What is Organizational Theory

Organizational Theory Name: Course title: Instructor: Institution: Date Due:  An organization according to Davis and Scott (2007) constitute of complex relation among groups of people or individuals. These individuals or groups of people interact within the structures and processes of that particular organization in order to achieve its objectives and visions. In this perspective of the social structure, the participants sustain the firm by defining its goals, encouraging its participants to contribute, developing participation, gathering resources, coordinating the participation and contribution, dispensing services or products and incorporating the stakeholders. These authors give three different theories of which an organization can be better understood, these theoretical perspectives include the open systems theory, the natural systems and the rational systems theory. Each of these theories according to Davis and Scott offers an explicit insight on how organizations operate. They go on to articulate that the natural and rational perspectives are integrated with open system theory in various ways in establishing a new theory that differ with others regarding to analysis and emphasis. As Pfeiffer (1993) explains, studies in organizational theory offer an interdisciplinary emphasis on the impact of social entities on the perceptions and behavior of the individuals who are in that entity. They also try to find out the impact of individual features and behaviors of these people on organization, the success, performance and sustenance of that organization. In his work, Barriers to the advance of organizational science: Paradigm, Pfeiffer seems to be concerned on lack of concerted efforts and emphasis by organizational theorists to further a clear organizational theory. According to him, organizational theorists have put more emphasis on studying job satisfaction, leadership and generation of theories that have no focus for organizational management. Following David and Scott’s definition of rational system, Pfeiffer also articulates that an organization consists of individuals acting based on rational concepts in achieving predetermined objectives and visions. Cannella et al (2004) postulates that organizational theory is not static; rather, it is constantly evolving by intuition, vision and hunch. This is so because information is in itself, unsullied and insufficient while the issues and problems may not be pure. In addition to this is that culture influences what individuals see as well as their perceptions of that organization. In this perspective, Cannella et al observes that theories may not be exonerated from inductive facts. According to these authors, the most effective theories are those whose visions and objectives are based upon facts. The basis for imagining the visions and objectives is on cultural perspective. In his conclusion concerning the development of organizational theory, Pfeiffer articulates that scholars in organization and the related theories ought to ...