LDR 804
Original question-
Does social culture influence workplace productivity? If so, how? If not, why not?
1st Student – Katrin
Nurturing workplace culture could be a starting point to combat challenges such as skill shortage, (Nekula & Koob, 2021). In my professional experiences, I do believe that social culture does influence workplace productivity. Building relationships with coworkers is crucial to feeling supported, as a teacher it is so beneficial to have a strong relationship with your grade level teacher/team. I have built friendships at work that become ‘family”. Teaching can be challenging and having those like-minded friends to bounce ideas off, cover your class while you run to the bathroom or grab your class if you need to leave early are a few examples of what family-like workplace culture. The family-like workplace is developed with a diverse group of educators from different backgrounds, generations and experiences. Leadership sets the tone for the workplace, as far as how serious/fun the workplace will be. Researchers have examined social interaction in the workplace, in particular, non task related interactions, such as kidding around and social conversation, which are frequent and important parts of the social culture of a workplace, (Butterworth, et al., 2000). Getting a good laugh in during your lunch break is so important.
Butterworth, J., Hagner, D., Helm, D. T., & Whelley, T. A. (2000). Workplace culture, social interactions, and supports for transition-age young adults. Mental Retardation, 38(4), 342–353. https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.1352/0047-
Student 2- Syliv
According to Jolly et al. (2021) the development of technology and information affects not only the organization, but also the lifestyle and social life of the community has changed, therefore society’s demand for special services is certainly an important priority for many organizations. Jolly et al. (2021) suggests that technology has changed the attitude of the community as well as society, gender differences are no longer the limitations of qualifications and specifications in many jobs, where gender is no longer considered, but rather the skills and competencies of human resources. In general, the social culture of the world places men at the top of the hierarchy and women second, given the existing social structure where men are responsible for supporting the family, which forces men to work outside the home. Women who are tasked to do housework is becoming normal, so it is a practice in many fields (Jolly et al., 2021).
Jolly, PM, Kong, DT, Kim, KY. Social support at work: An integrative review. J Organ Behav. 2021; 42: 229– 251. https://doi.org/10.1002/job.2485
Student Three- Erin
Social Culture can influence workplace productivity. With high levels of diversity in successful organizations creating a culture that is accepting and welcoming is highly beneficial to an organization’s productivity. When organizations have developed a positive social culture, it leads to employees who are not only more positive but also more satisfied in their work which can lead to increases in knowledge, skill, and performance which can lead to an increase in measurable productivity (Sabuhari et al., 2020). When organizations not only embrace the diversity of their individual members but prioritize members’ overall well-being by promoting and emphasizing the importance of their lives outside of the organization, such as work-life balance, it can lead to employees who feel more valued, committed, and accepted which in turn can lead to employees feeling the need to reciprocate that feeling by being more productive (De Sivatte et al., 2014). I can attest to this in my own personal experience. When my father was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer, my principal would allow me to leave early during our bi-monthly staff meetings without penalty so I could spend time with him and give my mom a break. It was something she didn’t need to do, but she valued having a school culture where she addressed teachers as humans who need support and valued us not only as individuals but also as members of her organization. I can tell you that I worked harder for her than any other principal I have had because of the culture she instilled in us that our values to her didn’t start and stop in the classroom. People work harder when they feel valued and accepted and if the social culture of an organization is positive and accepting its going to make employees more invested and want to be more productive and successful.
References
Sabuhari, R., Sudiro, A., Irawanto, D. W., & Rahayu, M. (2020). The effects of human resource flexibility, employee competency, organizational culture adaptation and job satisfaction on employee performance. Management Science Letters, 10(8), 1777-1786. https://10.5267/j.msl.2020.1.001
