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INTRODUCTIONBusiness does not exist and operate in vacuum. Firms and
corporations function in the social and natural environment. By virtue of
existing in the social and natural environment, business is obligated to be
accountable to the natural and social environment in which it survives.
Irrespective of the demands and pressures upon it, business, by virtue of its
existence, is obliged to be ethical, for at least two reasons. Firstly, whatever the
business accomplishes has repercussions on its stakeholders. Secondly, every
juncture of action has trajectories of ethical as well as unethical paths and the
existence of a business is justified by the ethical alternatives it responsibly
selects. One of the conditions that brought business ethics to the forefront is the
demise of small scale, high trust and face-to-face enterprises and emergence of
huge multinational corporate structures capable of drastically affecting everyday
lives of the masses.
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WORK ETHOS, WORK ETHICS AND WORK CULTURE
The terms work ethos and work ethics, in the context of behaviour patterns,
human interaction and work culture, have been used interchangeably, implying
synonymity. The fundamental difference between the two terms stems from the
basic difference between the two words ethos and ethicswhereas ethos
implies 'what is/ ethics stresses 'what ought to be.' Thus, while work ethos is the
prevalent disposition to/fundamental outlook towards work, or the value system
with regard to work, whether it be of an individual, a group, informal or
hierarchical, a profession or a community (Webster's Third New International
Dictionary, 1966), work ethics consists of the set of attitudes and the value
systems which would be appropriate for achieving the goals of the system; in
this case, the industrial organization (Churchman, 1979, pp 21-23). Culture, in
the context of human civilization, is the way of life of a human group and it
includes all the learned and standardized forms of behaviour which one uses and
which others in one's group expect and recognize (Encyclopaedia Britannica,
Vol.5,1970, p 831). An organization is composed of groups while groups, in
turn, are composed of individuals. Individuals, in their psychological make up
or from the point of view of their behaviour patterns, are very different
from one another, and there is really 'no average man' (Koontz and CX Donnell,
1972, pp 508-511). The behaviour of an individual at work may be explained by
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Lewin's Field Theory, which says that human behaviour, B, is a function of the
person, P, and his or her environment, E, or using mathematical notations,
B = f(P, E) (Koontz and CX Donnell, 1976, p 581). An individual, whether he is
a workman, an office employee, a supervisor or a professional, like an engineer,
accountant, etc., joins an industrial organization somewhere between the age of
18 and 23. At that point in time, he comes into the organization as an individual
with his own fundamental behaviour pattern. In the context of human behaviour
at work, P, of Lewin's Field Theory, is this fundamental or basic behaviour
pattern which characterizes an individual from others in the and the
organization. Once he joins the organization, he interacts with the
organizational environment, which consists of the structural group to which he
is attached or the informal group to which he is drawn, and the organizational
climate pertaining to his area of work. The fundamental or basic behaviour
pattern of the individual is tempered by this interaction and the result obtained
is the work ethos of the individual and the group. The dynamics of human
behaviour at work is shown in Figure 1. The fact to remember here is thatwhereas individual behaviour is affected by the organizational climate,
individual behaviour also affects group behaviour. Therefore, the work ethos of
an individual is a function of his fundamental behaviour pattern or the value
system he has brought to work. The work ethos of the group, whether structured
or informal, is, in turn, affected by the work ethos of its constituent individuals.
Moreover, even while in the group, the fundamental behaviour pattern or valuesystem of the individual is largely retained.
Ethos is a subset of culture and as such, work
ethos/work ethics is one of the important constituents of work culture. This is
shown in Figure 2. Work culture has been defined by Walton (1979) as 'the
combination of attitudes, relationships, developed capabilities, habits and other
behavioural patterns that characterize the dynamics of the organization.
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Therefore, work culture characterizes the dynamics of human relationships of
an organization, and, quite logically, is the result of the interaction of the work
ethos of the various structural, hierarchical and professional groups with the
organizational climate.
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WORK ETHOS
"Work ethos" is a compound expression built on the greek word "ethos"(referring to an idea of "habit" that often is ascribed to one's personal/moral
tendencies).
With the adjective "work" preceding ethos, the expression refers to a person's
work ethic (we can see how "ethic" comes from "ethos" visually in the spelling,
too).
