At the organizational (or macro) level, organizational behavior studies entity-wide factors that shape workplace behavior. Examples include:
What Is Organizational Behavior Management?
Organizational behavior management (OBM) is the application of behavioral science in real-world organizational settings. Organizations can use OBM techniques to guide behavior and achieve goals including:
- Increasing productivity
- Strengthening employee engagement
- Improving employee morale
- Boosting job satisfaction
- Communicating better
- Helping employees adjust to change
- Strengthening leadership
Professionals can implement OBM techniques in multiple ways:
- Performance management techniques to assess, analyze, and evaluate employee performance and identify interventions for improvement
- Behavioral systems analysis to detect bottlenecks in cross-functional collaboration or situations in which organizational systems don’t align with an organization’s mission
- Behavior-based safety techniques to promote safe workplace practices and strengthen safety habits
Specific Strategies Related to Organizational Behavior
Organizations can implement various strategies based on organizational behavior insights. Examples are highlighted below.
Selecting a Leadership Style
Organizations can implement an array of leadership philosophies or styles, but if boosting employee job satisfaction is paramount, it’s important to choose an approach that supports that goal.
For example, a 2023 study in the journal Cogent Business & Management on leadership, motivation, and job satisfaction concluded that transactional leaders who recognize employees’ internal motivators while also using external motivators such as offering recognition and rewards can be effective in improving employee satisfaction.
Resolving Workplace Conflicts
Insights from organizational behavior can also help in devising strategies to resolve workplace conflicts. A 2024 study in the journal Negotiation and Conflict Management Research, for example, highlighted two workplace behaviors that can help with conflict resolution: initiating healthy conversations that involve the parties in resolving the conflict and redirecting discussions that veer into tangential frustrations.
Improving Employee Performance Through Feedback
Organizations can also apply organizational behavior research to strengthen employee performance by offering feedback in specific ways. For example, a 2023 study in the Journal of Organizational Behavior Management suggested that providing qualitative feedback, rather than quantitative feedback, can be effective in increasing employee motivation and engagement. It also suggested that one-on-one conversations between managers and employees could be effective in optimizing employee performance.
Strengthening Approaches to Change Management
Organizations can apply insights from the field of organizational behavior to improve how they approach change management and encourage employees to support change. For example, developing a culture of continuous learning can help employees refine or update their skills during periods of change. In addition, leaders need to set an example during times of change and demonstrate the behaviors they want employees to adopt. Clearly communicating why change is occurring can be helpful in cultivating a supportive attitude among employees.
Organizations undergoing change can employ various change management models to guide employees toward new, productive behaviors. Examples of these models include:
- ADKAR model, which focuses on awareness, desire, knowledge, ability, and reinforcement
- Kotter’s eight-step change management model, which outlines specific steps that leaders can follow to implement change
- McKinsey 7-S model, which emphasizes strategy, structure, systems, shared values, skills, style, and staff
- Bridges’ Transition Model, which concentrates on the psychological aspects of change through three phases: Ending, Losing, and Letting Go; the Neutral Zone; and the New Beginning
Involving Employees in Workplace Transformation
When organizations undergo large-scale transformation, they can apply strategies informed by organizational behavior research to help the transformation succeed. For example, they can encourage engagement by clarifying roles, offering training, and providing positive reinforcement. They can also focus on strong communication and encourage employees to develop new approaches to their work. Additionally, they can tailor their leadership approaches to help ensure that employees have a shared vision and are inspired to achieve it.
Introducing artificial intelligence (AI) into the workplace is an example of a transformation that many organizations are undergoing. As organizations continue to integrate AI, they need to understand how their AI strategies can affect employee behavior. A 2025 study in the journal Human Behavior and Emerging Technologies examined AI’s influence on organizational behavior. The study noted that the introduction of AI, particularly in bureaucratic structures and without sufficient transparency, could diminish employee job satisfaction and reduce trust within those organizations.
Strengthening Employee Well-Being
Implementing employee well-being strategies based on insights from the study of human behavior in organizations can also improve organizational performance. These strategies can span multiple aspects of well-being: physical, cognitive, and emotional. To develop effective initiatives, organizations should:
- Allow employees to help develop well-being initiatives
- Ensure that all employees can participate in the activities
- Have managers promote and participate so that they can model behavior for the employees they supervise
Important considerations in implementing well-being strategies also include:
- Weaving well-being into an organization’s culture, rather than viewing it as a stand-alone initiative
- Measuring employee participation in well-being strategies and developing metrics to assess their effectiveness
- Providing adequate resources to implement well-being strategies
Developing Effective Employee Training Programs
Organizational behavior can also influence strategies for training employees.
For example, organizations can align training programs with employees’ career development plans. Understanding organizational behavior can help organizations:
- Develop training programs that facilitate different learning styles
- Instill an overall culture of learning within an organization
- Assess training effectiveness
- Build training programs to strengthen key soft skills such as emotional intelligence and leadership
Current Challenges in the Organizational Behavior Field
As the global business environment continues to evolve, organizations face unique challenges that the field of organizational behavior can address.
Examples include:
Organizations and their employees are also confronting:
While all these issues are challenging, they present opportunities for new knowledge and new strategies in organizational behavior.
How to Acquire Expertise in Organizational Behavior
Individuals interested in developing expertise in organizational behavior have multiple options to achieve their goals. For example, they can:
- Complete professional certificate programs. In several weeks or months, depending on the program, individuals can complete a professional certificate course in organizational behavior and leadership and acquire expertise in topics such as employee motivation, conflict resolution, and negotiation. Earning these types of certificates is a good way to add credentials to a resume and demonstrate commitment to personal growth.
- Join professional associations. Associations such as the OBM Network and the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) offer their members resources related to organizational behavior and host conferences where members can learn more about the field.
- Earn a degree in organizational behavior. Individuals seeking in-depth expertise in the field can earn a degree in organizational behavior and apply what they learn across careers in areas such as human resources (HR), professional development, and management.
Organizational Behavior Skills for Success
The field of organizational behavior offers invaluable insight into improving performance and ensuring that organizations can achieve their missions. When professionals know how to apply research from organizational behavior in the workplace, they have the opportunity to make lasting contributions to help organizations accomplish their objectives.