Itech7402 Professional It Culture-The Communication Assessment Answers

What are the advantages of using "I messages", when could they be most effectively used in an IT work place

• To what extent are good working relationships between IT professionals dependent on effective communication What positive and negative impacts can diversity in teams have in an IT workplace What are the positive and negative effects of change in an organisation Does the organisation's culture influence the effects
• How can emotional intelligence lead to harmonious and productive work environments Is conflict always bad in a work place How could conflict be mitigated or resolved Why is money not always the best motivator, what other motivations influence IT professionals to be empowered and satisfied.How can leadership styles be used to improve the success of teams What are the benefits and costs of collaboration in development of IT workplace research.

When information is exchanged at the workplace then there is communication. Communication is one of the most important aspects of an organization because it makes efficiency and productivity increase. Communication makes it possible for an organization to undergo change.  (Genovese, Belt, & Lammers, 2016, 22) There different reasons that help about change and its effects. The culture of an organization at some point affects change in the organization. Managers should create the culture for the particular organization and make it know on how it should be undertaken. The following research questions formed the basis of my report:-

• How can leadership styles be used to improve the success of teams

The extent to which an organization is productive depends solely on the manager’s approach. Each and every department contributes towards the success of the information technology groups whereby in in each department the manager makes certain decisions, delegate’s duties to the employees and above all interact with the particular employees. This ways affect the entire organization.

Communication and productivity of an IT team can be affected by the leadership styles. Leaders that are Bureaucratic tend to make the communication process slow. This is by the fact that bureaucratic leaders usually check and make sure that every part of a particular message and the methods of delivery follow certain rules that strict and of the company. Some other leaders who do not get information from other team players usually change the particular type of information to fit and meet their own needs. Hopson, Donatelle, & Littrell, 2015, 1)This process usually affect the productivity of employees by preventing them from getting instructions and information that are of need to them.

The type of leadership style also affects the productivity of an employee input in multiple ways. Whereas the input of an employee is critical to the organization’s productivity, a manger that is not democratic dismiss the opinions of the particular employee. This type of managers do not want to change the culture of the organization. Democratic managers usually accept certain employee input and intern uses the inputs inform of information to improve the way things are done in the particular organization. Other leadership styles make managers not allow employees to do what they want as the processes of work

A productive employee is one that is confident in the organization and is always motivated by the particular company. Leadership style affects the morale of an employee. A manager builds the morale of an employee by constantly involving the employee of the company’s undertakings.  (In Korunka & In Kubicek, 2017, 104)A manager that is not democratic and does not involve the input or say of the employee in matters that affect the company usually makes the morale of the employee to go down. They sometimes diminish the employee feeling of involvement.

How goals are set in an organization is largely affected by the managerial style used. There are those leaders that embrace transformation and inspires and motivates employees to success. These types of managers set goals that are specific to employees and help the employees to achieve the set goals. Managers that set clear goals maximizes the productivity of an employee. These employees work to the success of the company by the various empowering strategies done by the employer. This employees then make own decisions guided by company rules that are usually strict.

The most important thing about change in an organization is the way organization handled the whole process. There is presence of some models that are to be followed to educate employees on the reason as to why change is required. One of the most know model and one that organizations use is the one created by Kurt Lewin.  (Bowers, 2013, 111)

This model shows that a major number of people, when change occurs, usually prefer to operate within some time zones of safety. This then shows three stages of change that include:-

1. Unfreeze- most of the employees in an organization struggle to resist change. To deal with this a period of unfreezing should be brought by the management through motivation
2. Refreeze- this is when change has been accepted. Organization regains stability and the employees refreezes and operate under guidelines that are new.
3. Transition- after initiation of change there comes a transition time for the company.

  Positive effects of change in an organization

Positive effects of change in an organization therefore depends on how well the management articulated the change. After change has successfully taken place, the various employees see that all their fears concerning the change has come to pass. This creates a better way for change in the future. This makes the employees have confidence that management can actually lead the company and make better decisions for the organization. When employee confidence is boosted then the day to day changes or decision making becomes easier too.

Competitive Advantage

 For an organization to combat competition in the market place change has to be a part and parcel of the organization. This maintains the status of the company and can make the particular company achieve more. (Criscuolo & National Bureau of Economic Research, 2012, 43)

Growth

The ability of a company to undergo change makes it grow. When the company achieves more the employees are motivated more and the whole fraternity gains. When things in a company are done the same way then ability of the organization to grow becomes low.