Work ethos is the response made by a person, group or community of life in
accordance with their respective beliefs. Every belief system has value and
every person who receives a particular belief trying to act in accordance with
their beliefs.
http://psychologyface.com/Tag/work-ethos/http://psychologyface.com/Tag/belief-system/http://psychologyface.com/Tag/belief-system/http://psychologyface.com/Tag/work-ethos/8/3/2019 Indian Work Ethos
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CHARACTERISTICS OF WORK ETHOS1. ATTENDANCE
- Attend workplace, arrives/leaves on time
- Make advance notice for planned absences
- Punctuality.
2. CHARACTER
- Display loyalty, honesty, trustworthiness, reliability, dependability,
initiative, self discipline and self-responsibility
3. TEAMWORK
- Team worker, cooperative, assertive, display a customer service attitude,
continuous learning, mannerly behavior
4. APPEARANCE
- Display appropriate dress, grooming, hygiene and etiquette
5. ATTITUDE
- Positive attitude, self confident, realistic expectation of self
6. PRODUCTIVITY
- Safety practices, conserve materials, keep work area neat and clean, follow
directions and procedures
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7. ORGANISATIONAL SKILL
- Skill in personal management, time management, prioritizing, flexibility,
stress management and dealing with chance
8. COMMUNICATION
- Appropriate verbal and non verbal skill
9. COOPERATION
- Display leadership, appropriate handle criticism and complaints,
demonstrate problem solving capacity, maintain appropriate relationship
with supervisors and peers, and follow chain of command.
10. RESPECT
- Respect the rights of others, deal appropriately with cultural/racial diversity
and not engaged in harassment of any kind.
Work Ethos presents 8 Professional followingcharacteristics:
Work is Grace Work is the Amanah. Work is Calling Working is Actualization Work is Worship Work is Art Work is Honorary Work is Service
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Effect of Organizational Climate and Dynamics ofWork Ethos & CultureThe explanation of the terms work ethos, work ethics and culture and the
subsequent discussion of the dynamics of human behaviour at work of the
preceding pages clearly brings out the fact that it is in the context of
individualsmen and womenworking in organized enterprises that we have
the concept of work culture and also perceive the effect of prevailing work
culture on the indices of organizational effectiveness. The index of performance
of an industrial or business organization is productivity since higher
productivity leads to improved profitability and growth. The individuals who
man the organization form parts of different structural groups. These groups, in
turn, have to carry out various tasks which are necessary to achieve the goals of
the organization. These tasks have to be both result-oriented and time-bound
and in the performance of these tasks, such groups must also interact with other
groups. However, the task or the job has to be performed in the given
organizational climate, which, as far as the individual or the group of which he
forms a part is concerned, consists primarily of the following elements:
The content, responsibilities and challenges of the job. The prevailing group atmosphere and climate of team work.
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which means that the derived work culture is not static but dynamic in nature.
Organizational work culture can either be good or bad, in the sense that good
work culture is one that is conducive for high levels of organizational
performance, the indices of which are productivity, profits and growth.
According to Likert (1961), the best performance climate involves openness,
trust, sharing, twoway communication and participative leadership. Walton's
five work culture ideals are essentially the same except for the fact that Walton
has also included high skill levels and flexibility in using them (Walton, 1979).
These variables are, therefore, mechanisms in the sense that through the
improvement of any or some of these, one can improve organizational
performance through improved teamwork and cooperation, effective
communication and greater consultation, flexibility, work innovation, and
sustained work on the activation levels of individuals and groups. Such efforts
are oriented to achieve the objectives of:
(1) removal of barriers to individual satisfaction and organizationaleffectiveness,
(2) development of new and creative organizational solutions, and
(3) development of individual and organizational capacity for self-renewal.
(Beer and Huse, 1972, pp 79-101). At the same time, these variables are also
characteristics of the organizational climate in as much as they individually and
interactively characterize the organizational climate (Taguiri, 1986).Accordingly, there are some distinctive features or attributes of an
organizational culture which can also be used for the evaluation of the
prevailing work culture. This may be done by devising either a single
performance index, or where necessary, multiple indices for each of these
attributes or characteristics. It is necessary, therefore, to identify all such
variables which not only can serve as indicators of the existing
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work culture but also can be used as mechanisms of organizational
development. Likert's and Wai ton's lists are not complete since work culture
pertains to an organization and order and discipline are prime requisites for
organizational success (Koontz and CXDonnell,
1972, pp 508-511). Based on the author's observations, some characteristics of
organizational work culture which are important in the Indian context are as
follows:
discipline. teamwork and cooperation communication and consultation delegation of authority activation levels of individuals and groups identity, a sense of belonging and the response of individuals and groups
to challenges of
responsibility.
flexibility and work innovation. role of unions and associations.
