Many hard-driving leaders believe the technical competencies of individuals are far more important than the soft skills in making them the most value added to the organization. These no-nonsense leaders think the "touch-feely" skills of communicating well, listening well, interacting well, and motivating one another are in the realm of "hocus-pocus", and, thus, see no real value to the tough-minded business person's success in the organization. In this paper, we shall look into how organizational behavior as a vital ingredient in the development of the information technology work force, be they leaders, team members or individual contributors. In addition, we shall discuss how the study and practice of organizational behavior can make a difference in the operation of information technology.
Living as we do in a society that is technologically extremely advanced, most kinds of professional advancement are close to impossible without the mastery of one or more specialized branches of systematic technical knowledge (Douglas, 2002).
Communication Skills Lab
File:MIS_Quarterly_low_res_cover.jpg
English: Diagram of Schein's Organizational Behavi...Technical expertise rules is clearly true of people specializing in technical fields. Organizations employing these people compete vigorously over the quality of their in-house technical expertise and over how adept they are at translating this into the development of new products and services. They argue that this quality wins the competitive edge that is so essential in today's open markets. However, organizations in most sectors - and especially in ones that are particularly demanding from a technical point of view - are operating in environments where collaboration, teamwork, and an awareness of the commercial consequences and implications of technical research are as important as technical skills themselves. Personnel with scientific and technical skills significantly disproportionate to their 'people' skills - meaning people management capabilities and the knowledge of how to work with maximum effectiveness as part of a team - are increasingly unlikely to...