Question No 1.

Organizations attempt to influence their environments – the most common methods for this are
through information management strategic response, mergers, takeovers, acquisitions and alliances,
organization design and flexibility, and direct influence.

One way organizations adapt to their environment is through Information Management. Information
management is especially important when establishing an initial understanding of the environment and
when monitoring the environment for signs of change. Organizations use several techniques for
information management. One is recognizing the importance of boundary spanners.

Boundary Spanners – is an employee, such as a sales representative or a purchasing agent, who spends
much of his or her time in contact with others outside the organization. Such people are in good position
to learn what other organizations are doing. All effective managers engage in environments scanning,
the process of actively monitoring the environment through activities such as observation and reading.

Another way that an organization adapts to its environment is through a Strategic Response. Options
include maintaining the status quo, altering strategy a bit, or adopting an entirely new strategy.

Other response to the environment is through some of the following measures;

· Combining firms to form new firms.

· Buying firms and operating them independently.

· Mergers, acquisitions, alliances and takeovers.

In an alliance, a firm undertakes a new venture with another firm however, it should not be thought of
as an easy option for organizations to embrace when adapting to complex environments. While alliances
provide a pathway for competitors to leverage off each other’s expertise and market share, they also
invite the attention of regulators and legislators, who rightly demand assurances that the corporation
does not erode competition to the detriment of the consumers. Alliances also require continued
commitment by the top management of the alliance partners.
Organizations may also adapt to environmental conditions by incorporating flexibility in its structural
design.

Example 1: A firm that operates in an environment with relatively low levels of uncertainty might
choose to use a design with many basic rules, regulations and standard operating procedures known as:
Mechanistic Organizational Design

Example 2: A firm that operates in an environment with great levels of uncertainty might choose to use
a design with relatively few operating procedures, instead allowing managers considerable discretion
and flexibility over management decisions.

Known as: Organic Design more flexible and permits the organization to respond quickly to environment
change. While the environment may exert a powerful influence over what an organization does and
does not do, does not necessarily means that an organization is powerless when faced with pressure.
Many organizations are able to directly influence their environment in many different ways

Example: Firms can influence their suppliers by signing long-term contracts with fixed prices as a hedge
against inflation or a firm might become its own supplier. (Campbell Soup Company)

Any major activity a firm engages in does affect its competitors one way or another.

· Price reduction by one firm will result in another firm also reducing its price.

Organization also influences their customers through the following;

· One method is creating new uses for a product.

· Finding entirely new customers.

· Taking customers away from competitors.

· Influencing consumers that they need something new.

· Influencing regulators through lobbying and bargaining.

Question No 2
In today's fast-paced, dynamic business environments, perhaps the only constant professionals can rely
on is change. Organizations must be nimble and willing to make decisions quickly, and those that are
able to do this will generally face a lot of change in short periods of time. This change could be
organization-wide or team-based, and might stem from any number of factors, from technology to
internal operating needs to finances to politics.

While change can often be a good thing, it's something that many individuals are uncomfortable with, or
even fear. To many employees, hearing of coming changes implies negative outcomes: the loss of a job;
a new manager; a restructured team; company-wide layoffs; reduced pay or benefits. As a leader, it's
your responsibility to set the tone for your team and prepare yourself for managing organizational
change as effectively as possible, helping your reports to understand and navigate this change as best
you can. This is no easy task, especially when you might not have all the necessary information or have
mixed feelings about the changes the organization is facing yourself!

That being said, learning how to manage organizational change is a key component of leadership. If
you're facing changes within your business and want to learn more about the change management
process, here are some of the key organizational change management strategies you can employ.

What Are the Best Change Management Strategies?

While there are many ways leaders can manage change, some of the best change management
strategies include planning, transparency and honesty, communication, and employee participation. We
go into more detail on these, along with some other key change management strategies, below.

Managing Change in Organizations

1. Plan Carefully

Before you bring proposed change to your team, make sure you have a clear plan in place that covers, at
a minimum, when, how, and why the change is taking place. Ideally, you'll have documented the tasks
needed to get you to where you want to be, outlined new or changing responsibilities for anyone
affected, crafted a fully-developed timeline, and come up with responses to address potential concerns.

2. Be as Transparent as Possible

One of the tricky parts about organizational change is that it will often arrive in phases, or will involve a
level of confidentiality on the part of the management team or certain individuals. However, especially
when the change will be a major one, it's helpful to be as transparent as possible with your employees -
even if you can't give them all of the details, being upfront about the pieces you can share (and clearly
explaining their impact) will go a long way towards helping your staff feel more comfortable.
3. Tell the Truth

This is an easy rule to follow when the change in question is positive; when the change is in response to
challenging circumstances or will result in short-term negative outcomes, this becomes trickier.
However, being honest with your staff to the extent that you're able to is usually the best route:
sugarcoating, presenting things in an overly optimistic way, and promising unrealistic outcomes will just
make your staff suspicious and distrustful of your motives. While it's important, as a manager, to present
an optimistic front to your team, do so in a way that acknowledges potential challenges and drawbacks.

