INDUSTRIAL MANAGEMENT

SAMPLE LECTURE NOTES

Both recruitment and selection are the two phases of the employment process. The differences between the two are:

1. Recruitment is the process of searching the candidates for employment and stimulating them to apply for jobs in the organisation WHEREAS selection involves the series of steps by which the candidates are screened for choosing the most suitable persons for vacant posts.

2. The basic purpose of recruitments is to create a talent pool of candidates to enable the selection of best candidates for the organisation, by attracting more and more employees to apply in the organisation WHEREAS the basic purpose of selection process is to choose the right candidate to fill the various positions in the organisation.

3. Recruitment is a positive process i.e. encouraging more and more employees to apply WHEREAS selection is a negative process as it involves rejection of the unsuitable candidates.

4. Recruitment is concerned with tapping the sources of human resources WHEREAS selection is concerned with selecting the most suitable candidate through various interviews and tests.

5. There is no contract of recruitment established in recruitment WHEREAS selection results in a contract of service between the employer and the selected employee.

According to Edwin B. Flippo, “Recruitment is the process of searching the candidates for employment and stimulating them to apply for jobs in the organisation”. Recruitment is the activity that links the employers and the job seekers. A few definitions of recruitment are:

A process of finding and attracting capable applicants for employment. The process begins when new recruits are sought and ends when their applications are submitted. The result is a pool of applications from which new employees are selected.

It is the process to discover sources of manpower to meet the requirement of staffing schedule and to employ effective

measures for attracting that manpower in adequate numbers to facilitate effective selection of an efficient working force.

Recruitment of candidates is the function preceding the selection, which helps create a pool of prospective employees for the organisation so that the management can select the right candidate for the right job from this pool. The main objective of the recruitment process is to expedite the selection process.

Recruitment is a continuous process whereby the firm attempts to develop a pool of qualified applicants for the future human resources needs even though specific vacancies do not exist. Usually, the recruitment process starts when a manger initiates an employee requisition for a specific vacancy or an anticipated vacancy.

RECRUITMENT NEEDS ARE OF THREE TYPES

PLANNEDi.e. the needs arising from changes in organization and retirement policy.

ANTICIPATEDAnticipated needs are those movements in personnel, which an organization can predict by studying trends in internal and external environment.

UNEXPECTEDResignation, deaths, accidents, illness give rise to unexpected needs.

PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL

Performance appraisal is the process of obtaining, analyzing and recording information about the relative worth of an employee. The focus of the performance appraisal is measuring and improving the actual performance of the employee and also the future potential of the employee. Its aim is to measure what an employee does.

According to Flippo, a prominent personality in the field of Human resources, “performance appraisal is the systematic, periodic and an impartial rating of an employee’s excellence in the matters pertaining to his present job and his potential for a better job." Performance appraisal is a systematic way of reviewing and assessing the performance of an employee during a given period of time and planning for his future.

It is a powerful tool to calibrate, refine and reward the performance of the employee. It helps to analyze his achievements and evaluate his contribution towards the achievements of the overall organizational goals.

By focusing the attention on performance, performance appraisal goes to the heart of personnel management and reflects the management’s interest in the progress of the employees.

OBJECTIVES OF PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL :

To review the performance of the employees over a given period of time.

To judge the gap between the actual and the desired performance.

To help the management in exercising organizational control.

Helps to strengthen the relationship and communication between superior – subordinates and management – employees.

To diagnose the strengths and weaknesses of the individuals so as to identify the training and development needs of the future.

To provide feedback to the employees regarding their past performance.

Provide information to assist in the other personal decisions in the organization.

Provide clarity of the expectations and responsibilities of the functions to be performed by the employees.

To judge the effectiveness of the other human resource functions of the organization such as recruitment, selection, training and development.

To reduce the grievances of the employees.

Introduction To Industrial Relations 

Industrial relations has become one of the most delicate and complex problems of modern industrial society. Industrial progress is impossible without cooperation of labors and harmonious relationships. Therefore, it is in the interest of all to create and maintain good relations between employees (labor) and employers (management).

Concept of Industrial Relations:The term ‘Industrial Relations’ comprises of two terms: ‘Industry’ and ‘Relations’. “Industry” refers to “any productive activity in which an individual (or a group of individuals) is (are) engaged”. By “relations” we mean “the relationships that exist within the industry between the employer and his workmen.”

The term industrial relations explains the relationship between employees and management which stem directly or indirectly from union-employer relationship.

Industrial relations are the relationships between employees and employers within the organizational settings. The field of industrial relations looks at the relationship between management and workers, particularly groups of workers represented by a union. Industrial relations are basically the interactions between employers, employees and the government, and the institutions and associations through which such interactions are mediated.

The term industrial relations has a broad as well as a narrow outlook. Originally, industrial relations was broadly defined to include the relationships and interactions between employers and employees. From this perspective, industrial relations covers all aspects of the employment relationship, including human resource management, employee relations, and union-management (or labor) relations. Now its meaning has become more specific and restricted. Accordingly, industrial relations pertains to the study and practice of collective bargaining, trade unionism, and labor-management relations, while human resource management is a separate, largely distinct field that deals with nonunion employment relationships and the personnel practices and policies of

employers.

