Organizational Culture
Organizational Culture
Organizational Culture
Some other researchers have described culture into four different types
based on competitive values, i.e.,
• Clan: the collaborative and cohesive.
• Adhocracy: Innovative and adaptable
• Hierarchy: Controlled and consistent.
• Market: competitive and customer focused.
Studies have shown that positive job attitude was high in clan culture,
innovation was strong in market culture and financial performance was
good in market cultures.
Culture vs Formalization:
High formalization in any organization brings predictability, consistency
and orderliness.
Culture and formalization are two road for the same destination, as if
culture is strong and widely accepted then organizations less need to be
concerned with developing formal rules and regulations to guide
employee’s behavior.
16.2. What do Cultures do?
Culture Functions:
Culture defines the rules of game.
Institutionalization:
When organization becomes institutionalized, that means, it is valued for itself
and not for its products and services. It becomes rigid.
Companies don’t come out of their original goals even if the goal is no longer
relevant in the industry.
Barriers to change:
As if there is strong culture in the organization and employees are stick with
the rituals and its norms, then it becomes difficult for organizations to adopt
change.
An asset in a stable environment may burden the organization and make it
difficult to respond to changes.
Barriers to Diversity:
In an organization who support bias or becomes insensitive to people who are
different often undermine the formal corporate diversity policies.
In such organizations every new employee, to fit in the organization must
accept the existing norms and behaviors.
Example: the merger of American Online and Time Warner in 2001 was the
disastrous failure of US corporate history was due to cultural differences.
16.3. Creating and Sustaining Culture:
Culture does not develop unexpectedly or in a sudden way but once it is
established it rarely fades away.
Selection:
While selecting employees, selectors need to keep the most significant point
in mind, whether the candidate will fit into the organization. Identify
candidates, whose values must match a good portion of organizational culture.
In order to avoid a big mismatch, companies should provide complete
requirements in the advertisement, so that the person find himself as misfit
for the job should not apply.
Top Management:
Top management can impact organization’ culture through their actions,
words and behavior.
Whether managers support innovative ideas, what actions result in pay rise,
rewards and promotions, office dress code etc.
Socialization:
An employee, who join a new company, he needs assistance to learn the
prevailing culture. This help or assistance is called as socialization.
• Encounter:
When an employee enters the organizations, then he experiences the
encounter stage, i.e., the difference between the expectations and reality
about jobs and environment of organization.
If the expectation and reality are fairly accurate, then it would be easier
for employee to settle, which is not often the case. In other case employee
may opt to resign and recruitment and selection process should reduce
this outcome.
New comers work more passionately when colleagues become friends
and help him to learn the things quickly.
• Metamorphosis:
There are two types of practices used to bring in order the differences
found in newcomers in comparison with the organization’ environment,
first is institutional and second is individual.
Institutional practices are more formal, collective, sequential, fixed and
serial socialization programs and emphasize divesture. This improves
employee’s commitment for the organization. This is commonly used in
police department or fire department etc.
Through socialization it is made sure that the behaviors and attitudes of new
employees are now matching with prevailing organizational norms.
16.4. How Employees Learn Culture?
Culture is transmitted to employees through stories, rituals material symbols
and language etc.
Stories:
Stories are told in the organizations to make the employees learn culture.
These stories connect the present with the past.
Stories about the founder’s hardships from the beginning till date, how they
manage to develop the set of rules, how some employee was awarded, and on
which bases an employee was fired from job, etc.,
Rituals:
Rituals are repetitive sequence of activities that express and reinforce the key
values of the organization. Design a rite of passage, celebrate business success,
encourage people to take side, celebrate failure, build a sense of belonging, etc.,
Material symbols:
International firms are now transferring from closed room offices to open
halls, meeting tables This shows, company prefers openness, creativity,
innovation, and still there are companies who provide closed offices to its
employees.
In some companies, senior executives are given chauffeur-driven cars and in
some companies, executives drive cars themselves.
These are the examples of material symbols, which tells what is more
important to the company, the type of behavior top management desires such
as participation, risk taking conservative, individual or social.
Language:
Different acronyms and jargons are used in the organizations and among
different departments to help members identify with the culture.
16.5. Creating an Ethical Organizational Culture:
Organizations with ethical organizational culture are be like high in risk
tolerance, low to moderate in aggressiveness and focused on means as well as
results. This type of culture takes a long-term perspective and balances the
rights of multiple stakeholders, including employees, community and
stockholders.
Organizations with high ethical standards should have a powerful and positive
impact on employee’s behavior. Following are the ways to develop ethical
culture:
Benevolence:
Spiritual organizations promote the happiness of employees and other
organizational stakeholders and value showing kindness toward
others.
Open-mindedness:
These organizations promote and support creative minds.