Prompt #1:  What did you learn about organizations, and/or the

behavior of individuals within an organization?  How do the ideas

presented in Part Three (the Human Resource Frame) of the B&D
textbook enrich your understanding of the ways in which organizations
and the people working in them function?

In Part Three I learned that it is important that organizations find a

balance between them and the people and find the perfect fit to align
them both together. I have learned that not all organizations
appreciate their workers and they just see them as objects or tools
rather than appreciating that their needs need to be aligned. As
mentioned in chapter 6 “People and organizations need each other.
Organizations need ideas, energy, and talent; people need careers,
salaries, and opportunities. When the fit between individual and
system is poor, one or both suffer. Individuals are exploited or exploit
the organization—or both become victims” (Bolman, 2017, pg. 118).
The best thing for an organization and the people is to have a good fit
between the two. It allows for individuals talent to arise and provide
satisfying work that has meaning which contributes to the overall
success of the company.

Prompt #2:  How can you apply the concepts that you have learned
about in the readings to your personal or organizational life?  Be
specific.

The specific concept that resonates most with me is the Theory X

concept which reminds me of my old job and how my manager was. I
would say that my old boss aligned himself with the Theory X mindset;
who felt that the best way to handle my team and myself was with
“coercion, tight controls, threats, and punishment” (Bolman 2017, p.
123). I noticed that when I would go into work the team morale was
always down no one was motivated and we were not doing our work to
the best of our ability. As for me I do not like to be micro-managed if I
am performing to my best ability and my work is up to standard. From
experience from being micro-managed it causes good employees to
become unmotivated and after time perform poorly.

Prompt #3:  List the reasons cited in the text (Chapter 7) as why
managers persist in pursuing less effective strategies than those
obtained through high involvement, high performance or high
commitment management practices.  How have you experienced
these organizational pressures in your own work life.

The reasons managers persist in pursuing less effective strategies is

because some “managers fear losing control, investing in people
requires time and persistence to yield a payoff, and managers see an
organization as simply a portfolio of financial assets” (Bolman 2017, p.
137). Circling back to my old job I have experienced managers caring
more about their level of control rather than the needs and morale of
the employees. I had one manager that did not care about how the
work got done but just cared about it being done on time and hitting
our goals for the day. It caused for employees to cut corners just so
that they could get their work done in order to not get in trouble.  My
manager did anything he could to be less involved with the employees
but still wanted to have the most control over us. I noticed that the
days my manager was not there the team morale was up and it made a
significant difference in our work output. We felt more invested in the
end product and were actually motivated to want to work.

Prompt #4: As outlined by Bolman and Deal (Chapter 7), although

every organization with productive people management has its own
unique approach, most of their strategies can be captured in six
general strategies.  What are these six basic human resource
strategies?  How have you experienced these general strategies in
your own work life (please elaborate)?

The six human resource strategies in chapter 7 are, “build and

implement an HR strategy, hire the right people, keep them, invest in
them, empower them, and promote diversity” (Bolman 2017, p. 138). I
have actually experienced these strategies in my current work life by
working for a company that cares about their workers. We are not just
employees we are partners because it fosters a sense of equality and
shared vision. The company is all about creating the right moments for
their customers and partners and creating a place where people feel
welcomed and have a sense of belonging. The result of this all
motivates workers to want to work at the best of their ability and
provide the best experience for anyone that walks through the doors of
any store. The company invests in their partners so the result of that
comes with hard work, dedication, and success.
Prompt #5:  Throughout your progression in the Organizational
Leadership program, you have had a number of courses that include
content complementary to the human resource frame – perhaps more
connections here than with any other frame (in your various leadership
courses – and courses like OGL 220 Behavioral Dynamics in
Organizations, or BIS 343 Social Processes).  Please highlight what
you would consider to be two of the most important things (ideas,
concepts, theories, models, processes, skills, etc.) that you have
learned in previous coursework that you can relate to the Human
Resource frame.  Briefly discuss each key learning, the course where
you learned it, and its connection with the Human Resource frame.

I would say that the two-important things that I have learned came
from BIS 343 Social Processes. In chapter 7 in the book of Making the
Team: A Guide for Managers I learned about team decision making.
During that chapter I learned about groupthink which “Groupthink
occurs when team members place consensus above all other priorities
— including using good judgment—when the consensus reflects poor
judgment or improper or immoral actions” (Thompson 2018, pg. 172).
In the Human Resource frame chapter 8 talks about how interpersonal
and personal dynamics can make or break a group or team and
groupthink can also do that as well. In BIS 343 it also taught me about
physiological contracts and the importance of them. They are non-
spoken agreements but if they are broken, it can tear apart the
relationship.  In the Human Resources frame it talks about showing
and not just saying. Don’t just say you’re going to empower your
employees, put a process in place that supports that. These processes
are the physiological contracts.

Prompt #6:  How do the Human Resource aspects discussed work in

an organization with which you are (or have been) affiliated?  What
sorts of personnel policies and management strategies are espoused
theories versus those in use?   (This is about the concept/frame not
an HR department.)

Circling back to the six human resource strategies I feel that my

company is all about hiring the right people and look for people that
will be able to deliver the experience. Delivering the customer
experience is vital in our roles at work and it will continue to be part of
our mission.  
 

Prompt #7:  How does morale or other human resource issues affect
outcomes in your place of employment (for customers, employees,
stockholders, surrounding community and/or any other stake-
holders).  Describe enough of a situation concretely to provide
context and use concepts from the readings in your response.   If you
don’t think there are healthy or unhealthy aspects in your organization
relating to the human resource perspective going on, think again more
carefully and perhaps revisit the readings to broaden your definition
and understanding.

At my current job, it is important that partners are able to deliver the

customer experience to every one of our customers that walk into our
store. We want to make sure that every day partners are having
meaningful connections, treating everyone with dignity and respect,
welcoming everyone, and producing high quality beverages. With that
being said our team morale is important not only to our customers but
to the team. If our team morale is down it can cause for it to show and
can lead to partners not delivering the experience that customers
deserve to have. “When individuals find satisfaction and meaning in
work, organizations profit from the effective use of their talent and
energy. But when satisfaction and meaning are lacking, individuals
withdraw, resist, or rebel. In the end, everyone loses” (Bolman 2017, p.
156).

References

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2017). Reframing organizations: artistry,

choice, and leadership. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons Inc

Thompson, Leigh (2018). Making the Team: A Guide for Managers, 6th
edition. Pearson.