Managing

Organizational Culture

 The set of values, norms, and beliefs

that control the way people and
groups in an organization interact
with each other and with people
outside the organization.

DEFINITION

In every organizations there are patterns of beliefs,

symbols, myths and practices that have evolved over time.
These in turn create common understanding among
members as to what the organizations is and how its
members should behave.

What are Organizational

Values?

Guiding principles people used to

determine which types of
behaviors, events, situations, and
outcomes are desirable or
undesirable
Terminal
Instrumental

Terminal and Instrumental

Values
Terminal
Quality
Responsibility
Innovativeness
Excellence
Economy
Morality
Profitability

Instrumental
Working hard
Respecting traditions
Respecting authority
Being conservative
Being economical
Being creative
Being honest

Building Blocks of
Organizational Culture

Characteristics of people within the

organization
Organizational ethics
Employment relationship
Organizational structure
National culture

characteristics

Individual initiatives-the degree of freedom, responsibility,

and independence that individuals have
Risk tolerance-the degree to which employees are
encouraged to be aggressive, innovative, and risk seeking.
Directions- the degree to which the organizations creates
clear objectives and performance expectations
Integrations-the degree to which units within organizations
are encouraged to operate in a coordinated manner.
Management support-the degree to which managers
provide clear communication, assistance, and support to
their peers.
Control-the number of rules and regulation and the amount
of direct supervision used to control employee behaviour.

Identity-the degree to which members identify with

the organizations as a whole rather than with their
particular work group or field of professional expertise.
Reward system-the degree to which reward allocations
are based on employee performance criteria rather
than to seniority, favoritism, and so on.
Conflict tolerance-the degree to which employees are
encouraged air conflicts and criticism openly
Communication pattern-the degree to which
organizational communications are restricted to the
formal hierarchy of authority.

Sources of cultures

The founder of the organization and his

or her personal values and beliefs have a
substantial influence on an organizations
culture and the norms, stories, myths,
and legends that develop in a company.
Ethical values are the moral values and
norms that establish the appropriate way
for an organization and its members to
deal with each other and with those
outside the organization.

Levels of Corporate
Culture
Observable Symbols
Ceremonies, Stories, Slogans,
Behaviors, Dress,
Physical Settings
Underlying
Values,
Assumptions,
Beliefs, Attitudes,
Feelings

Figure Ways of Transmitting

Organizational Culture
Formal socialization
practices
Ceremonial
Rites
and
Ceremonies

Employees
learn
through:

Signs, symbols, stories

The
organizational
language

SOCIALIZATION
An organizations culture is transmitted to its
members through socialization processes.
Socialization is the process by which members
learn and internalize the values and norms
of an organizations culture.
Van Mannen and Scheins socialization model
explains how people can be guided to the
values desired by the organization.

Role Orientation

The V-S model of socialization explains how

people are guided towards particular
role orientations.
Role orientation is the characteristic way in
which newcomers respond to a situation.
There are two basic types of role orientation.

Role Orientation

An institutionalized role orientation results

when individuals are taught to respond to
a new context in the same way that
existing members respond to it.
An individualized role orientation results
when individuals are allowed and
encouraged to be creative and experimental
when responding to a new situation.

Role Orientation

There are various tactics that can be used

to socialize newcomers to a particular
role orientation, depending on what the
organization desires from its members.
How these tactics shape employees
role orientation is summarized in Table 5.1.

Socialization

TABLE 5.1

How Socialization Tactics Shape Employees Role Orientation

Tactics that lead to an

institutionalized orientation

Tactics that lead to an

individualized orientation

Collective

Individual

Formal

Informal

Sequential

Random

Fixed

Variable

Serial

Disjunctive

Divestiture

Investiture

Socialization Tactics

Collective tactics provide newcomers with

common learning experiences.
Individual tactics involve unique and new
learning experiences for newcomers.

Socialization Tactics

Formal tactics segregate newcomers from

existing members during the learning
process.
Informal tactics involve learning on the
job as members of a team.

Socialization Tactics

Sequential tactics provide newcomers with

information about the sequence of new
activities.
Random tactics involve training that is based
on the individual needs and interests of
newcomersthere is no set sequence.

Socialization Tactics

Fixed tactics give newcomers precise

knowledge abut the timetable of completing
each stage in the learning process.
Random tactics provide no information about
when newcomers will reach a certain
stage in the learning process.

Socialization Tactics

Serial tactics use existing members as role

models and mentors for newcomers.
Disjunctive tactics require newcomers to
figure out and develop their own way
of behaving.

Socialization Tactics

Divestiture tactics involve using negative

social support (ignored or taunted) until
newcomers conform to established norms.
Investiture tactics offer immediate positive
social support for newcomers (quickly
welcomed into the fold).

These specific socialization tactics are

not the only paths that allow
organizational culture to be
transmitted to members.
Organizations also use stories,
ceremonies, and language to convey
cultural values.

TABLE 5.2

Organizational Rites

Type of rite

Example of rite

Purpose of rite

Rite of passage

Induction and
basic training

Learn and internalize

norms and values

Rite of integration

Office Christmas party

Build common norms and

values

Rite of enhancement

Presentation of annual
award

Motivate commitment to
norms and values

Rite of degradation

Firing of top executive

Change or reaffirm norms

and values

Organizational stories and language are

important media for communicating
culture.

Stories provide important clues about the

kinds of behaviors that the organization
values and frowns on.

Organizational culture develops from the

interaction of four factors:

FIGURE
Where an
Organizations Culture
Comes From
Characteristics
of people within
the organization

Property rights
system

Organizational
culture

Organizational
ethics

Organizational
structure