The relationships which arise at and out of the workplace generally include the relationships between individual workers, the relationships between workers and their employer, the relationships between employers, the relationships employers and workers have with the organizations formed to promote their respective interests, and the relations between those organizations, at all levels. Industrial relation also includes the processes through which these relationships are expressed (such as, collective bargaining, workers’ participation in decision-making, and grievance and dispute settlement), and the management of conflict between employers, workers and trade unions, when it arises.

Collective Bargaining

 Collective bargaining is process of joint decision making and basically represents a democratic way of life in industry. It is the process of negotiation between firm’s and workers’ representatives for the purpose of establishing mutually agreeable conditions of employment. It is a technique adopted by two parties to reach an understanding acceptable to both through the process of discussion and negotiation.

ILO has defined collective bargaining as, negotiation about working conditions and terms of employment between an employer and a group of employees or one or more employee, organization with a view to reaching an agreement wherein the terms serve as a code of defining the rights and obligations of each party in their employment/industrial relation with one another.

Collective bargaining involves discussions and negotiations between two groups as to the terms and conditions of employment. It is called ‘collective’ because both the employer and the employee act as a group rather than as individuals. It is known as ‘bargaining’ because the method of reaching an agreement involves proposals and counter proposals, offers and counter offers and other negotiations.

Thus collective bargaining:

is a collective process in which representatives of both the management and employees participate.

is a continuous process which aims at establishing stable relationships between the parties involved.

not only involves the bargaining agreement, but also involves the implementation of such an agreement.

attempts in achieving discipline in the industry

is a flexible approach, as the parties involved have to adopt a flexible attitude towards negotiations.

 Introduction Of Trade-Unions

A trade union is an organization of employees formed on a continuous basis for the purpose of securing diverse range of benefits. It is a continuous association of wage earners for the purpose of maintaining and improving the conditions of their working lives.

The Trade Union Act 1926 defines a trade union as a combination, whether temporary or permanent, formed primarily for the purpose of regulating the relations between workmen and employers or between workmen and workmen, or between employers and employers, or for

imposing restrictive condition on the conduct of any trade or business, and includes any federation of two or more trade unions.

This definition is very exhaustive as it includes associations of both the workers and employers and the federations of their associations. Here, the relationships that have been talked about are both temporary and permanent. This means it applies to temporary workers (or contractual employees) as well. Then this definition, primarily, talks about three relationships. They are the relationships between the:

workmen and workmen,

workmen and employers, and

employers and employers.

Thus, a trade union can be seen as a group of employees in a particular sector, whose aim is to negotiate with employers over pay, job security, working hours, etc, using the collective power of its members. In general, a union is there to represent the interests of its members, and may even engage in political activity where legislation affects their members. Trade unions are voluntary associations formed for the pursuit of protecting the common interests of its members and also promote welfare. They protect the economic, political and social interests of their members.

Features of trade unions:

1. It is an association either of employers or employees or of independent workers. They may consist of :-

o Employers’ association (eg., Employer’s Federation of India, Indian paper mill association, etc.)

o General labor unions

o Friendly societies

o Unions of intellectual labor (eg, All India Teachers Association)

2. It is formed on a continuous basis. It is a permanent body and not a casual or temporary one. They persist throughout the year.

3. It is formed to protect and promote all kinds of interests –economic, political and social-of its members. The dominant interest with which a union is concerned is, however, economic.

4. It achieves its objectives through collective action and group effort. Negotiations and collective bargaining are the tools for accomplishing objectives.

5. Trade unions have shown remarkable progress since their inception; moreover, the character of trade unions has also been changing. In spite of only focusing on the economic benefits of workers, the trade unions are also working towards raising the status of labors as a part of industry.

The BCG Growth-Share Matrix

The BCG Growth-Share Matrix is a portfolio planning model developed by Bruce Hen-derson of the Boston Consulting Group in the early 1970's. It is based on the observation that a company's business units can be classified into four categories based on combina-tions of market growth and market share relative to the largest competitor, hence the name "growth-share". Market growth serves as a proxy for industry attractiveness, and relative market share serves as a proxy for competitive advantage. The growth-share ma-trix thus maps the business unit positions within these two important determinants of profitability.

BCG Growth-Share Matrix

This framework assumes that an increase in relative market share will result in an in-crease in the generation of cash. This assumption often is true because of the experience curve; increased relative market share implies that the firm is moving forward on the ex-perience curve relative to its competitors, thus developing a cost advantage. A second as-sumption is that a growing market requires investment in assets to increase capacity and therefore results in the consumption of cash. Thus the position of a business on the growth-share matrix provides an indication of its cash generation and its cash consump-tion.

Henderson reasoned that the cash required by rapidly growing business units could be ob-tained from the firm's other business units that were at a more mature stage and generat-ing significant cash. By investing to become the market share leader in a rapidly growing

market, the business unit could move along the experience curve and develop a cost ad-vantage. From this reasoning, the BCG Growth-Share Matrix was born.

