Organizations in a Global Environment
Introduction
Contemporary organizations are faced with different challenges relating to the globalized nature of conducting business today. Factors such as globalization and technological advancements have made the world in integrated commercial system, which requires organizations to strategize accordingly in order to maintain excellence and sustainable high performance levels (Guy, 2009 pp. 86). In this regard, the two most important elements of organizations in a global environment are individuals within the organization and motivation.
The first and most critical aspect of organizations in a global environment is that of the individual and the reorganization. This relates to the impact and influence of individuals in organizations. It refers to the link between individuals and groups and different organizational contexts. The behavior of individuals in organizations affects the overall performance and success of the organization (Guy, 2009 pp. 102). Similarly, different organizational contexts also affect the way people behave in their organizations. An analysis of the individual and the organization can be achieved at three different levels, micro, meso, and macro levels (Schelhase, 2008 pp. 53). The micro level analyzes how individuals affect other aspects of organizations. Meso-level analysis relates the impact and influence of organizational teams or workgroups on the organization. On the other hand, the macro level analysis assesses how organizations behave as well as their impact on the behavior of individuals in the organization.
The other significant aspect of organizations in a globalized environment is motivation in the organizations. According to (Pinder, 2008 pp. 23), motivation is the process of developing, arousing, and sustaining desired behavior or goal-oriented actions among employees or individuals within an organization, often induced by creating an expectation of fulfilling the needs of the individuals. The process of motivation in organizations is a continuous cycle that needs to be refreshed from time to time through appropriate strategies and theoretical models. The cycle begins with employees feeling insecure as a result of unsatisfied needs. This leads to development of tension in the organization, which affects employee performance. The organization then implements specific strategies to Improve employee behavior, hence satisfying their needs (Mckenna, 2012 pp, 73). This in turn reduces tension in the organization and gives the employees the drive to increase their performance levels until such a point when their new needs will no longer be satisfied.
Motivation is crucial in organizational performance as it affects the input of individuals in the organizations, thereby affecting the overall output. This in turn affects organizational excellence and competitiveness in the global market or environment. Nevertheless understanding individuals and motivation in organizations is very important in a global environment. This is because it will help the organization in strategic planning and gaining a competitive edge over its competitors globally.
Relating the two Concepts in a Global Environment
A global environment refers to the integrated and interlinked system of conducting business, enhanced by technology such as the internet and other technological tools that help organizations traverse geographical boundaries. The global environment has enabled individuals and organizations to relate with one another around the world, bringing together different cultural backgrounds. In such an environment, organizations need to be suited to survive intense competition from other international businesses (Griffin, & Moorhead, 2014 pp. 2838). Therefore, understanding the role of individuals in an organization is very important, especially in a global market. Individuals affect the organizations in different ways, thereby influencing how the organization behaves in a global environment.
Individuals in an organization comprise of the human resource, charged with the responsibility of helping the organization achieve its objectives through their performances. The individuals in an organization can be categorized into two broader categories of management and employees. The management is concerned with formulating policies and strategies that can ensure the organization accomplished its vision. Employees, on the other hand, are charged with the task of implementing polices and strategies from management to help the organization achieve its intended objectives (Arnold, et al., 2010 pp. 46). The employees can execute their role either as individuals or as members of teams and work groups, depending on the tasks at hand. However, individuals in an organization have different personalities, character traits, and qualities that affect their behavior in an organization. These differences in personality often affect employee relations, thereby influencing or affecting their levels of engagement and motivation.
Similarly, in a global environment, different other factors come into play in influencing the behavior of individuals. Globalization brings together individuals from different backgrounds to work together collaboratively in achieving a common objective. The differences in cultural, racial, and religious backgrounds affect employee relations in the workplace. In addition, other differences in age, sex, and disability affect workplace relations in an organization depending on how different cultures perceive these issues (Benito, Priede, & Navarro, 2014 pp. 18). Consequently, the question of diversity has emerged as the most pertinent topic in contemporary organizations operating in a global market. Successful organizations are those that are able to embrace diversity in their workforce and instill in their employees values that enhance unity in diversity (Rousseau & Batt, 2007 pp. 20).
