Case Study Essay

Master of social work

Pro Forma – MSWPG7212

Organisation Name: Australian Disability Clearinghouse on Education and Training (ADCET)

Management Theory: The needs theory: motivating employees with Maslow's hierarchy of needs

Description of management theory

“The Need Theory”, motivating employees with Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a management theory that affirms that motivating employees is the crucial aspect of management (Snow, et al. 2019). It asserts that when people are motivated by their unfulfilled needs, they act as motivation material that can help an individual to commit some positive behaviour. This theory is explained in terms of Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs theory that asserts motivation is the product of an individual’s intention to fulfil its basic needs, that are five in number such as safety, self-actualization, psychological needs, social performance and self-esteem (Snow, et al. 2019). Maslow infers that people have needs and unfulfilled needs that are a guide to the production of desires and drives that can make an individual satisfy his needs. The categories of needs were believed to be the primary needs that are replaced by secondary needs when primary needs are fulfilled. All these needs are connected to motivation because the actions to fulfil a need is guided by the necessity, motivation or desire to get it fulfilled. However, deeper analysis infers that the pyramid of needs is divided into two different categories, deficiency needs and the growth needs (Snow, et al. 2019). Deficiency needs refer to safety needs and physiological needs while growth needs are related to self-actualization, self-esteem and the belongings of an individual. These needs are crucial to determine the life pattern of an individual. Maslow believes that these needs can be used in a broader perspective (organisational firework) to motivate employees. Here, these needs are termed as employee needs guided by the business goals.

Implementation of Management Theory

The needs theory: motivating employees with Maslow's hierarchy of needs can be used in Australian Disability Clearinghouse on Education and Training (ADCET), taking into account that the success and capability of the organisations are completely relying on the input of employees i.e. teachers and the trainers. Moreover, as this organisation deals with the teaching and training of disabled students, the evidences of implication of theory and the success of the organisation go side by side (Li, et al. 2019). Dealing in inclusive education is not easy, it is equally challenging, accompanied by the fact that the subject (students) are not capable of addressing and representing themselves. Motivating employees in ADCET will help them orient and develop long term organisational goals. It would guide them to work harder on a student, guide them in a better way and utilize maximum resources for achieving academic goals because employees would be clear about their central role. Teachers will teach their students more effectively, they will try to maintain the self-esteem of student despite their inabilities. The teachers would ensure the safety of the students and treat them like normal students because their needs will be fulfilled and it will motivate them to fulfil the needs of their students. The needs theory will not only strengthen the relationship between the employees, adhering to the fulfilment of needs but it will broaden the horizon of fulfilling needs of students as well because they are not equally able so they are at a greater verge of having challenged deficiency needs and growth needs (De, et al. 2018).

There are both, advantages and disadvantages of this management approach, taking into account that two aspects go side by side.

Benefit

Adherence to human nature

It is asserted that the needs theory is in accordance with human nature taking into account the significance of lower-level needs or efficient needs. The choice of needs and the fulfilment of those needs act as a framework that can keep human nature intact (Klein, et al. 2019).

Holistic FrameworkPeople and organisations are guided by the basic instinct of holistic vision because without this approach, the needs and desires cannot be addressed in a hierarchy. It is asserted that it is also the significance of needs that guide employees to take effort that can help them address primary needs first and then try to fulfil the secondary needs of everyone on the whole (Klein, et al. 2019).

Challenges

Difference in thinking pattern

Among many of the disadvantages, one of the disadvantages is the difference of thought. For many people, the hierarchy of needs is different and it leads their actions, in the same way, leading to a distorted structure of hierarchy of needs. If any of the employees think differently then he would have a different understanding of needs pattern (Klein, et al. 2019).

Cultural Differences

The identification and fulfilling of needs are highly dependent on the ideology of cultural differences because, in many of the nations, needs are fulfilled in accordance with cultural setting such as those of the people teaching in ADCET. If there would be an employee from another cultural background, his understanding of needs would be different, such as the cultural difference between an American and Indian Employee. Although a shift can be brought over the course of time, the essence would be same i.e. of native culture (Klein, et al. 2019).