Negative effects of change

The following are the negative effects that occur in an organization after undertaking change.

Employee Resistance

When the reason as to why change has taken place in an organization is not clear then employees may tend to resist the change.  (In Korunka & In Kubicek, 2017, 119) Lack of proper knowledge on how work will be affected by the change also make the employees resist change.

Expense

The way change is handled in an information technology workplace can take place in a lot of time, this in turn leads to more expenses. During this time employee training is required and this also results other expenses. In an IT workplace when there is change of a certain system then employee training on the new system is required.

Morale

If the way change is handled in an organization is poor, this can lower the morale of certain employees that are affected by the particular change. When the morale of employees in an organization is low then the productivity of the organization also goes down.  (Tan, 2015, 11) 

. Organizational culture greatly influences these effects. (In Taylor, 2016, 107) Organizations that have a culture of constantly undertaking change will have less positive effects while organizations that have a culture of not constantly undertaking change will have more positive effects of change

Organizational culture, objectives, general and personal growth and development of society, and employees themselves gives an employee a sense of belonging which leads to organizational loyalty thus commitment to changes that take place in the organization.

In every organization employees are considered as the most valuable assets, thus employee’s satisfaction is emphasized as important. They drive company’s success and also strive for customer satisfaction. Therefore employees have to be motivated for the organizational general performance. It’s not always about the money, there are other ways for example recognition for job well done, it does not incur any costs to managers but for underprivileged employees it can cost everything by keeping employees performance on track and publically appreciating their work motivates them to work harder for more praises (Katzenbach, 2013, 11)

Another less costly but very effective way of motivating employees in an organization is coaching the on how to handle issues affecting the organization, this gives them a sense of belonging and makes them feel there are a part of something bigger, for example a manager sitting down with the employees and taking of challenges facing the organization, listening to their views and solution offered by them motivate them to speak out more to ensure organization performance is on track and decision are followed as supposed. To inspire more effort employees should be included in company’s success to inspire future success for more recognition.

Moreover, break the norm this gives employees a feeling of reprieve from normal office duties this can be achieved through setting office fun days, fun education trips and participating in company’s events for example evening parties this will encourage them and boost their morale for work next day. (Sulkowski, 2012, 17) Also scheduling of on-site and off-site seminars that give them learning experience and professional development. Giving raise to top performing employees can be difficult but they can be appreciated for their effort by giving them compensation inform of rewards, awards and also leadership opportunities this will inspire more excellence from them and also the rest offering competition which is health and profitable for the organization as more work is done efficiently. 

Conclusion

Communication is viewed as one of the most important aspects in any organization and therefore it is used to drive development. Numerous leadership styles affect the functioning of the organization. Communication and productivity of an IT team can be affected by the leadership styles. Change occurs in an organization and most importantly the management determines the success of change. In any organizations information technology employees should always be motivated and the form of motivation should not always be monitory.

References

Bowers, E. (2013). The everything guide to coping with perfectionism: Overcome toxic perfectionism, learn to embrace your mistakes, and discover the potential for positive change. Avon, MA: Adams Media.

Criscuolo, C., & National Bureau of Economic Research. (2012). The causal effects of an industrial policy. Cambridge, MA: National Bureau of Economic Research.

Genovese, M. A., Belt, T. L., & Lammers, W. W. (2016). Presidency and domestic policy: Comparing leadership styles, FDR to Obama.

Hopson, J. L., Donatelle, R. J., & Littrell, T. R. (2015). Get fit stay well!

In Korunka, C., & In Kubicek, B. (2017). Job Demands in a Changing World of Work: Impact on Workers' Health and Performance and Implications for Research and Practice.

In Korunka, C., & In Kubicek, B. (2017). Job Demands in a Changing World of Work: Impact on Workers' Health and Performance and Implications for Research and Practice.

In Taylor, L. (2016). How to develop your healthcare career: A guide to employability and professional development.

Katzenbach, J. R. (2013). Why pride matters more than money: The power of the world's greatest motivational force. New York: Crown Business.

Sulkowski, L. (2012). Neodarwinism in Organization and Management.

Tan, Y. (2015). Fireworks algorithm: A novel swarm intelligence optimization method.