7.1.3

Well, you’ve both been looking in different styles of managing individual in companies and the workplace, how’s the research going, Philip?

Well, I’m been looking at why individualism, I mean individual differences, are such an important areas of management studies.

When you think about any organisation, be it a family business or a multinational company, they’re all fundamentally a group of people working together.

But it’s what these individuals contribute to their places of work that make you realize how important they are.

Of course they bring different ideas, but it’s also their attitudes, and their experiences of learning. diversity is important in these areas too.

So why do people behave so differently from one another at work?

There are lots of reasons but research have shown a lot of it comes down to personality.

And the other factor is gender. It’s well know fact that men and women do lots of things in different ways, and workplace is no different.

Did you look at the effects of this variation on companies?

Yes, I did. On the positive side, exposure to such diversity helps encourage creativity which is generally an asset on a company.

But unfortunately, individual differences are also the root of conflict between staff and they can lead to difficulties for management, which can sometimes be serious.

Thanks Philip. So now I guess the two main things to remember here are to identify individual talent and then to utilize it.

So Janice you were looking at identifying different talent in workers. Do you think this is easy for managers to do?

Well, currently teamwork is the fashion in the workplace an in my opinion the importance of the individual is generally neglected.

What managers should be targeting is those employees who can take the lead in the situation, and are not afraid to accept the idea of responsibility.

Umm, that’s true Janice, but unfortunately many managers think the entire notion of encouraging individuality amongst the staff is far too hard.

Yes, that maybe true but I think one of the most important tasks of managers is to consider the needs of the individual on one hand and group co-operation and conformity on the other.

It’s requires creative thinking on the part of management to avoid tension.

So Janice, what kind of people do you think companies should be looking for?

Well, it has to start from the very beginning when companies are looking for new employees.

When a personal department is choosing between applicants they need to look for someone who’s broken the mould and can think for themselves.

Instead, people make these decision often use a range of sychological tests to see if a person is a problem solver or will do as they’re told.

I’m not convinced these qualities are actually the most important.

So do you think being a good team player is overrated?

No, it’s not overrated.

You do need to learned the rules and learn fast.

No individual can get around this if you’re working in an organisation.

So how should managers deal with this?

Rewards, when an individual demonstrates the behaviour the organisation expects, some kind of incentive can be given.

What important here is that this happens right at beginning so new recruit learn the rules of the system immediately.

Also the incentive should be something the individual actually wants, and this isn’t always just money.

To come back to you, Philip. you were saying that recognition of good performers is essential.

What else should managers be looking for?

Well, managing people means you not only have an understanding of employees, but you also recognise the culture of the organisation.

In fact, for some organisations creativity and individuality may be the last thing they want to see during work hours. Very true.

Yes, but managing people isn’t as easy as it looks.

For example, change in the workplace can be quite tricky, especially there is a need to increase profit.

And times like these managers may have to give priority to profit rather than individual staff needs.

Yes, that creates difficult situations for people.

Yes, but what’s important is that managers are able to deal with quite high level of personal stress.

During times of change, they should be thinking not only about the strain on their staff but take time out to think of themselves.

Absolutely, so what are the application of that for. . . .