Managing organisations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Managing organisations - Essay Example Recruitment Managers find Psychology to come in handy when they are recruiting for new job positions in their firms. Managers bearing acute knowledge in psychology are able to tell the different personalities that are needed in the various workplaces and they are able to match different teams with the appropriate team members. This helps the organisation avoid serious recruiting mistakes, thus growing stronger in its workforce (Conrad, 2009). Organisational culture This involves the behaviour of people working in the organisation, how they relate to one another and the meaning that they attach to their roles. Managers need to have knowledge in Psychology to enable them devise plans and strategies that will help in overcoming the challenges within their workforce. They are also able to retain the workforce by understanding their needs and rewards thus retaining them. They are also able to make better and informed decisions when they need to cut costs within the firm. They are able to appease their employees even when the firm is going through some rough times (Conrad, 2009). Development Managers with knowledge in psychology are able to invest in the employees through managerial, leadership, and personal development. This enables the firm to retain the best employees, motivate them and also attract other top performers. This in turn gives the firm competitive advantage with its rival firms (Conrad, 2009). Humanistic Theory of Motivation It is founded on the idea that individuals possess powerful cognitive reasons that influence them into working towards particular goals. Sources of motivations among individuals change as they proceed from basic needs to self-actualisation in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. A well-paying job can be a great source of motivation for the individuals at the initial stage of the hierarchy of needs. As the individual progresses the motivators change and finding meaning in the job, creativity and independence can be the new powerful motivators. Maslow called this compensation when one is motivated by and gives more importance to competencies rather than meta-pay. Organisation of the work environment is very crucial given the changing needs of workers. The managers need to understand this aspect and utilise psychology to implement the necessary strategies to address this issue (Cherry, 2013). Psychology is important as it helps create self-awareness in the managers. They become aware of their strengths and weaknesses, therefore, having total control of all situations in the firm. They also become aware of their surroundings. They are able to understand the behaviour of their subordinates, workers, customers and their clients, thus having the ability to provide better services and a serene work environment. Having knowledge in psychology helps the managers understand different kinds of employees, therefore, finding them positions or departments where they can work well and foster good relationships with others. 1 . b) Examine the problems that managers may encounter when seeking to apply psychology to their role Wrong interpretation of situations The managers may interpret a certain situation wrongly, which will mislead them into making wrong decisions. Managers may walk into a situation at the workplace or with the clients and due to limited interaction with them; they may make the wrong interpretation. This stems from making unfounded assumptions that may lead to the wrong application of Psychology

Over-cutting the forests of Indonesia, Philippines and Sabah Essay

Over-cutting the forests of Indonesia, Philippines and Sabah (Malaysia) - Essay Example Yet, clear cutting, deforestation, and over cutting of the timberlands has resulted in severe shortages of lumber in countries such as the Philippines where 9 percent of the forests were cleared in the period 1980 thru 1990 (Ascher 13). There are a myriad of forces at work that create a climate where short-term gain outweighs the sound long-term management of a countrys natural resources. Flawed government policies and a failure to understand the implications of the economic driving forces has resulted in forest ove4r cutting in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines. The generic and overly simplistic viewpoint that over cutting the forests in under-developed nations is a combination of greed, corruption, and ignorance marginalizes the effect of government policy. While it is true that these can have a significant effect, such as Malaysia where over $1 billion was unaccounted for in 1994, it is more often the well-intentioned, though misguided, government policies that result in forest mismanagement. In addition, governments have failed to enact strict enforcement and accountability policies that would limit the influence of special interest groups and hold government officials more responsible for the budget. Ascher illustrates the extreme case of Indonesia where President Suharto engaged in the "off-budget pursuit of development strategies ranging from downstream wood products to aerospace" as well as "†¦motives such as political campaign finance and personal aggrandizement" (81). The redistribution of resources without sound budgetary con trol disrupts pricing as well as contributing to over production. One of the more clearly misguided efforts at managing the forestry sector output has been the proliferation of export bans of raw timber around the world. The Indonesian economy lost $400 million in 1981-82 when it banned the export of raw timer in an effort to spur