Organizational

Culture
McGraw-Hill/Irwin
McShane/Von Glinow OB 5e
Copyright 2010 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
14-2
Re-aligning Dells Organizational
Culture
Dells winning culture, which emphasized cost efficiency
and competitiveness, became more of a liability as the
market moved toward a preference for style and
innovation.
14-3
Organizational Culture Defined
The basic pattern of shared values and assumptions
governing the way employees within an organization
think about and act on problems and opportunities.
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Organizational
culture
Artifacts of
organizational
culture
Elements of
Organization
al Culture
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14-5
Content of Organizational Culture
The relative ordering of values.
A few dominant values
Example: Dell -- efficiency and competitiveness
Problems with measuring org culture
Oversimplifies diversity of possible values
Ignore shared assumptions
Adopts an integration perspective
An organizations culture is fuzzy:
Diverse subcultures (fragmentation)
Values exist within individuals, not work units

14-6
Organizational Culture Profile
Org Culture
Dimensions Dimension Characteristics
Innovation
Experimenting, opportunity seeking, risk taking, few
rules, low cautiousness
Stability
Predictability, security, rule-oriented
Respect for people
Fairness, tolerance
Outcome
orientation
Action oriented, high expectations, results oriented
Attention to detail
Precise, analytic
Team orientation
Collaboration, people-oriented
Aggressiveness
Competitive, low emphasis on social responsibility
Source: OReilly et al (1991)
14-7
Organizational Subcultures
Dominant culture -- most widely shared
values and assumptions
Subcultures
Located throughout the organization
Can enhance or oppose (countercultures) firms
dominant culture
Two functions of countercultures:
provide surveillance and critique, ethics
source of emerging values
14-8
Cirque du Soleils Risky Culture
Cirque du Soleils founders promote a risk-
taking and creative corporate culture. They
frequently take gambles on new forms of
creativity and initiatives.
14-9
Artifacts in Organizational Culture
Observable symbols and signs of culture
Physical structures, ceremonies, language, stories
Maintain and transmit organizations culture
Not easy to decipher artifacts -- need many of them
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Artifacts: Stories and Legends
Social prescriptions of desired (undesired)
behavior
Provides a realistic human side to
expectations
Most effective stories and legends:
Describe real people
Assumed to be true
Known throughout the organization
Are prescriptive
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Artifacts: Rituals and Ceremonies
Rituals
programmed routines
(eg., how visitors are greeted)
Ceremonies
planned activities for an audience
(eg., award ceremonies)
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Artifacts: Organizational
Language
Words used to address people, describe
customers, etc.
Leaders use phrases and special vocabulary
as cultural symbols
Language also found in subcultures
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Artifacts: Physical
Structures/Symbols
Building structure -- may shape and reflect
culture
Office design conveys cultural meaning
Furniture, office size, wall hangings
Courtesy of Microsoft Corp.
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Organizational Culture Strength
How widely and deeply employees hold the
companys dominant values and assumptions
Strong cultures exist when:
most employees understand/embrace the
dominant values
values and assumptions are institutionalized
through well-established artifacts
culture is long lasting -- often traced back to
founder
14-15
Functions of Strong Corporate
Cultures
Functions of
Strong Cultures
Control system
Social glue
Sense-making
Organizational
Outcomes
Org performance
Employee well-being
Culture strength
advantages depend on:
Environment fit
Not cult-like
Adaptive culture
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Contingencies of Org Culture &
Performance
Effect of organizational culture strength on
organizational performance is moderate
Need to consider contingencies:
1. Ensure culture-environment fit
2. Avoid strength to level of corporate cult
- Cults restrict mental models, suppress subcultures
3. Create an adaptive culture
- External focus, process focus, ownership, proactive
14-17
Merging Cultures: Bicultural
Audit
Part of due diligence in merger
Minimizes risk of cultural collision by
diagnosing companies before merger
Three steps in bicultural audit:
1. Examine artifacts
2. Analyze data for cultural conflict/compatibility
3. Identify strategies and action plans to bridge
cultures
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Merging Organizational Cultures
Assimilation
Deculturation
Acquired company embraces acquiring
firms cultural values
Acquiring firm imposes its culture on
unwilling acquired firm
Integration
Cultures combined into a new composite
culture
Separation
Merging companies remain separate with
their own culture
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Changing/Strengthening
Organizational Culture
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Changing/Strengthening
Organizational Culture
1. Actions of Founders/Leaders
Org culture sometimes reflects the
founders personality
Transformational Leaders can reshape
culture -- organizational change practices
2. Aligning Artifacts
Artifacts keep culture in place
e.g., building structure, communicating
stories, transferring culture carriers
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Changing/Strengthening
Organizational Culture
3. Introducing Culturally Consistent
Rewards
Rewards are powerful artifacts reinforce
culturally-consistent behavior
4. Attracting, Selecting, Socializing
Employees
Attraction-selection-attrition theory
Socialization practices
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Attraction-Selection-Attrition
Theory
Organizations become more homogeneous
(stronger culture) through:
Attraction -- applicants self-select and weed out
companies based on compatible values
Selection -- Applicants selected based on values
congruent with organizations culture
Attrition -- Employee quite or are forced out when
their values oppose company values
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Lindblads Shipshape
Socialization
Lindblad Expeditions cant
afford to have crew members
jump ship soon after starting
the job, so the adventure cruise
company gives applicants a
DVD showing a realistic picture
of what its like to work on
board. This realistic job preview
is one part of the companys
socialization process.
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Organizational Socialization
Defined
The process by which
individuals learn the
values, expected
behaviors, and social
knowledge necessary to
assume their roles in the
organization.
14-25
Socialization: Learning &
Adjustment
Learning Process
Newcomers make sense of the organizations
physical, social, and strategic/cultural dynamics
Adjustment Process
Newcomers need to adapt to their new work
environment
- New work roles
- New team norms
- New corporate cultural values
14-26
Stages of Socialization
Role
Management
Insider

Changing roles
and behavior

Resolving
conflicts
Encounter
Stage
Newcomer

Testing
expectations





Pre-Employment
Stage
Outsider

Gathering
information

Forming
psychological
contract

14-27
Improving Organizational
Socialization
Realistic job preview (RJP)
A balance of positive and negative information
about the job and work context
Socialization agents
Supervisors technical information, performance
feedback, job duties
Coworkers ideal when accessible, role models,
tolerant, and supportive
Organizational
Culture
14-28
McGraw-Hill/Irwin
McShane/Von Glinow OB 5e
Copyright 2010 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.