The four categories are:

Dogs - Dogs have low market share and a low growth rate and thus neither generate nor consume a large amount of cash. However, dogs are cash traps because of the money tied up in a business that has little potential. Such businesses are candidates for divestiture.

Question marks - Question marks are growing rapidly and thus consume large amounts of cash, but because they have low market shares they do not generate much cash. The result is a large net cash comsumption. A question mark (also known as a "problem child") has the potential to gain market share and become a star, and eventually a cash cow when the market growth slows. If the question mark does not succeed in becoming the market leader, then after perhaps years of cash consumption it will degenerate into a dog when the market growth declines. Question marks must be analyzed carefully in order to determine whether they are worth the investment required to grow market share.

Stars - Stars generate large amounts of cash because of their strong relative market share, but also consume large amounts of cash because of their high growth rate; therefore the cash in each direction approximately nets out. If a star can maintain its large market share, it will become a cash cow when the market growth rate declines. The portfolio of a diversified company always should have stars that will become the next cash cows and ensure future cash generation.

Cash cows - As leaders in a mature market, cash cows exhibit a return on assets that is greater than the market growth rate, and thus generate more cash than they consume. Such business units should be "milked", extracting the profits and in-vesting as little cash as possible. Cash cows provide the cash required to turn question marks into market leaders, to cover the administrative costs of the com-pany, to fund research and development, to service the corporate debt, and to pay dividends to shareholders. Because the cash cow generates a relatively stable cash flow, its value can be determined with reasonable accuracy by calculating the present value of its cash stream using a discounted cash flow analysis.

Under the growth-share matrix model, as an industry matures and its growth rate de-clines, a business unit will become either a cash cow or a dog, determined soley by whether it had become the market leader during the period of high growth.

While originally developed as a model for resource allocation among the various business units in a corporation, the growth-share matrix also can be used for resource allocation among products within a single business unit. Its simplicity is its strength - the relative positions of the firm's entire business portfolio can be displayed in a single diagram.

Limitations

The growth-share matrix once was used widely, but has since faded from popularity as more comprehensive models have been developed. Some of its weaknesses are:

Market growth rate is only one factor in industry attractiveness, and relative market share is only one factor in competitive advantage. The growth-share matrix overlooks many other factors in these two important determinants of profitability.

The framework assumes that each business unit is independent of the others. In some cases, a business unit that is a "dog" may be helping other business units gain a competitive advantage.

The matrix depends heavily upon the breadth of the definition of the market. A business unit may dominate its small niche, but have very low market share in the overall industry. In such a case, the definition of the market can make the differ-ence between a dog and a cash cow.

While its importance has diminished, the BCG matrix still can serve as a simple tool for viewing a corporation's business portfolio at a glance, and may serve as a starting point for discussing resource allocation among strategic business units.

Introduction and Implementation of Total Quality Management (TQM)By Khurram HashmiTotal Quality Management is a management approach that originated in the 1950's and has steadily become more popular since the early 1980's. Total Quality is a description of the culture, attitude and organization of a company that strives to provide customers with products and services that satisfy their needs. The culture requires quality in all aspects of the company's operations, with processes being done right the first time and defects and waste eradicated from operations.

Total Quality Management, TQM, is a method by which management and employees can become involved in the continuous improvement of the production of goods and services. It is a combination of quality and management tools aimed at increasing business and reducing losses due to wasteful practices.

Some of the companies who have implemented TQM include Ford Motor Company, Phillips Semiconductor, SGL Carbon, Motorola and Toyota Motor Company.1TQM DefinedTQM is a management philosophy that seeks to integrate all organizational functions (marketing, finance, design, engineering, and production, customer service, etc.) to focus on meeting customer needs and organizational objectives.

TQM views an organization as a collection of processes. It maintains that organizations must strive to continuously improve these processes by incorporating the knowledge and experiences of workers. The simple objective of TQM is "Do the right things, right the first time, every time". TQM is infinitely variable and adaptable. Although originally applied to manufacturing operations, and for a number of years only used in that area, TQM is now becoming recognized as a generic management tool, just as applicable in service and public sector organizations. There are a number of evolutionary strands, with different sectors creating their own versions from the common ancestor. TQM is the foundation for activities, which include:

Commitment by senior management and all employees Meeting customer requirements Reducing development cycle times Just In Time/Demand Flow Manufacturing Improvement teams Reducing product and service costs Systems to facilitate improvement Line Management ownership Employee involvement and empowerment Recognition and celebration Challenging quantified goals and benchmarking Focus on processes / improvement plans Specific incorporation in strategic planning

This shows that TQM must be practiced in all activities, by all personnel, in Manufacturing, Marketing, Engineering, R&D, Sales, Purchasing, HR, etc.2

Principles of TQMThe key principles of TQM are as following:3

Management Commitment1. Plan (drive, direct) 2. Do (deploy, support, participate) 3. Check (review) 4. Act (recognize, communicate, revise)

Employee Empowerment 1. Training 2. Suggestion scheme 3. Measurement and recognition 4. Excellence teams

Fact Based Decision Making 1. SPC (statistical process control) 2. DOE, FMEA 3. The 7 statistical tools 4. TOPS (FORD 8D - Team Oriented Problem Solving)

Continuous Improvement1. Systematic measurement and focus on CONQ 2. Excellence teams 3. Cross-functional process management 4. Attain, maintain, improve standards

Customer Focus 1. Supplier partnership 2. Service relationship with internal customers 3. Never compromise quality 4. Customer driven standards

The Concept of Continuous Improvement by TQMTQM is mainly concerned with continuous improvement in all work, from high level strategic planning and decision-making, to detailed execution of work elements on the shop floor. It stems from the belief that mistakes can be avoided and defects can be prevented. It leads to continuously improving results, in all aspects of work, as a result of continuously improving capabilities, people, processes, technology and machine capabilities.