Organisation Name: Australian Disability Clearinghouse on Education and Training (ADCET),

Management Theory: System Management Theory

Description of theory

System Management Theory is not originally a business theory. In fact, this theory was first time proposed by a biologist Ludwig Von Bertalanffy in 1940 (Hersey, et al. 2007). It is a theory that infers that an organisation should be treated as a system. The connotation of the system is termed as a set of different parts that are meant to form a complex whole. Within this complex whole, each part is distinct but it ultimately interacts to form the complete whole. Here, distinct departments are resources, information, employees, products and assets that can form a complete hole in the form of organisation (Hersey, et al. 2007). This system can either be open or closed, however, in many cases, an organisation is treated as an open system. It is a system that interacts or align its actions and systems by different outputs, inputs and throughputs. Inputs refer to natural resources, the work of employees and equipment. These inputs are transformed into throughputs and then they result in the form of services and products called outputs. These outputs are released to the environment (Hersey, et al. 2007). According to Von Bertalanffy, the real system has an open nature input that is given the freedom to interact and open new avenues and ideas that can help a system grow. It adheres to the arrangement as well as the relationship between different parts that can be connected to form a complete whole. In a nutshell, the system management theory acts as a guideline that can allow and direct organisations to proceed in a highly systematic and procedural way that will not only increase the output but it will strengthen inter-organisation relationships as well.

Implementation of theory into an organisation

System Management Theory can be used in Australian Disability Clearinghouse on Education and Training (ADCET) taking into account the fact that the organisation’s success is just the product of system handling (Noe, et al. 2017). As this organisation deals with the training and teaching of disabled people, it would not have worked without the support of all subsystem such as teachers, administrators, Human Resource Managers, Funding department, Policy Makers, and students as well. As all the departments are working and served with the best, is the reason that the organisation is one of the famous platforms for the support and training of disabled students. In accordance with the underlying understanding of the business theory, it s asserted that the success of the department can be in the form of output revealing success if inputs are adequate and suitable while the outputs would be inadequate if the organisation will not work as a system or one or more departments would not be working appropriately (Nicotera, et al. 2019).

This theory can be implemented in ADCET by treating the organisation as a system that has a universal and collective aim of training and teaching of the disabled people, so all the related systems and department should work and treated with a positive impact. Moreover, the basic necessities should be fulfilled with the ideology that the sub-systems would work with their best so as to achieve the common goal of better services. As a result of this positive approach, the system would be moulded in more successful ways that would ensure success (Teece, et al.2018).

Challenges and benefits

Benefits

Holistic Approach

System Management Theory imparts a holistic approach that allows an organisation to connect to its resources on the same board. It equally decides for the employees and employers. All issues are also addressed on the same board so there is equality (Noe, et al. 2017)

Empowered Decisions

System management theory affirms the empowered decision that can help an employee to feel valued and part of the organisation as a whole (Noe, et al. 2017).

Challenges

Problem Creation

System Management Theory incorporates problem creation because in spite of ignoring problems, the organisation address and invite problems to cover all aspects that are either harmful or assumed to be harmful such as giving significance to the issues in a single class.

Ideological approach

Taking an organisation as a system may lead to idealization of an organisation because an organisation has some specific connotations that are to be understood but raking an organisation as a system will automatically lead to a distress where all employees have to work on the same board and on the same calibre void of any flexibility (Noe, et al. 2017).

References

De Vito, L., Brown, A., Bannister, B., Cianci, M., & Mujtaba, B. G. (2018). Employee motivation based on the hierarchy of needs, expectancy and the two-factor theories applied with higher education employees. IJAMEE.

Hersey, P., Blanchard, K. H., & Johnson, D. E. (2007). Management of organisational behaviour (Vol. 9). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Klein, M. (2019). Self-determination theory: Basic psychological needs in motivation, development, and wellness. Sociologicky Casopis, 55(3), 412-413.

Li, Z., Chen, Z., & Hui, Y. (2019). Portfolio selection through Maslow’s need hierarchy theory. Applied Economics, 51(4), 364-372.

Nicotera, A. M. (2019). 7 Human Resource Management Theory. Origins and Traditions of Organizational Communication: A Comprehensive Introduction to the Field.

Noe, R. A., Hollenbeck, J. R., Gerhart, B., & Wright, P. M. (2017). Human resource management: Gaining a competitive advantage. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Education.

Snow, D. (2019). The Big Picture: How the New Use of an Old Theory will Enhance Leaders' Perspective on Management. Journal of Applied Business & Economics, 21(1).

Teece, D. J. (2018). Dynamic capabilities as (workable) management systems theory. Journal of Management & Organisation, 24(3), 359-368.