MAN CH7

Organizational culture

consists of socially acquired rules of conduct that are shared by members of the organization.generally refers to organizational rules and beliefs that are relatively enduring and resistant to change. Measured qualitatively using the ethnographic research methods from anthropology

Every organization has to confront two major challenges that impact the development of its culture:

(a) external adaptation and (b) internal integration.

Organizational cultures are maintained by

(a) the selection and retention of employees, (b) the allocation of rewards and status, (c) the reactions of leaders, (d) the rites and ceremonies, (e) the stories and symbols, and (f) the reactions to crises.

The type of feedback transformational leaders should strive to provide to their employees

1) a warmer more safer environment for communication 2)more material information about their work performance, 3) more time to fully respond to questions about work, 4) more positive reinforcement for positive work outcomes and 5) more highly differentiated info from the leader that allows the employee to come up with his/her own solutions to problems

Categories of shared assumptions:

1. Human Nature. Are people basically good, basically evil, or neither good nor evil? Can people be trusted? What is the value of a human life and do people care for one another? 2. The Nature of Relationships. Are relationships between people primarily hierarchical, equivalent, or individualistic in nature? Is there a caste system, and do some people "matter" more than others because of their status in society or their position in an organizational hierarchy? 3. The Nature of Truth. Is truth revealed by external authority figures, or is the accuracy of information determined by a process of personal investigation or scientific testing? 4. Our Fit with the Environment. What is our relationship with the environment? Do members believe they have the capacity to master the environment? Are they supposed to live in harmony with it? Do they think they are controlled by it? 5. Time Orientation. Are members of the organization primarily oriented to the past, the present, or the future? How long is our history and how much does it constrain the present and the future? 6. Assumptions about Activity. Assumptions about the nature of human activity can be divided into three approaches: (a) a "doing" orientation where people are basically active and evaluated according to what they produce, (b) a "being" orientation where people are passive and tolerant of existing circumstances, and (c) a "becoming" orientation where people are continually developing and becoming an integrated whole. 7.Universalism/Particularism. Do we treat all members of the organization the same regardless of their background (universalism), or do we treat people differently based on certain criteria such as race, age, religion, family affiliation, and so on (particularism)?

Six kinds of rites in organizations

1. Rites of passage show that an individual's status has changed, such as a promotion or a retirement. 2. Rites of enhancement reinforce the achievement and accomplishments of individuals, such as recognition awards and graduation ceremonies. 3. Rites of renewal emphasize changes and improvements in the organization, such as opening a new store or launching a new product. 4. Rites of integration unite diverse groups or teams within the organization and renew commitment to the larger organization, such as annual picnics and company newsletters. 5. Rites of conflict reduction focus on resolving conflicts or disagreements that arise in organizations, such as grievance hearings or union contract negotiations. 6. Rites of degradation are used by organizations to publicly punish or demean persons who fail to adhere to the accepted norms and values, such as a demotion or dissemination of a public apology.

Symbolic actions that explain what leaders can do to increase their personal power and exert greater influence in an organization (Leader behavior):

1. Spend time on activities that are important. The amount of time an administrator spends on an activity communicates a message regarding the importance of that goal or function. 2. Change or enhance the setting. A new setting conveys the feeling that something new is happening. An enhanced setting with more elaborate furnishings generally means that the activity is more consequential and important. Changing the meeting from the lunchroom to the boardroom communicates a message of significance to the attendees. 3.Review and interpret history. Events have meaning only through our interpretations of them. The most important interpretations are those derived from a historical analysis that demonstrates a consistent line of meaning and direction. If current events appear to be consistent with historic trends, it is easier to obtain a consensus on a chosen course of action. For example, wage cuts and extra hours are more acceptable if it can be shown that the employees have always responded with loyalty and sacrifice during hard times. 4. Establish a dominant value expressed in a simple phrase. A simple phrase, one that reflects a dominant value and is easily remembered, can influence the behavior of organizational members by creating a consensus about appropriate behavior.

