To help the organization achieve its goals and objectives, task distribution, supervision, and coordination are directed and controlled by systems known as organizational structures. Organizations become more adaptable, efficient, and innovative, which helps them gain a competitive advantage. Operating procedures are primarily supported by organizational structure (Brown and Harvey, 2011). This essay will go over Habitat for Humanity's organizational structure as well as other elements of its organizational behavior.
International nonprofit organization Habitat for Humanity was established in 1976. It discusses both global poverty housing and simple, good dwelling. Its head offices are in Americus in Georgia USA.
Organization structure is systems that determine how task allocation, supervision, and coordination are directed and controlled to enable the organization to achieve its goals and objectives. It makes organizations flexible, efficient as well as innovative enough to make it achieve a competitive advantage. Organization structure forms the main foundation which the operating procedures are based (Brown and Harvey, 2011). This paper will discuss organization structure and other aspects of the organizational behavior of Habitat for Humanity.
Habitat for Humanity is a not-for-profit international organization founded in 1976. It deals with simple and decent housing and poverty housing all over the world. Its head offices are in Americus in Georgia USA.
Organization structure of Habitat for Humanity
The highest rank of leadership is the post of Executive Director. It is the office that controls the entire organization in consultation with the Board of Management.
Under it is several departments which are the Training department, Education department, Research and Development department, Media and Publications department, Customer relationship department and lastly the administrative department. All these departments under a head of the department and they are directly under the supervision of the executive director. Each of these departments has subunits headed by personnel. For example, the Training department has the small unit under it such as management office, Instruction office, curriculum development office. The personnel in charge of these offices are supervised by the head of Training department. Similarly, Administration department consists of finance and accounting offices, human resource office and the office in charge of internal services. The staffs of these offices report to the head of the administration department. This is the same to another department of the Habitat for Humanity. Each department has roles and responsibility that are different from each other. When their individual department goals are achieved, the overall objective of the organization would be achieved in the process.
The funds for the organization are generated in sales and go back into building homes for families. Construction team, Torrin and Rick reports directly to organization. They build new homes for families and follow build schedule. Fresno subcontracts some building in homes. However, Sacramento does not but this also depends on the country and building codes. The construction guidelines are provided by the Habitat for Humanity. Their international guideline must be green or energy efficient windows.
There is neighborhood revitalization department who pays a visit to the neighborhood before starting any program in the area. Also, there is act of kindness department that focuses on exterior beautification and landscape project in Freshno countries.
Organization power and politics
In general, power and politics have a big role in any organization. It determines the method of governance as well as who govern the organization, how decisions should be made as well as how employees interact with each other (Pinder, 2014). There are various sources of power in an organization such as legitimate power, reward power, coercive power and expert power.
At Habitat for Humanity, there are two main sources of power in running the organization, legitimate power and expert power. Legitimate power comes with the roles and responsibility or the position that one holds in an organization. The executive director is the organization has the power that he/she assumes because of the position he holds(Wagner and Hollenbeck, 2014). He controls the head of other departments and has the power to hire or fire an employee by the power provided by the office held by such a person. On the other hand, there is an expert power. These are people who are exercising control of the organization or part of the organization because they hold an expert idea on the area in question. They are the expert on ideas on how the housing can be perfectly done and what the process entails.
Organization Politics
Organization politics can be defined as the behaviors that viewed as tactical and are meant for personal interests or gains at the expense of others(Wagner and Hollenbeck, 2014). At Habitat for Humanity, there is no room for politics. However, the organization is run on the principles that help it in achieving its goals.
Leaders of Habitat for Humanity use power and politics for lodging homeownership funds. The organization wants the power and politics to be used in policy development and advocacy for homeownership at the state and federal level.
Organizational culture
Organizational culture covers values and behavior that makes up the psychological and social setting of the organization. It represents the values and beliefs as well as principles governing the members of the organization. It is a system that comes with the history of the organization, the market it operates in, the management styles used by the executive, and the employees of the organization (Wagner and Hollenbeck, 2014). It comprises of the shared values, norms organization’s symbol and vision. It guides the action and behavior of everyone in the organization and how the business of that organization should be handled. Organizational culture is also referred to as a sense-making process where shared awareness and understanding of people from the different cultural background is created. Habitat for Humanity aims to create a world where every person has a decent place to call home. This is their vision, and every action they make is towards achieving that goal. There is also respect for one another as stated in their code of conducts and ethics. The organization is made up of employees from different cultural background and thus the executive management advocates for respect for each other. There are cross-cultural events that the employees usually participate in as a way of sensitizing their employees on different cultural practices (Wagner and Hollenbeck, 2014). The leadership of the organization, Habitat for Humanity, forges a philosophy behind everything that is done in the organization today. There is no interest to be gained from their work, no profit to be made from what they do. That is their value and culture as well.
Organizational change
Organizational change is the modification or adjustment of the way an organization does its business. It can be the change of technology, employees, behavior or the entire internal and external factors of the organization. To effect change within the organization, organizational change is required to alter the culture, the methods of business as well as the initial strategies used in carrying out their business (Robbins and Judge, 2013). Habitat for Humanity changed its business from providing people with decent homes, especially the poor to an advocacy organization that also hands disaster and emergency reliefs. This occurred during the reign of Jonathan Reckford. The employees were to be prepared for the new roles to which the firm wanted to venture into. It also changes the structure of the organization as new departments were to be created to handle the disaster and emergency services. During such a change, new personnel will bring to the firm and employees also briefed, trained and assigned the new roles.
In conclusion, organizational behavior focuses on the actions, activities and how the existing structure and people of the organization can be made to work together towards achieving their mission and goals. Habitat for Humanity, an organization that provides decent homes for poor people, is the best case study for organizational behavior due to their large number of employees from different cultural background, their change of structure and venture into the new area of business. The organization advocates for respect of everyone despite their ethnicity and color. Their value, as presented in their culture is to create a world where everyone has a chance of decent living.
References
Brown, D. R., & Harvey, D. F. (2011). An experiential approach to organization development.
Pinder, C. C. (2014). Work motivation in organizational behavior. Psychology Press.
Robbins, S. P., & Judge, T. A. (2013). Organizational behavior, 15th Eden.
Wagner III, J. A., & Hollenbeck, J. R. (2014). Organizational behavior: Securing competitive advantage. Routledge.
We will email this sample to you with pleasure!
Type your email