UNIVERSITY OF CEBU

GRADUATE SCHOOL
ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR & DEVELOPMENT

Name : CATHERINE P. LIOGAN

Subject : BM-216A
Time : 07:30 – 12:00NN (SUN) BLK2
Professor: : MANOLITO C. ALSOLA, CPA, MBA

MID TERM EXAMINATION

Answer the following:

1. Why is the study of organizational behaviour very important especially for managers?
How can managers effectively direct the behaviour of individuals in his team towards the
attainment of the organization’s objectives?

 It is important especially for managers because he/she will be able to study the behaviour
of each employee under in his/her supervision. He/she might be able to distinguish the
capacity of the person in the field of his/her assigned tasks. By studying organizational
behaviour, it helps the manager to motivate the employees bringing a good organization
performance. It helps also to apply appropriate motivation tools and techniques in
accordance with the nature of individual employees. This helps achieving organizational
goal property. It is also important because it provides an understanding of why people
behave as they do in organizations. Managers should clearly communicate the strategy,
direction of the organization. The company needs to be open about its strategy and future
directions, helping to learn about the new opportunities within the organization,
proactively manage opportunities for high-potential employees. Managers should also
help employees customize their own career, clearly articulate expectations at different
levels and managers are the key source for developmental experiences.

2. Will a positive work environment guarantee higher productivity, as well as lower

absenteeism and turnover of employees? Do you experience this kind of environment in
your current workplace? Explain.

 Yes, it will. Yes, I already experienced this kind of environment in our workplace. Though
not all companies/employers are perfect, I am proud to say that we, the employees
shared positivity in our workplace. We may not receive a high salary like the others but
the friendship that we built and those smile on our faces make our relationship in the
company stronger. We have this kind of thinking that every at the end of the day during
our working hours, what matters the most are the happiness that we feel every day. Our
sisterhood/brotherhood make us stay longer in the company. I have co-workers that
 reached 6 years or more in our company and I ask them what makes them stay longer
despite the not so high salary, they said that the main reasons are the relationship that
each and every one of us were built and the positivity of our managers, co-employees and
especially the owners of the company.

3. Is it advantageous for a company to have a diversified workforce? How can organizations

manage diversity most effectively?

 Yes, it is advantage. Effective Diversity Management capitalizes on diversity for

organization success. This includes recruiting and selection as well as training and
development of employees to take advantage of diverse workforces. These includes, they
teach managers about the legal framework for equal employment opportunity and
encourage fair treatment of all people. They teach managers how a diverse workforce will
be better able to serve a diverse market of customers and clients and they foster personal
development practices that bring out the skills and abilities of all workers.

4. Explain the relationship between attitudes and behaviour. Does behaviour always follow
the attitude of a person? Is it possible to have a positive attitude consistently? Discuss.

 Attitudes are patterns or habits of thought that have been forged around our
assumptions. Assumptions are the conscious judgments we make about a situation, a
person or an event. Our assumptions can be based on experience on experience,
intuition, anecdote or belief. Behaviours are conductive to either attitude your attitude
towards circumstances, situation or person, thus creating the reaction to a situation and
the person would behave reactive to the attitude towards the person place or thing.
Attitude begins in the mind and the gets reflected in the body/behaviour. Yes, it always
follow. A positive attitude isn’t necessarily something we are all born with, but turning
our minds away from self-pity, defeat and negativity towards motivation, humour and
encouragement is a talent that can be purposely developed. We have to train ourselves
to not only have a positive attitude but also express it consistently because it will also
inspire those people who have negative minds.

5. What causes job satisfaction? Is it just about the pay or the work itself? How important is
it for a company to have a highly satisfied workforce? Explain.