Continuous improvement must deal not only with improving results, but more importantly with improving capabilities to produce better results in the future. The five major areas of focus for capability improvement are demand generation, supply generation, technology, operations and people capability.

A central principle of TQM is that mistakes may be made by people, but most of them are caused, or at least permitted, by faulty systems and processes. This means that the root cause of such mistakes can be identified and eliminated, and repetition can be prevented by changing the process.1There are three major mechanisms of prevention:

1. Preventing mistakes (defects) from occurring (Mistake - proofing or Poka-Yoke).2. Where mistakes can't be absolutely prevented, detecting them early to prevent them

being passed down the value added chain (Inspection at source or by the next operation). 3. Where mistakes recur, stopping production until the process can be corrected, to prevent

the production of more defects. (Stop in time).

Implementation Principles and ProcessesA preliminary step in TQM implementation is to assess the organization's current reality. Relevant preconditions have to do with the organization's history, its current needs, precipitating events leading to TQM, and the existing employee quality of working life. If the current reality does not include important preconditions, TQM implementation should be delayed until the organization is in a state in which TQM is likely to succeed.

If an organization has a track record of effective responsiveness to the environment, and if it has been able to successfully change the way it operates when needed, TQM will be easier to implement. If an organization has been historically reactive and has no skill at improving its operating systems, there will be both employee skepticism and a lack of skilled change agents. If this condition prevails, a comprehensive program of management and leadership development may be instituted. A management audit is a good assessment tool to identify current levels of organizational functioning and areas in need of change. An organization should be basically healthy before beginning TQM. If it has significant problems such as a very unstable funding base, weak administrative systems, lack of managerial skill, or poor employee morale, TQM would not be appropriate.5However, a certain level of stress is probably desirable to initiate TQM. People need to feel a need for a change. Kanter (1983) addresses this phenomenon be describing building blocks which are present in effective organizational change. These forces include departures from tradition, a crisis or galvanizing event, strategic decisions, individual "prime movers," and action vehicles. Departures from tradition are activities, usually at lower levels of the organization, which occur when entrepreneurs move outside the normal ways of operating to solve a problem. A crisis, if it is not too disabling, can also help create a sense of urgency which can mobilize people to act. In the case of TQM, this may be a funding cut or threat, or demands from consumers or other stakeholders for improved quality of service. After a crisis, a leader may intervene strategically by articulating a new vision of the future to help the organization deal with it. A plan to implement TQM may be such a strategic decision. Such a leader may then become a prime mover, who takes charge in championing the new idea and showing others how it will help them get where they want to go. Finally, action vehicles are needed and mechanisms or structures to enable the change to occur and become institutionalized.8Steps in Managing the TransitionBeckhard and Pritchard (1992) have outlined the basic steps in managing a transition to a new system such as TQM: identifying tasks to be done, creating necessary management structures, developing strategies for building commitment, designing mechanisms to communicate the change, and assigning resources.

Task identification would include a study of present conditions (assessing current reality, as described above); assessing readiness, such as through a force field analysis; creating a model of the desired state, in this case, implementation of TQM; announcing the change goals to the organization; and assigning responsibilities and resources. This final step would include securing outside consultation and training and assigning someone within the organization to oversee the effort. This should be a responsibility of top management. In fact, the next step, designing transition management structures, is also a responsibility of top management. In fact, Cohen and Brand (1993) and Hyde (1992) assert that management must be heavily involved as leaders rather than relying on a separate staff person or function to shepherd the effort. An organization wide steering committee to oversee the effort may be appropriate. Developing commitment strategies was discussed above in the sections on resistance and on visionary leadership.6To communicate the change, mechanisms beyond existing processes will need to be developed. Special all-staff meetings attended by executives, sometimes designed as input or dialog sessions, may be used to kick off the process, and TQM newsletters may be an effective ongoing communication tool to keep employees aware of activities and accomplishments.

Management of resources for the change effort is important with TQM because outside consultants will almost always be required. Choose consultants based on their prior relevant

experience and their commitment to adapting the process to fit unique organizational needs. While consultants will be invaluable with initial training of staff and TQM system design, employees (management and others) should be actively involved in TQM implementation, perhaps after receiving training in change management which they can then pass on to other employees. A collaborative relationship with consultants and clear role definitions and specification of activities must be established.

