Essay on Control in Workplace

Introduction

Organizational management is a situation where managers are expected to monitor and control all other factors of production, such as employees and different organizational dynamics. Nowadays, control is a fundamental management process that guides the company to achieve its anticipated objectives. In any organization, “control” is an important aspect mainly conducted by management and supervisors to ensure that errors are minimized (Barber et al.;2019 pp 350). Therefore, control in the workplace can be defined as all functions of management, which assist in checking and minimizing organizational errors such as production and final output of the company. Also, control can be described as systematic strategies that business management performs to predetermine standards, objectives, and standards, thus determining whether performance in the workplace aligns with the company’s expectations.

Additionally, control aspects are primarily done in the workplace to reduce any standard deviation chances, thus ensuring all stated objectives are achieved correctly. According to modern concepts, management in the workplace enables the company to anticipate and detect any errors in the working places (Dharani et al.;2021). Therefore, in most cases, control in the workplace involves setting standards, alternative performance, making any corrections, and finally making positive decisions that promote the organization’s essential functions. The main focus is to have a definitive understanding of how controlling actions in the workplace positively influence the growth and development of an organization.

Meaning of “control” in the workplace

In the workplace, “control” is a mechanism used by managers and supervisors to regulate and guide the essential operation of the organization. Control in the workplace mainly includes procedures and processes that guide, holds, and protects the organization from suffering any financial problems. Control is one of the main managerial functions which aids organizations to work within their planning strategies, thus achieving the lied objectives. In most countries such as the United Kingdom and America, the primary commonly used type of control is financial policies, which assist the companies and organizations work efficiently within their limited resources. Financial control policies provide elaborative mechanisms on how employees present in the company will be motivated to increase the organization’s output (Ekendah et al.;2020 pp 60). However, financial control policies must not be communicated to all employees in the workplace since supervisors and directors are the main pillars to understand the company’s financial status. For any organization to be successful in its production, there must be proper control, especially to know how employees are committed to the company’s motivation.

In the workplace, management control should start with managing cash since it’s the main factor of production in any organization. Control in the workplace limits the inadequate spending of money, making the organizations work within their plans and objectives. Control policies in any organization help prevent fraud and any errors that may occur due to employees’ ignorance and misunderstanding of the company’s regulations policies (Herting et al.;2020). According to the research, the most effective and accurate management style in the workplace is top-down control, since the decisions are mostly made from the top to down, thus promoting trust in the workplace. Therefore, in this case, administrative control is an aspect of developing protocols, rules, and procedures that positively direct and monitor the employees’ essential functions in the workplace.

The picture below represents managers practising control in the workplace

Compare and contrast normative control

Normative and direct control was developed around the 19^th century by a businessman to ensure accuracy is attained in the workplace. The two types of control mainly aim to ensure that employees and managers operate within the stipulated rules and regulations of the organization. According to the Ryann, development of normative and direct control could help organizations and business people to work following rules and procedures, which encourages the company to attain its objectives. Therefore, the development of normative and direct control came from business people determined to ensure all employees in the workplace operate within stipulated procedures and guidelines (Jachimowicz et al.; 2018). However, in both types, similarities and contrast make the control types differ according to how people prospect them. In this case, normative control refers to elicit and direct efforts that demand workers and managers to exploit their personal experiences, thoughts, and feelings, determining efficiency and accuracy of production in the workplace. In normative control, unique characteristics and beliefs play a crucial role in defining specific actions, facilitating further shows in the workplace.

This type of control requires members in the workplace to internalize cultural norms and values, which ultimately motivates other employees to work hard, thus achieving the planned objectives of the organizations. Both normative and direct forms of control aim to achieve the company’s goals and targets by ensuring all employees in the workplace participate following the organization’s requirements. While normative control is characterized by norms, culture, and personal beliefs, direct control is mainly based on private surveillance, which advocates face-to-face from one employee to another, thus determining what to do in the workplace. Direct control is a form of organizational management that directly influences the productions and distribution of specific goods compared to normative control.

