Marketing Plan

ORGANISATION BEHAVIOUR - A Case Study on Personality, Perception & Decision Making in Zenup Software Inc

1. PERSONALITY

Personality derives from the Latin word persona (mask) which refers to a set of distinctive personal characteristics which includes emotions, values, interests, attitudes and competencies that distinguishes an individual from any others. Merwin personality personifies a number of characteristics therefore it is important to identify the various factors to his personality.

1.1 BIG FIVE MODEL

According to the Big Five model, there are five fundamental categories of traits that have been identified.

i) Conscientiousness - the extent to which individuals are focused on accomplishing goals and maintaining high levels of performance. Specific traits include self-discipline, responsibility, organization, achievement orientation, and attention to detail.

During the earlier years, Merwin has conscientiously keeping Zenup financially afloat and viable by taking on consulting jobs as well as leveraging one credit card to another. To be able to juggle multiple credit cards bills without reaching the point of bankruptcy requires an individual to be highly organized and alert.

ii) Extroversion (or Positive Emotionality) - defined as "a trait characterized by a keen interest in other people and external events, and venturing forth with confidence into the unknown" (Ewen, 1998). It is the predisposition of individuals to experience positive emotional state and to be sociable and friendly towards others. Extroverts have a need for social interaction and prefer activities that involve other people.

Merwin can be seen as an extrovert as he has taken a keen interest in other people and the external events surrounding him. When he did part-time consulting jobs while still in university, he has noticed how primitive the sales configuration processes were. He realized that he needed to seize this opportunity before it was too late. Zenup was setup even before he graduated from university without knowing what lay ahead for him. Such were a display of his ambition and confidence that Zenup would be successful no matter what.

iii) Agreeableness - the tendency of and desire of an individual to get along with other people. This category captures traits such as likeability, affection, cooperativeness, tolerance, and empathy. Individuals high in agreeableness tend to work on developing high-quality relationships and tend to be known as team players.

Merwin placed great emphasis on team-bonding where his newly-employed staff were divided into teams and has encouraged them to complete difficult tasks together.

iv) Emotional Stability (Neuroticism or Negative Emotionality) - Emotional stability is a construct that Hills and Argyle established in 2001 as they investigated predictors of happiness. They found that a lack of neuroticism is one of the greatest predictors of happiness. Though Hills and Argyle findings has many interesting implications, it is problematic as measuring happiness based on a lack of neuroticism is describing a positive construct in terms of the absence of a negative construct. Hills and Argyle suggest resolving this difficulty by reversing neuroticism into an alternative, positive construct: emotional stability. They describe emotionally stable people as, "calm, imperturbable, and unlikely to complain about their personal worries or anxieties." (Hills and Argyle, 2001). They assert that emotional stability is the most significant dimension of happiness and is a strong predictor of satisfaction with life.

Merwin displayed high emotional stability for he was proficient in situations that require critical thinking and evaluation. He was not worried or distracted about how Zenup would survive during those difficult earlier years. He believed that Zenup can be successful in time to come. Now that Zenup has been successful and Merwin expects his staff to have the same positive attitude like him.

v) Openness to Experience - the extent to which individuals are open to experiences and have a wide range of interests. Individuals high in openness are also described as curious, creative, receptive, and accepting. Conversely, those measuring low in openness can be described as close-minded, rigid, resistant to change, and inflexible.

Merwin displayed a highly openness to experience when he chose to drop out of university just only a few months short of graduation to pursue his dreams.

Dimension Prototypical Characteristics Illustrative Adjectives

Conscientiousness Responsible, dependable, able to plan, organized, persistent, need for achievement, persistence, scrupulousness Organized, systematic, thorough, hardworking, neat, dependable, (careless), (inefficient), (sloppy), (impulsive), (irresponsible)

Extroversion, Surgency, Sociability Sociable, talkative, assertive, ambitious, active, dominance, tendency to experience positive emotions Extroverted, talkative, assertive, gregarious, energetic, self-dramatizing, (reserved), (introverted), (quiet), (shy), (unassertive), (withdrawn)

Agreeableness Good-natured, cooperative, trusting, sympathy, altruism, (hostility), (unsociability) Sympathetic, cooperative, warm, tactful, considerate, trustful, (cold), (rude), (unkind), (independent)

Emotional Stability, Adjustment, (Neuroticism) Calm, secure, not nervous; (predisposition to experience anxiety, anger, depression, emotional instability) Unenvious, relaxed, calm, stable, confident, effective, (moody), (touchy), (nervous), (moody), (self- doubting)

Openness to Experience, Intelligent, Culture Imaginative, artistically sensitive, aesthetically sensitive, intellectual, depth of feeling, curiosity, need for variety Intellectual, creative, artistic, imaginative, curious, original, (unimaginative), (conventional), (simple), (dull), (literal-minded)

Note : Prototypical characteristics and adjectives taken from McCrae and Costa (1989), Mount et al. (1994), and Hogan (1991); items in parentheses define the opposite pole of each dimension.

1.2 MAJOR PERSONALITY ATTRIBUTES INFLUENCING ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR

i) Locus of Control - refers to the degree to which people believe they are in control of their own fate. Those who believe they are in control are called "internals" (an individual who believes he/she controls what happens to him/her); those who believe outside force controls are "externals". Therefore, a person's perception of the source