Organization Theory

(Part A)
Introduction
The two perspectives that I will look into is Modern and Critical Theory. Each element illustrates different views and concepts in looking things in an organization. Moreover, I will provide some examples, similarities and differences between them. In part B, these perspectives will explain Google and its relationship with the environment.
Modern
The theory of modernist is to discover the principal and practices that manage organizations universally. Modernist sees organizations and buildings as real entities. Furthermore, modernist view that power are ideas to influence, control and manipulate. Besides, it exists in our world and gets distribute down the hierarchy with rules and regulations in an organization. Bureaucracy Theory and Scientific Management Theory is a modernist approach to manage organization with the objective to improve organizational efficiency and effectiveness.
Ontology: concerns about reality and modernist interpret that there is power and control within the organization. In addition, it views that modernist do not challenge these assumptions but abide to rules and regulations.
Epistemology: knowledge exists and power seen in organization with the managers in top hierarchy making decision.
Cybernetic Control
Cybernetic Control is closely related to system on how each organization performs with a system. It is similar to General System Theory (GST). A system may be defined as a set of elements standing in interrelation among them and with environment (Bertalanffy1968). A system is a combination of subsystem and each element that will affect one another. Therefore, communication is the key in implementing this system concept and is the focal point in functional organization.

Agency Theory
Agency theory is to ensure managers perform their job with the interest of the organization to increase profitability for the organization. In understanding how organization work, people in the higher hierarchy will get things done by people in the lower hierarchy, known as delegation. An alternative to keep employees motivated is to design a more interesting job and reward good worker.
Markets, Hierarchies and Clans
There are many definitions for the reason why organization exists. As organization is too complex to accomplish with just a person, only with cooperation can form an organization to cater for services and needs in the market. In this process, it will lead to conflict between individuals with interactions leading to form an organization

McDonald’s is the symbol of standardization of food (Kincheloe 2002). As the goal of modernist is to increase efficiency and effectiveness, McDonald uses standardization in a process of making a burger or fries, as it does not require much specific skill. This may turn out is a good system to implement, as older workers can be hire to work too. Moreover, this is an example of exploitation. Moreover, they are trying to induce to other organization and the society that Goggle is indispensible when surfing the internet and locate information.
Nonetheless, modernist view that it generates works to people in the society. Besides, they are helping economy to grow and most importantly, leading to profitability for the organization.
Critical Theory
Critical Theory challenges and opposes the assumptions of Modernist. Furthermore, it views that organization are exploiting workers without them knowing. It does not think that workers should be working so hard to increase profits to the organization when their pay is so low. Critical Theory gives Critical theory gives both a vision and a vocabulary with which to talk about power, its uses and abuses (Gilgun 2010). This indicates a need for justice, fairness and care to eliminate the inequality and abuses of power. Critical theorists look upon fairness of those who are taking advantages upon human to make money. For instance, McDonald generates millions of profits, but pay very little for those front line employees and this is exploitation. Also, Critical Theory indicates that shareholders who get most of the money neglect employees hard work. An example of abusing power is using the third world country humans as slaves. Ontology: reality is shape by culture, political, legal, environment, social, ethics and value overtime. Epistemology: knowledge is creating through dynamic interaction with the environment.
The Critique of Ideology developed by Karl Marx. To simplify, it is the criticism of belief that makes people think why things are like this. For this concept, usually powerful people use their language to influence individual. In this capitalist society, companies like Wal-Mart and McDonald use social lower class people to work for them and misleading people to work, this is false consciousness.
Hegemony refers to how things are shape base on values and understandings (Bieler and Morton 2004). The power of hegemony is to convince working class to the social value of an exploitative system and a form of social power that relate to participation and voluntary. However, hegemony appears in our daily life, as it becomes a guide as common sense to understand how the world is.
Three Faces of Power
The view of power indicates that the powerful ignore the weaker, and manipulate their thinking for instance, worker accepting the capitalist system. The three powers are decision making, non decision making and shaping desire and usually only focusing on decision making as how power is decide and implement.
Labor Process Theory of Braverman’s argument that workers are subject to an inevitable process of “deskilling and homogenization” (Hassard, J et al. 1979). This suggests that exploitation of workers take place with systematic process with powerful people uses employees as a labor to generate more income for themselves. An example for an organization that exercises this is Coca-Cola. Employees will only get to work on one process and does not know how the other process made up. Besides that, Labor Process Theory is the practice of Taylor’s Scientific Management that involves deskilling of workers, as the process is systematic and requires little skills. In this process, employees could be the subject of being control.