The interaction of the above elements of organizational climate with the
constituents in the organization produces the prevalent work culture with its
various attributes or characteristics. Thus, an increase in level or an
improvement in one or some of the elements of the organizational climate will
produce a corresponding improvement in one or several characteristics ofwork culture. At the same time, such an improvement should, in all likelihood,
produce an improvement in the work ethos of the individual(s) which in turn
will create an environment for further improvement in one or several of the
work culture characteristics. This is the dynamics of work culture which has
been illustrated in Figure shown ; points to the fact that the management can
and should make suitable changes, amendments and improvements to create a
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new work culturea work culture which is likely to foster both productive job
contributions and human job satisfaction (Fiegenbaum,1986, p 207).
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Work Ethos and Management
Management is the process of optimumutilisation of human and non-human resources with the intent to accomplish the
objectives of organisation along with value addition to the world. Thus, the
process of management involves three things optimum utilisation of resources,
which leads to efficiency, realisation of organisational goals which leads to
effectiveness and value addition to world which suggests social responsibility.
Ethics and ethical behaviour are the essential elements of healthy management.
Abundant access to information and greater business opportunities than ever
before make ethics an essential requirement in the modern business world.
WORK ETHOS AT DIFFERENT LEVELS OF MANAGEMENTWork ethos will be different at different levels. It can be defined at different
levels as under:
1. At a Basic Level
2. At the Top Level
1. At the Basic Level: Work ethos at the basic level entails:
a. Discipline
b. Consistent maintenance of punctuality
c. Appropriate and cordial demeanour with superior, colleagues and sub
ordinates
d. No personal work or wastage of time during working hours
e. Observance of discipline and decorum in regards to peers and subordinates
f. Consistent sustenance of ethically and morally sound actions.
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2. Top Level: At the top level, work ethos involves delivering as per
commitment, being accountable for errors, feeling responsible for the task
assigned to an individual. Some more factors that form a part of work ethos at
the superior level are:
a. Work Culture: Good work culture means one is fully dedicated towards
work and has high morale and job satisfaction. On the other hand, poor work
culture results in high rate of wastage, poor quality, low productivity and low
morale.
b. Loyalty: Work culture is also concerned with a worker's loyalty and sense of
belongingness to the organisation. One should protect the interest of the
organisation at all times. No employee should pass any adverse comments about
the organisations in the public.
c. Commitment and Responsibility: Every man should work like a master, not
like a slave. Employees should assume complete responsibility for the task
assigned to them and employ utmost efforts to attain the targets expected ofthem.
d. Sense of Belongingness: The worker should exhibit by his behaviour a sense
of belongingness to the organisation. A sense of respect should be demonstrated
for the organisation. One should maintain a cordial and amicable relationship
with peers, sub ordinates and superiors and treat them well.
e. Protecting the interest of organisation: Employees should strive to protectthe interests of the organisation and never compromise on this aspect.
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Unethical Behavior - It's Impact on Today'sWorkplaceIt is a sad truth that the employees of just about every business, in every
business, will occasionally encounter team members who are taking part inunethical behaviors. Such unethical behaviors include a wide variety of
different activities. Among the most common unethical business behaviors of
employees are making long-distance calls on business lines, duplicating
software for use at home, falsifying the number of hours worked, or much more
serious and illegal practices, such as embezzling money from the business, orfalsifying business records.
Though there is sometimes a difference between behaviors that are unethical
and activities that are actually illegal, it is up to the business itself to decide howit deals with unethical behavior - legal or not.
Many employees find that discovering unethical behavior among co-workers
actually tests their own values and ethical behaviors. After all, unethical
behavior that is not illegal frequently falls in a grey area between right and
wrong that make it difficult to decide what to do when it is encountered.
Furthermore, different people have different views regarding what is ethical and
what is unethical. For example, some people feel that it is alright to tell a little
"white lie", or to make one long distance call on the company's nickel, as longas they can justify it in their mind.
