When talking about organizational empowerment, we deal with the planning and organizing. And what does this two words even mean? How do they differ? The first thing that springs to my mind when I hear the word organization is the Organizational Chart. I believe that behind every organization, there are people responsible in every tasks or planned activities. By having this idea, we will know what is the difference between planning and organizing. Planning is deciding what to do and Organizing is deciding how to do it.
After careful thought, I started analyzing the organizational chart of our institution. How are the numerous tasks and responsibilities divided and who are the people behind it? Since our organization is one of the largest schools in Mindanao, there are really various individuals or groups assigned with different tasks. In the main campus, all of the administrative officials are there starting with president, vice president, and board members. Then under their level are the in-charges of different departments: Finance, Human Resource, Payroll, etc. Then the dean of every college in the institution followed by the faculty. In the case of the branches such us our campus, we don't have the same hierarchy of officials like the main campus. The person on top is our Director, followed by the Dean of College. Then right under are the Department Chairperson for every college department, and followed by Program Heads for every program under a department. I had the privilege before of talking with our own Program Head in the Computer Science program. We talked about the responsibilities and tasks given to him as the Program Head and how it differs from the tasks and responsibilities of a Department Chairperson. In my opinion after that talk, there was an unequal division of labor or responsibilities in the institution, but I think that's how the administration sees it would work.
It is very important in an organization to have proper organizing. The assigning of planned tasks to various people or teams are crucial. It is proper to understand the organization design decision, the decision made about the structure of the organization, and the job design organization, the decisions made about the nature of jobs within the organization.
Now, let's talk about Organizing Strategies and how are they important in an organization. Leading -- means getting other to perform necessary tasks by monitoring them to achieve the organization's goals. Controlling -- a process by which a person, group, or organization consciously monitors performance and takes corrective actions. I can still recall back in college when I became the president of the Computer Science Program. I was given a very high position yet a very difficult responsibility. It is never easy leading an entire department and you will come across different students of different attitudes. Also, one of the challenges as a president was to get my constituents to do their assigned tasks. You have to establish a sense of responsibility, team work, job enrichment, and show them how important their positions are. You should be able to control and monitor them, making sure that it's not only you working alone. It was not an easy task to become a president, but I think it really helped developed myself on how to handle people and how to become an effective instructor that I am now.
In any organization, whether big or small, it is very important to know that the employees or members are its greatest assets. Employee involvement really matters. Employees should have their say on any matter. Soliciting their own opinion and considering their inputs gives employees an empowerment to the organization. It is very important to make them feel that they belong to the group and they are part of its growth. We should always remember that empowerment doesn't only include the organization but also refers increasing the spiritual, political, social, racial, educational, gender, or economic strength of its individuals.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Thursday, January 19, 2012
OA Chronicles: Change
Change, as defined, is a law of nature. Nothing remains constant in this world but change. To understand change in an organization, where do we start? I was thinking about the answer to this question when I remembered a recent experience I had regarding change in organization.
In the institution where I am currently working, the administration started imposing new regulations that we should follow. When I started working, I thought that those regulations were already imposed back then before I was hired. But when I had chitchats with my colleagues, I came to know that these regulations were imposed all of a sudden. There was a sudden change. It caused confusion to most of the employees. You could hear a lot of complaints and comments from different sides. They find the new regulations too strict and are OA (over acting.. :)). As for me, I did also find it too strict. Its like the institution was under Martial Law. Days passed by and we came to know that the school was applying for an Accreditation and to become a university. We understood then the reasons why those new regulations were imposed.
Now let's talk about the common reasons why there is a change in organizations. Why change? One of the reasons is the change in business conditions. Just like in our institution, since we are applying for an accreditation, we need to impose change to pass and to promote the quality education offered from the school. Another reason is the change in managerial personnel. On example I can give is the situation in government employees. Since my mother is one of them, I often hear her say that there will be a "RE-OR" whenever a new mayor or new official is elected. "RE-OR" meaning Re-Organization. There are employees who will be fired and hired. Personnel of different departments will be changed. Another reason for organizational change is the deficiency in existing organizational patterns. I think among the reasons given so far, this should be one of the major reasons why there should be a change in organization. It's like changing for the better. Technological and psychological reasons is another cause. I really did not understand how this affects the organization but I think these refer to the members of the organization. Government policies and the size of the organization are also causes of changes. Whether an organization is private or public, they are not excused to be affected with this type of changes.
When the reporters started sharing about organizational change, it was the first time I knew that there are different models considered in such natural occurrence as change. And so I tried to pay attention to the different models presented and was hoping to understand organizational change further. The first model presented had three steps called the Lewin's Change Model. This model was composed of the first step: Unfreezing. This step refers to the readiness of the organization to accept change. It is indeed important to prepare an organization in changes, whether big or small, so employees won't be surprised or have violent reactions when changes are implemented. Members should be educated and informed. Consultations, planning, organization, and appointments should be made. The second step: Changing refers to the implementation of change. This is the part where you should prepare for different scenarios that might happen. You could receive praise, encouragement, recognition and empathy. In this stage, there should be proper coaching, leading, managing, and help or guidance to monitor feedback from the members of the organization. The last step is Refreezing which sets the performance indicators. This is the stage where the changes should stick to the organization. Monitoring and evaluating performances and establishing controls should be done to determine if the change was successfully applied.
The previous model presented was not that difficult to understand since normally, this model is applied in most organizations. What surprised me is that there is a model which is composed of eight steps! This model was called John P Kotter's Eight Steps to Successful Change. As I was reading the eight steps, I was also comparing it to the previous model presented and tried to identify its differences aside from the number of steps it has. For me, there is not much difference found with the two models except that the John P Kotter's model was more detailed and very specific. Nevertheless, both models are really helpful in understanding how to apply organizational change.