How control relates to power

Power and control have close relations since most organizations require aspects of management to function well. In the workplace, power can influence employees positively or negatively, depending on how the managers and supervisors impose that power on workers. Both management and control play an essential function since they affect employees’ attitudes and behavior, promoting seriousness in the workplace (Waddell, 2020). Nowadays, most companies and organizations need aspects of power and control to get their jobs done according to their objectives and goals. Mainly in the United Kingdom and the United States of America, management performs additional meaning within the workplace. However, organizations need legitimate authority, which will direct the employees peacefully in promoting the growth and development of the company. Legitimate power involves organizational operations and structures, which define the relationship between the controlled people and managers of the company. For legitimate power to function effectively and accurately, every position in the workplace should provide clear information of formal authority attached to that particular authority. The control authority in this position should align with the type of power the organization is applying its employees in the workplace.

The picture below represents the manager giving instructions to employees in the workplace

How resistance and compliance relate to control

When workers are not fully satisfied with the type of control applied in the workplace, they tend to resist applied rules and regulations. In this situation, employees change and become so aggressive to the managers. Instead of contributing positively to the organization’s growth and development, the workers become lethargic and laxity in the workplace. In other words, resistance is aspects of workers going contrary with regulations and rules lied by managers and supervisors to achieve companies’ objectives (Wolfers et al.;2020). Basing the arguments of Ryann, resistance can be mainly developed as a result of peer pressure from other employees who do not contribute positively towards the development of the company.

On the other hand, compliance in the workplace is the aspect of employees adhering to all rules and regulations lied down by the organizations to achieve their intended plans and objectives. Actions of compliance to the employees depend on how managers and supervisors implement their powers to control the essential functions of the workers. Both resistance and compliance have a close relationship with controlling the actions of the employees in the workplace.

Employment Relationship

 When there is positive control in the workplace, employees become strong, thus establishing a solid relationship between them and managers. According to the study, employees who have mutual respect for the managers and supervisors tend to develop a strong relationship in the workplaces since their employers become happy, loyal and believe them for long-term productivity (Mills et al.;2018). In this scenario, the employment relationship can be seen as legal connections between the employees and employers who work within the same line to achieve the target and future objectives of the company. Employment relationship mainly exists when workers perform their work or services under specific conditions or remunerations.

The graph below shows how power relates to employment

Reasons for resistance and compliance to normative and direct control in the UK.

Despite the efforts of organizations to implement new technology, there has been constant resistance from various workers, thus lowering the rate of implementation. Implementing new technology in the workplace mostly remains an unachieved dream since most employees are afraid of losing their jobs due to modern methods applied in the productions. The action of managers using normative and direct forms of control has championed constant resistance due to employees’ biases towards the harmful norms and beliefs that are primarily used in the normative control. On the other hand, most managers use direct control to dimidiate workers using their supremacy and power, thus creating poor impressions. Most organizations have been dominated by negative implications primarily associated with resistance but not compliance (Von Staden, 2018). Likely, the workers’ resistance in any organization might indicate poor managerial which forces the employees to react negatively. The notion of compliance in the workplace has increased relatively due to the poor reactions of most employers to the workers. Most companies in the United Kingdom have decided to adopt this type of management to increase the companies’ output. Another critical control aspect is the top management of the available employees; thus, the company can have proper ways to motivate them, increasing efficiency and accuracy in the final production. Normative control is mainly characterized by the behaviour of the employees and managers, which is positively accepted by the essential operation of the company. In this type of control, beliefs and norms are mainly used to determine the future objectives and expectations of the company. Normative power relates explicitly to how the company and work interact, especially when the decisions and goals are made. Therefore, normativity can be described as a phenomenon in the human community that involves positive actions that encourage most companies to work towards specific objectives. In both cases, direct and normative control’s function using the same strategies focuses on the company’s basic functionality.

Direct control is when employees and managers interact without limitations to make a favorable decision, which could help the company achieve its targeted objectives. Therefore, normative and direct control differs depending on the level of the companies since some organizations are favored mainly by direct rule. Concerning this, most small companies in the United Kingdom have opted to use this form of control since it is more straightforward and less complex than normative control (Waddell, 2020). To better understand these two, control systems need to understand their complexity and how each encourages the company to achieve its targeted objectives. According to American organizations, its legal and accepted workers have positive resistance if they do not perform according to their expectations in the working areas. Basing the International Workers Union (IWU) arguments, every employee has the right to resist any form of misuse that managers and supervisors might pose to them in working places. Consequently, most United Kingdom organizations have the same operational functionality, thus maintains ethical leadership in the workplace. The tendency of resistance in most workplaces can be promoted by emotional reactions depending on how managers respond to the workers. Some workers get annoyed easily and may react negatively to their managers, primarily when assigned some unwanted duties.