When employees discover other employees doing something that they know is
wrong by the company's standards, their own sense of what is right and what is
wrong instantly comes into question. That employee needs to consider how s/he
feels about that particular activity, as well as informing about that activity, orturning a blind eye.
Even by deciding to do something about it, the employee who has discovered
the unethical behavior is presented with a number of difficult choices. Shouldthe employee speak to the individual directly, or should the employee headdirectly to a company supervisor?
To make this decision a bit easier, many companies have adopted several
techniques that allow for the management of unethical activities. The first step
is to create a company policy, in writing, that is read and signed by each
employee. This erases most feelings of ambiguity when it comes to decidingwhat to do after witnessing an unethical behavior.
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The second is to give a clear outline of what is expected of the person who has
discovered the unethical behavior. It should include the person who should be
contacted, and how to go about doing it. With clear instructions, there will be
less hesitation in reporting unethical activities, and then they can be dealt with
quickly and relatively easily, before they develop into overwhelming issues.
Furthermore, the repercussions of unethical behaviors should be clearly stated.
This way, both the person doing the activity, and the witness to the activity will
be well aware of the way that things will be dealt with, and there won't be any
risk of someone not reporting unethical behavior because they're afraid that theculprit will be unfairly treated.
Communication is key in the proper management of unethical behavior in today's workplace.
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Cross Cultural Work Ethos
The Indian work ethic/ethos is largely based upon
1. Team Spirit and working together towards a common goal2. Loyalty to the boss/employer3. Working as hard as it takes to get the job done, in other words proving
one can do what one is entrusted to do.
The American work ethic/ethos is based upon
1. Individual responsibility and taking care of what I am entrusted with2. Being accountable/trustworthy as an individual to boss/employer3. Doing as much as agreed to (generally) and more depending on how
motivated the individual is.
Let us look at some common situations one faces in our industry
1. Working long hours -There was a recent Forbes magazine survey on listof countries where people take vacations. India ranked near bottom, theStates was a wee bit better, about two countries ahead, but still ahead. I
can write a few blog posts on this alone, but to keep it relevant to the
subjectvacations and time off from work are taken a lot more seriously
in the States than in India. So if you are taking up a job in the States that
requires a lot of overtime, it is a very good idea to discuss with your
boss/employer the situations that require overtime work. Being candidand open particularly before you take up a job is appreciated in most
situations and your boss/employer is more than likely to give you an
answer, even if that is not what you expected. And if possible cautiously
ask if there are ways they will compensate or give you time off. Alwaysto remember not to put in too many hours without any discussion oragreement on how it may be perceived.
2. Helping a team mate in trouble - In India it is very common to speak upfor the underdog, or someone you see is in need of help and for some
reason cannot do it himself. In the States help goes strictly by request and
acceptancesomeone asks you for it and you agree, people rarely speak
up for others in public (unless it is your team member and you are talking
to another manager on his/her behalf). If you speak up for someone else
more than likely they are going to be offended or take it as a reflection oftheir own inability to do so.
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3. Speaking up when you have an idea and qualifying your ideas withI. Most Indian team members will have an idea on something but will
only speak up when they feel supported or specifically singled out and
askedin American work situations you have to take initiative and speak
up for yourself. To ensure that your ideas do not sound too opinionated orencroaching on someone elses make sure to say that is myexperience/my opinion.
There are lessons one learns from either culturesin almost every job its seen
in the States that its tried to encourage team spirit. It is regarded that as the
most valuable lesson we learn from our jobs in India and have tried to carry
over some of that. The single most important lesson we have learnt from the
American work ethic is that work is done primarily in return for money and
while having due regard for loyalty and commitment, it is also important to
evaluate periodically if you are not giving too much. In times when job security
and other cultural norms are slowly becoming a thing of the past that might be agood lesson in India too.
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NEED TO BEHAVE ETHICALLYThe need to behave ethically comes from the following:
1. From the point of view of internal customer:
It improves the atmosphere and ambience at work and facilitates by motivating
the employees.
The ethical behaviour of management sets a good example for the employees.
It evokes a sense of pride for the company and improves its image in the eyesof the employees and establishes a sense of loyalty.
2. From the point of view of external customer:
It ameliorates the public image of the company and adds to the overall
development of ethical behaviour in the society.
