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Management Practices and Organisational Behaviour

Notes repositioning itself to become a customer-centric intellectual-property and service
company, as signified by its new slogan: “Acer, Bringing People and Technology Together.”
To Shih, intellectual property is the value added to the product. Acer adds value by
enhancing consumer perceptions of the benefit or value of a product, based on know-how,
packaging, design, accessibility, comfort, user-friendliness, and niche solutions—the
tangible qualities of its products. This is how Acer Computer is building on its already
strong international brand, to become a global brand. It wants to help people to enjoy
their work and their lives.
One way in which Acer Computer is trying to manage the perceptions of its audience and
getting them to think of the company as a major player is through more international
exposure, such as its US$10-million sponsorship of the 1998 Asian Games. It succeeded in
bringing the company greater international exposure. Another way Acer Computer is
managing customers’ perception of the company is by partnering overseas companies. By
doing this, Acer Computer achieves its overall philosophy of “global brand, local touch,”
and also hopes to further the perception of being a global brand.
However, Acer still has to make the leap from being a regional brand to a global one.
Although the company manufactures computers for IBM and other major companies, it
does not get due credit. In 1998, it was ranked third in the world as a PC manufacturer, but
occupied only eighth spot in brand sales. Since then, it has moved to seventh place, according
to the company. In the largest single market in the world–the United States – Acer’s
market share in 1998 was less than 5%. Acer has to cross the bridge, from world-class
manufacturer and regional-market leader to global player. If the result depends solely on
Stan Shih’s enthusiasm, energy, and ambition, then there will be no doubt about the
outcome. But consumers, both corporate and individual, make global brands happen, and
therein lies the challenge of changing and managing their perceptions.

Questions
1. What are the personality traits revealed prominently in ‘Stan Shih’?
2. How can ‘innovalue’ add value to a business operation?
3. What other alternative strategies may be taken by the organisation to be profitable
in this global competitive world? Does personality pay any role in it? Justify.

Source: Jayantee (Mukherkjee) Saha, Management and Organisational Behaviour, First Edition,
Excel Books, 2006.
8.10 Summary

Organisational behavior is the study and application of knowledge about how people,
individuals, and groups act in organisations.

It does this by taking a system approach, i.e., it interprets people-organisation relationships
in terms of the whole person, whole group, whole organisation, and whole social system.
Its purpose is to build better relationships by achieving human objectives, organisational
objectives, and social objectives.
Organisational behavior encompasses a wide range of topics, such as human behavior,
change, leadership, teams, etc.
There are many theories and models to determine and modify organisational behaviour.
Personality plays the most important role in determining the level of individual
effectiveness.

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