The use of normative control in the workplace has become fashion less as most traditional beliefs are outdated, and nobody thinks of applying them in the workplace. United States of America emphasis that organizational management can reduce resistance if new technologies of control are provided in the workplace. Many cases of resistance in the workplace can result from ideological differences since every employee in the workplace has his/her contributions towards the company’s success (Wolfers et al.;2020). Therefore, decisions and management board decisions may not be favorable to all workers within the working ground in this scenario. Besides resistance, the worker is expected to show aspects of compliance, especially to their respective employees. Compliance is an action of employees working within the expectations and rules of their employers or company. The elements of compliance in the workplace create a conducive environment since there is trust between employers and employees.

Reasons for resistance and compliance to normative and direct control in the US and Australia

Both USA and Australia, direct and normative control are the most forms of managerial dominated by many companies and organizations. Before industrialization in both countries, most organizations were relatively small or had not developed enormous rules, a simple form of control of such norms was used. Therefore, accepting this form of power in the United States of America is its most straightforward form of control, unlike Australia. In this scenario, most employees in the workplace had total compliance basing the decisions made by the management body. At that time, control was much exercised frequently, and the authority responsible for it could oversight it before been applied in the workplace. The resistance of these control types was mainly based on the worker’s reactions since most employers in both countries were brutal and could not listen to their workers.

In Australia, direct control is mainly based on personal surveillance, which involves face to face from one employee to another. On the other hand, normative management involves all the norms and beliefs of the employees in the workplace. In the United States of America, direct control is mostly based on the managers’ final decision, however the control must be assured does not harm any employee in the workplace. To have successful control, the managers and supervisors must have ethical commanding power over their employees. However, when we talk about compliance, it does not necessarily mean that managers use their mandate to suppress others (Wolfers et al.;2020). Power in control is critical thinking that will guide the company and organization in achieving its anticipated targets. Regardless of how management is taken in the workplace, employees’ resistance must be employed, resulting in poor communication from the controlling point. The companies should be in the ability to understand how to engage such employees since they may have positive reasons for arising the resistance. When the organizations deal with opposing employees, others will be concerned to engage in activities that actively promote the company’s growth and development. Generally, there is a need to understand what must be applied in the workplace.

To show their resistance, most Australians formed groups to resist poor conditions highly reported in the working places. Consequently, most American businesspeople applied racism and racial inequalities to black Americans. This was considered a form of misuse, thus could not be accepted on the working grounds. According to George Floyd of American, mistreatment of the workers in any organization was considered is inhuman and against human rights. In the responses to this, George Floyd championed resistance in most companies and organizations to ensure that employers treat workers according to their will but not according to their brutal punishments. According to Mills et al.;2018., normative and direct control shall remain resistive and since most employees are focused on attaining maximum operational ethnic in working places. Resistance in both countries has remained a big threat to most companies and organizations since employees are more determined to achieve better working conditions. Historically, Australia was formally known as the cradle of resistance and compliance; however, this problem has become rampant in both the US and the UK. The effects of resistance have been experienced mostly in the three countries, unlike the others, thus limiting the chances of industrialization. According to the research, is a need for organizations and companies to understand that workers are human beings and the responsibility to work in a good environment.

Conclusion

In conclusion, control in the workplace is all procedures, rules, and mechanisms laid down to be followed by the employees, especially in workplaces. It’s necessary to understand that all organizations need efficient and accurate management to achieve their objectives. According to this discussion, organizations can apply two primary forms of control in the workplace. However, these control forms can arise resistance or compliance in the workplace depending on how they implement them. For instance, normative control, which basis on personal surveillance, can readily be accepted or rejected by the workers depending on the standards used by the managers. Basing the arguments of this article, both control forms have been widely applied in different countries such as the UK and US to determine the employees’ reactions in the workplace. Therefore, according to my recommendations, employers should be careful when choosing the type of control to apply in the working places.

References

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