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Behavior Is, Simply Put, A Function Of A Person And Environment,

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Behavior is, simply put, a function of a person and environment, B = f (P, E). If we take a person and put them in a stressful situation, such as warfare, they are going to display certain behaviors based on the myriad of dimensions to their personality. If we move that same person to a pool deck on a Sunday afternoon, they’re going to act very differently due to the change in their environment. As management, we know that success comes from being able to identify the different personality dimensions of our workers and understand how those dimensions relate to the environment that has been created at the workplace. The Study of Organizational Behavior, or OB, is that very premise. It is the gathering the knowledge of the impact that …show more content…

The Sun was a regional paper owned by the NY Times and serviced close to 60,000 customers a day in a community surrounding the University of Florida. When I arrived, the Sun was experiencing a revenue boom like none other since its formation in 1876. The internet had not yet taken hold and there were plenty of newsworthy stories surrounding multiple wars, cultural changes, and a rise in global connectedness. The HR department invested heavily in collecting information, not only about our behaviors as workers, but also with our needs and satisfaction. They understood that people are the most important variables in a successful operation. Maslow Theory of Needs describes that an individual has needs, and those needs must be met before they can move to a higher level and our company’s management tried hard to meet those needs. The company supported their workers for many years, even though difficult ones, until 2012 when the New York Times found a buyer for its regional papers. Overnight we had a new parent company, and new set of supervisor, and a new mission statement. What I wouldn’t know initially was that gone also were the times of understanding and satisfying employees. A fostering, cohesive environment gave way to one of blind, management-by-accounting, policies wholeheartedly embraced by the new owners. I now found myself working under a new supervisor who style of management was examining data on a spreadsheet,

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