Session 2 Foundations of Individual Behavior

1. Session 2 Foundations of Individual Behavior

2. Biographical Characteristics • Age • Gender • Race • Ability • Social Groups • Tenure • Religion • Sexual Orientation

3. Workplace Diversity • Managers need to recognize and capitalize on the differences to get the most out of their employees. • Increases access to widest possible pool of skills, abilities and ideas. • Surface level diversity • Deep level diversity

4. Ability • Ability refers to an Individual’s capacity to perform the various tasks in a job. 2 sets of factors – • Intellectual Abilities • Physical Abilities

5. Cultural Diversity • Cultural diversity refers to dealing with different cultures • Cultural diversity is seen across states, nations

6. Ability Diversity • Individuals with disabilities are underutilized human resource. • Disabled people constitute 5% of the population. • Loco motor disability group commonly employed.

7. Corporate Initiatives • Wipro Technologies • TCS • ITC Hotels • McDonald – McJobs • IBM India

8. Gender Diversity • Does gender difference exists in workplace behavior? • Are there biases ? If yes real? • Do these biases make a difference to workplace attitudes and behaviors? • Do these biases make a difference to workplace outcomes? (Glass Ceiling, Attrition)

9. How to overcome the biases ? • Is gender diversity required If yes, then why? • What are the organizational initiatives?

10. Gender Bias • Gender bias is a result of cultural system and this system influences the behavior of men and women.

11. Process of Gendering • Socialization Process • Gender Stereotypes • Passing of 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments in 1992; facilitated 33% women’s participation in local government

12. Outcomes • Under represented in governance and decision making process. • Women held less than 3% managerial positions in India and Glass Ceiling exists. • Increase in number of female employees is concentrated only at the clerical level and their count at the top levels was significantly low. • Women in senior management positions in 2008 • Global – (24%) • Philippines (47%) • Russia(42%) • Thailand (38%).

13. Why Gender Diversity • ‘Women Matter’ study conducted by Mckinsey, showed that companies where women are most strongly represented at board are also the companies that perform best. • Women are driving force behind more than 70% of purchasing decisions.

14. How to achieve Gender Diversity • Create transparency by implementing gender diversity KPIs • Implement measures to facilitate the work-life balance • Adapt the human resources management process

15. Corporate India Initiatives • Biocon – no. of women is 30% • ICICI Bank – 40% (managers) • IBM India Family run Businesses • Women holding senior positions in family owned businesses – AshniBiyani – Future Group’s director at age 24. (Exception) • Videocon International has underrated women’s potential.

16. IT/BPO Sector Banking and Insurance Sector • State Bank of India (SBI) has not seen any women as a CEO • ICICI has provided conducive environment for women to excel and Glass Ceiling doesn’t exists.

17. IT/BPO Sector • Gender neutral, creating flexibility in their policies (eg. Aricent, Accenture, Intelenet Global Services) • Nurturing women leaders is yet another area of focus

18. Diversity’s Benefits & Problems BENEFITS PROBLEMS • Attracts and retains the best talent • Improves marketing efforts • Promotes creativity and innovation • Results in better problem solving • Enhances organizational flexibility • Resistance to change • Lack of cohesiveness • Communication problems • Interpersonal conflicts • Slower decision making

19. Values Values Basic convictions that a specific mode of conduct or end-state of existence is personally or socially preferable to an opposite or converse mode of conduct or end-state of existence. Value System A hierarchy based on a ranking of an individual’s values in terms of their intensity.

20. Importance of Values • Provide understanding of the attitudes, motivation, and behaviors of individuals and cultures. • Influence our perception of the world around us. • Represent interpretations of “right” and “wrong.” • Imply that some behaviors or outcomes are preferred over others.

21. Types of Values –- Rokeach Value Survey Terminal Values Desirable end-states of existence; the goals that a person would like to achieve during his or her lifetime. Instrumental Values Preferable modes of behavior or means of achieving one’s terminal values.

22. Values in the RokeachSurvey Source: M. Rokeach, The Nature of Human Values (New York: The Free Press, 1973).

23. Values in the Rokeach Survey(cont’d) Source: M. Rokeach, The Nature of Human Values (New York: The Free Press, 1973).

