In chapter 8,
organizational communication ethics is defined as the “orchestrating of
communicative practices through formal and informal structures of events and
persons in a given organization to accomplish a given purpose or purposes. It
focuses on getting a particular task done” (p. 137). Organizational
communication ethics represents the “dwelling” place of communicative practices
that form our life together. A dwelling place is “a gathering of communicative
practices and stories that gives an organization a sense of uniqueness,
separating a specified organization from others within the same industry” (p.
138). Organizations now expect employees to use technology (email and messages)
at hours beyond those of a traditional workday. The good of organizational
communication ethics rests on the dwelling place we construct.
Throughout
the chapter, the author emphasizes the “dwelling place” of organizational
communication ethics that centers on a particular good that defines a dwelling
place, which then shapes a communicative practices and our interpretative
engagement with a community of memory. The danger of the dwelling place focuses
on the “settler,” someone who has been with the organization for a significant
amount of time, and fails to acknowledge the importance of public articulation
of organization goods. This can be especially difficult for someone who is new
to the organization and doesn’t know enough about the organization’s missions
and purpose to articulate them to self or others.
For
example, when I graduated high school and entering my first year of college I
decided to get a job to help alleviate costs and have a little bit of spending
money. After I got hired, it was a little difficult to adjust to the new
establishment with “settlers” who’ve been with the company for 10+ years. Five
years later I still work at the same restaurant, but it took around 6 months to
feel comfortable in the organizations mission, practice and procedures.
Currently, new employees that have recently been hired express their anxiety
and apprehension about working with the “settlers” and have a hard time
adjusting to the “said” of restaurant expectations and policies. The question
is how do organizations try and change the approach of a “settler?” What could
be beneficial or difficult to try and change the attitude of those who have
worked for a company for a significant amount of time?
Very interesting post, I found when you talked about the settlers at a job to be very interesting. I think it would be beneficial to the company to try and break out of that mold and be helpful to the newer employees. The organization should be trying to promote the "good' of the restaurant, rather than let the settlers get into a set rhythm. I wonder if a more accepting person who worked there longer would help newer employees catch on faster?
ReplyDeleteAly - you make a very good point of becoming so familiar with the dwelling place after some time, an individual fails to see the importance of organization goods. I can understand your situation when you were first hired at the restaurant - as a server myself who has served at various places, each restaurant's dwelling place impacts my comfortability greatly. When there's a multitude of settlers it can become an intimidating situation that creates you questioning your abilities within the workplace.
ReplyDeleteIn addition to John's question - I think sometimes settlers forget about the struggles that arise when new employees start. I think if they remind themselves that they were that person at one point, then they are more willing to accept and help the person.
I think you bring up a great example with the workplace and being the new person in an organization. I know that when I started my job at the University of Minnesota I definitely treaded lightly to try and get the feel for the office. I believe that this was to my advantage so that I could understand the dynamics a little more from the outside before fully immersing myself. I was lucky enough to have "settlers" that brought me in and made me feel comfortable pretty quickly. I stayed in the same position for almost two years and could feel when I shifted from a newer person to more of a "settler". I always tried to think back to the days when I was new and learning a lot of information and tried to train the new employees in a way that would set them up for success. I think it is the responsibility of the organization and its "settlers" to make new people feel comfortable and welcome, but I also think that new people can approach the new environment in ways that are more conducive to learning the ways of the new situation.
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