Essentials of

Organizational Behavior, 10/e

Stephen P. Robbins & Timothy A. Judge

Chapter 15

Organizational Culture
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-1
 After studying this chapter, you
should be able to:
1. Define organizational culture and describe its common
characteristics.
2. Compare the functional and dysfunctional effects of
organizational culture on people and the organization.
3. Explain the factors that create and sustain an
organizations culture.
4. Show how culture is transmitted to employees.
5. Demonstrate how an ethical culture and a positive
culture can be created.
6. Show how national culture may affect the way
organizational culture is transported to a different
country.
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-2
 Organizational
Culture
A system of shared
meaning held by members
that distinguishes the
organization from other
organizations
Composed of seven key
characteristics

Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-3

 Seven Characteristics of
Organizational Culture
1. Innovation and Risk
Taking
2. Attention to Detail
3. Outcome Orientation
4. People Orientation
5. Team Orientation
6. Aggressiveness
7. Stability
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-4
 Culture Is a Descriptive Term

Culture Job Satisfaction

Organizational culture is Measures affective
concerned with how responses to the work
employees perceive an environment: concerned
organizations culture, not with how employees feel
whether or not they like it about the organization
Descriptive Evaluative

Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-5

 Do Organizations Have Uniform
Cultures?
The dominant culture expresses the core
values that are shared by a majority of the
organizations members
Subcultures tend to develop in large
organizations to reflect common problems,
situations, or experiences of members
Subcultures mirror the dominant culture
but may add to or modify the core values
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-6
 Strong Cultures
In a strong culture, the organizations core
values are both intensely held and widely
shared
Strong cultures will:
Have great influence on the
behavior of its members
Increase cohesiveness
Result in lower employee
turnover
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-7
 Culture Versus Formalization

Both seek predictability, orderliness, and

consistency
Culture controls by increasing behavioral
consistency
Formalization controls through policies and
written documentation
Strong cultures can be a substitute for
formalization
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-8
 Cultures Five Basic Functions
Defines Boundaries
Conveys a Sense of Identity
Generates Commitment Beyond Oneself
Enhances Social Stability
Sense-making and Control Mechanism

Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-9

 Culture as a Liability

Barrier to Change
Culture is slow to change even in a dynamic
environment
Barrier to Diversity
Culture seeks to minimize diversity
Can embed prevalent bias and prejudice
Barrier to Acquisitions and Mergers
Most mergers fail due to cultural incompatibility

Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-10

 Creating Culture

Ultimate source of an organizations culture

is its founders
Founders create culture in three ways:
By hiring and keeping those who think and feel the
same way they do
Indoctrinating and socializing those employees to their
way of thinking and feeling
Acting as a role model and encouraging employees to
identify with them
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-11
 Keeping a Culture Alive
Selection seek out those who fit in
Top Management establish norms of
behavior by their actions
Socialization help new employees adapt
to the existing culture

Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-12

 A Socialization Model

Pre-arrival initial knowledge about the

organization and own unique ideas
Encounter exposed to the organization
Metamorphosis member changed to fit
within the organization
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-13
 Dimensions of
Socialization Programs
Intense Programs Moderate Programs
Formal new workers Informal new workers
separated for training immediately put to work
Collective group basis Individual one-on-one
Fixed planned activities Variable no timetables
Serial role models used Random on your own
Divestiture strip away Investiture accepts and
characteristics to build up confirms existing
new ones characteristics

Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-14

 How Organization Cultures Form

Success in employee socialization depends

on managements selection of socialization
method and the closeness of new employees
values to those of the organization
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-15
 How Employees Learn Culture
Culture is transmitted to
employees through:
Stories provide
explanations
Rituals reinforce key
values
Material Symbols convey
importance
Language identify and
segregate members

Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-16

 Creating an Ethical
Organizational Culture
A strong culture with high risk tolerance,
low-to-moderate aggressiveness, and
focuses on means as well as outcomes is
most likely to shape high ethical standards
Managers must be visible role models
Communicate ethical expectations
Provide ethical training
Visibly reward ethical acts and punish unethical
ones
Provide protective mechanisms
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-17
 Creating a Positive
Organizational Culture
A positive culture is one that
emphasizes the following:
Building on Employee
Strengths
Rewarding More Than
Punishing
Emphasizing Vitality and
Growth of the Employee
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-18
 Global Implications

National and Organizational Cultures:

Organizations exist in a global context
Must be aware of local and national cultures

Suggestions and Observations:

Organizations heavily dependent on foreign markets and
labor
National culture does influence organizational culture
All managers must be culturally sensitive
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-19
 Implications for Managers

Create the culture

you want when
the organization is
small and new
If established
culture needs to
be changed,
expect it to take
years
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-20
 Keep in Mind

Organizational culture is concerned with

how employees perceive the culture, not
whether or not they like it
Ethical and positive organizational cultures
can be created methods differ
National culture influences organizational
culture

Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-21

 Summary
1. Defined organizational culture and described its
common characteristics.
2. Compared the functional and dysfunctional effects of
organizational culture on people and the organization.
3. Explained the factors that created and sustained an
organizations culture.
4. Showed how culture was transmitted to employees.
5. Demonstrated how an ethical culture and a positive
culture could be created.
6. Showed how national culture might affect the way
organizational culture is transported to a different
country.
Copyright 2010 Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as Prentice Hall 15-22