24. Values, Loyalty, and Ethical Behavior Ethical Climate inthe Organization Ethical Values and Behaviors of Leaders

25. Cultural Values • Cultural values: what is good/beautiful/holy beautiful, and what are legitimate goals for life

26. Your Choice? • You are riding in a car driven by a close friend. S/He hits a pedestrian. You know s/he was going 80 kms per hour in an area of the city where the maximum allowed speed is 50 kms per hour. There are no witnesses. Her/His lawyer says that if you testify under oath that s/he was only driving only 50 kms per hour, it may save her/him from serious consequences. • What right has your friend to expect you to protect her/him? • What do you think you would do in view of the obligations of a sworn witness and the obligation to your friend?

27. Universalism vs. Particularism Pertain to how people treat each other based on rules or personal relationships Universalistic Particularistic • Right way is based on abstract principles such as rules, law, religion • Consistency • Systems, standards & rules • Uniform procedures • Demand clarity • Each judgment represents unique situation that can be dealt with based on relationships • Flexibility • Pragmatic • Make exceptions • “It depends” • At ease with ambiguity

28. My Best Friend Vs. Money • You are walking to a critical business meeting at which you are going to close a $100 mn deal. You will receive a fee of three million dollars if the contract is signed. However, some major details need to be discussed, and you are the only person capable of discussing them. • Suddenly, your best friend in the world – you have known him since childhood, rushes up to you and blurts out, “something terrible has happened, and I need your help immediately. You are the only person who can help me!” • What would you do?

29. Cultural Contexts • Characteristics of High-Context cultures • long lasting relationships • Insiders and Outsiders are distinguished • communication is economical, fast and efficient • Agreements between persons are spoken rather than written • wider range of communicative expressions • people in authority are personally responsible for the actions of subordinates • Cultural patterns are ingrained and relatively slow to change

30. Cultural Contexts (contd..) • Characteristics of Low-Context Cultures • shorter relationships • Insiders and Outsiders are less closely distinguished • messages are made explicit • agreements are written rather than spoken • authority is diffused • Cultural patterns are relatively fast to change

31. Specific vs. Diffuse • Extent to which an individual’s life is involved in work • Specific • Business segregated from other parts of life • Contracts often delineate relationships • Prefer the freedom of direct speech • Low context—specific to general • Adaptable and flexible • Criticism considered constructive • Diffuse • Business relationships encompassing/involving • Private and segregated space is small • Prefer indirect and implicit speech • High context—general to specific • Rich and subtle, yet resolute • Criticism often devastating

32. Achievement vs. Ascription • Manner in which society gives status • Achievement • People earn status based on performance and accomplishments • Ascription • Characteristics or associations define status • e.g., status based on schools or universities

33. Hofstede’s Framework for Assessing Cultures Power Distance The extent to which a society accepts that power in institutions and organizations is distributed unequally. low distance: relatively equal distributionhigh distance: extremely unequal distribution

35. Hofstede’s Framework (cont’d) Achievement (Masculinity) The extent to which societal values are characterized by assertiveness, materialism and competition. Nurturing (Femininity) The extent to which societal values emphasize relationships and concern for others.

36. Masculinity / Career Success Vs. Femininity / Quality of Life

37. Hofstede’s Framework (cont’d) Individualism The degree to which people prefer to act as individuals rather than a member of groups. Collectivism A tight social framework in which people expect others in groups of which they are a part to look after them and protect them.

39. Hofstede’s Framework (cont’d) Uncertainty Avoidance The extent to which a society feels threatened by uncertain and ambiguous situations and tries to avoid them.

41. Hofstede’s Framework (cont’d) Long-term Orientation A national culture attribute that emphasizes the future, thrift, and persistence. Short-term Orientation A national culture attribute that emphasizes the past and present, respect for tradition, and fulfilling social obligations.

42. The GLOBE Framework for Assessing Cultures • Assertiveness • Future Orientation • Gender differentiation • Uncertainty avoidance • Power distance • Individual/collectivism • In-group collectivism • Performance orientation • Humane orientation Source: M. Javidan and R. J. House, “Cultural Acumen for the Global Manager: Lessons from Project GLOBE,” Organizational Dynamics, Spring 2001, pp. 289–305.

43. Ethics • Ethics is guided by our value systems. • Policies and procedures should align with your cultural values.

44. The Case of Daimler-Chrysler • In what way did the cultures of the two companies differ? • What do you think the terms innovation, risk taking, change meant to Chrysler employees? To Daimler employees? • What were the underlying causes of conflict in these organizations? What concepts can these causes be related to? • What could have been done differently?