How to Manage Grapevine Communication in an Organization?

Grapevine  communication is an informal channel of business communication. It is called so because it stretches throughout the organization in all directions irrespective of the authority levels. Despite  existence  of  formal  channels  in  an  organization,  the  informal channels  tend  to  develop  when  he  interacts  with  other  people  in organization. It exists more at lower levels of organization. Grapevine generally develops due to various reasons. One of them is that when  an  organization  is  facing  recession,  the  employees  sense uncertainty. Also, at times employees do not have self-confidence due to which  they  form  unions.  Sometimes  the  managers  show  preferential treatment  and  favor  some  employees  giving  a  segregated  feeling  to other employees. Thus, when  employees sense a  need to  exchange their views,  they  go  for  grapevine  network  as  they  cannot  use  the  formal channel  of  communication  in  that  case.  Generally  during  breaks  in cafeteria,  the  subordinates  talk  about  their  superior’s  attitude  and Continue reading

File Organization Techniques

The basic technology of the data organization is based on a hierarchy. Data must be approached on an organized basis, if it is to be useful, in data processing, the hierarchy of data is described below:- A character is any simple number, alphabet or special symbol. A data record consists of a group of related data fields(e. g. Employee’s sequential record, customer record, etc.) A data field is an area that can hold one organization more characters that, together represents a specific data element(e. g. The name field, the quantity filed) A data file is a compilation of related data records maintained in some prearranged order. A database usually consists of several related organization integrated data files. A file consists of a number of records. Each record is made up of a number of fields and each field consists of a number of characters. In order to produce useful information Continue reading

Management Audit – Definition, Scope, Need, Advantages and Limitations

Management audit is a method of independent and systematic evaluation of the management activities at all levels of management to ascertain the functions, efficiency and achievement of the management (i.e. policies) as compared to standards set by the company. According to L. R. Howard, “Management audit is an investigation of business from the highest level downward in order to ascertain whether sound management prevails throughout, thus facilitating the most effective relationship with outside world and smooth running of internal organization.” As per Taylor and Perry; “Management auditing is a method to evaluate the efficiency of management at all levels throughout the organization, or more specifically, it comprises the investigation of a business by an independent body from the highest executive level downwards, in order to ascertain whether sound management prevails through and to report as to its efficiency or otherwise with recommendations to ensure its effectiveness where such is not the case.” Scope of Continue reading

Pricing Decisions in Industrial Marketing

Price still remains one of the most important elements determining  company market share and profitability. Generally, prices were set by buyers and  sellers negotiating with each other. Setting one price for all buyers is a relatively  modern idea. Price is the only element in the marketing mix that produces  revenue. Price is also one of the most flexible elements of the marketing mix.  At the same time, pricing and price competition are the number-one  problems faced by many marketing executives. Yet many companies do not  handle pricing well. The most common mistakes are these: Pricing is too cost  oriented; price is not revised often enough to capitalize on market changes; price  is set independent of the rest of the marketing mix rather than as an intrinsic  element of market-positioning strategy; and price is not varied enough for  different product items, market segments, and purchase occasions. Pricing Decisions in Industrial Marketing Continue reading

Cultural Diversity in the Workplace

Today’s workforce is truly mixture of different races, ages, genders, ethnic groups, religions and lifestyles. It is the job of the management of the organisation to fit together different pieces of mosaic in a harmonious, coordinated way and utilizing the abilities and talents of each employee to its maximum. If skilfully managed, diversity can bring a competitive advantage to an organisation. If not, however, the bottom line can be negatively affected and the work environment can become unwelcoming. Many organisations have recognized that the workforce is changing and they are working to create a work environment in which diversity and difference are valued and in which employees can work to their fullest. They are dealing with the problems that arise when people in the workplace communicate. Businesses must be aware of the impact of cultural diversity on important business factors especially communication and the degree of the effect of cultural Continue reading

Employee Involvement – Meaning and Importance

Employees, the strongest pillar of the organization are the most valuable asset that contributes significantly to its success and prosperity. The involvement of employees in the organizational operation not only motivates them but also enables them to contribute more effectively and efficiently. Further, employee involvement as a process involving participation, communication, decision making which leads to industrial democracy and employee motivation. Employee involvement is defined as a commitment of the employees towards the values of the organization and willingness to help each other to achieve the organizational goal. The results are not only to increase job satisfaction, or motivation but the increasing performance of that organization. In short, employee involvement is creating an environment where people have a continuous impact on decisions and actions that affect their jobs. Employee Involvement vs  Employee Participation   Employee involvement and employee participation are like two sides of a coin. Both are supplementary to Continue reading