Therefore, in order for an organization to thrive in a global environment, it has to set up appropriate structures that tame employee behavior in the workplace to ensure challenges such as discrimination on whatever basis are steamed out. Global environments bring together individuals with different opinions and worldviews together. Therefore, challenges such as communication, decision making, and conflicts are bound to come up as employees from different geographical places, cultural and religious backgrounds interact in the workplace (Liu, 2013 pp. 2830). If not properly managed, these challenges can affect the organization’s overall performance and competitiveness on the global scene.
Success of an organization depends on how individuals collaborate, coordinate and cooperate with each other. In a global environment, the levels of engagement between or among employees in an organization may be limited or affected by their differences in culture, religion, ethnicity, and race. Nevertheless, these challenges indicate how important individuals are for an organization operating in a global environment. Therefore, sustainable success in a global market should focus on enhancing the capacity of individuals in an organization with regards to embracing diversity and working with people from difference kinds of backgrounds (Mullins, 2013 pp. 23).
Another important factor in attaining success for organizations in a global environment is motivation. Motivation relates to the commitment, energy, and creativity that an employee brings to the job. Employee motivation affects their productivity, hence affecting the organization’s output in the long run. This can have a huge impact on an organization operating and competing in a global market. This is because a decrease in the company’s productivity as a result of lack or employee motivation can result in significant loss of market share and reduced competitiveness.
Individuals in an organization play a critical role in ensuring excellence in organizational performance. Therefore, people in an organization must either be induced, or coerced to participate in its processes to ensure success. Nevertheless, the individuals in an organization will only participate in organizational processes if they feel there is something to gain from their performances (Tosi, & Pilati, 2011 pp. 98). For instance, employees may expect benefits or gains such as prestige, cash, or kind. These expectations in terms of benefits often affect the desire of employees to use their skills optimally to help the organization achieve its objectives. Similarly, members of an organization always want to identify with the organizations they work with or work for from time to time. According to (Pinder, 2008 pp. 27), the level of affinity between the organization and its members also affects the level of motivation.
On the global scene, different organizations are always competing in the labor market to have the best employees who can drive their agenda. Therefore, issues such as attracting and retaining the best talents and skills are often hinged on how best a company keeps its workforce happy and motivated (Wagner & Hollenbeck, 2010 pp. 71). Lack of motivation can lead to high employee turnovers, which can affect stability in an organization. Motivation also affects the level of engagement among employees since most of them lack the necessary drive and energy to perform at an optimal level. Essentially, employee motivation is a major factor that needs to be addressed in order to ensure an organization stays competitive in a global environment.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the global nature of business operations today requires contemporary businesses to remain competitive in all aspects in order to thrive amidst intense competition for limited global resources. Organizations operating in a global environment encounter numerous challenges that require strategic planning and adept management to help the organizations maintain high performance levels. The two most important aspects for organizations in a global environment that need most attention ate the individuals in the organization and motivation in the organization. Individuals in the organization are the people involved in driving the organization’s agenda on the global market. Their behavior, actions, and personalities affect the organization’s performance. Similarly, the organization’s performance can also have an impact on how the individuals behave in the organization. Consequently, in order to remain competitive, organizations need to manage the individuals in the organization effectively in terms of bringing together different personalities and backgrounds in working collaboratively for a common objective. In this regard, issues such as individual behavior and workforce diversity need to be addressed.
On the other hand, motivation in the organization entails the level of commitment among the employees in the organization. This is a process of developing and sustaining higher energies and levels of commitment among employees with regards to their role in the organization. Motivation is critical in a global environment because it directly relates to employee productivity and the overall performance of the firm. Lack of motivation is associated with high employee turnover, labor conflicts, and reduced productivity. These factors can harm an organization competing at a global level and threaten the organization’s long term survival globally.
Reference List
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