words

Evaluate the use of melody, rhythm and texture in creating an effective setting of the poems by A.E Housman in â€Å"On Wenlock Edge† by Vaughan Williams. â€Å"On Wenlock Edge† is a song cycle of six pieces by Vaughan Williams, set to words from A.E Housman’s collection of poems - â€Å"A Shropshire lad†. Having studied music with the likes of Ravel, Williams was very aware of the impressionist movement (particularly in France) that was in full swing at the beginning of the 20th century - he also spent much of his life travelling around England, collection folk songs (particularly those of the Tudor period). These influences are distinctly heard in â€Å"On Wenlock Edge†. Put simply, the poems that make up â€Å"A Shropshire Lad† depict country life, however†¦show more content†¦The melodies in these pieces also have been used to attain a sense of immersion in the English countryside, a place where Williams’ folk songs would have been found. The recitative style melodic line at the beginning of â€Å"Is My Team Ploughing?† contributes to this feeling as it was written in D Dori an mode, a particular scale that is very recognisable from it’s use in traditional folk songs. A famous example of this is Greensleves, a traditional Elizabethan folk song written in Dorian mode, which, like in Williams’ song, has a very distinctive feel to it. In the poem that â€Å"On Wenlock Edge† is set to, Housman presents a landscape that is under torment in a heavy storm, with strong winds. With resources that are not suited to create such an effect (a string quartet, piano and voice), Williams relies on other composition methods to set the text truthfully. At the beginning, the strings and piano play triplets and sextuplets, with the strings using tremolo. The rhythms are often used to present a constant movement, or fluidity in the music, as is used to represent the wind, with the tremolo adding a slightly frantic, unpredictability to it. At the time that the pieces were written, programme music had recently become a popular style of composing, particularly shown by BedÃ…â„¢ich Smetana, whose work ‘Ma Vlast’ was published in 1872. The piece ‘Vltava’ from this describes the journey of the river

Should Adult Offenders Be Allowed - 933 Words

Throughout the United States, thousands of children have been sentenced as adults and sent to adult prisons. Without the possibility of parole, nearly 3000 kids nationwide have been sentence to life in prison. Children as young as 13 years old have been tried as adults and sentenced to die in prison, usually without any consideration of their age or facts or conditions that surround the offense. Trying teens as adults gives way to many opinions. The researcher believes minors should be up-held to the same possibility as adults of punishment depending on the extent and circumstances of their crime. Although, some states do set the age at 10, 12, or 13, there is no minimum age for trying children as adults in fourteen states. (â€Å"Children in Prisons†) On June 24, 2013, a long-time family friend of 59-year-old Adrian Denise Thornton filed a missing persons report with the Fort Worth Police Department in Texas. Thornton had not been seen or heard from since June 1st, which initially did not cause concern with those who knew her because she was known to periodically retreat inside her home in order to spend time alone in prayer. A United States Army Veteran and retired employee of the U.S. Postal Service, she was described as a kind and deeply spiritual woman who often helped those in need by hiring them to do odds and ends jobs for her. Unfortunately, it was her kindness to 22-year-old family friend David Rhone that ended up costing Thornton her life. Thornton had once hiredShow MoreRelated Juvelines Tried as Adults in Court Essay834 Words   |  4 PagesTried as Adults in Court Since the beginning of time justice officials have been faced with a difficult decision should juvenile offenders be given smaller sentences because of their age. Today officials still are having trouble with this situation. 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