Read the following case study and answer the questions that follow.
Read through the case study and answer the questions that follow:
Case study
For the last 20 years your workplace has experienced sporadic conflict. Despite management’s best
efforts to deal with the conflict, it remains a problem and affects the performance and well-being of many
employees. The solutions proposed by management only seem to help temporarily, after which the
problems tend to recur. The labour unrest and conflict are mostly related to perceptions around
employment discrimination, gender issues, gender inappropriate facilities, cultural differences, health
issues, organisational and management structures, pay and fringe benefits as well as career
development and promotion issues. It appears that the organisational climate is characterised by endless
accusations and criticism from both inside and outside the organisation. The management team, who
are older tend to be more conservative, have requested you, the I-O psychologist and HR manager, to
urgently look for workable solutions that will bring long-term stability. The organisation with a diverse and
multicultural workforce of 1000 employees, was established in the 1940s and now finds itself in the
context of a new South Africa with its different realities and complexities, which include socio-economic
and political challenges. Your initial response is that the situation requires greater collaboration between
management and employees, between employees themselves as well as amongst the various
organisational departments. However, upon further reflection, you realise that the current work situation
and the organisation reflects a micro-cosmos of South Africa and that the situation may be more complex
than your initial assessment.
Case study excerpt from Bergh, Z (2017). Frameworks for thought and practice in I-O psychology. In Z.
Bergh (Ed.), Introduction to work psychology (pp.44-87). Cape Town: Oxford.
Questions
1. Identify the different thinking frameworks related to employee and organisational management which are scientific organisational management approach and the complex living socio-techical systems and how they play a role in this case study and provide examples from the case study to substantiate your answer.
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The scientific organizational management approach can be identified in this case study through the management team's request for the I-O psychologist and HR manager to find workable solutions that will bring long-term stability. This approach emphasizes finding evidence-based solutions and implementing them in a systematic manner. The management team's belief that there must be a specific solution to the conflict that can bring long-term stability reflects the scientific organizational management approach.
On the other hand, the complex living socio-technical systems framework is also relevant in this case study. The mention of perceptions around employment discrimination, gender issues, gender inappropriate facilities, cultural differences, health issues, organizational and management structures, pay and fringe benefits, and career development and promotion issues all indicate that the organization is affected by multiple interconnected factors. This framework recognizes that organizations are complex systems and that addressing one issue, such as discrimination, may require addressing other interrelated issues as well.
Example from the case study: The mention of the organization being a microcosm of South Africa and the recognition that the situation may be more complex than initially assessed are examples of the complex living socio-technical systems framework. It acknowledges that the organization is influenced by the wider socio-economic and political challenges in the country. This implies that finding solutions to the conflict may require considering the broader societal context and engaging in larger-scale collaborations.
In this case study, there are two thinking frameworks related to employee and organizational management that are evident: the scientific organizational management approach and the complex living socio-technical systems.
The scientific organizational management approach is evident in the management team's request for workable solutions that will bring long-term stability. This approach emphasizes the use of scientific methods to optimize productivity, efficiency, and employee satisfaction in the organization. Examples from the case study include the management's efforts to deal with conflict and find temporary solutions, indicating a problem-solving approach based on scientific principles. However, the recurrence of problems suggests that the solutions proposed may not have been fully effective.
On the other hand, the complex living socio-technical systems framework recognizes that organizations are complex social systems influenced by multiple factors such as culture, diversity, and socio-economic and political challenges. This framework emphasizes the interdependencies between people, technology, and the social environment in which they operate. In the case study, the conflicts and issues identified, such as employment discrimination, gender issues, cultural differences, and health issues, reflect the complexity of the organization's socio-technical system. The mention of a diverse and multicultural workforce and the recognition that the organization reflects a micro-cosmos of South Africa indicate the influence of the social context on the organization.
Overall, the scientific organizational management approach and the complex living socio-technical systems framework both play a role in this case study. The scientific approach is evident in the management's efforts to find solutions, while the socio-technical systems framework highlights the complexity and interdependencies within the organization.