sUGGESTED SOLUTIONS BASED ON THE CASE STUDY”

SUBJECT:
LEADERSHIP, ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR & HRM

UNDER THE GUIDANCE OF

DR. RISHIKESH KUMAR

SUBMITTED BY:
AADARSH MAHAJAN
AMISHA
ANSHU
ARCHANA
HARSH YASASHWEE

2020-2022
DEPARTMENT OF MASTER OF FASHION MANAGEMENT

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF FASHION TECHNOLOGY,

PATNA

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 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We would like to express special thanks of gratitude to our teacher Dr. Rishikesh Kumar
who gave me the opportunity to undertake this assignment -.

This project has been prepared with utmost care and deep routed interest.

MFM 1st Semester

(2020-2022)

NIFT PATNA

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 CONTENT

S.NO. TOPIC PAGE NO.

1 Perception 4
2 CASE STUDY 1 6
3 Suggested solution 7
4 Conflict 11
5 CASE STUDY 2 12
6 Suggested solution 13
7 Personality 14
8 CASE STUDY 3 16
9 Suggested solution 17

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 PERCEPTION
Perception is an intellectual process of transforming sensory stimuli to meaningful
information. It is the process of interpreting something that we see or hear in our mind and
use it later to judge and give a verdict on a situation, person, group etc.

Importance of Perception: -

We need to understand what the role of perception in an organization is. It is very important
in establishing different role of perceptions like −

 Understanding the tasks to be performed.

 Understanding associated importance of tasks allotted.
 Understanding preferred behavior to complete respective tasks.
 Clarifying role perceptions.
For example, every member in a group has to be clear regarding the role allotted to them.
Programmer writes the code, tester checks it, etc.

Perceptual Process

Perceptual process are the different stages of perception we go through. The different stages
are −

 Receiving
 Selecting
 Organizing
 Interpreting
Receiving
Receiving is the first and most important stage in the process of perception. It is the initial
stage in which a person collects all information and receives the information through the
sense organs.
Selecting
Selecting is the second stage in the process. Here a person doesn’t receive the data randomly
but selectively. A person selects some information out of all in accordance with his interest
or needs. The selection of data is dominated by various external and internal factors.
 External factors − The factors that influence the perception of an individual
externally are intensity, size, contrast, movement, repetition, familiarity, and novelty.
 Internal factors − The factors that influence the perception of an individual
internally are psychological requirements, learning, background, experience, self-
acceptance, and interest.

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Organizing
Keeping things in order or say in a synchronized way is organizing. In order to make sense
of the data received, it is important to organize them.
We can organize the data by −
 Grouping them on the basis of their similarity, proximity, closure, continuity.
 Establishing a figure ground is the basic process in perception. Here by figure, we
mean what is kept as main focus and by ground we mean background stimuli, which
are not given attention.
 Perceptual constancy that is the tendency to stabilize perception so that contextual
changes don’t affect them.
Interpreting
Finally, we have the process of interpreting which means forming an idea about a particular
object depending upon the need or interest. Interpretation means that the information we
have sensed and organized, is finally given a meaning by turning it into something that can
be categorized. It includes stereotyping, halo effect etc.

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 CASE STUDY 1

The atmosphere at automobile parts manufacturer Alba Ltd. was palpable with tension. Vice
President (Engineering) Vikas Malhotra's thoughts went back to the time when he had joined
Alba at the age of 25, straight after management school. He had hoped then that he would
take the company places and that together they would touch global horizons.

The managing director and the president of the company, Tapas Sen was quite appreciative of
his work and contributions made towards the company. Today, 13 years later, they were
totally at loggerheads and did not seem to have a consensus on anything. The company was
involved in the manufacturing of automobile parts. Tapas Sen took over Alba at the age of 27
after his father's sudden death. Till then it relied an older method of operations as there was
no threat of competition and there were no other major players in its external environment.
When Tapas took over in 1989, he wanted to bring in changes, but he was initially a bit
apprehensive. In the wake of the liberalization measures adopted by the Indian government in
1991, the company faced unanticipated disturbances in business and the philosophy became
to either "change or perish." Tapas decided to change. He brought in positive changes in the
technology, systems, and processes and worked hard to maintain Alba's position in the
market. Under his leadership, the company grew gradually and became one of the leaders in
the market. It made variable profits depending on the state of the market and the demand for
its products. In 2000, he decided to go public and made high profits for himself as well as the
shareholders. He was labeled as a very hard-working, focused, and sincere businessman. In
1995, he inducted Vikas who proved to be an asset to the company. Vikas was appointed as
an engineer, but in the last 13 years by dint of sheer hard work, commitment, and loyalty to
the company, he had been promoted as a senior manager.

