Theory X and Theory Y Manager

Principle of management today started with the description of two contrasting models of workforce motivation.These models are theory X and theory Y.
Theory X and Theory Y have to do with the perceptions managers hold on their employees, not the way they generally behave. It is attitude not attributes.

Based on the perception a manager has towards the employees, four scenarios are possible shown in tabular -

Case 1: 

the employees are Lazy and the manager assumes his employees are Lazy.
In this situation the employees are lazy and the manager also thinks that they are lazy and has no faith in them changing into hardworking employees.  Work goes on as a daily chore with no scope for growth for anyone.In my experience,Our computer support team were an example of this case.They had a habit of procrastinating work and their manager with “Chalta-Hai” attitude was partly responsible for fostering an unproductive work environment.
In such a situation the manager needs to develop a more responsible role and lead from the front.

Case 2: 

the employees are Good and the manager assumes his employees are Lazy.
In this scenario,there is a serious case of misinterpretation between employees and manager. This is the most dangerous scenario.This situation may lead to a downfall of a team .It is possible that even hardworking and efficient employees turn into lazy and inefficient employees because their work goes unappreciated and their efforts are not rewarded. If a manager does not understand the strengths of his employees and fails to manage them, making them lose interest which will downgrade their performance and output.
I have worked in a team which is a good example for this case.We were a efficient team of 50 people until a new project manager was assigned to us.He had an unhealthy attitude towards the work and office environment.This lead to employee dissatisfaction and lesser outputs.In a span of 6 months,Our team was reduced to a team of 10 people with clients’ considering of shifting this project to another company.

Case 3: 
 the employees are Lazy and the manager assumes his employees are Good.
In this case,a manager through his managerial skills and positive attitude can bring out the best from his employees.
His task is to lift the standards of his employees by various means to ensure the desired outcome is achieved and if a manager is successful in doing so he is an effective and a successful manager. He should lead by example and should not lose hope and faith in his employees.
An example for this case is while i was a lecturer in a small college,the class assigned to me had students who had potential but were not focused towards their studies.I took it as a challenge and motivated them to study hard and enjoy the subject.I utilized different means and in the end,a change was visible in the students.This lead to better grades in their university results.

Case 4: 
 the employees are Good and the manager assumes his employees are Good.
This scenario is the most easiest as not much effort is required by the manager to obtain the desired results.The work goes in an auto pilot mode and is a win-win situation for all parties involved.It is also the rarest case seen in an organization.
Personally, I have never encountered such a situation but from what I have learnt from other communication channels,Companies like Google and Tata Motors foster such a work environment by various activities.   

Goal Setting

In the first class of POM, we experienced the tower building game .Although we have played this game in our adolescent days,this time it had lots of insights to offer. The tower building game involved putting one square block over another and achieving the maximum height possible till the tower collapses.

To set a goal,we should keep the follwoing things in mind -

Before the player could begin the game , the class was asked about the number of blocks before the tower will collapse. The students came up with varying responses for the number of blocks. In management,this is known as the goal setting activity for a process where individuals set the appropriate or desired target based on their perception of the activity. A student was randomly chosen who had himself set the target as 10. The student performed the exercise and the height achieved was 18 blocks. from this exercise, we got to know that goal should be set in such a way that it realizes the potential.This can be realized only when a human’s perceived limits are tested and it performs beyond the limits.

A modified case for this exercise maybe where the individual will be blindfolded and helped by some other open-eyed individuals for building the tower. Now the targets will be realized as this is a new challenge. It was observed that:

1) Some of the students lowered the target from the previously stated one .This is not preferred since the organization shouldn't lower their targets despite the hurdles which come across as this portrays a negative outlook.Also,this strategy does not work in the longer run for the growth of the company.

2) Some of the students retained the target. This is preferable as the organization continues to work towards the defined target despite the hurdle through motivation and team effort and effective co-ordination,

3) Some increased the target. Ideally, organizations need to expand even during tough times when others are contracting and avoiding risks. A good  example can be Apple , which during recession perceived as threat to many  used as opportunity to expand their market share and generate more products like iPad.This lead to increased profits and increased market share.

Based on on how an individual responds,we can generate a graph depicting different parameters-

In this graph,

A is Potential of an individual.As it can be seen from the graph,it is limitless and beyond measure.

B is  goal set for an individual by the manager.

C is  achievable goals assumed by the individual for himself.

D is  goal actually achieved by the individual.

As it can be seen ,A,B,C,D are in descending order.This is a perennial problem for every manager and every manager finds new ways to overcome it.

Overall, the tower building exercise helps in understanding an important element in management - Goal Setting Process and how an ideal manager responds to it.

It also is a realistic example for the above mentioned graph.