Organizational Culture
What is Organizational Culture?
What is the difference between strong and
weak cultures?
What do cultures do?
How are cultures created?
How do employees learn about culture?
Rand Merchant Bank’s Culture
When employees at Rand
Merchant Bank received a
booklet entitled The
Complete Book of Rules,
they discovered that the
pages inside were blank.
The book was a reminder
that the South African
financial institution’s
culture encourages
employees to make their
own decisions.
Courtesy of Rand Merchant Bank
What is Org. Culture?
Culture is a term used to describe the
basic pattern of shared beliefs,
assumptions, and values of an
organization.
Compare SAS Institute & WalMart, Inc.
SAS – 200 acre campus, free on-site medical
care, unlimited sick days, ski trips, personal
trainers, inexpensive gourmet cafeterias,
encourages a 35 hour work week.
Wal-Mart Inc. – visitors have a waiting room and
pay for own pop and coffee, emphasize
efficiency and lowest possible operating costs,
inexpensive office furniture.
What Does Culture Do?
Distinguishes one organization from
another
Creates a sense of identity for employees
Serves as a sense-making and control
mechanism that guides and shapes
employees attitudes and behaviors
Dominant and Subcultures
Dominant culture is really what we mean
when we refer to Org. culture
Subcultures can support the dominant
culture or act as countercultures and
oppose the core values of the organization
Two functions of countercultures:


provide surveillance and critique, ethics
source of emerging values
Strong vs. Weak Cultures
Strong – exists when most employees
believe in and accept the dominant values
of the organization.
Weak – dominant values are short lived
and held mainly by upper management
Adaptive cultures – employees focus on
the needs of customer and various
stakeholders and keep pace with change
Research
Studies over the years testing the
relationships of culture strength and
organizational performance have found
only a modest, positive relationship
between the two.
How is Culture Created &
Communicated?
Early beliefs and values come from the
company’s founders
We infer cultural characteristics from
stories, legends, rituals and ceremonies,
language, structure, and symbols
Stories & Legends
Have the most impact when they are
presumed to be true, are known by most
employees and can provide a lesson or
advice as to what to do or not to do.
Rituals
Rituals


programmed routines
(eg., how visitors are greeted, how employees
are recognized, how upper management
communicates with employees, how meetings
are conducted etc.)
Ceremonies
More formal activities that benefits the
employees of an organization.
Examples: retirement banquets, years of
service award ceremonies, special
gathering to launch a new product, sales
person(s) of the year ceremony etc.
Artifacts: Organizational
Language
Words used to address co-workers,
customers, stakeholders and so on.
Leaders use metaphors and special
vocabulary as cultural symbols

eg. Container Store’s “Being Gumby” being
flexible and helpful etc.
Common Metaphors
Organizational Culture, learning, lifecycles
The bread of life, heated debate, a
rainbow of flavors, life in the fast lane,
grow your own potential, you’ve got the
power
Artifacts: Physical Structures/Symbols
Building structure -- may shape and reflect
culture

Oakley’s “Interplanetary Headquarters” in Foothill
Ranch, California
Office design conveys cultural meaning

Furniture, office size, wall hangings