Fmc Green River – Individuals In Organizations
Essay Preview: Fmc Green River – Individuals In Organizations
Report this essay
FMC Aberdeen vs. FMC Green River
Individuals in Organizations
Management of Ability; Organizational Commitment;
Job Satisfaction; Organizational Ethics
Concepts in Organizational Behavior – MGT322
Unit 1- Assignment 1
Professor Azadegan
January 5, 2007
Background
Kenneth Dailey has been the site manager for FMC Corporations Green River facility for 18 months. He is currently supervising the construction of three new, smaller plants at the facility. Based on what he has heard about the results achieved at the FMC Aberdeen plant as well as their different type of organizational structure and management, a team was sent to the facility to research their operating procedures and determine if they will work at the Green River facility. The key areas of the Aberdeen management approach which appeal to Dailey include their continued increase in productivity at Aberdeen while reducing costs, and the fact that the principles and values of their system align well with Daileys. (Clawson, 2005)
There are a number of significant differences between the Aberdeen and Green River plants which must be considered throughout Daileys evaluation. These include (Clawson, 2005):
Key Area
Aberdeen
Green River
Customer base
Single customer
Over 100 customers
Worldwide product distribution
Employees
1,150 this will increase with the opening of the 3 new plants
Product line
Single product
Multiple product lines
Plant start-up
5 years ago
Plant facility
Single plant
2 existing plants;
Adding 3 new plants
Industry
Defense
Chemicals
Union affiliation
United Steel Workers
Bob Lancaster, the first plant manager at Aberdeen, built the organizations strategy based on the participative management system. Lancaster was involved in the creation of the Aberdeen plant from selecting the location through to plant start-up, selection of the management team, and beyond. The key principles which would govern the Aberdeen plant included: 1) entire organization is built on trust; 2) need to eliminate fear from employees altogether; 3) eliminate supervisors and foreman by organizing self-directed work teams; 4) expectation that people will assume and exercise responsibility; 5) employees are salaried and their pay is based on their ability to contribute; and 6) maintain high standards of quality and service. (Clawson, 2005).
Roger Campbell is now the manager of the Aberdeen plant. He has embraced the management philosophy of employee participation in all areas of plant management. Because of this, he has continued to show an improvement in production and reduction of costs at Aberdeen to FMCs Corporate Office. He has also encouraged visits to the Aberdeen plant to review their management style and organizational culture, with the belief that this type of system could work at any FMC plant location.
An analysis of the various areas of organizational behavior (OB) is the key to determining if the Aberdeen management style will fit at the Green River facilities. The following four areas are to be addressed first to determine the impact significant management and cultural changes would make at Green River: 1) Management of Ability; 2) Organizational Commitment; 3) Job Satisfaction; and 4) Organizational Ethics. Effective use of OB tools will ensure Green River can increase their effectiveness and meet their goals. (George/Jones, 2005)
Situation Analysis
The key hurdles which Dailey will need to consider in the four areas listed above at Green River include:
Employee base is union which requires negotiation and approval to make changes to its employees work schedules, job descriptions, job titles, etc.
Employee selection is based more on required skill set, not taking into account an employees ability to impact the “personality” of the plant functions by understanding the new hires interpersonal skills.
Manager roles are more traditional in the areas of being a monitor, disturbance handler, negotiator, liaison versus being a team member.
Work process, procedure and policy infrastructure has been in place for a significant number of years
Physical layout of the existing plant facilities prevent close interaction of employees
Alternatives and Recommendations
Management of Ability: understanding employee personalities and abilities is key, if Green River is to implement changes to their current processes and management style. How management plans, organizes, leads and controls their resources, including human resources is critical. There are three key ways to manage abilities in organizations: 1) selection; 2) placement; and 3) training
The employee selection and recruiting process at Green River will need to be revamped to incorporate Aberdeens philosophy that it is easier to train technical skills than personal and interpersonal skills. (Clawson, 2005). Changes to processes include employee assessments and recruiting processes to be used by managers. Managers should be trained in the areas of understanding personality traits and abilities of employees and how these impact the organization in the areas of job satisfaction, work stress and leadership, as a whole. (George/Jones, 2005).
A review of the type of training offered to employees, as well as the frequency and applicability to supporting advancement for employees should also be reviewed for revisions.
Organizational Commitment: Organizational commitment is the feelings and beliefs employees have about the organization as a whole. It is one of the 2 key work attitudes that helps management better understand and manage their employees behavior.
To gain buy-in to the desired changes by employees, Green River management must ensure that employees believe in what the organization is trying to do, support it, are happy to be a part of it, and will do whats in the best