4. Communicate

Keep the lines of communication open between you and your employees. Take the time to explain why
the change is happening, and what it will look like in practice. Make yourself open to questions, hold
team meetings, and invite your reports to come see you and talk through their concerns or thoughts in a
neutral atmosphere.

5. Create a Roadmap

Help your employees understand where the organization is, where it's been, and where it's going. How
does the change play into the business's history, and how is it going to shape its future? Laying this out
clearly will demonstrate the thought and strategy behind the change, and will help staff see how it fits
into, or is evolving from, the business model they've become accustomed to.

6. Provide Training

When the change involves shifts in technologies or processes, provide adequate training for your
employees to help them master the new way of doing things. And make sure that you convey that this
training will be available when the change is announced, so as to avoid employees feeling like they'll be
left behind due to lack of skill or experience.

7. Invite Participation

Although this won't always be possible, giving employees the opportunity to participate in, or give
feedback on, decisions can be a really positive strategy. Employees will be grateful for the chance to
make their voices heard, and it can also be a great way to get different perspectives and understand
impacts you might not have thought of otherwise.
8. Don't Expect to Implement Change Overnight

A longer, more strategic rollout is almost always the best option, rather than a hasty shift in direction.
Not only will you give your employees a chance to adjust to the change, you'll be able to answer
questions and address any issues well in advance of the change going into place. Additionally, people are
generally slow to adopt new habits, so this will give your staff a chance to familiarize themselves with
the new way of doing things and gradually phase out old practices in a more natural way.

9. Monitor and Measure

Once the change process is in motion, it's important to maintain consistent oversight over
implementation and rollout to ensure that things go smoothly and that you'll ultimately be successful.
Keep a close eye on potential problems, and address any issues in a timely manner. Define metrics to
measure success, and continually monitor them to make sure that you're staying on track. And
continually touch base with key stakeholders to gauge their perceptions and get any relevant feedback.

10. Demonstrate Strong Leadership

Above all else, remember to go back to basics and focus on maintaining and exemplifying the qualities of
a great leader. Inspire your team; demonstrate strategic thinking; be open-minded and flexible; and
show your team that they can depend on you to have their best interests at heart. A strong leader can
help their team weather the storms of change with confidence and clear-sightedness, no matter how
challenging they might be

Question No 3

Ethical risk management is incredibly difficult, mostly because you cannot predict what an employee is
thinking or control every one of their actions. However, finding ways to manage this risk is vital: one
person’s choices can cost millions of dollars, close down a business forever, and do significant damage to
customers.While risk avoidance is impossible, here are a few things you can do to lessen the chance of
being a part of the latest scandal.

5 Ways to Manage Ethical Risk

1. Promote your values and lead by example

Most organizations have a list of values with the words “honesty”, “integrity”, or “accountability”. It’s
good to have these written down, but the words are meaningless if the policies aren't followed: you
must do more than use them in the company description.
Make sure that leadership behaviour supports the organization’s values—workers will be more likely to
follow them if they know they are expected to and they have someone to model their behaviour after.
An unethical boss is not likely to inspire ethical employees.

2. Provide ethical training

Employees cannot always be blamed for an unethical action. Not everyone has the same sense of “right”
and “wrong”, so they should be instructed at the beginning of employment what behaviours are
unacceptable.

Some actions may be blatantly unethical, but those more subtle or specific to your organization should
be explored so employees can recognize when they are in a risky situation. Employees must also be
trained on how to avoid the unethical behaviour and what course of action they should take instead.

Another important part of training is ensuring that employees understand the consequences of their
actions. It is easier to act in an unethical fashion if you don’t think of all the people it could impact.
Instruct employees on how these behaviours can hurt not only themselves, but their coworkers, the
business, or your customers. Implement a system for reporting unethical behaviour

If an employee knows or suspects that someone within their organization is behaving unethically, they
must have a way to report it.

It’s important to keep in mind that many people would not be comfortable just going to their manager –
perhaps it is a superior performing the action, previous reports have been ignored, or the employee
fears that the wrong-doer will discover who reported them.

For these reasons, every organization should implement an anonymous reporting system. Ideally, an
external third party should manage this system so employees will feel comfortable reporting specific
incident details.

Ethical risk management is nearly impossible without this, as even regularly occurring incidents may not
be reported.

