Implementing Organizational

Change: Theory and Practice

Bert Spector

Chapter 4

Organizational
Culture
and Change
Copyright 2007 Prentice Hall 4-1
Culture: An Emergent
Organizational Phenomenon
Text in this color

Founders’
values and
beliefs
Organizational
design and
management
Culture Results
Next practices
generation
leaders’
beliefs and
actions

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Managerial Assumptions
about People

Theory X – Theory Y
(Douglas McGregor)

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Managerial Assumptions
about People
Theory X Theory Y
People have an inherent dislike People will exercise self-
for work. direction and self-control in
their work.

People must be coerced, People learn to accept and even

controlled, directed, and/or seek responsibility.
threatened.

People avoid responsibility; The capacity to exercise a high

they seek security above all. degree of imagination, ingenuity,
and creativity in the solution of
problems is widely distributed.

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Managerial Values That Inhibit
Employee Participation
What if employees make decisions
Control
with which I am uncomfortable?

Do employees have competencies

Competency
to make required decisions?

Do employees know enough

Knowledge
to make informed decisions?

Do employees really want to be

Motivation
involved in decision making?

Responsibility Isn’t decision making my job?

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Values of Adaptive Cultures

Cultural values impact the ability to

implement change by supporting
assumptions about people in the
organization.

Assumptions guide behaviors.

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Values of Adaptive Cultures

Adaptive Behaviors

Assumptions

Cultural Values

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Values of Adaptive Cultures
Value Impact on Change
Attitudes about the legitimacy Management adapts to shifts in
of multiple stakeholders customer exceptions and
employees needs.

Attitudes about motivation and Management creates conditions

developmental potential that motivate altered behaviors.

Attitudes about performance Change efforts are kept aligned

expectations with requirements of
outstanding performance.

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Values of Adaptive Cultures
Value Impact on Change
Attitudes about employee Builds commitment to required
participation new behaviors.

Attitudes about learning Organization creates

mechanisms for problem
solving and innovation.

Attitudes about diversity Employees feel valued as they

are encouraged to learn,
experiment, and adapt.

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Self-Sealing Value Loop
Manager believes
most employees dislike
work

“See! I was right. My Manager imposes

own experience tight controls,
proves it.” punishments, and rewards

Manager concludes that

Trust and autonomy
original assumption
decline
is correct

Employees work within

the rules but do not
innovate and improve

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Espoused vs. Enacted Values

Espoused Values: Enacted Values:

Values called upon Values that are implicit
by individuals in that course
to explain or justify of action or pattern
their course of action of behavior.
or pattern of behavior.

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Espoused vs. Enacted Values

Culture is determined by enacted rather

than espoused values.

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The following are optional slides to
consider including in Chapter 4

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Learning Objectives
 Define organizational culture and its
relationship to performance and change.
 Delineate the six cultural traits most
associated with organizational adaptation
and change.
 Suggest how organizations can go about
understanding their culture prior to
engaging in change.
 Discuss actions that organizational leaders
can take to reshape culture.

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Key Terms
 Organizational culture: the
common and shared values and
assumptions that help shape
employee behavior.

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Key Terms
 Robust cultures are cultures in
which a common set of values and
assumptions are deeply and widely
held.

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Key Terms
 Adaptive cultures: cultures that
encourage responsiveness and
change as part of their core values.

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Key Terms
 Espoused values: the set of values
called upon by individuals to explain
or justify their course of action or
pattern of behavior.

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Key Terms
 Enacted values: the set of values
that are implicit in that course of
action or pattern of behavior.

Copyright 2007 Prentice Hall 4-19