Implement an Intervention Strategy

A variety of interventions are possible for changing the organization's culture, such as conducting team-building meetings, revising the training and development activities, installing new reward systems, changing the organizational structure, rewriting the mission statement, creating new group norms, developing a new language and metaphors, and negotiating new roles. The replacement of key individuals who hold the "old" beliefs may also be necessary.

Unfreeze the Current Culture

Change efforts are much more successful when there is a perceived need for change that compels people to be open to influence and willing to consider something new. These events tend to "unfreeze" or destabilize the entire cultural system and prepare it to consider a major restructuring of the assumptions, values, and beliefs.

Monitor and Evaluate

Cultural change is incremental and rarely occurs quickly. A system for monitoring and evaluating the transition to a new set of values and beliefs can provide an ongoing process of transitional change.

Assess the Need for Change

Cultural change is needed if the current culture is not solving problems of integration or adaptation, or if it is producing negative consequences for individuals in the organization. As organizations grow and evolve, their cultures may become incompatible with the changing circumstances. Values and beliefs that may have been appropriate for a smaller company may be dysfunctional in a larger company.

Cultural artifacts

Level of culture; tangible aspects of culture—the behaviors, language, and physical symbols—that we can perceive with our senses and that reflect the rules and core beliefs of the organization's culture. Ceremonies and rituals also illustrations the rules governing behavior in the organization.

cultural values

Level of culture; represent the collective beliefs, ideals, and feelings of members about the things that are good, proper, valuable, rational, and right.Unlike the situation-specific nature of norms, values are broader rules that are applied across situations.

shared norms

Level of culture;The common expectations that guide the behavior of organizational members. situation-specific rules that are often not directly visible but can be inferred from the organization's artifacts. Key norms can often be determined by the degree of consistency in how group members act. Some norms are explicitly spelled out, either verbally or in writing, often with penalties for not complying with the norms.

Employee Selection

Organizations tend to hire people who will fit in and adapt to the organization's culture.The organization then maintains its culture by disciplining or even terminating employees who consistently deviate from accepted norms and practices. Thus, discipline procedures also become an important instrument for maintaining cultural values.

organizational myths

Stories that are not supported by facts, but directionally consistent with the values and beliefs of the organization.Significant stories that are told about an organization's earlier years that impact the way members think about its history even if they are not true.

Five core job characteristics

Skill variety, task identity, task significance, autonomy, and feedback).Impact important work outcomes (i.e., job performance and satisfaction, absenteeism, worker motivation, and turnover). Table 1 page 3

The response opportunity factor

Teachers gave these students greater opportunities to respond. They calledon these students more often and gave them more time to provide detailed answers to questions.

The feedback factor

Teachers offered more positive reinforcements to these children for correct answers but also provided more differentiated information for wrong answers and led them to the correct reasoning for solving problems.

The input factor

Teachers taught more materials to and had higher expectations for those students for whom they had more favorable expectations.

The climate factor

Teachers were warmer toward those students for whom they had higher expectations both in terms of what they said to them and in terms of non-verbal communications

Conduct a Culture Audit

The first step in the change process involves diagnosing the culture and subcultures within the organization. What are the assumptions, values, behaviors, and artifacts currently in the organization, and are there discrepancies between espoused beliefs and actual behavior? The goal of the diagnosis is to develop an accurate "map" of the culture, which generally requires extensive interviewing rather than written surveys.

Framing

The process of selecting and highlight certain aspects of a situation while minimizing or excluding the importance of others such that one meaning is accepted over another.Influencing and managing employee perceptions of the work they perform. Figure 1 page 4

Reward Allocations

The rewards and punishments attached to various behaviors convey to employees the priorities and values of both individual managers and the organization. A dramatic change in an organization's reward system can make a significant change in its culture almost overnight.

Elicit Support from the Cultural Elite

Top management and other opinion leaders compose the "cultural elite" in an organization; they are the ones who interpret events for members and establish the rules of conduct. Because successful change may be impossible without their assistance, a strategy for locating them and enlisting their support is essential. Another option is to hire a completely new leadership team that holds beliefs consistent with the organization's new direction.

