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Culture

Class 10

MGMT E-4000

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Organizational culture

The system of shared actions, values, and beliefs that develops within an organization and guides the behavior of its members

(Schermerhorn, Hunt, and Osborn)

How big a role do you think culture plays in performance and employee satisfaction?

What does strong organizational culture look like?

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Organization Culture Artifacts

Espoused Values

UnderlyingAssumptions

Symbols; stories; ceremonies; rituals; rites; personal enactments

Strategies; goals; philosophies; espoused justifications

Beliefs; perceptions; thoughts; ultimate source of values and actions (sometimes unconscious)

- From the work of Edgar Schein

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Subculture.– A group of individuals with a unique pattern

of values and philosophy that are not inconsistent with the organization’s dominant values and philosophy.

Counterculture.– A group of individuals with a pattern of values

and philosophy that outwardly reject the surrounding culture.

(Schermerhorn, Hunt, and Osborn)

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National cultural influences

– Widely held common assumptions may be

traced to the larger culture of the host society.

– National cultural values may become embedded

in expectations of organization members.

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Table Discussion:When Your Culture Needs a Makeover

• What struck you about their approach?• What have you seen done well in your

organization when it comes to shifting culture?

• What mistakes can occur when trying to change organizational culture?

• How does one successfully merge different organizational cultures?

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Structural Human Resource

Political Symbolic

Metaphor for organization

Factory or machine

Family Jungle Temple or theatre

Central concepts

Rules, roles, goals, policies

Needs, skills, relationships

Power, conflict, competition

Culture, ritual, ceremony, stories, heroes

Image of leadership

Social architecture

Empowerment Advocacy Inspiration

Basic leadership challenge

Attune structure to task, environment

Align organization and human needs

Develop agenda and power base

Create faith, beauty, meaning

Overview of the Four Frame Model

Lee Bolman and Terrence Deal, Reframing Organizations: Artistry, Choice, and Leadership (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 2003), 16.

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Journal Questions

– How does organizational culture affect performance and employee satisfaction in your experience?

– In your organization/former organization, what does the organizational culture look like? What underlying assumptions, espoused values, and artifacts exist? Would you describe the culture as strong or weak?

– How have you seen the existence of a subculture or counterculture within an organization play out?

– How have you seen cultural change occur within organizations? What works and what doesn’t?

– What is the best approach to take when two different organizational cultures merge in your experience?