In summary, first assess preconditions and the current state of the organization to make sure the need for change is clear and that TQM is an appropriate strategy. Leadership styles and organizational culture must be congruent with TQM. If they are not, this should be worked on or TQM implementation should be avoided or delayed until favorable conditions exist.

Remember that this will be a difficult, comprehensive, and long-term process. Leaders will need to maintain their commitment, keep the process visible, provide necessary support, and hold people accountable for results. Use input from stakeholder (clients, referring agencies, funding sources, etc.) as possible; and, of course, maximize employee involvement in design of the system.7Always keep in mind that TQM should be purpose driven. Be clear on the organization's vision for the future and stay focused on it. TQM can be a powerful technique for unleashing employee creativity and potential, reducing bureaucracy and costs, and improving service to clients and the community.

ConclusionTQM encoureges participation amongst shop floor workers and managers. There is no single theoretical formalization of total quality, but Deming, Juran and Ishikawa provide the core assumptions, as a "...discipline and philosophy of management which institutionalizes planned and continuous... improvement ... and assumes that quality is the outcome of all activities that take place within an organization; that all functions and all employees have to participate in the improvement process; that organizations need both quality systems and a quality culture.".

Perception and its Significance

Introduction We receive elementary inputs about the world through our senses and organize the bits and pieces of the input in ways that are advantageous to us in our attempts to deal with the world. The total process of receiving such inputs consists of four phases: stimulation, registration, organization and interpretation. Usually, however, it is the last phase which is referred to as perception. The efficacy of facts seems to dwindle progressively as the facts pass through the four successive phases. The phase of interpretation or giving meaning to a stimulus is determined by external factors (stimulus characteristics) as well as personal factors such as the perceiver's own needs, prior experience, mental sets and emotions. In the context of person perception and social interaction, these personal factors operate rather insidiously; they are subliminal in operation and thus stay below one's threshold of consciousness.The personal determinants of perception, if left to take their natural course for long, tend to trap the individual into certain habitual ways of perceiving reality. Some of these habits or styles of perception can gradually insulate us from new experiences and enslave us to routinized judgments and expectations, whereby we become incapable of letting the facts speak for themselves. A manager's job involves decision making. Objective evidence or information has to be sought, on the basis of which decisions may be made. Perception of evidence, however, is a subjective process as has been indicated above. Stereotypy, halo effect, projection and selective perception are the dominant human perceptual tendencies which assume special relevance in the context of management, since the managerial job heavily depends on extracting the right information from a variety of reports and impressions of people and events. Stereotypy As a result of our socialization in a given culture, we perceive certain traits as being associated with certain groups of people (see Box 1). Because such ready-made concepts are convenient and perceptually economical to use, the need for verifying them is often unrecognized. Stereotyping leads a person to perceive and respond to others as members of one group or another, ignoring in the process the specific characteristics of individuals. In an experimental research by Haire, for example, the same photograph was found to cause different impressions of the person when it was labeled as that of a management representative and when labeled as that of a union leader.(1). A stereotyped perception of superiors, colleagues and subordinates will only reinforce one's blindness to the real boss, colleague and subordinate as individuals.

 

Box 1Characteristics attributed to various provincial groups of India by some

Hindi-speaking Indians.

Bengalis timid; devious; crafty flatterers;given to empty threats; marginal honesty; minimum generosity; provincial; cliquish; eccentric; submissive.

Gujaratis honest; just; quiet; empty threats; kind; selfish; unreliable in crisis; cowardly flatterers.

"Madrasis"provincial; selfish; garrulous; cliquish; simple;intelligent; cowardly; unreliable.

Punjabisinnocent; cliquish; generous; good; quick to anger; rash; lawless; obstinate; boastful; hardworking.

Source: Grimshaw, A.D. Social epithet in India - a Hindi example. J. Soc. Psychol. 1967, 72. Halo Effect This is the tendency to judge specific qualities or traits from an overall impression or knowledge of just one trait. A person operating from halo effect unwarrantedly assumes a personalised logical coherence of certain traits. If such a person found Mr. X likeable, for example, he would also rate him well on intelligence, decision making, work habits, etc. It was found in a study that officers who were liked were judged more intelligent than those who were disliked, even though their scores on intelligence tests were the same. Supervisors who are engaged in performance rating of their employees shall do well to pay attention to this perceptual tendency. The preceding lines on halo effect are not intended to deny any correlation that might exist among personality traits themselves. The purpose is only to caution against the tendency to judge a person with regard to a number of required traits on the sole basis of one trait known to be present in him or on the basis of an overall impression about the person. Projection Projection is said to occur when a person sees in others qualities which are his own, but which are too undesirable and too humiliating to admit to. Sears in his study found that people high in stinginess, obstinacy and disorderliness tended to rate others much higher on these traits than did people who had low measures of these undesirable characteristics.(2). Fleshbach and Singer also studied the process of projection and, in addition, demonstrated a reduction in the projection mechanism of subjects who were encouraged to admit and talk about the traits they were projecting. (3). In sum: we have a tendency to see our bad qualities as belonging to others. Recognition and acceptance of this tendency can help to save us from mistaking ourselves for others and help us perceive others as they are. Selective Perception It was mentioned earlier in this note that needs influence perception. This influence is in terms of selectively sensitising the person so that s/he perceives only those elements of a given situation which will help satisfy his/her needs; the person ignores other elements as long as the other elements do not come in the way of his/her need satisfaction. In other words, humans see what they want to see or what they are mentally set or ready to see. One's needs, values, cultural background and interests determine one's perceptual readiness.

