In this case study (Hitt, Miller & Colella, 2011, p. 567), a range of organizational behavior issues may be identified. The key issues are a lack of both formalization and a life-cycle force changes that should have taken place from the Collectivity Stage to the stage known as Formalization and Control Stage.

According to Hitt, Colella, and Miller (2011), formalization means the degree to which various rules, practices, and procedures are documented. Additionally, it may involve job descriptions of extant positions, too. Evidently, as the employees went on to develop the positions the way they envisioned them, every person’s duties and responsibilities changed if to compare to the roles involved in the position initially. That was due to the need to mold to the employee at this position more effectively. As for the responsibilities and rules that pertained to these positions, they were not standardized. Neither were they fixed the way the position could have been established. The given case study shows an outcome that could possibly be produced under the conditions of the very low formalization level.

In the case study “A Sea Change in Staffing at Leapfrog Innovations, Inc” a company which is on the precipice of moving from the collectivity stage to the stages of formalization and control of life-cycle forces is shown. According to Hitt, Colella, & Miller (2010), life-cycle forces are defined as predictable, as well as natural forces and pressures which form as a company grows, which leads the organization to change while growing and which typically has to be addressed for the company to continue growth. In the given case study, the organization is portrayed in its stage of collectivity, where the focus is maintained on such issues as product and service development. Other distinctive features are following a family feeling as a particular vision is pursued, in combination with informal coordination, yet in a more consistent way than when the organization was set up. The organizational behavior issue within the next stage, namely the formalization and control stage, was that people who worked for the company realized the need to formalize for the purposes of recording those things that were most effective, in particular company processes and practices, yet this, unfortunately, was not followed.  

The recommendation could be to effectively deal with the evolving challenges: these should be foreseen and identified. Once recognized, these challenges should not just be overcome, but lead to making large-scale conclusions and new strategies. Specifically, intelligent management controls the need to be enforced. Also, formalization and a life-cycle force changes should be significant on the way of the company’s transition from Collectivity to Formalization and Control Stage.