1. Organizational Culture: Some Definitions
Glue that holds an organization together through a sharing of patterns of meaning. Culture focuses on the values, beliefs, and expectations that members come to share.”
Pattern of basic assumptions that a group has invented, discovered, or developed in learning to cope with its problems...

2. Organizational Culture: Some Definitions
Is invisible, but is the implicit and tacit knowledge members share, which informs and shapes activities…
Culture is taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think, behave and feel in relation to

3. Central Notion of “Sharing”
Shared understanding, shared meanings, shared values, shared norms, shared beliefs
Common and shared experiences--similarities and differences
If you go to look for shared meanings can’t find them--intangible--must be interpreted, represented through symbols, symbolic action

4. Organizations Are Part of Larger National Culture
Hofstede’s research on IBM in 40 countries
National cultural differences within organizational culture
power distance
uncertainty avoidance
individualism
masculinity

5. Organizations Are Part of Larger National Culture
Power Distance: willing to accept unequal distribution of power, wealth, prestige (LPD-Denmark)
Uncertainty Avoidance: tolerance for ambiguity, risk, uncertainty
Individualism: expectation to act independently of other members
Masculinity: Clear gender role separation

6. 3 Level Model of Organizational Culture
Artifacts: Visible but often undecipherable
Values: Greater level of awareness
Assumptions: Taken for granted and invisible (“unquestioned truths”)

7. Artifacts of Culture
Physical: art, logos, buildings, décor, dress, appearance, physical layout, materials
Behavioral: ceremonies, rituals, communication patterns, traditions, customs, rewards, punishments
Verbal: anecdotes, jokes, jargon,stories, myths, history, heroes,villains,metaphors

8. Values and Norms
Values: social principles, standards, basis for making moral judgments about right and wrong
Norms: Unwritten rules that tell members what is expected of them; defines what is normal and deviant behavior
Values and norms are closely linked

9. Some Examples of Deep Level Assumptions
Nature of human nature
“Correct” way for people to organize
Homogeneity vs. diversity

10. Debates About Organizational Culture
How culture should be used --understanding vs.control
Can culture really be “managed” or “changed”? (Culture change programs, culture as a tool of management, e.g., Tushman & O’Reilly)
Norms and values grounded in deeply rooted assumptions and unquestioned beliefs--almost impossible to “manage”