Communicative Rationality is view to emerge the most efficient way of achieving goals. This is a view of clarifying procedures where agreement can arrive at; result in a form of justification.
Workplace Democracy suggests that employees’ participation and cooperation is essential for the organization to grow (Carter 2003). This suggests it is the most efficiency and effective way for decision making. In this process, full participation is best when workers can control their workplace and encourages individual to contribute to important decision making.
However, do employers focus on workplace democracy? Nowadays, it seems that exploitation of worker occur without our consciousness daily. Workers are being pay very little and helping the organization to profit even more.
Bureaucratic control is more efficient in an organization as tasks are perform with rules, procedures, documentation and behavior monitoring to achieve control (Hatch 2006, p. 264). Bureaucracy takes place when all the processes are being standardize. As example of a case study is McDonald. In the Labor Process Theory, it deskills workers with repetitive steps implement since the process is systematic. Some experts view it as inappropriate. As deskilling occurs, there is very little skills require to process in making a burger and every employees are easily replaceable.
Furthermore, the powerful people get things done through hierarchy, as it will exploit employees even more. There will be rules and regulations stated in the contract as a form legitimate. This is how they control people to make them work. Accordingly, it proves inequality as Critical Theory comes out to oppose the wrongful doings of Modernist.
Similarities and Differences
The Modernist and Critical Theory perspectives both oppose the importance of culture and the role of symbols in organization. Besides, both indicate the presence of power and control within individuals and the organization. In addition, they see power as authority and things are accomplish with hierarchy in organization. Similarly, they look for the best way to improve effectiveness and efficiency on how organization can approach to increase profitability.

Modernists argue that symbols are observable signs of culture, and the purpose is to maintain social order in employees. Modernist interprets that organization are real entities operating in the real world. They believe the important of system implement to increase effectiveness and efficiency for the purpose to generate profits and create jobs for the society. Power and control has to apply through rules and regulations to enable workers to work. The top hierarchy of the organization always makes decisions.

However, Critical Theory implies that Modernist is misleading and is exploiting workers to help the organization and shareholders to get richer without concerning those who work for them. A critical Theory goal is to improve procedures and processes and can be successful only when there is employees’ involvement in decision-making.

(Part B)
Google uses power to control over their employees to ensure they work towards the organization goals, accepting inequality. With reward system implement in Google and punishment, this is signs of control. The essay below will illustrate Google and its relationship with the environment using Modernist and Critical Theory perspectives.
Legal/ Political
In March 2010, China warns Google not to go against the Chinese law and comply with censorship law. There has been hacking attack on the portal. Thus, the Chinese government indicates they cannot allow information that can harm the society and their system to be place online. This regards to some cultural issue that may be offensive to the Chinese and will lead to legal issue if Google does not abide to regulations.
In this case, Google has to be sensitive on the political or legal issue of different countries. Without understanding the culture of each country, it will lead to misunderstanding. For instance, some years back, a Nike advertisement portrait a person stepping on the mat of a dragon. This portrait disrespectful to the culture in China and Nike was force to remove the advertisement.

Technology
There have been Technology factor that affects Google and the relationship with the publishers and author of the books using technology to scan books to the internet without permission. Google is successful as they are the technology leader in organizing information. “Innovation is our bloodline” (Towers 2006). Innovation and creativity is Google desire from their employees. Nonetheless, take Nokia as an illustration, rapid technology changes prevent them from being the number 1 mobile sellers. They must remember that being innovative and adapting to the environment is vital to survive in the market.
Economic
Aside from their search engine, it is also a very successful advertising company. Google has drives economic growth at least in 50 states. For instance, the Better World Books sells and collects books online that are use or new, it has concerted $8 million in funding and education.

Social
We look our employee and we want them to know it- Google provides financial rewards and great fringe benefits. Google also provides free movie tickets for employees and family (Towers 2006). This indicates that Google are trying to allow the employees know they are being appreciate for their efforts and giving them benefits in return. Customers are the major stakeholders with a perspective of a successful company. Both claims is a modernist view as working for Google seems to people that they have good retention technique offer to retain workers.
Isomorphism is matching of two systems together to function well. With the rapid market changes, Google has implement search engine not just with the computers but also the Smartphone that we carry out. This measure is fitting into the environment of being proactive than reactive. If consumers do not use computers nowadays, they have to change their style and suits to the environment.