Due to the unexpected departure of the vice president (engineering), Vikas was promoted to
take on his mantle. Prior to this, there were very few interactions between Vikas and Tapas
because the chain of command did not require them to communicate much. Earlier, important
discussions transpired between the VP and the MD. Vikas developed a dislike for his boss as
the frequency of the interaction between them increased. He also believed that Tapas did not
like him much. They had differences about the promotional activities being carried out by the
company to advertise its products. Tapas believed that in a competitive environment,
products can be sold only with an effective advertising programme, while Vikas was
convinced that the quality of the product would speak for itself. Vikas was of the opinion that
the company should, therefore, focus more on the quality of the product and the needs of
customers.

Tapas was disappointed when heard about Vikas's strong conviction about the importance of
product quality over investment in advertising campaigns. He found his thoughts to be
immature and also illogical. He also felt that Vikas's views might not be aligned with the
long-term objectives of the company. Tapas communicated it very clearly to all his
employees, especially to Vikas, that being the owner of the organization, he had complete

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control over its operations and would not permit anyone to interfere with his decisions. The
argument between them ended on a sour note. 

Vikas, now, decided to take a backseat and just focus on his work with the objective of
adding value to the organization. He limited his discussions with Tapas to the minimum in
order to avoid confrontations. He tried to work quietly but sometimes had to come to the
forefront during Tapas's absence from work. Sometimes Vikas had to take decisions
regarding promotion and reward strategies, and pricing of the product that were quite
contrary to Tapas's beliefs. When Tapas would get to know of these decisions, he would fret
and call Vikas to discuss the issues. Vikas, on the other hand, would avoid discussions for as
long as possible as he did not want to get into arguments with Tapas. Vikas always had his
thoughts aligned for the benefit of the organization and did not want to get into conflicting
situations. Slowly, Vikas started realizing the stark personality differences between him and
Tapas and felt disturbed by it. It was not possible for him to continue working in the same
state. He proposed a meeting with Tapas immediately so as to clarify his areas of authority
and responsibility. He requested Tapas for a meeting, a request that was grudgingly agreed to
by Tapas. Vikas is now waiting for this meeting to take place so that he can decide his future
course of action. 

Tapas, however, is concerned about Vikas's behaviour. He is disturbed by the fact that Vikas
seems more interested in making investments in technology and processes rather than
improving the image of the company's products in the larger market with extensive
advertising. He also feels that Vikas impinges on his authority during his absence and takes
decisions that could damage the reputation of the company. He is annoyed with Vikas for
trying to change the reward structure of the company without formally discussing it with him.
He had always found Vikas evading issues whenever called for discussion. He feels now that
it would be impossible to work with someone like Vikas. 

Questions for discussion

1.     How do Vikas and Tapas perceive each other? Are they right in their perception and
each other's evaluation? 

2.     How do they perceive themselves? Why is there so much variation in their perception of
each other and themselves? 

3.     How can they improve their interaction with each other?

4.     If you were in Tapas's place, how would you handle the situation? What would you do if
you were in Vikas's place?

Suggested Solution
1. As Tapas is the Managing Director of the organization and holding a responsible
position, he must not have a single way of working. For the business development
and expansion, branding of the product is also important, but not on the cost of
compromising the quality of product. Both the Leaders should sit together,

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 understand each other's point of view and resolve the issues amicably. 

In case of difference of opinion or conflicting perceptions, it is always better to face

each other & communicate the opinions effectively.

It is again a responsibility of Mr. Tapas to take Mr. Vikas with him and try to
convince with his thoughts for business or get convinced with the thoughts of Mr.
Vikas. As Mr. Vikas is a young & ambitious leader and working for the Alba
Limited from a long time, need to deal tactfully. Both the leaders must understand
the vision of the company and after deciding the priority for business, actions can be
taken accordingly.

