Organizational
Culture
ORGANISATIONAL
Policy/Rules STRUCTURE
Officialisation
Language
Hierarchy
Facts
Dialect
Norms
Attitudes
Beliefs
Rumours
Heroes
Socialisation
ORGANISATIONAL
CULTURE
Organizational Culture

the set of shared values and
norms that controls
organizational members’
interactions with each other
and with people outside the
organization
Organizational Culture


Values: general criteria, standards, or
guiding principles that people use to
determine which types of behaviors,
events, situations, and outcomes are
desirable or undesirable
Norms: kinds of behavior that are
considered acceptable or typical for a
group of people
Geert Hofstede’s Culture
Dimensions

Power Distance (PDI)

Individualism (IDV)

Masculinity (MAS)

Uncertainty Avoidance (UAI)

Long term Orientation (LTO)
Comparison of Cultural Values
Americans
Japanese
Arabs
Freedom
Independence
Self-reliance
Equality
Individualism
Competition
Efficiency
Time
Directness
Belonging
Group harmony
Collectivity
Age/seniority
Group consensus
Cooperation
Quality
Patience
Indirectness
Family security
Family harmony
Parental guidance
Age
Authority
Compromise
Devotion
Patience
Indirectness
3M Case questions


What are the VALUES of 3M culture?
What are the main ways in which 3M tries
to create this culture?
Stories
Rituals
Elements of
Culture
Heroes
Symbols &
Language
Do Organizations Have Uniform
Cultures?
Dominant
Culture
Subcultures
Core
Values
Intensity of
Core Values
Commitment to
Core Values
Strong Versus
Weak Cultures
Level of Behavioral
Control
Level of Employee
Turnover
How A Culture Begins
Hiring and
Retention
Indoctrination
& Socialization
Behavior and
Role Modeling
How is an Organization’s Culture
Transmitted to its Members?

Socialization: the process by which
members learn and internalize the
values and norms of an
organization’s culture
Entry Socialization Options
• Formal vs. Informal
• Individual vs. Collective
• Fixed vs. Variable
• Serial vs. Random
Formal vs. Informal
Formal tactics segregate newcomers
from existing organizational members
during the learning process.
 With informal tactics, newcomers
learn on the job, as members of a
team.

Collective vs. Individual


Collective tactics provide newcomers
with common learning experiences
designed to produce a standardized
response to a situation.
With individual tactics, each newcomer’s
learning experiences are unique, and
newcomers can learn new, appropriate
responses for each situation.
Fixed vs.Variable


Fixed tactics give newcomers precise
knowledge of the timetable associated
with completing each stage in the
learning process.
Variable tactics provide no information
about when newcomers will reach a
certain stage in the learning process.
Sequential vs. Random


Sequential tactics provide newcomers
with explicit information about the
sequence in which they will perform new
activities or occupy new roles as they
advance in an organization.
With random tactics, training is based on
the interests and needs of individual
newcomers because there is no set
sequence to the newcomers’ progress in
the organization.
How Organizational
Cultures Sustain
Top
Management
Philosophy
of the
Organization’s
Founders
Selection
Socialization
Organizational
Culture
Communicating Cultural
Norms

Organizations use several types of
ceremonial rites and ceremonies to
communicate cultural norms and
values.



Rites of passage
Rites of integration
Rites of enhancement
Organizational Rites and
Ceremonies
TYPE
EXAMPLE
POSSIBLE
CONSEQUENCES
Rites of
passage
Orientation
programmes
Facilitate transition into
new roles; minimize
differences in way roles
are carried out
Rites of
enhancement
Company
ceremonies
e.g. Awards
Enhance power & identity;
emphasize value of proper
behavior
Rites of
integration
Office
Party
Encourage common feelings
that bind members
together
Maintaining Organizational
Culture
Methods of Maintaining Organizational Culture
• What managers and teams pay attention to
• Reactions to organizational crises
• Managerial role modeling
• Criteria for rewards
• Criteria for selection and promotion
• Organizational rites, ceremonies, stories
Recruit
employees
who fit
Organizational
Culture
Remove
employees
who deviate
Issues Associated with
External Adaptation and Survival




Identifying the organization's primary
mission, and selecting strategies to pursue
it.
Setting specific targets.
Determining how to pursue the goals,
including selecting an organizational
structure and reward system.
Establishing criteria to measure individual
and team goal accomplishment.
Issues Associated with Internal
Integration




Identifying methods of communication, and
developing a shared meaning for important
concepts.
Establishing criteria for membership in
groups and teams.
Determining rules for acquiring, maintaining,
and losing power and status.
Developing systems for encouraging desirable
behaviors and discouraging undesirable
behaviors.
Organizational Culture
Functions
Liabilities

Defining boundaries

Impeding change

Conveying identity

Inhibiting diversity

Promoting commitment

Stifling creativity

Controlling behavior

Blocking mergers &
acquisitions
Effects of Organizational Culture on
Employee Behavior and Performance




Allows employees to understand the firm’s
history and current approach.
Fosters commitment to corporate
philosophy and values.
Serves as a control mechanism for
employee behaviors.
Certain cultural types may produce greater
effectiveness and productivity.