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A common discussion in business today is the topic of diversity.
In organizations we are aware that acquiring, developing, and
capitalizing upon the talents of a diverse set of individuals
can make the difference between success and failure. However,
with diversity comes challenges and you, the manager, must be
able to overcome the challenges. If every employee was
identical, then managing would be easier (though less productive
and less exciting). Given every individual is different, it is
essential to understand the foundations of human and group
behavior that can be used to explain the differences and that
can provide a common ground for managing individuals with
diverse backgrounds, personalities, experiences, and
perspectives.
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In order to lead others we must have a strong grasp on the factors that
affect human behavior. We can plan for the future; we can organize
resources. However, if goals are to be accomplished then humans need to
perform. Calls must be made; products must be produced; bills need to be
paid; money needs to be collected; phones need to be answered. Module
4.1 introduces you to the leadership topic by considering the basic
foundations of human behavior. In general, the material in the reading
assignment can be organized in two ways.
First, at the core of many human resources practices
and procedures is the understanding that an individual’s performance
(i.e., how well he or she performs a task) is a function of three
factors: 1) the individual’s knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA)
related to the task, 2) the individual’s level of motivation to perform
the task, and 3) external factors, such as equipment, resources, or team
members necessary for performing the task. Personality types,
perception, attitudes, general intelligence, and other concepts
discussed in this module are antecedents to the individual factors
(e.g., KSAs, motivation) that affect performance.
Second, reinforcement or learning theories offer a
different view of behavior. In short, learning theory suggests that an
individual’s behavior in the future is a function of the consequences
the individual received from behavior in the past. This view of behavior
suggests that a manager’s role is to ‘shape’ and employee’s future
behavior by applying positive or negative consequences to the employee’s
current behavior.
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