Necessary steps for resolution of conflicting perceptions:

 Acknowledge the conflict or conflicting perceptions: Avoiding the acknowledgement of
existence of the conflict may lead to further issues, as it was being happening with Mr.
Tapas & Vikas. It is always beneficial to discuss the issue or acknowledge it, once you
recognize the issue, you both may start working for resolution of the same.

- Discuss the impact: Conflicting perceptions at top level will always have a major
impact on business, so it is always better to discuss the impact of conflicting perceptions.

- Agree to cooperative process: As quality of product is necessary for attracting the

customer, branding of the same is also essential part of business strategy and both must
understand the level of extent and must agree to that. Cooperation of both in each other's
field may lead to a better result for future as well. 

-Agree to communicate: The most important thing throughout the resolution process for
everyone is to keep the communication platforms open. The people involved in the
process must discuss the issues and their strong feelings.

So, at the end, effective communication, clarity & alignment of employees with the
vision, mission & the values of the company is important.

2. The participants were then given a choice—they could take a pill that was supposed
to facilitate performance on the intelligence task (making it easier for them to
perform) or a pill that was supposed to inhibit performance on the intelligence task,
thereby making the task harder to perform (no drugs were actually administered).
Both Tapas and Vikas preferred to take the performance-inhibiting rather than the
performance-enhancing drug, choosing the drug that provided a convenient external
attribution for potential failure.

we can see that there are some benefits (but also, of course, some costs) of self-handicapping.
If we fail after we self-handicap, we simply blame the failure on the external factor. But if we
succeed despite the handicap that we have created for ourselves, we can make clear internal
attributions for our success. “Look at how well I did in my presentation at work, even though
I wasn’t feeling well!”

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Engaging in behaviors that create self-handicapping can be costly because doing so makes it
harder for us to succeed. In fact, research has found that people who report that they self-
handicap regularly show lower life satisfaction, less competence, poorer moods, less interest
in their jobs, and greater substance abuse.
Fortunately, most people have a reasonable balance between optimism and realism in the
attributions that they make.
Because we each use our own expectations in judgment, people may form different
impressions of the same person performing the same behavior.
Individual differences in the cognitive accessibility of a given personal characteristic may
lead to more overlap in the descriptions provided by the same perceiver about different
people than there is in those provided by different perceivers about the same target person.
People with a strong need for cognition make more causal attributions overall. Entity
theorists tend to focus on the traits of other people and tend to make a lot of personal
attributions, whereas incremental theorists tend to believe that personalities change a lot over
time and therefore are more likely to make situational attributions for events.
Individual differences in attributional styles can influence how we respond to the negative
events that we experience.

3. Tapas and Vikas can improve their interaction by-

 Be empathetic. Try to keep the focus on the other person with statements like “you must
be so proud of what you’ve accomplished,” rather than saying “I am so happy you’ve
found success!” You might think this would barely be noticeable in conversation, but the
actual psychological effect is rather profound. Keeping the focus on “you” rather than “I”
or “me” alters the entire tone of a conversation and shows your interest in the way other
people feel or think.
• Be personal. For example, everyone expects you to follow up the question of “how are
you?” with “good, you?” Rather than using these sorts of canned, robotic responses, try
instead to actually make it personal. Say how you actually are, or give a quick recap of
your day, and you’ll find there are more opportunities to make a personal connection.
• Ask questions. As the old adage goes, people love to talk about themselves. The more
you show your interest in others, the more they’ll be interested in you in return. Ask
follow up questions based on things they’ve already told you as well, so they know
you’ve been listening.
• Listen. Don’t interrupt the other person, and don’t get distracted and turn away. Keep
your focus on the person talking, nod your head and show you’re listening. Don’t just be
waiting to respond, either — you’ll get to know people a lot better by listening to every
detail.
• Be genuine. Don’t feel like you have to play a part — you’ll come across as being fake.

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 This advice might seem trite, but just be yourself. It’s the best way to come across as
being genuine and it’s far easier than trying to be someone you’re not.

4. It is a proven fact that majority of conflicts are results of less communication or no

communication at all. There is no conflict exists in this world which cannot be resolved with
an effective and proper communication.

Differences among people should not be regarded as inherently "good" or "bad." Sometimes
differences result in important benefits to the organization; and sometimes they are
disruptive, reducing the over-all effectiveness of individuals and organizations, as it was
happening in Tapas & Vikas case.

The manager who consistently "pours oil on troubled waters" may not be the most effective
manager. Nor is the manager necessarily successful who emphasizes individuality and
differences so strongly that cooperation and teamwork are simply afterthoughts. 