 Money is not always the main cause of job satisfaction. When employees spend a majority
of their working hours in the workplace, they need more than a pay check to satisfy them.
Using their talents, engaging them in challenging projects, offering incentives, and
creating a friendly and respectful environment with low stress are among the reasons the
employees will be glad to show up each day to contribute to the company’s ultimate
success. And also, the positivity of the managers towards his/her employees can cause
job satisfaction. It is important in a way that the employees can achieve the organization’s
goals and objectives. It also to lower absenteeism and turnover of employees. It can make
employees more productive and efficient in their careers.
6. Are emotions and moods rational? What functions do they serve? Do you think that
regular exercise can help improve a person’s mood? How can managers influence the
moods of their people? Explain.

 Emotions can be rational or irrational. Expressing emotions publicly may be damaging to

social status. Emotions are critical to rational decision making and they help us
understand the world around us. Emotions and moods serve a number of functions. In
evolutionary psychology, people must experience emotions, as there is a purpose behind
them. Yes, regular exercise can also improve a person’s mood. Managers can influence
the moods of their people by giving them token or reward as a sign of appreciation for all
the hard works that they gave or contribute to their assigned works/tasks.

7. What factors determine personality? Why is it important to know an individual

employee’s values? Will these values affect his performance in the organization?

 Heredity is perhaps the most important factor in determining personality, since mostly all
other determinants, such as gender and more are passed down through genes. Other
common factors are brain, physical characteristics that includes height, skin tone, weight,
hair color and beauty. Social experiences, culture and religion are also included. Your
workplace values are the guiding principles that are most important to you about the way
that you work. You use these deeply held principles to choose between right and wrong
ways of working, and they help you make important decisions and career choices. It will
affect because his performance will depend on the personality that he portraits within
the organization.

8. How will perception affect the decision making of an individual? Are unethical decisions
more a function of an individual decision maker or the decision maker’s work
environment? Explain.

 Perception is a process by which individuals organize and interpret their sensory

impressions in order to give meaning to their environment. In relation to decision making
process, perception affects our way of thinking on how we deal with situations like making
a decision. We may make decisions based on our experiences because there are some
that has already the knowledge on how they will respond to that situation. There are also
some that they based their decision-making skills on their interest or their motives with
it. There are factors that influences our perception in order to make decisions, the
perceiver, the target and the situation. You can use this as a help in deciding the best
solution in a certain situation for example. Perception affects our decision-making process
because in order to make an accurate decision, you need to think properly if this one will
work or not. There are a lot of things that should be consider in making a decision. One
thing that makes decision making difficult is our perception to what will be the outcome
after making this decision. Unethical decision making is typically the function of an
individual within an organization, because most workplace environments have set rules
 against unethical behavior. When an individual makes a decision that is unethical, they
are personally deciding to go against these codes of ethical conduct imposed by the
organization.

9. “Women are more motivated to get along, and men are more motivated to get ahead.”
Do you agree with this statement? Explain.

 Yes, I agree. Because women are underrepresented in most high-level positions in

organizations which make them to strive more to get along in everything that they do.
Women also view professional advancement as equally attainable but less desirable
compared to men but women are very willing to get along. Men are more motivated to
get ahead because they believe things can be easily done by themselves. According to
Miss Universe 2008, from Venezuela, Men think that the faster way to go to a point is to
go straight but women know that the faster way to go to a point is through the curves
and fixing every curves.

10. What are the advantages of group decision making over individual decision making in an
organizational context? Why are work teams popular nowadays in most organizations
around the world?

 There’s sayings go that no man is an island and two heads are better than one. That’s why
in most organization, group decision making is more important than individual making. In
a group decision making, many ideas will collect and there’s a possibility that the
manager/owner can choose the best ones. Many ideas meaning many choices,
brainstorming. In a group, it provides greater alternative solutions, collective
understanding. Teamwork is used across many different industries to increase
performance, employee unity and company culture. Companies that must frequently
develop new ideas or products using a project-based approach assemble teams in order
to diffuse responsibility and to increase the number and diversity of ideas for the project.
Team members use teamwork to bounce ideas off of one another before deciding on a
development path for a project.