Definition of Values and Classification of Values - Coursework Example

ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR: THE ROLE AND IMPACT OF INDIVIDUAL VALUES IN ORGANIZATIONS Name Course Tutor Date Introduction Globalization has resulted in a dynamic business environment and a volatile job market as well. Most organizations have engaged in the fight for the best talents in the market amid the choices that are made by individuals to hop from a job to another. Organizations have therefore engaged in a war of talents so that they become the employers of choice. As such, organizations are investing in better ways to develop organizational culture. When doing this, the organizations make a choice of the best employees whose values are congruent with that of the organization. This paper is aimed at looking at the role of individual values and to some extent organizational values in the organizational context. The definitions and explanation as well as classification of values is given herein. Additionally, the paper categorically evaluates the role of the personal and organizational values to an individual and the implications as well. Definition of Values and Classification of Values There are different definitions of values depending on an author and purpose of the literature that accrues. However, simply put values are just important and lasting ideals or beliefs that are shared among the members of a given culture concerning what is permissible and what should be discerned (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). Values are central in the determination of the behaviour of an individual or a group of people as well as their attitude (Saleem, 2014). Values can also be defined as a set of ideas that are either socially or personally shared and form a foundation for some intrinsic beliefs on what is morally acceptable, desirable or good (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). Put simply, these values are preferred beliefs and expectations of the behaviours of individuals in a society. Values also guide how people respond to different situations that could be within stressing or formal settings. Three universal human needs forms the foundation of values (Obalola, Aduloju and Olowokudejo, 2012). They include the demand for social interactions and relationships, the institutional and social demands of a group for its success, and the need for survival in the society (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). There are various characteristics of values. First off, values are beliefs or concepts (Saleem, 2014). Secondly, values define behaviours or are desirable end states. Thirdly, values are known to transcend depending on situational contexts (Marques, 2007). Fourth, values act as a guidance in the selection and adoption of behaviours as well as events. Lastly, values become ordered with reference to the importance they bring forth (Obalola, Aduloju and Olowokudejo, 2012). There is one thing that distinguishes a value form another and that is the motivational content within a particular given value (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). There are four forms of organizational values espoused, aspirational, shared and attributed vales. Espoused values are the values that are reflected by the top management (Obalola, Aduloju and Olowokudejo, 2012). Attributed values on the other hand refers to those values that the members of an organization deem as representative and important to the organization (Marques, 2007). Shared values are the one that are common among the members of an organization. There are many types of values, for the scope of this paper the two most common are of interest; individual and organizational values, being that all other classes of values fall within the domain of the two (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). The two classes of values are interdependent. Individual values also known as personal value are social principles or belief as well as standards and goals that an individual member of a culture have developed some level of intrinsic worth and serve as the guideline to their daily lives (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). On the other hand, organizational values refers to the beliefs as well as ideas that are the guiding principles of the standards of behaviour expected of any member of the organization for the successful attainment of the organizational goals that are set. Some examples of values include business ethics, visionary leadership, mutual respect or trust, loyalty, integrity, transparency, commitment, courtesy and attitudes (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). Development of Individual Values There is a plethora of factors that determine the development of individual values. These factors include family, peers, environment, media, religion, culture and gender among others (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). As a person develops biologically, the family plays a critical role in instilling various beliefs systems and norms in them that later determine the values of that particular individual research has indicated a relationship between the family and the principles as well as standards that one develops later in their life (Aslan and Şendoğdu, 2012). The environment also aids an individual in making choice on what to stand with and what to discard (Aslan and Şendoğdu, 2012). Often at times, for the benefit of the individual and environment, one is forced to make tough choices on the principles to live by (Saleem, 2014). For example, where the people around are more inclined to ethical practices and live by the ethical codes of conduct, an individual will definitely build their belief that the standards stipulated in the code are good and should be adopted even in normal life (Aslan and Şendoğdu, 2012). Generally, there are three major phases of development of individual values. First off, there is the imprint period where individuals choose what would be the basis for the values they are to develop later in life. Secondly, there is the modelling face where the external factors such as family, teachers, peers, and the environment among others, now shape the template of values that has initially been identified (Hiriyappa, 2009). Lastly, there is the socialization phase where an individual now polishes the values they have developed through interacting with other people and thus exploring as well as comparing their values to effectively retain the best. Relationships between Values, Motivation, Decisions and Actions Values have a very strong foundation on the perceptions of an individual (Saleem, 2014). Just like culture, values define how an individual undertakes whatever action that is desired of them (Saleem, 2014). These values act as the general preference of an individual for a given situation or a set of action (Salili and Hoosain, 2007). Apart from values becoming a utility, they build a cohesive culture that itself is a motivation to individuals or a group (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). Additionally, values define the best relationships that are required towards the achievement of objectives (Salili and Hoosain, 2007). In the organizational context, the values create some sense of belonging to the employees thus they are more motivated to perform better collectively leading to high productivity (Marques, 2007). Values are also a utility function, thus guiding how an individual makes decisions and how they respond to actions (Salili and Hoosain, 2007). The values of an individual make them work hard and figure out ways to get their goals attained (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). This is the case with terminal values or outcome values that are more oriented on what comes off some action. Values also act as a template for decision making skills. When an individual is making a decision