0rganisational Communication
Author’s Name
Institution Affiliation
Course Name and Number
Instructor’s Name
Assignment Due
0rganisational Communication
The Critical theory of communication aims to assist people to perceive how communication is employed to hound and repress others, and stipulates techniques to promote social change. Critical theories confront the existing state of affairs of communication settings, examining options in changing the oppressive forms of communication. This paper analyzes the organizational problems using the critical theory and examples of the case study’s problems.
In the case study, We-R-Radio’s manager Jack Welton, organized a ‘team building’ fourteener for the management team from the beginning of the year. He told the managers to prepare themselves early enough as they would participate in the mountain climbing hike on 28th July. The company sponsored the fourteener and Welton required the managers to physically and mentally prepare themselves for it. The managers started exercising early enough to keep fit, and Welton frequently emailed the managers motivational quotes. Some managers were not up for it as it seemed like the team-building exercise equated to their worth in the company.
The day before the mountain climb, Welton divided the managers into groups of who would make it up the mountain first and last. The groups were Alpha, Bravo. and Charlie. On the test, Welton and some managers made it seem like a competition as they left people behind and were walking too fast. The struggling managers, Dallas and Lena, were shamed by Welton and told that they would not participate in the mountain climb the following day by Welton’s organizers of the hike.
Lena had issues with breathing due to the high altitudes and could not make it to walk fast. Dallas and Kalee, Lena’s daughter, stayed back to help her. Dallas and Lena felt it was unfair not to participate in the hike after several months of dedication in exercising. Several managers consoled them. The next day, the managers woke up early for the hike while the two managers were left behind. Kalee felt grateful for the chance to climb at Colorado’s highest point, even though she was among the last to reach the top of the mountain.
There were many organizational challenges observed in the case study. Firstly, at the individual level, some of the members were concerned about the health and physical issues they had. Lena had breathing problems, and some managers were afraid their legs would give up on them in the middle of the hike. Also, Kalee had asthma, and the thin air due to the high altitude affected her. Additionally, the managers were forced to work out for several months in preparation of the hike as it was a must to attend. One of the managers quit due to the pressure of the hike. However, two days before the ‘team building’, Welton said he was not forcing them to attend the hike and that, We-R-Radio was not liable for any problems the managers faced during the hike.
Secondly, at the group level, not everyone was able to keep up with exercising. Working out and keeping up with work-life was overwhelming to some managers. The hike was also very competitive among other members as some were contesting to reach the top whilst others were struggling. The people were competing for positions during the practice hike until walkie-talkies were employed to unify Alpha and Bravo members. Welton and his son were seen to be rushing ahead of others during the test trial. Also, Welton’s wife, who was Bravo group leader, hurried and left her groupmates behind. Some of the group members did not wait for the struggling ones, and they were left behind. They were also divided into groups for mountain climbing, making some managers feel unworthy.
Lastly, at the organizational level, Welton is seen to be a dictator. He first says that the hike was a must for participation by the managers for team building. Moreover, he highly praises people who lost some weight while exercising for the hike. This publicly linked weight loss to being a worthy employee. Like Lena, some managers were disheartened by this as she exercised but there was little progress to her weight loss journey. He misuses his power on his employees.
Moreover, he was tyrannical in his leadership as he wanted everyone to participate in the team building and expected everyone to reach the top. His dictatorship is seen the night before the test hike when in Welton’s club. After the awarding ceremony in the club, some managers proposed returning to the hotel as they were fatigued. Welton said, “that’s too damn bad. I’m having a party” (Kirby, 42). The managers had to attend the party even while tired. Additionally, he openly uses his power to demean and shame the managers. After telling both Dallas and Lena off on not climbing Mount Elbert, Lena cried to one of the managers while saying, “I am so disappointed because I have been training for seven months and now I can’t even try. I can’t breathe up in this altitude whether I am exercising or not. I feel like such a failure, and I just hope this failure is not considered as part of my job performance!” (Kirby, 44).
The Critical theory in communication tries to look out and comprehend power constructs. The theory tries to transform them in constructive ways. In relation to the case study, the theory reveals and disputes the communication of political structures. There is coercive and legitimate power that Welton uses. Legitimate power is due to Welton holding a high-power position as he is the boss. Coercive power is seen when all the managers complied to the hike, while the other manager quit due to being overwhelmed. In coercive power, the employees are intimidated and believe that certain behaviors could lead to demotion. This shows the abuse of power that Welton uses on his employees. Critical approaches comprehend company practices that uphold power over their staff and seek to determine why they are not resisted.
Achieving empathy when communicating with others is vital. Welton only cares about his interests at his club party when some of his managers wanted to go and rest at the hotel. He makes them stay there with him as he goes about partying. He only considers his view correct while others to be imprudent. There should be love within the employees to encourage strength and unity in the organization.
Ethics refers to moralities and standards that influence our behaviors. Ethics is a huge part of communication in organizations. This is through doing appropriate things in companies and behaving appropriately. Welton’s morals are seen to be bad as he is a dictator and shames his employees. One of the administrative laws connected to ethical communication in organizations recommends staff respect each other, identify each other’s’ values, have integrity, and be open to change. This promotes peace and love within an organization.
To balance power at We-R-Radio, empathy is critical in the company by its members. It encourages inclusion and understanding among the employees while recognizing other people’s viewpoints are equally important. Also, managers should find a balance between being a leader and healthily connecting with their staff. Welton should not have divided people into hiking groups and forced them to exceed their limits by reaching the mountain top, as some stuff could not manage due to health issues.
Moreover, managers should respect their staff and attempt to comprehend them. Welton did a very bad deed by shaming Dallas and Lena. They should also communicate effectively and in a healthy manner. Degrading communication with others should be criticized. Additionally, employees should detach and resist organizational power by defending themselves. This could be in form of directly communicating with the company boss on his shortcomings, or striking as staff.
The benefit of implementing these solutions is that it promotes respect, love, and unity within the organization. Also, there would be healthy teamwork if the staff aspires to work together, thus further developing the organization’s growth. However, one obstacle to implementing the solution is it would result in the firing of some employees. Most people in power do not like to be corrected, and any form of resistance from employees would result in their sacking. Also, it might take a long time for the implementation to start working. In case the boss hears the employees’ grievances, adapting to the changes in his character would take some time but is definitely worth it.
In conclusion, it is seen how the abuse of power by the employers severely affects the staff. Managers and employers should embrace empathy and love for their staff to promote unity and respect in the organization. Unity is power, and without it, many things and areas in companies fail to be effective.
References
Kirby, E. (2010). Your attitude determines your altitude. In J. Keyton and P. Schockley-Zzalabak (Eds.), Case Studies for Organizational Communication (pp. 38-45). New York: Oxford University Press.
Lam, L. W., & Xu, A. J. (2019). Power imbalance and employee silence: The role of abusive leadership, power distance orientation, and perceived organisational politics. Applied psychology, 68(3), 513-546. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/apps.12170
Visser, M. (2019). Pragmatism, critical theory and business ethics: Converging lines. Journal of Business Ethics, 156(1), 45-57. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10551-017-3564-9