There have been innumerable discussions on ethics, law and morality.
Ethics is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality- i.e.
concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice, etc.
Ethics can also be characterised asrules of conduct recognised in respect to a
particular class of human actions or a particular group, culture, etc. Making
ethical decisions may not always feel good or seem like they benefit you but are
the 'right' choices to make. These are universal rules or golden rules' like; do
not hurt, do not steal, do not be dishonest, do not lie. Again, what is morally
correct is not always ethically also. Morals and the expression, "moral values"
are generally associated with a personal view of values. Personal morals tend to
reflect beliefs relating to various issues. Law at work place discusses the set of
rules imposed by authority. In other words, law is a rule or body of rules of
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conduct inherent in organisation and essential to or obligatory on the part of
employees.
At workplace, we have to keep a proper balance of Morality, Ethics
and Law. The safest place is where your action covers all the three aspects
Ethics, Morality and Law (EML). From the organisation's perspective, you must
not transgress the boundaries of law i.e. perform within EL, EM, L or EML.
Further, an employee may not always follow the law sometime he could listen
to his ethics but one should always have the answer of breaking the law of
Work life.
Thus, Work Ethos or Work Culture refers to certain norms of behaviour
governing the conduct of workers involved in work situations to achieve certain
desired objectives. The degree of ones involvement influences his performance
resulting in high or low productivity, high or low quality. Sometimes, workculture is also integrated with a workers loyalty and sense of belonging, by his
behaviour, to the organisation. It is a mixture of abiding to the laws, observing
appropriate code of conduct as determined by the organisation as well as
maintaining one's own morality.
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REASONS FOR POOR WORK ETHOS/CULTUREThe following factors are accountable for poor work culture in a business
organisation:
1. Lack of commitment: Lack of commitment refers to the disinterest shown
by a worker towards the work assigned to him. This results in poor work culture
in the organisation and, in turn, in poor quality of product and diminished
productivity. An employees dedication towards his/her work should be
exhibited in his behaviour.
2. Lack of discipline: Discipline includes consistent regularity and punctuality-
coming to work place on time, completing the task within the stipulated
deadline, following rules and regulations if any and not wasting time during
working hours etc. Hence, lack of discipline will create poor work culture that
may cause delay in operations.
3. Poor working condition: Poor working conditions includes unhealthy
working atmosphere, lack of pure drinking water, lack of proper ventilation,
lack of canteen facilities, lack of safety devices and norms, industrial pollution
etc. These are the constituents of poor working conditions in an organisation.
4. Political interference: Most unions in companies are affiliated to some
political party. Political leaders, sometimes, destroy the peace and harmony in
the organisation for the sake of personal power and ego. This is one of the major
reasons causing industrial conflict.
5. Decline in moral standard: Moral standards provide a benchmark for
judging the moral value of a decision. They provide the basis for deciding
whether an act is right or wrong. If there is decline in the moral standards, the
culture of the work in an organisation deteriorates rapidly.
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DIMENSIONS OF THE WORK ETHOSFollowing are the other dimensions of work ethos:
1. Protecting the interest of the organisation: Interest of organisation must
agenda highpriority of an organisations employees. Their activities must focus
on the protection of interest of the organisation. Workers can protect the interest
of their organisation through higher productivity and quality of a product. They
should make their best efforts in this regard.
2. Work ethics through appropriate system: Unambiguous policies, rules and
regulations, reward system etc. are facilitative in establishing work ethics.
Clarity of these will make work-ethics more purposeful.
3. Work ethics in terms of proper communication system: A transparent
communication system is said to be the lifeline of an organisation. Proper
communication channel will promote work ethics in the organisation. Any
misunderstanding, distrust, suspicion etc. may be eliminated through
communication system.
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STEPS FOR IMPROVING WORK ETHOSManagement must take some steps to improve the work culture in the
organisation.
Following steps may be taken:
1. In order to improve work ethos, wages should be correlated to productivity.
'Higher wages for higher productivity' should be the policy of the organisation.
2. In order to reduce absenteeism, attendance bonus should be introduced.
3. In order to increase efficiency of workers, they should be properly rewarded.
In other words, efficient workers should get incentives.
4. Workers should be given an opportunity to participate in management
decisions.
5. There should not be political interference in the day to day operation of the
business.
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