that is bound to affect others, they have to evaluate the benefits and the impacts before making the right decision that favours both sides (Salili and Hoosain, 2007). A good example is where a manager is faced with an ethical dilemma that as per the guideline of the company is unacceptable (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). Values are also linked to actions in one way or another (Marques, 2007). Where there are values in an organization incorporated within the mission and vision statements, the employees and other members of the organization are likely to work hard towards the achievement of these goals (Saleem, 2014). In this way, value motivate the individuals on how to achieve certain goals (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). For instance, when the company must incorporate hard work, the employees each has to finish their part as required so as to contribute to the achievement of the whole objective in the end (Salili and Hoosain, 2007). The Impacts and Role of Values in Organizations Values no matter the classification have impacts and implications on an ideal organization. The values are part of organizational culture that have a plethora of benefits. Some of the benefits of values include job satisfaction, high financial performance, organizational commitment and positive organizational climate (Bourne and Jenkins, 2013). When employees are grounded in the values of an organization, they tend to work hard to stand by the values so that in the end they be part of the team that fulfils the set goals (Saleem, 2014). The values define the level of morale the employees have (Obalola, Aduloju and Olowokudejo, 2012). When the values of an organization are congruent with the individual values, the employees are in a better position to work better because they end up feeling as part of the organization. The employees then develop positive organizational citizenship behaviours that end up being a motivating factor for both themselves and those yet to come in the organization (Obalola, Aduloju and Olowokudejo, 2012). Ethical values in an organization additionally reinforce the identity of an individual with an organization (Newman et al., 2015). Therefore, when there is an agreement between an individual’s ethical values their motivation, support for the organization, and attachment for the organization increases (Newman et al., 2015). This is true for other values that the organization conform to. When there is visibility of the standards that are expected of an individual, the code of conduct and the actions of an organization, an individual feels part of a responsible organization and is thus motivated to develop organizational loyalty (Hiriyappa, 2009). With values in place, the work place relationships are also further optimized and thus the reduction of conflicts among the employees (Hiriyappa, 2009). Additionally, positive values develop a psychological contract of the employees to the organization. The values of the employees matter most when it come to their relationships in the work place (Obalola, Aduloju and Olowokudejo, 2012). When the employees have individual values that are outstanding, they are able to work with what they consider valid and discard the undesirable moves that have some effect. Individual values also motivate an employee to work hard and make sound judgement (Hiriyappa, 2009). When a decision is to be made, the valued individual are able to base their arguments on their intrinsic values depending on the situation at hand (Obalola, Aduloju and Olowokudejo, 2012). Positive values also shape the values of other employees in an organization (Hiriyappa, 2009). For example, when the workplace is full of cases of corruption. The moment some of the employee disagree with the other over it, the participants are likely to shy off and conform to new values (Saleem, 2014). Individual values also ensure that an organization does what they really want (Katherine, 2015). When the environment does not suit an employee they will walk away. However, when the values of an individual are not infringed with the conditions at work, the employee remain committed and ends up having high levels of job satisfaction. The customer behaviour are also defined with the values that individuals and the organization holds altogether (Katherine, 2015). When an organization proves that it has value based leadership (Saleem, 2014). The customer loyalty to the product and company increases and most of the individuals will prefer them over those of other companies (Katherine, 2015). Since the values are different by the mere fact that the motivational content differs, the values in an organizations can be seen as a source of competitive advantage (Hiriyappa, 2009). Values also act as a foundation for building mutual respect and trust within organizations (Katherine, 2015). Trust is built to the necessary stakeholders especially through adherence to the set standards that affects the individual stakeholders of an organization. Conclusion Values have importance in an organization. Individual or personal values have the capacity to define the scope of operation of an individual with. Values are connected with motivation, actions and the decisions both at personal level and at organizational level. When individual value are coupled with leadership there results value based leadership. This form of leadership has transformed organizations changing the human resource scene in a manner that most organizations are slowly investing in it. It is intuitive that when there is congruence between personal values and organizational values, individuals are likely to have positive organizational citizenship behaviours. Organizational citizenship behaviours leads to high levels of organizational commitment, productivity and financial as well as individual performance. Therefore, when the management is looking for people to hire, it is prudent to assess their values so that those who have the best values are selected for the benefit and sustainability of the organization. Bibliography Aslan, Ş. and Şendoğdu, A. (2012). The Mediating Role of Corporate Social Responsibility in Ethical Leader's Effect on Corporate Ethical Values and Behavior. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 58, pp.693-702. Bourne, H. and Jenkins, M. (2013). Organizational Values: A Dynamic Perspective. Organization Studies, 34(4), pp.495-514. Hiriyappa, B. (2009). Organizational behavior. New Delhi: New Age International. Katherine, W. (2015). Values‑Based Leadership: How Our Personal Values Impact The Workplace. [online] Valuesbasedleadershipjournal.com. Available at: http://www.valuesbasedleadershipjournal.com/issues/vol1issue1/dean.php [Accessed 21 Aug. 2015]. Marques, J. (2007). Implementing workplace diversity and values: What it means, what it brings. Performance Improvement, 46(9), pp.5-7. Newman, A., Miao, Q., Hofman, P. and Zhu, C. (2015). The impact of socially responsible Human Resource Management on employees' Organizational Citizenship Behaviour: the mediating role of organizational identification. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, pp.1-16. Obalola, M., Aduloju, K. and Olowokudejo, F. (2012). Organizational Commitment and Corporate Ethical Values: Exploring the Nexus between Employees' Psychological Contract and Firms' Ethical Behaviour in the Nigerian Insurance Industry. Journal of Management and Sustainability, 2(1). Rakowska, A., Valdes-Conca, J. and de Juana-Espinosa, S. (2015). Affecting Factors of Public Employees’ Organizational Commitment. International Journal of Synergy and Research, 3, p.5. Saleem, F. (2014). Impact of Corporate Ethical Values on Employees’ Behaviour: Mediating Role of Organizational Commitment. Pakistan Journal of Psychological Research, 29(1), pp.245-263. Salili, F. and Hoosain, R. (2007). Culture, motivation, and learning. Charlotte, NC: IAP. . Read More