Avoidance can be a one of the methods of conflict management but it is not always beneficial
for the organization. The situation at Alba Ltd. is becoming worse day by day, as both, Mr.
Tappan& Vikas is losing their faith and communication with each other.  

A company involved in the manufacturing of automobile parts having no threat of

competition and there was no other major players in its external environment, seems to
struggling between two leaders and becoming a "tragedy of indecision".

In past also, when company faced the challenge of "change or perish", Tapas decided to
change. He brought in positive changes in the technology, systems, and processes and worked
hard to maintain Alba's position in the market so it can be safely concluded that Tapas is not
an adamant leader who for making any change or for innovation, just the difference between
Tapas & Vikas is because of, no communication & lack of trust that resulted in tug of war. 

In case of Tapas & Vikas, It is very difficult to say whose approach for business is right and
whose wrong, as both were working for the benefit & creating the value for organization. As
far as approach of both, Tapas & Vikas is concerned, both were having a long-term beneficial
goal in their mind but somewhere both have failed to communicate the same effectively, to
each other.

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 CONFLICT
A conflict is a kind of argument which can be between two people or between a group of
people. When conflicts are not dealt with, it can be very damaging. The longer it goes on, the
more difficult it is to stop. Conflicts can start for many reasons sometimes when particular
problem or issue arises. It can arise if employees are not being treated fairly. A conflict can
continue and prolong because groups form and individuals are drawn into one group or
another. In many cases the groups and individuals will stereotype each other and stop seeing
each other as individuals. The individuals can stop talking to each other and do not care for
ones feelings. There are chances that the conflict can escalate. Everyone has basic needs at
work such as rewards, recognition, safety, flexible working hours if these needs are not
fulfilled the employees are left dissatisfied and conflicts take place. Conflict is dysfunctional
in the workplace.

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 CASE STUDY 2

The Conflict in Maruti Suzuki India Ltd

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd one of India’s largest car maker by volume faced a major industrial
strike. It was wracked by labor unrest since last year at its plant at Manaesar in the Northern
state of Harayana in India. It started back in june 2011 where labour woes at the facility,
located about 50 kilometers from New Delhi, where the workers had gone on an indefinite
strike to form an independent union at the same plant. While the company suffered a
production loss of about 80,000 cars in the 59 days of strike, the direct revenue losses were
pegged at 2,500 crores in the last fiscal year. Workers halted all activity demanding
recognition from Marutis Management of their newly formed Maruti Suzuki Employees
Union. Maruti Suzuki suffered great production as well as business loss. And history is
repeating, as this new sudden difference of opinion between workers and management staff is
leading to a work halt and has occurred again in 2012.
Basically, the agitation sprouted because Maruti Suzuki’s administration suspended one of
the workers from the quality department after he allegedly created frizz with the managerial
staff. He was at once suspended due to his misbehavior with the supervisor on the shop-floor.
Thereafter the workers fought against the decision and burnt down the administration wing of
the facility that rolls out major automobiles such as Swift and Dzire. Workers delayed the
production output and even burnt few car models parked outside the plant. Later when the
conflict heated up and the laborers started protesting leading to severe violence at the plant,
Maruti Suzuki management called in police to control the situation. Later the clash turned
extremely violent leading to dozens of injuries. Where the workers at Manaesar plant
attacked senior officials and started a fire at the administration wing of the plant where the
senior Human Resource executive died.
The newly registered Maruti Suzuki Workers’ Union (MSWU) at the Manesar plant
immediately showed the urge to cancel the suspension order of the worker and stopped the
executives from the management team to leave the factory premises. The reason for the strike
is that around two thousand five hundred employed independent workers are demanding
independent recognition for their newly set up union called Maruti Suzuki Employees union.
Apart from this the workers want that few of the contract labourers from their two units must
be retained in the company. Labor unrest had commenced due to the disagreement between
workers and management over disciplinary patterns and over the signing of mandatory good
conduct bond. The workers are still dissatisfied and the situation is stil tensed in the Manaesar
plant. The dissatisfied workers are now planning a hunger strike and other protests to force
the company to reinstate the employees who were sacked in the violence earlier this year.
Maruti has to formulate different techniques to solve this major conflict and maintain its
goodwill in the market as well as the trust and loyalty of their workers.