4. Use your organization's structure to deter unethical activities

People typically behave in unacceptable ways when they feel they will not be discovered or held
responsible. Under-managed teams, remote locations, or individuals whose work is never questioned
are excellent places for unethical behaviours to develop.
Ensure that appropriate management and checking systems are in place to deter employees from
believing an unethical action will go unnoticed.

5. Respond

It is important to follow through on every spot check and report to quickly determine when unethical
actions are occurring in your organization. When they are discovered, respond efficiently and fairly.

Have a predetermined and publicly known list of consequences, so that there will be no debate over
whether an action should result in a reprimand, probation, or being let go.

What is business bureaucracy?

Bureaucracy in business is a hierarchical organization or a company that operates by a set of pre-

Question No 4

How to minimize unnecessary bureaucracy in business

Some forms of bureaucracy are helpful, if not vital, to organizing a business, while others can impede
the work of an organization. Once you have identified which elements of bureaucracy are useful and
which are not, you can implement the following steps to minimize unnecessary bureaucracy in your
team or organization:

1. Keep your goals in mind

Business bureaucracy can be inefficient when employees become overly-focused on processes rather
than results. Instead of focusing on completing procedures at the expense of being productive, try to
find the shortest or most efficient route to achieving your goals.

2. Make your priorities clear

This can help you navigate bureaucracy at work. While having meetings and completing paperwork may
be part of your everyday tasks in the office, your actual job priority is probably something else, whether
that is writing code, making sales or crunching numbers. Prioritize these tasks so you can avoid doing
bureaucratic functions at the expense of your actual job.

3. Eliminate unnecessary paperwork

Creative solutions can help you avoid tedious bureaucratic work. For example, instead of filling out the
same information on different forms, you might create an automated way to store this information and
insert it automatically into a document. Thinking creatively can help you cut down on time doing tasks
that are not particularly productive. Additionally, look for other routine processes that could be
streamlined or eliminated.

4. Empower your employees

Management roles can help cut out unnecessary bureaucracy by empowering their employees. Teams
can slow down their productivity if they have to wait for permission from their supervisor for every task.
Instead, give your employees clear instructions, room to work and the authority to make less critical
decisions independently. You can further facilitate your team’s independence by looking for action-
oriented people to hire.

5. Reward your team

Praising team members for taking action is another way to keep them working productively and avoid
becoming mired in bureaucracy. Rewards from simple praise to promotions and bonuses can be
distributed to employees who take the initiative and proactively work to streamline processes. These
rewards are a signal to your team and the company that you value action more than bureaucratic
processes at the expense of productivity.

Question No 5. Uses of Power

Common Power Tactics in Organizations

As noted above, many power tactics are available for use by managers. However, as we will see, some
are more ethical than others. Here, we look at some of the more commonly used power tactics found in
both business and public organizations.

Controlling Access to Information. Most decisions rest on the availability of relevant information, so
persons controlling access to information play a major role in decisions made. A good example of this is
the common corporate practice of pay secrecy. Only the personnel department and senior managers
typically have salary information—and power—for personnel decisions.

Controlling Access to Persons. Another related power tactic is the practice of controlling access to
persons. A well-known factor contributing to President Nixon’s downfall was his isolation from others.
His two senior advisers had complete control over who saw the president. Similar criticisms were leveled
against President Reagan.

Selective Use of Objective Criteria. Very few organizational questions have one correct answer; instead,
decisions must be made concerning the most appropriate criteria for evaluating results. As such,
significant power can be exercised by those who can practice selective use of objective criteria that will
lead to a decision favorable to themselves. According to Herbert Simon, if an individual is permitted to
select decision criteria, they needn’t care who actually makes the decision. Attempts to control objective
decision criteria can be seen in faculty debates in a university or college over who gets hired or
promoted. One group tends to emphasize teaching and will attempt to set criteria for employment
dealing with teacher competence, subject area, interpersonal relations, and so on. Another group may
emphasize research and will try to set criteria related to number of publications, reputation in the field,
and so on.

Controlling the Agenda. One of the simplest ways to influence a decision is to ensure that it never comes
up for consideration in the first place. There are a variety of strategies used for controlling the agenda.
Efforts may be made to order the topics at a meeting in such a way that the undesired topic is last on
the list. Failing this, opponents may raise a number of objections or points of information concerning the
topic that cannot be easily answered, thereby tabling the topic until another day.

Using Outside Experts. Still another means to gain an advantage is using outside experts. The unit
wishing to exercise power may take the initiative and bring in experts from the field or experts known to
be in sympathy with their cause. Hence, when a dispute arises over spending more money on research
versus actual production, we would expect differing answers from outside research consultants and
outside production consultants. Most consultants have experienced situations in which their clients fed
them information and biases they hoped the consultant would repeat in a meeting.