One of the many needs human beings have is the need for cognitive consistency. This need can constructively guide an open-minded person to examine inconsistencies. A person who is not open minded, however, will be driven into a morbid process of self-closure: When confronted with facts that are inconsistent with his/her earlier knowledge or stereotypes, s/he will unwittingly distort the data in order to eliminate the inconsistency (see Box 2). This process may take help of any one or a combination of the perceptual mechanisms from a person's repertoire so as to make the person play blind to "offensive" data (perceptual defense) and/or pay exclusive attention to data that confirm the person's treasured cognitions, beliefs or wishes (selective perception).

Box 2 College students see a factory worker *

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------In a study by Mason Haire and Will Grunes, two groups of college students were given a description of a "certain working man" and were asked to say what sort of person

they thought the worker was. The description given to group-I was: "works in a factory, reads a newspaper, goes to movies, average height, cracks jokes, intelligent, strong, active." Group-II was given the same set of words save for one word, namely, intelligent. Group-II saw the worker as "......a typical American Joe: likable and well liked, mildly sociable, healthy, happy uncomplicated and well adjusted, in a sort of earthy way, not very intelligent, but trying to keep abreast of current trends, interested in sports and finding his pleasures in simple undistinguished activities." The students of group-I had a difficulty in recognizing the given working man against their stereotype of factory workers. They tried to protect their original belief by : i) Denial of quality: "He is intelligent, but not too much so, since he works in a factory". ii) Modification of the quality: "He is intelligent, but doesn't possess initiative to rise above his group." iii) Recognising the incongruity, but maintaining the cognition: "The traits seem to be conflicting.. most factory workers I have heard about are not too intelligent." Some students even denied the man was a worker by promoting him to a foreman!

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Concluding Remark To be effective, behavior has to be geared on facts, but facts are reached only through perception, which is subject to various distorting influences from the perceiver and the perceived. The personal factors which color one's perception are so subtle in their operation that only a deliberate attention to them can make one aware of them. Becoming aware of the perceptual determinants is one major and necessary step toward reaching the facts as they are; only if we are aware of them can we ever guard against or make adequate allowances for their distorting influences

BARRIERS TO  COMMUNICATION (community)  EXERCISE

IntoductionThis group dynamics exercise allows people to find their communications barriers. It can be used in any kind of group an can be adapted for use in a number of ways. You may just want to use the handout of barriers and discuss them or just part of them. The main barriers people have are listed first in the handout except for the barriers on listening which are listed last. The exercise below is how this is done in conjunction with a Community Building Workshop. I've used this exercise more than 100 times and always with great success.

HOW TO DO THE EXERCISE:

This exercise is done toward the end of the second day of a community building event. The introduction is usually done at about 4 -4:30 p.m. and the small groups work is in the evening with presentations given the following day.

PURPOSE: The facilitator introduces the exercise by telling that barriers to communication most often keep people from experiencing community in a workshop and in relationships they have in life. The purpose of the exercise is for each individual to find one primary personal barrier they would like to change. Discuss various barriers and how you see them in your communications with others. Then talk about what you would like to do to minimize one barrier in your life.

FACILITATIVE NOTES: Tell the group that you know they are probably tired and that this is a time they may go into chaos, but you are asking them to be patient for the next 10 minutes. Listen to the instructions and be prepared to ask

some questions. Tell them they will work in small groups and you will start by dividing them into the groups.You can do this in two ways: (1) Put people in the groups you want them in. Use this only when you have a number of subgroups and what a person from each subgroup in a small group. (2) Count off by the number of people you want in each small group. This can be 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7. Any larger groups may not provide enough individual time. I prefer an odd number of 3 or 5 people per group.Each group will need a private place (room) to meet. Some may decide to have dinner together and work after in a persons room. You need to limit where they meet to the facility where the workshop is being held.

PROCEDURE:

Read the following to the group and give each person a copy with the handout.The object of this project is to have you discuss barriers and obstacles to community, both individual and group, and then determine how to transcend these in your everyday life. Be sure to look at how "coming from emptiness" plays a part in overcoming obstacles. Also, try to use actual examples in your life or from the workshop to learn how the barrier works in your life.

Priorities in this exercise:

1. Have fun!2. Build Community in your group3. Do the assigned task.

Instructions:1. In your small group, take some silence and start to build community in this group. (have fun)

2. Examine the Barriers Handout. Discuss your barriers in your group in an attempt to find the barrier you would like to transform (let go of or improve) in your life. (have fun)

3. Share your personal insights with each other. (have fun)

4. Select a barrier (or barriers) to present to the large group. This can be a common barrier or each person may feel a need to present their individual barrier. (have fun)

5. Together as a group, decide how you wish to present the barrier(s) and their transformation to the large group. This can be done in about any way you desire. Be creative. Make it fun. It can be just a report, a song or group of songs, or a poster, but a skit is preferred. Try to keep the your presentation to 10 minutes. You can use props. The transformation should embody emptiness in some way. (have fun)6. There are a few rules about the presentation:

· Do not use any presentation that uses fire or smoke (fire detectors may go off and stop the workshop.)· Do not require participation by individuals in the large group.· Be mindful of our differences and respect all differences .

