Organization culture

1 - ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE

What is culture?

Some definitions:

> Culture is the systems of knowledge shared by a relatively large group of people.

> Culture is communication, communication is culture.

> A culture is a way of life of a group of people; the behaviors, beliefs, values, and symbols that they accept, generally without thinking about them, and that are passed along by communication and imitation from one generation to the next.

> Culture is the unique dominant pattern of shared beliefs, assumptions, values, and norms that shape the socialization, symbols, language and practices of a group of people.

What must be for culture to exist?

1 - It must be shared by the vast majority of members of a group or society

2 - It must be passed on from generation to generation

3 - It must shape behavior and perceptions.

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Observable elements of culture

> A symbol is any visible object, act, or event that conveys meaning to others (e.g. dress, flags, logos, office layout…).

Symbols are physical manifestations or concepts that communicate meaning.

This can be a physical object like religious symbols (the crescent and star, a cross, the Star of David).

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> Language is a shared system of vocal sounds, written signs, and/or gestures used to convey meaning among members of a culture.

> Practices are observable cultural customs such as religious, spiritual, medical practices and ceremonies.

Culture, not observable

> Shared assumptions are the thoughts and feelings that members of a culture take for granted and believe to be true.

Our assumptions grow from what we see, hear, experience, read and think about.

Shared assumptions are the convictions that we generally hold to be true, usually without actual proof or evidence. They are often, but not always connected to religion.

> Values are the basic beliefs people hold and define what is right or wrong, good or bad, acceptable or unacceptable, important or unimportant, fair or unfair…

Some of the values that are found universally across cultures are respect, honesty, equality, compassion, integrity, loyalty, love, friendship, and many more.

Values are a set of personal principles, standards, concepts, beliefs, and ideas that can be used to make everyday decisions. Values govern the way we behave, communicate and interact with others and can change over time.

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> Norms are rules that govern behaviors of groups of people (e.g. not laughing in the middle of a funeral, not to be loud in a classroom, shaking hands with your competitor).

Norms are codes of conduct set by a society.

Norms are important to society because they provide guidelines on how to act in different situations and help to create order in a society.

Can be different from a culture to another (Americans value eye contact during conversation, but many Asian cultures consider eye contact to be rude).

Organizational Culture

> The general values and beliefs held and shared by members of an organization.

> Organizational culture is a system of shared assumptions, values, and beliefs, which governs how people behave in organizations. These shared values have a strong influence on the people in the organization and dictate how they dress, act, and perform their jobs.

> It includes the organization’s vision, values, norms, working language, systems, dress codes, beliefs, habits…, that together constitute the unique style and policies of a company.

> Organizational culture affects the way people and groups interact with each other, with clients, and with stakeholders.

> Organizational culture refers to culture in any type of organization (school, university, not-for-profit groups, government agencies…).

In business, terms such as corporate culture and company culture are sometimes used to refer to a similar concept.

Types of organizational Culture

While there is no single "type" of organizational culture and organizational cultures vary widely from one organization to the next, commonalities do exist and some researchers have developed models to describe different indicators of organizational cultures:

The basic types of organizational culture are:

1. Hierarchy
2. Clan
3. Market
4. Adhocracy

1 – Hierarchy culture (bureaucratic culture):

This culture is founded on structure and control. The work environment is formal, with strict institutional procedures in place for guidance. The workplace is structured and formalized where leaders act like coordinators. It is characterized by procedures, rules, hierarchy and impersonal relationship. It is a fairly rigid and fixed organizational structure.

Such as culture perpetuates stability.

An organization that adheres to formal rules, regulations and bureaucracy is demonstrating a hierarchy culture.

Organizations with hierarchy culture tend to produce standardized goods and services, examples:

Government agencies, fast food establishments and the military.

2 - Clan culture: 

This culture is founded on collaboration. Members share commonalities and see themselves are part of one big family who are active and involved. It’s a very friendly workplace where people share a lot of themselves and where leaders act like father figures. It’s like an extended family. It values teamwork, communication and consensus.

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