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SHR007-2 Leadership and Management

Organisational Culture

Pauline Loewenberger

Scheins Teamworking Model


Organizational Structure Organizational Culture

Individual Skills

Task Skills

Team Skills

Power in Organizations

Organizational Culture

What is organisational culture?


The way we do things around here

Why is it important? How can we measure it?

What culture do we want?

:
1.

What is Culture? Culture is the collective values, assumptions, beliefs and paradigms

that create the expected and


accepted behaviors of the

organization.

What is Culture? Why is it Important?

Culture is elusive
based on hidden assumptions people are often the last to know

Culture is learned
members learn to cope with threat where things which seem to work

Culture may well be out of date


activities may now be irrelevant

Culture can be a brake on change


strong cultures demand enormous energy and time to change

CHARACTERISTICS OF CULTURE
1. Culture is learned and acquired. Not all things shared generally by a population are cultural-for it to be considered cultural it must be first learned as well as shared.

2. Culture is shared and transmitted. Culture is passed on to succeeding


generations primarily through Language/ Communication. 3. Culture is social. Product develops by many people interacting in a group. No man is an island; he is always a part of a group. 4. Culture is ideational. Culture uses ideas and symbols to give meanings to his environment and experiences. Every individual sees and approaches his world according to standpoint of his culture.

5. Culture gratifies human needs.


6. Culture is adaptive. 7. Culture is cumulative. People are able to retain certain features of their

culture that are significant.

Why is Culture Important? 2

Culture can be used to control individuals

This is much cheaper than an organisation structure


Therefore, change the culture and we can dispense with middle management Hmm. Good if you can get it

Analysing Cultures

If this organisation was an animal, what would it be?


Motor vehicle? Meal? Musical instrument?

What do you have to do to get fired around here? What do you have to do to get promoted around here?

Organizational Culture Structure:

Edgar H. Scheins (1985) Model

Handys types of culture


Power Culture

Entrepreneurial Control through key individuals Little bureaucracy Able to move and react quickly Charles Handys Zeus
The chief god Showers of gold and thunderbolts!

Role Culture

Based on procedures and pre-defined roles Stereotype bureaucracy Slow to react and change

Operates in stable environments


Charles Handys Appollo
The god of logic and reason

Task Culture

Job or project orientated Match people with tasks

Get the job done mentality


Individuals exercise control over their jobs Judgment/reward by results Adaptable culture Charles Handys Athena
The warrior goddess. Odysseus was her favourite

People Culture

Quality of work is paramount Individuals are craftsmen They can achieve their purposes Think of a group medical practice,

or of architects

CharlesHandys Dionysus
God of the individual, of the free spirit

Fons Trompenaars (1994)

International Cultures

The work of Hofstede

Two dimensions:
Uncertainty avoidance Power distance

These dimensions lead to an


International Map

Five major dimensions of country cultures Hofstede (1980, 2001)

International Cultures
power distance index
small power distance, weak uncertainty avoidance (village market) large power distance, weak uncertainty avoidance (family)

small power distance, strong uncertainty avoidance (well-oiled machine)

large power distance, strong uncertainty avoidance (pyramid of people)

Two more dimensions of Hofstedes work

Individualism
Focus on themselves and family rather than society in general

Masculinity
Achievement vs caring

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