Ask if there are any question and for only one person at a time to speak.

Have some materials available that they can make props from, like cardboard boxes, marking pens, colors, poster board, old "dress up" clothes, hats and anything else you

can think of. Have each group write on a paper where they will be doing their project and the times they will be there. Your task in the evening is to move between the groups and help if they truly get stuck. Some groups will get stuck but can usually get themselves out of it. So don't do a rescue until you know they are truly stuck. On very rare occasion, some group may find it very difficult to work together. In this case you will have to work with them and perhaps tell them what to do. This is very rare. Many groups will struggle and that is good. Some will be working out chaos that happened in the workshop or even work out differences between people. Usually three hours is enough for most groups. Some have gone six hours because they were having such fun. You may need to limit them to a certain time to quit. I usually say 9:30 pm. Some will labor to have a skit. You can encourage them to just have a theme and let it happen. I've seen groups put their skits together as they did them and it looked like they had practiced it for hours. Tell them to let the spirit guide them.

OBSTACLES AND BARRIERS BEHAVIORSIN

GROUP DYNAMICS

The following questions can used to self-debrief your behavior in settings where personal communications are used to build relationships -- at work, at home, in a church, with a spouse and about any place where two or more gather. These are the common barriers and you may think of others or variations. It is often helpful to do this evaluation in a group and exchange your views to enhance learning about yourself. The value of this is to discover what you may be doing to shut off communications and find ways to improve your behavior.

A second way to use these barriers is to just copy the heading and discuss each within a group. The number one barrier to communications is not listening. Different forms of this are at the end of the list. (jump to listening barriers)

EXPECTATIONS: Are your expectations of others or organizations a barrier? Do others know your expectations or do you just think they know them? Can you change your expectations or let go of them to be part of a group or a relationship? How would that feel? Did this in any way feel like giving up your "self" to be what the group wants you to be? This is probably the number one barrier to communications. Expectations are often not expressed to others and it is as if the other is expected to have a crystal ball and know what you expect.

RISKING: What is a risk for you? How much do you risk in a communications setting? What keeps you from risking? Is it fear? If so, fear of what? Is it control? Control of what? Yourself or others or the group? Do you wish to risk more? What will it take to risk more?This is probably the top barriers in communicating authentically. Risk in communication often has this silent question: " If I risk myself and this is all I've got, what will happen if I am rejected?" Building communications with others authentically takes a degree of risk.

AVOIDANCE: What did you do to avoid looking at yourself? Think about this. What was behind the avoidance? Fear of rejection? Fear of loss of control? Were you part of an avoidance "project"? What did the group do to avoid doing what it needed to do? Did group norms facilitate avoidance?Avoidance frequently is present when a person feels unsafe or is unsure if its safe. Many business meetings start with considerable avoidance and only in the last minutes does the group get to the real subject, and then often try a quick fix. Avoidance can become a habit.

FIXING: Did anyone try to fix you? The group? How did that feel? Did you try to fix, heal or convert anyone or the group? Can you fix anyone other than yourself? How aware are you that this is often done, with good intentions and well-meaning but usually not wanted and unaccepted 90+% of the time? What is your level of acceptance of people just as they are?

Fixing is often trying to get the other to believe as you do or to do as you have done in a similar situation or to be more like you so you will feel more comfortable.

PROJECTS: Most groups are creative in making projects that have something to do with avoidance. Can you name a project in your group? What do pseudo-projects represent in a group?Sometimes projects are things, sometimes people and often it's something completely outside the group and the room. Projects can be a way of fooling ourselves and have many of the characteristics of "organizing a group" and represent avoidance. They can be barriers to communications. Projects are sometimes necessary to help build safety and trust in groups. They can take the form of challenging the norms of a group or the written rules.

SCAPEGOATING: Did you feel scapegoated? What did it feel like? Were you part of a scapegoating effort on another person?Scapegoating is often another form of avoidance or blaming or excluding. It may be an attempt to keep focus off of the person doing the scapegoating! It is seen in most family situations and in the workplace and is usually destructive to the personality.

PROBING: Did anyone probe you for information? How did that feel? Did it create a barrier for you? If you were probed and did not like it, what kept you from confronting the prober? If you were the prober, why did you probe? Did it have anything to do with keeping the focus off of you?Probing can be avoidance of task or scapegoating if carried too far.

SPEAKING IN CODE: If you were part of a subgroup of two or more people, did/do you speak with language that only those in the subgroup can understand? Can you understand how this is a form of exclusivity?This is often done without realizing it in all kinds of groups. It is not polite and keeps understanding low.

