Organisational Behaviour Chapter 8. Culture in organisations Objectives: Discuss what is meant by the term culture. Outline the main theories on organisational

Organisational BehaviourChapter 8

Culture in organisationsObjectives:• Discuss what is meant by the term ‘culture’.• Outline the main theories on organisational

culture• Critically discuss their applicability to the

effectiveness of an organisation• Examine approaches to the management of

culture

© Mike Maughan, Organisational Behaviour, Palgrave (2014)


Two meanings of culture

1. The growing of organisms – e.g. horticulture, laboratory cultures

2. A metaphor indicating the values, norms and behaviours of a human community


Organisational Culture

Culture is an emergent property of a complex system• It is the consequence of countless interactions

between individuals and groups within a community• Cultures often contain sub-cultures within them

where a group will see itself as somehow different from other groups

• Sometimes we can see counter-cultures where a group feels that its interests are not served by the prevailing norms and behaviours (also see in-groups and out-groups in the chapter on groups)


Organisational Culture As we shall see, culture is difficult to understand and to study:• It is complex• There is no generally agreed definition as to what it is and

how we measure it• Can we develop a culture in an organisation which will

facilitate its activities?• Is culture an objective thing which can be managed and

controlled (and therefore predictable)?• Or is it part and parcel of a community’s being, resistant to

being managed?


The work of Edgar Schein

Schein is generally considered to be the main precursor of interest in the study of organisation culture. He referred to culture as an ‘empirical abstract’. That is to say, we can clearly observe the elements of an organisation’s culture, even though we may find it difficult to describe or measure it in its entirety.


The work of Edgar Schein Schein saw culture as an inverted pyramid:

Artefacts

Values

Assumptions


The work of Edgar Schein • Artefacts – the observable features of culture, material

objects, dress, behaviour, etc.• Values – those values an organisation espouses. It is often

important to check that the values espoused by management are the same as those experienced by staff

• Assumptions – These are our deep thoughts (often unconscious) about ourselves and other people. They influence our values. Where values arise from shared assumptions, they are very powerful


Deal and Kennedy’s work on culture

Deal and Kennedy suggest that there are a number of influences which contribute to an organisation’s culture


Deal and Kennedy’s work on culture• Values and beliefs: None of us goes into a job without a set of

values and schemata with which we make judgements about everything around us including matters relating to the organisation and the work it does

• Rituals: These are the regular ceremonial activities we find within an organisation

• Heroes: We use them in several ways: as figures of admiration whom we would like to emulate; as examples of sacrifice for something good; as super beings who rise above the mundane and achieve great things

• The informal cultural network: In this informal system, Deal and Kennedy identify key roles that disseminate the culture, interpret events in the context of the culture and reinforce the values of the culture.


Deal and Kennedy’s roles for disseminating culture

– Storytellers: These people interpret events and convert them into coherent stories that relate to and develop the culture of the group. This category also includes ‘gossipers’ who put their own spin on events

– Whisperers: These are people who can communicate directly and informally with those at the top of the organisation. It is a way of getting messages to the top, bypassing the formal communication process.

– Spies: Whether deliberately placed or self-appointed, we sometimes find that there are people in the organisation who provide informal information to senior managers about things which formal reports do not communicate

– Priests: These tend to be members of the organisation of long standing, who identify strongly with the organisation, and who consequently interpret events according to the organisation’s values. They play an important part in reinforcing those values.


Deal and Kennedy’s culture types


Johnson and Scholes cultural web


Culture and structureHarrison suggests that culture is strongly linked to an organisation’s structure.

He classified cultures according to the two variables: formalization and centralisation. This produced a four quadrant model with the four culture types placed as we can see in the following diagram


Culture and structure


Can culture be managed?

Interest in organisation culture arose because leaders of organisations became convinced that a strong, unifying culture would be to their competitive advantage. Behind such an assertion lies the assumption that culture can be managed. If that is the case, then managers can bring about changes to an unsatisfactory culture so that an organisation can reap the competitive rewards of such a change. However, there is little agreement about what the term really means.


Two contrasting views of culture1. Culture as an emergent property of an organisation: it is a self-

organising, emergent property of a complex human system. it represents what the organisation is. Because of its complexity, it is difficult to be sure of what effect interventions by the leaders of the organisation will have

2. Culture as an organisational resource: If, on the other hand culture is something that an organisation has, like its structure and policies, then these are subject to change at the behest of managers in just the same way as those structures and policies. This is the ‘functionalist’ view of culture. In this view, a culture is an organisation’s asset (or liability) and needs to be maintained, nurtured and controlled to deliver competitive advantage.


Morgan’s cultural metaphorsAccording to the work of Gareth Morgan, this uncertainty about the nature of culture arises because of how we frame our understanding of an organisation. Moreover, if this framing is different for different members, then there will be little agreement about what the organisation is really ‘like’. Morgan proposes several metaphors which we use to understand organisations. By exploring these metaphors, we might be able to arrive at a more general consensus about an organisation


Morgan’s cultural metaphors• Organisms: This metaphor sees the organisation as being

located within its environment, and needing to respond and react to its environment in order to survive

• Brains: Visualising the organisation as a brain suggests that there is a central, controlling command structure, which Is constantly communicating with its limbs and organs

• Cultures: Morgan unequivocally takes the view that culture emerges through the interpretation of symbols and the perception of meaning. These are likely to differ between individuals and groups within the same organisation.


Morgan’s cultural metaphors• Political systems: A political system is one where there is disagreement

and competition about both the goals of the organisation and how to achieve them

• Psychic prisons: When Morgan uses this metaphor for an organisation he is implying the loss of psychological freedom that individuals can experience in an organisation. This can come about when there is a mismatch between an individual’s personal values and those of management

• Flux and transformation: The metaphor of flux and transformation is one which chimes well with our times. It implies an environment which is almost chaotic in its unpredictability and requires organisations to be endlessly adaptable merely to survive.

• Instruments of domination: This metaphor sees organisations acting as instruments of domination in their outward-facing organisational activities and as instruments of domination in their internal structures


Peters and Waterman’s eight characteristics of an ‘excellence’ culture

• Bias for Action: Make clear decisions and act on them. • Close to the Customer: Keep open communication with customers and learn from them.

• Autonomy and Entrepreneurship: Give people space to innovate and take risks.

• Productivity through people: Influence staff to want to work productively and develop their skills.

• Hands-on, Value-Driven: Have a clear management philosophy, which managers are committed to, that is communicated and acted on.

• Stick to the Knitting: Focus on the core activities of the business.

• Simple Form, Lean Staff: Keep the structure simple and uncluttered, with the staff needed to carry out the work, but no more.

• Simultaneous Loose-Tight Properties: Keep overall strategies and values at the forefront of the organisation while allowing staff to respond autonomously to day to day problems.

Documents

Organisational Behaviour Chapter 8. Culture in organisations Objectives: Discuss what is meant by the term culture. Outline the main theories on organisational