Masculinity versus femininity

addresses how a society perceives role differences between men and women and how these differences should impact their roles and activities.Low masculinity countries, such as the Scandinavian countries, minimize this distinction, so that there is a blurring or overlap of social roles; high masculinity countries, such as Japan, Austria, and Italy, assume that social gender roles are clearly distinct and that there should be specific occupations for males and females. In high masculinity societies, "tough" values such as assertiveness, accomplishment, success, and competition prevail over more "tender" values such as empathy, supportiveness, and maintaining relationships.

shared assumptions

deepest level of culture; The foundation beliefs that impact how people think about and respond to organizational events, but which are mostly subconscious.These assumptions, while often unspoken, form the foundation of the culture and are reflected in the artifacts, norms, and values. ex: if a manager distrusts his employees.

Internal integration

is concerned with establishing and maintaining effective working relationships among the members of an organization. Internally, organizational culture helps to define the criteria for the allocation of power and status.

Organizational climate

is used to describe characteristics of an organization that are temporary and capable of being changed. Refers to people's attitudes and how they feel about the organization.can be measured quantitatively by asking employees to complete a climate survey

the Job Characteristics Model (JCM)

is widely used as a framework to categorize and classify dimensions of work. The model proposes that dimensions of work (known as job characteristics) impact how employees conduct work, including the level of effort they exert to achieve work objectives.

Transformational leadership

occurs when leaders inspire and motivate employees toward new ways of working and thinking. Realize heightened performance by exerting personal power over employees to share a vision of the organization.encouraging them to work harder at tasks, and persuading them to search for new and innovative ways of doing their work. They do all this by shaping the meaning of work through framing.

table 2

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aspects of self-determination

personal growth (i.e., highlighting the extent to which an employee has grown professionally and personally over time),self monitoring and self regulating behaviors(i.e., highlighting the extent to which an employee effectively identifies and responds to changes in the work environment), and the quality of voice (i.e., the extent to which an employee constructively speaks about issues relating to work).

Ceremonies

planned events that have special significance for the members and are conducted for their benefit.special occasions when managers can reinforce specific values and beliefs.These occasions provide an opportunity to recognize heroes and induct them into the organization's hall of fame.

Hofstede identified four cultural values that he used to explain differing reactions to problems in organizational life:

power distance, uncertainty avoidance, individualism versus collectivism, and masculinity versus femininity.

Rites and ceremonies

provide opportunities to reward and recognize employees whose behavior is congruent with the values of the company.

External adaptation

refer to the way an organization secures its place in industry and the way it copes with a constantly changing external environment.As members of an organization attempt to solve various problems posed by the organization's environment, they develop "solutions" to these problems which then form the rules that members of the organization will follow in the future.

Power distance

refers to the acceptability of power differentials within a society.In high power distance countries power differences are perceived as neither legitimate nor illegitimate. In these countries powerful individuals are entitled to privileges, inequality is a fact of life, and the way to gain power is to overthrow those who have it.

Self-determination

refers to the attitudes and abilities required to act as the primary causal agent in one's life. It encompasses concepts like free will, freedom of choice,independence, personal agency, self-direction, and individual responsibility.Individuals' actions are self-determined if they regulate their own behavior, initiate and respond to events in a manner indicating psychological empowerment, and behave in a manner that is self-realizing.Individuals' actions are self-determined if they regulate their own behavior, initiate and respond to events in a manner indicating psychological empowerment, and behave in a manner that is self-realizing.Therefore, even when the act of delegating tasks (i.e., creating true decision-making autonomy) is not deemed advantageous, a leader can talk about an employee's work in terms that draw attention to the self-monitored and self-regulated processes for which the employee is responsible

Uncertainty avoidance

refers to the degree of tolerance people have for ambiguity and whether they feel threatened by uncertain situations.

Individualism versus collectivism

refers to the relationship between the individual and the larger society.

The words used by General Electric to support its new culture were

simplicity, self-confidence, and speed

Four criteria for values usefulness to a company:

values should be viable (feasible in the current business environment), balanced (equally important), aligned (consistent with each other), and authentic (sincerely and everyone believes in it).