Bureaucratic Gamesmanship. In some situations, the organizations own policies and procedures provide
ammunition for power plays, or bureaucratic gamesmanship. For instance, a group may drag its feet on
making changes in the workplace by creating red tape, work slowdowns, or “work to rule.” (Working to
rule occurs when employees diligently follow every work rule and policy statement to the letter; this
typically results in the organization’s grinding to a halt as a result of the many and often conflicting rules
and policy statements.) In this way, the group lets it be known that the workflow will continue to slow
down until they get their way.

Coalitions and Alliances. The final power tactic to be discussed here is that of coalitions and alliances.
One unit can effectively increase its power by forming an alliance with other groups that share similar
interests. This technique is often used when multiple labor unions in the same corporation join forces to
gain contract concessions for their workers. It can also be seen in the tendency of corporations within
one industry to form trade associations to lobby for their position. Although the various members of a
coalition need not agree on everything—indeed, they may be competitors—sufficient agreement on the
problem under consideration is necessary as a basis for action.

Although other power tactics could be discussed, these examples serve to illustrate the diversity of
techniques available to those interested in acquiring and exercising power in organizational situations.
In reviewing the major research carried out on the topic of power, Pfeffer states:

If there is one concluding message, it is that it is probably effective, and it is certainly normal that these
managers do behave as politicians. It is even better that some of them are quite effective at it. In
situations in which technologies are uncertain, preferences are conflicting, perceptions are selective and
biased, and information processing capacities are constrained, the model of an effective politician may
be an appropriate one for both the individual and for the organization in the long run.

Question No 6
10 Steps to Resolving Conflict

Schedule a meeting to address the problem, preferably at a neutral place.

 Set ground rules. Ask all parties to treat each other with respect and to make an effort to listen
and understand others’ views.
 Ask each participant to describe the conflict, including desired changes. Direct participants to
use “I” statements, not “you” statements. They should focus on specific behaviors and problems
rather than people.
 Ask participants to restate what others have said.
 Summarize the conflict based on what you have heard and obtain agreement from participants.
 Brainstorm solutions. Discuss all of the options in a positive manner.
 Rule out any options that participants agree are unworkable.
 Summarize all possible options for a solution.
 Assign further analysis of each option to individual participants.
 Make sure all parties agree on the next steps.
 Close the meeting by asking participants to shake hands, apologize and thank each other for
working to resolve the conflict.

Question No 7

Corporate culture, also known as company culture, refers to a set of beliefs and behaviors that guide
how a company’s management and employees interact and handle external business transactions.
Corporate culture can have a huge impact on the fortune of a company and its employees. There are
four distinct types of culture: clan culture, adhocracy culture, market culture, and hierarchy culture.
Each of these cultures has its own unique goals.

While each culture is unique, certain components define a great culture. Some essential features of
corporate culture include vision, values, practices, people, narrative, and place. There are other factors
that influence culture. However, these six features can provide a firm foundation for shaping a strong
culture.

A clear understanding of the corporate culture definition can help managers to define the right values
and culture for their organization.

Four types of organizational culture

Four distinct types of organizational culture emerge from the Competing Values Framework. What are
the four different types of corporate cultures? Here is a list of the cultures and what they are all about.

Clan culture – Clan cultures have a friendly, collaborative working environment. Similar to a large family,
the leaders in the organization are regarded as mentors, and the organization comes together through
tradition and loyalty. There is also more involvement and a greater focus on human resource
development. Success has a lot to do with caring for people and addressing the needs of clients. The
organization helps to achieve this by promoting participation, consensus, and teamwork.
Adhocracy culture – This is a dynamic and creative working environment where both leaders and
employees are innovators and risk-takers. Change and agility are core values, and success is defined by
the creation of new products and services. The organization promotes individual freedom and initiative.

Market culture – Market culture focuses on getting down to business, getting work done, and achieving
results. The environment is competitive, people are focused on goals, and the organization is results-
based. The culture emphasizes winning and considers market penetration and stock as the definitions of
success.

Hierarchy culture – This type of culture is based on process and procedure, with operations being done
in a formalized and structured work environment. Leaders monitor and facilitate adherence to tried and
known ways of doing business while keeping costs and mistakes low. Success is defined by low costs,
smooth planning and execution, and trustful delivery.

As much as there are different types of corporate culture, they are all geared at helping to achieve set
goals through a clear vision. Indeed, some of the functions of corporate cultures are to provide a sense
of identity, define boundaries, and generate commitment from members of the organization.

Referance

https://ngunakua.blogspot.com/p/topic-3-how-organization-adapt-to-their_87.html?
m=1#:~:text=Organizations%20attempt%20to%20influence%20their,and%20flexibility%2C%20and
%20direct%20influence.

https://online.champlain.edu/blog/best-organizational-change-management-strategies