Organizational Behavior

4. Briefly describe the elements of the formal and the informal organization. Give examples of each.

Before going into an analysis on the organizational culture at Enron, I will first elaborate on the severity of the unethical behavior that existed at Enron. The problem can best be shown in the words of an Enron employee who said “If I’m going to my boss’s office to talk about compensation, and if I step on some guy’s throat and that doubles it, then I’ll stomp on that guy’s throat”(Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room). This culture of greed and corruption can also be seen through Enron’s mark to market accounting system, in which Enron cashed in on ideas and “future profits” without actually making anything. Furthermore,

The features of effective team performance is set up through positive leadership, this is something which is developed and nurtured. An effective team will work together, be focused and all the time supporting each other along the way to achieve and reach goals. For a team to be effective, each team member needs to be clear on their roles and responsibilities relating to their job. Team performance will be more effective if there is respect for the leader/manager and an understanding towards their job role and responsibility. The leader/manager should also be aware of the skills or weakness within the team and be able to provide support were necessary and also utilise their strengths. Training and support will enable staff to improve

Enron Corporation’s failure in the year of 2001 has become a depiction of unethical corporate behavior for years to come. After having watched Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room; I found many organizational communications course concepts could be brought to our attention within the documentary. To further our understanding, I will offer my insight as to how class-related concepts connect with the documentary by discussing how Enron developed strong organizational values by identifying certain heroes and their stories that developed their sense of strong risk taking as well as discussing Enron’s “rank and yank” system that can be asserted with F.W. Taylor’s work within

The article comes from the research journal Academy of Management Learning and Education. Throughout the article, Edwin M. Hartman uses the Enron fiasco as evidence of individuals with bad character and immoral values. For this article to be included in this journal, it would have pertain to business and perhaps specifically to management; the piece indeed does

Enron made greater use of social control as a means of guiding employee action, however, the company did have limited methods of formal control in place. By using social influence tactics, limiting dissenting opinion, and inflicting a sense of high cohesion among employees, Enron deceived millions into believing the company was more profitable than it actually was. Because Enron’s values and norms were not conducive to a successful, ethical company, the employee’s targets, attitudes, and behaviors led to Enron’s undesirable outcomes. (O’Reilly and Chatman 165) Enron’s downfall can be largely contributed to its norms and values, of which were not strategically appropriate. Enron valued money above all else, which was

Organizational behavior is the study on how organizational structures affect behavior of its employees within the organization. Organizational systems is the structure that an organizations uses to organize its functions and assign responsibility to its employees. Organizational behavior in any criminal justice organization is how the superiors and the employees relate

As with much of Enron, their outward appearance did not match what was really going on inside the company. Enron ended up cultivating their own demise for bankruptcy by how they ran their company. This corrupt corporate culture was a place whose employees threw ethical responsibility to the wind if it meant financial gain. At Enron, the employees were motivated by a very “cut-throat” culture. If an employee didn’t perform well enough, they would simply be replaced by someone who could. “The company’s culture had profound effects on the ethics of its employees” (Sims, pg.243). Like a parent to their children, when the executives of a company pursue unethical financial means, it sets a certain tone for their employees and even the market of the company. As mentioned before, Enron had a very “cut-throat” attitude in regards to their employees. This also became one Enron’s main ethical falling points. According to the class text, “employees were rated every six months, with those ranked in the bottom 20 percent forced to leave” (Ferrell, 2017, pg. 287). This system which pits employees against each other rather than having them work together will create a workplace of dishonesty and a recipe of disaster for the company. This coupled with the objective of financial growth, creates a very dim opportunity for any ethical culture. “The entire cultural framework of Enron not only allowed unethical behavior to flourish,

Whenever someone hears the word "Enron" today, they usually think of the transgressions committed by the top-level executives who successfully managed to destroy the company's reputation and achievements.

Team D’s assignment consisted of two parts; first we selected a business that failed and one that has succeeded within the last 5 years and identified their objectives, visions, and missions. After our research we determined the indicators of the business failures and successes. In our paper we will describe how specific organizational behavior theories could have predicted or explained the company’s failures or successes and how leadership, management, organizational structure, the culture of the organization and its departments played a

The company Enron was formed in 1985 after two natural gas companies, Houston Natural Gas and InterNorth merged together. Kenneth Lay, former chief executive officer of Houston Natural Gas was named CEO of Enron and a year later, Lay was assigned to the chairman of Enron. A few years later, Enron launched a website to allow customers to buy stock for Enron, making it the largest business site in the world. The growth of Enron was rapid; it was even named seventh largest company on the Fortune 500 list; however things began to fall apart in 2001. (News, 2006). In the third quarter of that same year, Enron posted an enormous loss of over $600 million in four years. This is one of the reasons why one of the top executive resigned even though he had only after six months on the job. Their stock prices fell dramatically. Eventually, Enron filed for bankruptcy protection. This caused many investors to lose money they had invested in the company and employees to lose their jobs and their investments, including their retirement funds. The filing of bankruptcy and the resignation of one of the top executives, also led to an investigation by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Committee, which proved to be one of the biggest scandals in U.S. history. (News, 2006). All former senior executives stood trial for their illegal practices.

“Just as character matters in people, it matters in organizations,” says Justin Schultz, a corporate psychologist in Denver. The Enron scandal had a big exposure in 2001 confirming the big secret to the increase in billions. In July 1985, Enron formed the merger of Houston Natural Gas and Omaha-based Inter North. The Enron corporation was an American energy company based in Houston Texas. The corporation’s catastrophe in 2001 signifies the biggest business liquidation ever, while also highlighting corporate America’s moral shortcomings. Along with Arthur Andersen, Enron was one of the largest audit and accounting partnerships in the world. Enron experienced the greatest audit

Organizational Behavior has taught me a lot in regards to learning to work with others and making groups of people work efficiently. While classroom readings and in-class slideshows have been valuable in understanding key concepts, my greatest personal growth has come from both your personal stories, as well as your many invaluable speakers. Throughout this paper, I will focus on the lessons your speakers have taught me, and how those shared lessons will have a positive impact on my future decision-making.

Other significant stakeholders that deserve priority are Enron’s employees. The employees present threats to Enron in two ways: they can form coalitions to exercise their legal rights, and they can also leave the company. They will most likely sue the company as they have lost vast amounts of their retirement savings (Moscoco and Deans, 2002). The urgency in this situation matters a lot as some employees are reaching their retirement age. When it comes to employees leaving the company, it is important to note that these employees have the necessary skills and are essential for the business to succeed. Here is where we see the opportunity. How is Enron going to recover without them? That being said, Enron has to do something to retain its employees.

Many questions are still being raised concerning the collapse of Enron. The aftermath of Enron’s fall has brought review of the actions that took place prior to the collapse. Many of these questions may be left unanswered. The company’s executive management, board of directors, and auditors hold the responsibility for the ultimate collapse of a once dominant force in the energy industry. Team A developed several options in a plan that could have possibly helped Enron avoid their demise. The plan is designed to discuss the benefits and challenges of communication, collaboration and conflict management. It will provide an opportunity to the management team of Enron the benefits of developing strong communication between all employees