UNIVERSITY OF DHAKA

DEPARTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS

COURSE CODE : EIB 522

COURSE NAME: ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR

CASE REPORT

ON

BOUNDARYLESS ORGANIZATIONS

PREPARED BY

SUBMITTED TO

Md. Rashedur Rahman

DATE OF SUBMISSION

AUGUST 06, 2015

SALEH RAFIQ CHOUDHURY 801310016

FOISAL AHMED SIDDIQUE 801311056

TANVIR ELAHI 801311059

A.K.M. ASRAFUL AMIN 801311088

CASE 04 : BOUNDARYLESS ORGANIZATIONS

Elevator Pitch : This case is all about a boundaryless organization named “Newskool

Grooves” in the music industry. This company’s software is utilized by Disk jockeys and

musicians around the world. Founder and CEO, Gerd Finger is a man of vision and he always

wants to stay ahead. The company has a much decentralized culture having only 115

employees. They have achieved this by becoming a boundaryless organization which

eliminates the chain of command, has limitless span of control, and empowers teams. At

“Newskool” everyone wants to be the part of success. Though the company have some

problems to deal out but they are successful in the greater margin.

Question (1) Ans : Some of the problems that may occur in a boundaryless

organizations are listed below:

Different sectors can move in different way which may not be related with the company

goal.

There is no obvious organizational culture so there is no hierarchy.

At point, the employees might have face ego problems.

Total cost of the company may arise high.

Lack of communication.

Advantages of boundaryless organizations:

Employees of the organizations feels important themselves for the organizations.

Employees can works outside of the office.

Geographical barriers can be eliminated.

Creativity can be at its best.

Client service may rise high.

Question (2) Ans : Newskool have their branches in Germany, Kiev, Los Angles and

headquarter in Berlin. So the employees are diverse in values, personality and religion. Some

cultural issue also may rise in the workplace. Kiev branches employees like to follow strong

leadership while LA branches employees like to work around them. Employees may have some

problem in working together or making a decisions. As the employees of Kiev likes to follow

strong leadership and well defined work place. On the other hand, the employees of LA branch

likes to work their own.

Looking at the conflicts in Newskool, like the difficulties in decision-making and employees

fighting to do what they perceive is better compare to the others. It takes time for the company

to come with one decision as all of the employees can participate in decision making. Another

conflict will be inefficiency. Yes, different people must perform different tasks in their

organization, but Newskool is boundaryless. When Gerd, the founder and the CEO does not

satisfy, he asks his employees to redo the work tasks. It will cause a waste in resources as Gerd

perceive something differently from his diverse employees.

Question (3) Ans : Based on motivations and personality, Types of people are likely to be

satisfied are competent, anxious, empowered and open people. People who possess self-

efficiency believe that they are capable in behaving in a way that produce that outcome they

want. In Newskool Groovers, their employees are participates in decision making and

innovation, creative and competent people. Employees often like the freedom that boundaryless

work offers them, particularly with virtual teams and more flexible work plans, arrangements,

and schedules. Due to that, employee in company satisfied with the area of the company.

Characteristic employees in company are likely competent and strong team skills.

Based on job characteristics theory, to ensure employee satisfaction in all area in Newskool

Groovers are by creating and maintaining a common task and group climate to focus groups

and teams on the tasks at hand and on overall strategies, focus is on how to move ideas,

information, talent, and decisions where they are most necessary, increase individual skill to

do a task, hence he or she is encouraged to do it, regardless of title or position, jobs are rewarded

on the basis of doing the jobs, not for accomplishing the necessary work. Thus, personal

accountability for the work is discouraged at the expense of accountability for the job.

Question (4) Ans : In those types of organizations, people with performance simulation

test, negotiation skills, ability to work in unstructured job are needed. This types of human

resource practices are needed in boundaryless organizations.

Organization can do for their human resources practices more best based using are work

samples in organization. Emotional Stability is a second one for hiring people the Company

wants a personality dimension that describes someone who is responsible, dependable,

persistent, and organized. Third is a confidence the employee has a good confidence level.

From Big Five traits, the suitable use for selection are openness and conscientiousness. In

openness the supervisor can increased learning, more creative, and more flexible. It can affect

their training performance, enhanced leadership and more adaptable to change. The second is

conscientiousness relevant is greater effort and persistence; more drive and discipline, and

better organized and planning. The effects are it cans higher performance, enhanced leadership,

and greater longevity.

Question (5) Ans : In a boundaryless organization like “Newskool”, performance

measuring procedure may not be the same for the all branches in different country.

In Kiev, Ukraine office, it is filled with outstanding programmers who don’t require the very

high rates of compensation. So the criteria of performance that need to evaluate in this office

is about the behavior of employees.

In Los Angeles, U.S office that based on marketing effort, it is more suitable to apply the

individual task outcomes criteria because the management should evaluate an employee’s task

on outcomes.

In German office, the team excels at design and production tasks. The most suitable criteria

that can be used to appraise the performance of this office is also behavior plus individual task

outcomes together with the trait.

Question (6) Ans : To establish a socialization program that will maximize employee

creativity and independence, company can analyze and thinks some attractive activities among

the employees. The manager himself could not bring out great ideas without having

brainstorming process with all Gerd Finger’s proactive and good employees. So by involving

the employees could increase the great idea in order to reach an ideal decision at the end.

Some of the offices in Newskool Grooves required a lot of creativity effort, so it makes easy

for each office to come with different type of socialization program due to its different

specialization, for example may be in Los Angeles office, they are required more creativity to

handle the great way for marketing the product compare to the Keiv offices that required more

independence to carry out the duties as the programmers, so at the end we could see different

type of activity will be established according to these different offices.

Elevator Pitch : Saleh Rafiq Choudhury (801310016)

Question 1 & 2 : A.K.M. Asraful Amin (801311088)

Question 3 & 4 : Foisal Ahmed Siddique (801311056)

Question 5 & 6 : Tanvir Elahi (801311059)