The understanding of organizational behavior (OB) contributes to the development of businesses and their competitiveness. OB explores the influence of people, structures, and groups on employees’ behavior within an organization. Some of the major OB concepts include diversity management, working environment creation, organizational culture development, and leadership style. These concepts can be associated with both challenges and opportunities for managers.
For instance, diversity management implies the need to work with people from different cultures, individuals of different ages and genders, professionals with different educational backgrounds. All these people often have different views and may have conflicting needs, which can create rather an unhealthy working atmosphere. At the same time, diversity is also closely linked to the presence of multiple innovative ideas and approaches to solving different problems.
Employees will be able to develop solutions that will make their companies perform better. The development of organizational culture is another considerable challenge for managers. This process requires the creation of effective communication channels, the use of the appropriate leadership style to motivate people and encourage them to adopt certain values. Organizational culture development is also an opportunity for managers who can create an environment where employees will have specific goals and will share values that will keep these people committed. Companies having a strong organizational culture are successful as their employees are committed to established goals and have similar views on ways to reach these objectives.
In conclusion, OB is the field of study that equips managers with valuable knowledge and skills that can contribute to the success of the business. Diversity management and the development of organizational culture are OB concepts that can be regarded as challenges and opportunities for managers. The use of appropriate strategies and management skills will make these concepts opportunities (rather than challenges) for effective managers.