CONTROL: Did anyone try to control you or what you said? How did it feel? Were you aware at any time that you were trying to control an outcome? If you tried to control, what was the reason? Was it to control what might happen to you? Did you notice others trying control?Most of us believe we have far more control than we actually do. Letting go of control and risking more may result in more love coming into your life.

BLAMING: Did anyone blame you for what was or was not happening? How did that feel? Did you blame anyone? What was your motive for the blaming? Did it have to do with trying to make some other person responsible for your behavior? Did you experience blaming in your family of origin?Blaming can become an almost unconscious habit.

PLACATING: Did you feel placated by anyone? Did you placate anyone? How does it feel to be placated?

CHAOS AVOIDANCE: Do you run from conflict or avoid it in some way instead of trying to go through it? Do you leave a conversation when it gets too hot for you? (either actual or emotionally) How do you react to change?Another word for Chaos is change. People find many ways to avoid talking about change as it usually feels uncomfortable because of the unknown. Chaos can also mean conflict and many will do anything to avoid it. Chaos is one of the most certain things in life and it is well to learn how to embrace it.

SILENCE: How comfortable are you with silence? Can you listen to yourself? To your source of spirit? Do you recognize respectful silence? Do you experience a silent time at home? What would it be like if you asked for some silence in your workplace during a meeting?Silence is an unused tool that is very effective in all kinds of ways. Scott Peck says in the Different Drum, "Silence is the primary key to emptiness." Also, "More than half of Beethoven's music is silence. Without the silence there is no music; there is only noise." Most people have little true silence in their lives, yet it provides considerable peacefulness.

EXCLUSION: Did you feel excluded at any time? Did you exclude yourself? Did some person say anything that made you feel excluded? Was your feeling of exclusion accurate? Is this something that often happens to you? Did you exclude any person either by avoiding them, or emotionally tuning them out, or by making a judgmental statement? Did you later change the exclusion to inclusion?Think of how people are often excluded and why. It is often done as an unconscious act that may have been learned in the family or work place.

BOUNDARY OR BARRIER: A boundary is often created for protection and should only be changed with considerable thought. A boundary "rule" is one you have originated that defines what is good or bad for you. A boundry may be a barrier to communication depending on what it is. Are you aware of any boundary you have that is a barrier to meaningful communications? Are you aware of any boundary that you want to change? How will you do that and how will you know if it is safe to change?Boundaries are accumulated during life for protection and become a learned method of existing. Boundaries need to be changed slowly and may be replaced with another boundary that offers more freedom until it becomes safe to "take the next step". Some people have few or almost no boundries and this often gets them into trouble. An example of this is a person that regulary offers far more information that is asked for by people they talk to. This becomes a turnoff to others and may result in other avoiding you.

LISTENING: How well do you listen to what people say? Do you hear what is not said with words, but with emotions or body language? How about listening to what is not said? How can you listen with your whole being, body, mind, spirit and heart? There are many sub-barriers that come under Listening. Below are some.

Automatic Talking: Listening just long enough to find a word that you know something about. Then shut off the rest of what is being said, particularly the emotional content. Then start talking about the word you know something about. This blocks real communications by not hearing the total content. This is the most used form of blocking true communication. For more on this, see Automatic Talking Exercise.

SELECTIVE LISTENING: This is when a person hears another but selects to not hear what is being said by choice or desire to hear some other message. This can take several forms and result in acting out in destructive ways. An example is to become passive agressive by prentending to hear and agree to what was said when actually your intent is to NOT act on the message, but make the other person think you will. Another form is to act on what you wanted to hear instead of what was said. Continued selective listening is one of the best ways to destroy a relationship.

BEING A "FIXER": A fixer is a person that tries to fix another person's faults, problems or personality by offering what worked for them or a friend in a similar situatuon. Fixers often cut off others in the middle of a conversation without hearing the whole story to offer their fix. People overall do not like to be fixed and most suggestions for a fix will be disregarded and may result in anger toward the fixer.

Using "You" or "We" statements instead of "I" statements. "I statements show ownership of what is being said. "You" statements are often a form of criticism. "We" statements often implies

everyone within listening distance agrees with the statement which is not true. Its like you speaking for another person without their permission.

Absolute Statements. These use such words as Never, always, forever, etc. and are often make a statement untrue. Use a less absolute word.

Daydreaming. Letting your attention drift away. There are many causes of this and you can stop it by getting into the conversation and saying you are having a hard time staying with what is being said, without blaming. You may find out others are having the same difficulty and will do the same.

Being right. This can take several forms. The most common is polite criticism of how a person speak or what they say or to insinuate that the person said it wrong. This can stop communication particularly with sensitive people. Many people have to learn how to communicate and can only do it by trying the way they know how.

Derailing. (a form of avoidance) Changing the subject, or tell a joke, or point a finger at another person or try and turn a question around and back to the speaker.

Name calling or belittling. This is hurtful and may make another feel foolish or stupid and they may exclude themselves from further conversation.

Being the Reactor. On occasion, a person will attempt to get you to speak by trying to "hook" you to react. Swearing is a way of hooking some people. A good listener will continue to just listen and not react. This will often cause the person to stop trying to hook you if you keep it up long enough