Post-Industrial Society Effects on Organizational Change free essay sample

Society can be defined as the changes in work, organization, and employment relations that are attendant on the evolution from an economy based on manufacturing to one based on services (â€Å"Dictionary of Human Resource Management,† 2002). Organizational shifts or changes are based on changes in society in all aspects. Just as Huber predicted in 1984, the major increase in post-industrial societys complexity will lead to increases in specialization and diversity (Huber, 1984). Specialization is a common trend in the current organizational environments. Today there are specialists in all industries and organizations. An example that can prove Huber’s theory is accurate is technology. Organizations have had to change their organizational structures based on technology as it has evolved. As computers became more prevalent in the work place more and more jobs were created to entertain this concept. â€Å"The causal role of technology has been widely accepted in Western culture and the role of technology as an agent of change is common in the popular view of modem history where it is usually featured in simple, plausible narratives comparing an aspect of society before and after a technological innovation and inferring causation to the sudden appearance of the technical innovation† (Winter amp; Taylor, 1996, p. We will write a custom essay sample on Post-Industrial Society Effects on Organizational Change or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page ). â€Å"Because the causal role of technology has been widely accepted in Western popular culture, it is not surprising to find that computers are often identified as powerful agents of social and economic change ushering in the new post-industrial form of organization† (Winter amp; Taylor, 1996, p. 12). Huber stated that, â€Å"the following seemed clear: (1) the anticipatable large increases in knowledge will lead to large increases in technological, economic, and social specialization and diversity; these increases may be facilitated by increases in the effective numerosity of societal components, and (2) these large increases in specialization and diversity will lead to large increases in societal interdependence; these latter increases may be aggravated by increases in the demand-supply ratio of certain physical resources. As a consequence of these arguments we can conclude that in post-industrial society both the level of complexity and its absolute growth rate will be significantly greater than in the past† (Huber, 1984, p. 932). As a member of an educational organization where specialization is dominated it is clear that this theory can be proven in many different environments. In education, teachers are specialists in a specific area of learning. For example, reading specialists are experts in the most recent trends and practices of teaching reading. These specialists provide support to students that have reading difficulty in schools. Another example is the role of a content specific teacher, who only teaches one subject such as, Mathematics, English, or Science. In the late 1800s and early 1900s there was one teacher that provided instruction to several students in one classroom. An example of a shift in education that is due to diversity is the history of special education. In the early 1800s and 1900s it was believed that children with special needs should be institutionalized, Due to a social movement in the late 1960s deinstitutionalization was brought about. Children with special needs where taken out of institutions and segregated back into civilization. Next, special education classrooms or schools were created that allowed these children to learn. Finally, the most current trend is to place the student in the least restricted environment which could mean including them in the general education setting among their peers. Inclusion is becoming the law in some places, which means the majority of the time special education students are included in the regular education classrooms. The main reasons for recent shifts are social or political changes. â€Å"It can be argued that society is increasingly characterized by ever-growing levels of diversity of income, age, ethnicity, lifestyle and many other areas of social life†. All of these aspects of diversity directly affect organizational changes. Companies must take into account the needs and changing lives of those they employ. Organizations cannot discriminate against employees who may have a diverse background or those who maintain social aspect that could potentially affect their work ethics or production. Another example of a shift that is directly related to this is woman in the work place. In the 1800s this concept was unheard. Presently, several organizations are led by successful women executives. It would be socially unheard of to not accept this level of diversity in the workplace.