Management Role Play

Management 102- Assessment 1
Report on What Would You Do
A role play is being conducted for the Assessment 1 and case study on What Would You Do on page 277 in the text book was selected for the play. Based on the case study, the main character Mr Luis that has been transferred from the South America office is seen portraying a bad example for the organization and create uneasiness amongst the colleagues. He has brought in his personal habit into work to create a tense atmosphere to the people around him. Mr Luis’ personal habits include standing closely when he talks with his subordinates and when he is giving a point of agreement he seems to often tap his index finger on the listener’s forearm, disregarding the person’s gender. He begins irritating his subordinates with his loud booming and furious voice despite in a quiet environment and this makes all the colleagues turned around and stared at him while making the person who is talking to him feels embarrassed. Moreover, Mr Luis doesn’t respect others while simply ambushes into his colleagues’ offices without knocking the door beforehand and he will also linger around colleagues’ desks and sit on them while gazing at them watchfully and keenly when he is talking and he performs mock bows to a number of female staff. Furthermore, he gestures strongly while making a statement and put his arms around the colleagues’ shoulders disregarding their gender. At one point, female colleagues were about to report his intentional touchy behaviour as a sexual harassment assertion.
Identification of his problems has been done and a solution based on several theories have been inserted into this case. Berlo SMCR model of communication in chapter 1 has been chosen to solute his problem. Berlo SMCR is divided into four main components, Source, Message, Channel and Receiver. In the sub component of source which is equal to the receiver component, communication skills is divided into two parts, encoding and decoding. Mr Luis has a good encording skills because he can voice out relevant information to his colleagues but he should practice a good decording skills by listening attentively during the organization meeting and do not interrupt colleagues’ who are speaking. Mr Luis should portraits a redeeming behaviour in his attitude where he must knock the door before entering as this a sign of respect in any of the cultures practiced worldwide. It may not be socially acceptable with the social system to involve in a near distance while exchanging conversations with your colleagues as they may feel that their territory is being invaded.
Mr Luis should also practice to have superb message component which comprises of element and structure. Elements are the substance while the structure is the form. To have the best agreement in the organization itself, element of good idea and structure which is made up of good organization will enhance the company’s performance rather than Mr Luis taps his index finger on colleague’s forearm, interrupting and without giving any chance for others to speak despite Mr Luis has a strong code to deliver his meaningful sales speech with powerful syntax and almighty vocabulary.
Another theory to be applied on Mr Luis’ case is on Chapter 8, nonverbal communication. What is nonverbal communication? Basically it embraces all “body language communication which includes clothing, adornment and environment factors.” (Baden Eunson, p. 256. 2007). We use non verbal communication to repeat what the person has already conveyed and may add, substitute or modify certain words as a two way communication. On the other hand, Mr Luis has revealed much of his emotional disposition in his facial expression. He should control his facial expression because in certain culture, it is to minimize facial expression as a way of self control. (Morris 2002). Mr Luis as a high status individual in the company should have his voice pitched lower rather than speaking in his loud booming voice while his subordinates in the lower rank should speak with low pitched voice. Moreover Mr Luis should not lay a hand on his colleagues regardless gender because higher status person is rarely being touched by and should maintain a distance among themselves between the high and low status people. (Henley 1986, 2002).
On the other hand, Mr Luis should not loiter around his colleague’s desk while staring at them while they’re doing their work because deep eye staring and eye contact can mean different things to certain people especially in different cultures one is staying in. There are two types of eye contacts mainly averted gaze which conveys faithlessness and directed gaze; openness and honesty. (Morris 2002) Mr Luis has given the company a dominant individual character reestablishing eye contact at critical moment during their conversation. Nevertheless, Mr Luis has a heavy gesture throughout his conversation to express himself emotionally. He moves his arms and hands too quickly and exaggeratedly. He should control his gesture because it brings out the sign of dominance and arrogance in him that might be disliked by his colleagues by his dismissing waving. Meanwhile, his gesture may be misunderstood as a form of courtship and affection when his colleagues might be indulging romantically with his grooming and body language as he also have a good body posture with his height proportionally with his weight and overall self presentation.
Mr Luis should give his colleagues their own territory or personal space to let them feel secure and not invading them because this will make them feel anxious and frustrated when being confronted upfront so closely. For a relationship of Mr Luis and his subordinates, he should practice the social- consultative zone for people they know moderately well; for example working colleagues. In order to escape a sexual harassment file, Mr Luis should not touch his female colleagues especially where this haptics gesture may seem to be sexually aroused to his colleagues and seem inappropriate to be practiced at workplace because professional/ functional and social/polite haptics are only seen appropriate in workplace.
We come to the conclusion despite different culture and beliefs; one should behave appropriately and respect other people’s culture and tradition. In fact when someone is abroad at another people’s country, it is best to practice and adapt to their culture of living. Theories mentioned above hope to help Mr Luis to enhance his personality and behaviour dealing with people from all walks of life no matter at work or at home.