Modernist approach in Google

Google is describes as an attractive and unique working environment. At googleplex, there are resources like washing machines, gyms, games and food that are offering to its employees. Furthermore, dentists services message therapist to help them distress from work.
It explains that working for Google is relax, fun and enjoyable.

Google occupies a very significant role today in the business world and in the lives of many individuals (Brenkert 2008). This suggests that Google influence the world that they are a successful company and want all others to follow them. The Google books have also simplified our lives without the need to go to the library. Additionally, just a few clicks will be able to get your answer of any question. Consequently, Google is using the modernist approach to imbue this to us.

Environment Contingency Theory is defining as maximizing their power. Environment changes and there is a need for organization to adjust to survive in the rapid society and move accordance to environment. Furthermore, there must be system and requires monitoring to stay competitive.

Managers must select the appropriate control system and can be effective in some organizations but may not be situation in all organizations. There are certain constraints for instance unstable economics condition and changes in technology (such as Video CD has become obsolescence.)
Resource dependence theory

Resource dependence theory is perhaps the most comprehensive in the scope of its approach to organizations, combining an account of power within organizations with a theory of how organizations seek to manage their environments (Davis & Cobb 2009). This indicates that there is a power relation around organization. Managers has to take steps to ensure the organization survive in the market. Organization must include strategies to improve their autonomy and interests. Besides, power is essential for understanding the relationships between its resources and competition.
Critical Theory

Labor Process Theory

Google is also using Labor Process Theory and Scientific Management to pursue their own interest by with combine of employees and human relations. There are cafes, bars, and place to rest in a workplace. This shows Google has implemented direct strategies to allow employees to feel that their welfare is consider and each are treated as a family working for Google.

Communicative Rationality
Publisher charge Google for infringing copyright by scanning books and post it in Google books. Google seems to increase its profit by exploiting right of authors and publisher. However, commercial posting it online does not mean it is not for fair use in Law. Google does not use it that involves projects to earn profits and user will not be able to view more than 20 percent of the book. Adding on, Google does not profit from any sale of the books. Nevertheless, this indicates how unethical Google can be when they are helping themselves to become more innovative.
Good or bad on Google way of doing things
In 2005, there have been numerous complaints that Google does not ask permission and scan books from the libraries. This is copyright issue and thus showing how unethical Google is when they are trying to do improve their websites without considering other factors. Many of the objections to the library project focus on the idea that Google will make money from others’ work (Baksik 2006). It was regard that Google is doing this to make even more money.

Some concept is also saying that Google is helping the publisher to earn more revenues by doing this. Additionally, they have donated money to the society every month. Furthermore, some argue that this print library project will generate more sales of books too. For instance, when Amazon introduced their Search Inside the Book product has an increase in sales for books.
Google mission is to make it easier to find high quality information on the web (Levis 2009). Likewise, this indicates that Google is trying the best way to simplify researchers’ life and helping the publisher to obtain more profits. Thus, things to consider that the way Google is doing are for fair use or exploitation.

In the article, it claims that Google protects the privacy of its users (Vise 2006). Nevertheless, there is some social issue regarding Google invading our privacy and other users. Google+ is the social website that has a need to pay attention to the privacy of the users in Google.
Furthermore, KCCI.com News shown in a YouTube video explains, “Google is not giving customers options and they should control their own privacy." Google has come up with a new policy that allows company to track everything we do with Google. Their services include Google map and Gmail, tracking your location, shopping habits and interaction with friends. Lastly, they also sell information to company who our database need be it our email address or even scan what we send to our friends. This may seem that Google is invading our privacy.
Conclusion
In summary, does Google treat our information as privacy or does it use to gain some profits out of it? Now, we have to think twice when we are leaving private information when surfing the internet or even sending emails. Google has to be more ethical in the way of doing things and not just thinking of earning profits out of it.
However, in modernist view, Google is helping us to simplify our research without us paying additional money. Modernist is best to describe Google as what it is doing is beneficial in our lives.