As always mentioned, change is the only constant in the world. As members of an organization, we can't expect everything to stay the same. The world is turning and every now and then, changes happen. If you don't adapt to change, organization won't grow. I always believe that beyond every change there is a better plan and brighter future. Just like in the lyrics of Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror, "If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and then make a chaaaaaannngggge!!!" ^________^
In the institution where I am currently working, the administration started imposing new regulations that we should follow. When I started working, I thought that those regulations were already imposed back then before I was hired. But when I had chitchats with my colleagues, I came to know that these regulations were imposed all of a sudden. There was a sudden change. It caused confusion to most of the employees. You could hear a lot of complaints and comments from different sides. They find the new regulations too strict and are OA (over acting.. :)). As for me, I did also find it too strict. Its like the institution was under Martial Law. Days passed by and we came to know that the school was applying for an Accreditation and to become a university. We understood then the reasons why those new regulations were imposed.
Now let's talk about the common reasons why there is a change in organizations. Why change? One of the reasons is the change in business conditions. Just like in our institution, since we are applying for an accreditation, we need to impose change to pass and to promote the quality education offered from the school. Another reason is the change in managerial personnel. On example I can give is the situation in government employees. Since my mother is one of them, I often hear her say that there will be a "RE-OR" whenever a new mayor or new official is elected. "RE-OR" meaning Re-Organization. There are employees who will be fired and hired. Personnel of different departments will be changed. Another reason for organizational change is the deficiency in existing organizational patterns. I think among the reasons given so far, this should be one of the major reasons why there should be a change in organization. It's like changing for the better. Technological and psychological reasons is another cause. I really did not understand how this affects the organization but I think these refer to the members of the organization. Government policies and the size of the organization are also causes of changes. Whether an organization is private or public, they are not excused to be affected with this type of changes.
When the reporters started sharing about organizational change, it was the first time I knew that there are different models considered in such natural occurrence as change. And so I tried to pay attention to the different models presented and was hoping to understand organizational change further. The first model presented had three steps called the Lewin's Change Model. This model was composed of the first step: Unfreezing. This step refers to the readiness of the organization to accept change. It is indeed important to prepare an organization in changes, whether big or small, so employees won't be surprised or have violent reactions when changes are implemented. Members should be educated and informed. Consultations, planning, organization, and appointments should be made. The second step: Changing refers to the implementation of change. This is the part where you should prepare for different scenarios that might happen. You could receive praise, encouragement, recognition and empathy. In this stage, there should be proper coaching, leading, managing, and help or guidance to monitor feedback from the members of the organization. The last step is Refreezing which sets the performance indicators. This is the stage where the changes should stick to the organization. Monitoring and evaluating performances and establishing controls should be done to determine if the change was successfully applied.
The previous model presented was not that difficult to understand since normally, this model is applied in most organizations. What surprised me is that there is a model which is composed of eight steps! This model was called John P Kotter's Eight Steps to Successful Change. As I was reading the eight steps, I was also comparing it to the previous model presented and tried to identify its differences aside from the number of steps it has. For me, there is not much difference found with the two models except that the John P Kotter's model was more detailed and very specific. Nevertheless, both models are really helpful in understanding how to apply organizational change.
As always mentioned, change is the only constant in the world. As members of an organization, we can't expect everything to stay the same. The world is turning and every now and then, changes happen. If you don't adapt to change, organization won't grow. I always believe that beyond every change there is a better plan and brighter future. Just like in the lyrics of Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror, "If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and then make a chaaaaaannngggge!!!" ^________^
Friday, January 13, 2012
OA Chronicles: The Bee and The Lion
It was just like one of the ordinary Saturdays for our Masters class, only that it’s the first class of the new year. And almost all of us were late (chuckles). I don’t know if it made the class nervous about how Pareng Randy will react to our ‘lateness’, but all of us were so quiet and ready to listen to the reporter as we entered the room. Less expected, Pareng Randy just treated us like professionals letting us realize our own mistakes. And so the sharing started and was presented by one of my classmates that I idolized, Dustin Ramirez (parang artista lang ang name!).
“Again?”, I thought, when I saw that we will be repeating the topic about managers and leaders. I really thought in that moment that I have already full understood the difference between a leader and a manager. I even have chosen what I am as an instructor. But I was wrong. There are far much more considerations to make for us to say if someone is a leader or a manager.
And here’s the story about the bee and the lion. It’s not actually a story but it’s how Dustin explained to us the difference of a manager and a leader. The bee as a manager and the lion as a leader. I even thought that it was a mismatch and got confused again of what a leader or a manager is. There were some categories presented to fully understand the differences. First, the attitude toward goals. Managers take impersonal and passive outlook. Goals arise out of necessities and not out of desires. Leaders, on the other hand, take personal and active outlook. He changes how people think about what's desirable and possible. Next, is the conceptions of work. Managers negotiate and coerce, trying to balance opposing views. Leaders take fresh approaches to problems and are risk takers. Another category is the relationship to others. Managers prefer working with people with minimum emotional attachment while leaders are attracted to ideas and describes subordinates with emotionally rich adjectives. And another is the sense of self. Managers continue what is already strong in the company and feels part of the organization. The leaders comes from struggles to profoundly alter human and economic relationships and feel separate from the organization. To sum it up, managers impose rules and orderliness and leaders impose influence.
There were still a lot of arguments and discussions that happened. But as my classmates were arguing and discussing about it, I was already thinking that being a leader or a manager depends on the environment or organization you belong. I say that as an instructor, we are managers because we follow rules and we continue what is already strong in the organization. But if you belong to an industrial company, its important to be a leader, someone who is a risk taker and is open to fresh approaches. Can all of us be managers? NO. Can all of us be leaders? YES! Can we be both??? (grin).
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