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Suggested solution
 The management style should be changed from traditional style.
 The upper management team should make their understanding between the poor’s or
labors of their company.
 The company must listen the voices of their labor and also work effectively to solve
their problems too.
 The company should consider their needs and work towards their welfare also.
 They must find out the real problems by meeting with the workers head in a very
silent manner.
 Schedule a follow-up meeting between the involved parties after a period of several
weeks to determine how well the issue has been resolved.
 The management team should keep a close eye on the situation, and get ready to have
a private discussion with one of the employees.

Conclusion
In conclusion we learn that conflicts are an integral part of the organisation. It represents
communication breakdown. They can be minor or major in nature. No organisation can be
perfect where conflicts do not exsist. Therefore, organisations must develop conflict
management systems based on various conflict solving techniques and theories from the
above example we understand that it is very essential for organisations keep a regular check
on their employees and understand their grievances. There should be a mutual understanding
between the employer and employee. Every organisation must have a strong employee
relation and a healthy work environment with the least conflicts. This is essential for the
growth of the company and also if the employee’s needs are satisfied and his complaints are
heard regularly this will prevent drastic fall outs in the work place such as strikes and labour
unrests will be avoided. 

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 PERSONALITY
The word personality is derived from a Greek word “persona” which means “to speak
through.” Personality is the combination of characteristics or qualities that forms a person’s
unique identity. It signifies the role which a person plays in public.

Personality − Patterns of thinking, feeling, understanding and behaving.

Traits of Personality
Personality traits are the enduring features that define an individual’s behavior. A personality
trait is a unique feature in an individual. Psychologists resolved that there are five major
personality traits and every individual can be categorized into at least one of them. These five
personality traits are −
Extrovert
Neurotic
Open
Agreeable
Conscientious
Major Personality Attributes
Following are the five major personality attributes that influence OB −
Locus of Control
Locus of control is the center of control of an individual’s code of conduct. People can be
grouped into two categories i.e., internals and externals respectively.
People who consider themselves as the masters of their own fates are known as internals,
while, those who affirm that their lives are controlled by outside forces known as externals.
Before making any decision, internals actively search for information, they are achievement
driven, and want to command their environment. Thus, internals do well on jobs that craves
complex information processing, taking initiative and independent action.
Externals, on the other hand, are more compliant, more willing to follow instructions, so, they
do well in structured, routine jobs.
Machiavellianism

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Machiavellianism is being practical, emotionally distant, and believing that ends justify
means.
Machiavellians are always wanting to win and are great persuaders. Here are the significant
features of a high-Mach individuals −
High-Machs prefer precise interactions rather than beating about the bush.
High-Machs tend to improvise; they do not necessarily abide by rules and regulations all the
time.
High-Machs get distracted by emotional details that are irrelevant to the outcome of a project.
Self-esteem
It is the extent up to which people either like or dislike themselves. Self-Esteem is directly
related to the expectations of success and on-the-job satisfaction.
Individuals with high self-esteem think that they have what it takes to succeed. So, they take
more challenges while selecting a job.
On the other hand, individuals with low self-esteem are more susceptible to external
distractions. So, they are more likely to seek the approval of others and to adapt the beliefs
and behaviors of those they respect.
Self-monitoring
Self-monitoring is the capability of regulating one’s behavior according to social situations.
Individuals with high self-monitoring skill easily adjust their behavior according to external,
situational factors. Their impulsive talents allow them to present public personae which are
completely different from their private personalities.
However, people with low self-monitoring skills cannot cover themselves. Regardless of any
situation, they are always themselves. They have an attitude of, “what you see is what you
get.”
Risk taking
Generally, managers are reluctant on taking risks. However, individual risk-taking inclination
affects the bulk of information required by the managers and how long it takes them to make
decisions.

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CASE STUDY 3

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Questions from Case:

1. With respect to the 1st question, I would say that these employees may be high on
affective (I want to work) and continuance commitment (I have to work). They like to
take initiative.

2. Wayne Huizenga is a internal kind of person (locus of control), self-monitored, risk

taker, confident and visionary leader and has a contingency plan in place if needed.

3. Job satisfaction and organizational commitment is high because employees are happy
and they have authority to solve a problem on the spot without going through long
and tiring channel. Employees with high self-esteem think that they have what it takes
to succeed. So, they take more challenges while completing a job.

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