CHAPTER OUTLINE
• Globalization and business
• Diversity and business
• Technology and business
• Ethics and corporate governance
• New employment relationships
• Globalization of business
Globalization- the internationalization of business activities and a shift towards integrated global economy
4 REASONS FOR THIS GROWTH
1. Improved Communication and Transportation Facilities
2. Large Potential Market
3. Lower Cost of Production and Distribution
4. Response to International Activity and Competition
CROSS-CULTURAL DIFFERENCES AND SIMILARITIES
General observations
1. Behavior in organization vary across cultures
2. Culture itself is a cause of this variation
3. Though there is diversity within cultures, organization and the way they are structured appear to be growing increasingly similar
4. The same individual behaves differently in different cultural settings
5. Cultural diversity may be a source of synergy in enhancing org effectiveness
CULTURE set of shared values that in a group, organization, or society understand which actions are acceptable or unacceptable.
SPECIFIC CULTURAL ISSUES
Individualism-people defining themselves as individuals rather than part of a group
Collectivism-people tend to base their identities on the group or org where they belong
Power distance(a.k.a. orientation to power) people accepting as normal a unequal distribution of power
Uncertainty avoidance(a.k.a. preference for stability) extent by which people fear unknown situations
Masculinity(a.k.a. assertiveness or materialism) –extent in which the dominant value in society is aggresiveness and the acquisition of money and possessions as opposed to concern for people, relationships,and equality
Long-term values-focusing on the future and engaging on projects with distant pay-offs
Short-term values-more oriented towards past and present,and respect for tradition
Diversity and business
Workforce diversity-important similarities and differences of employees in an org
Stereotypes-generalizations about people based on certain traits
Prejudices-judgements about others that reinforce belief in superiority or inferiority
DIMENSIONS OF DIVERSITY
1. primary dimension of diversity-factors that are inborn or exert early influence on socialization.
Example:
1. Age
2. Race
3. Gender
4. Ethnicity
5. physical and mental abilities
6. sexual orientation
2. secondary dimension of diversity-less permanent to primary dimensions and can be changed.
Example:
1. Location
2. Religion
3. Income
4. Marital status
5. Training
6. Work experience
GLOBAL WORKFORCE DIVERSITY
Value of diversity- melting pot vs. Tossed salad (tossed-salad blended without loss of individuality like a salad where you can still distinguish the ingredients)
Assimilation-process in which the minority are forced to learn the ways of the majority. Majority group tend to be self-perpetuating. Minority get less. Not paying attention to diversity can be costly to an organization such as:
1. Absenteeism
2. low productivity
3. increased turnover
4. lower morale
5. harassment suits
Valuing diversity-putting an end to the assumption that non-members of the dominant group must assimilate valuing diversity is not just the right thing to do for the workers but for the organization as well, most important benefit of diversity is richness of ideas and perspectives made available for the organization homogeneous dominant group vs. Heterogeneous group, organization wins when it truly values diversity
TECHNOLOGY AND BUSINESS
Technology-refers to the method used to create products,including both physical goods and intangible products
3 specific areas of technology worth noting-
1)shift toward a service-based economy
2) growing use of technology for competitive advantage
3) mushrooming change in information technology
Manufacturing and service technologies
manufacturing –business that transforms resources into tangible outcomes for selling
Service organization -transform resources into tangible output, and creates time and place utility for customers
Technology and competition
*lowest cost producer
*most technological advances on product
*decrease cycle time (it is the time it takes to accomplish recurring activity or function from beginning to end)
Information technology-
*resulted to leaner organization, more flexible operations and work site, more collaboration, improved management processes, less personal communication, less down time, increased sense of urgency.
ETHICS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Ethics-person’s belief re what is right and wrong in a given situation
Corporate governance-oversight of a public corporation by its board of director
CONTEMPORARY ETHICAL ISSUES
*full disclosure, executive compensation, environmental protection, working conditions in foreign factories, pricing policies and pressure to balance profits against costs, child labor, etc
Management of knowledge workers
knowledge workers-those employees who add value to organization simply because of what they know ex. Scientists ,engineers, product designers, video game developers
*they identify more with the work than the organization
*right to work in autonomous fashion
*compensation and related policies must be studied
*technical career path parallel to management career path must be considerred
Outsourcing is the practice of hiring other firms to do work previously done by the org itself. When moved overseas is called offshoring.
Examples:
1. outsource cafeteria,
2. payroll,
3. employee training,
4. maintenance,
5. research and development.
*offshoring results to loss of job opportunities to oversea workers
Temporary and contingent workers
contingent worker-person who works for an organization other than permanent or full-time basis
*expecting too much from these workers
Tiered workforce-different groups (ex.fulltime and partime doing the same work) doing the same work.
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