Читать книгу Cultural Reflection in Management - Lukasz Sulkowski - Страница 25
2.5 Multidimensional typologies of organisational culture
ОглавлениеA consequence-modelled culture is another, different type of classification, and includes multidimensional typologies. The best known classifications of this type are by R. Harrison and C. Handy, T. E. Deal and A. A. Kennedy, T. J. Peters, O’Reilly, Chatman and Caldwell. These are mostly models which use the functionalist approach, oriented towards research into the relationships between an organisation’s effectiveness and other internal variables. Another important issue concerns the strength of organisational culture and its influence on the integration of the system and its employees. One advantage of many Polish cultural analyses is the adjustment of concepts and methods of managing organisational culture to local specifics, an example of which is the large body of comparative research into organisations in Poland, as well as the descriptions of practical methods for managing organisational culture, given by the researchers mentioned.
The divisions proposed by R. Harrison and C. Handy are one of the earliest and, at the same time, the most popular multidimensional typologies of culture. The concepts of both authors were created separately but cover very similar values. R. Harrison listed four types of organisations, which form specific ←59 | 60→cultures. These are organisations oriented towards power, roles, tasks and people. Each of them prefers a specific normative system related to the core value. The system of values shared by employees determines the convergence between the interests of the organisation and its employees, and shapes the enterprise’s ability to deal with the environment. Organisations rarely include all four types ←60 | 61→of culture in their pure form, but most enterprises have a tendency to focus on a given system of values. The description of the types of cultures proposed by R. Harrison and C. Handy is presented in Tab. 12.
Using the popular definition of corporate culture as the way people act within a company, T. E. Deal and A. A. Kennedy applied two criteria to the description of culture with reference to an organisation’s functioning. These concern the risk level of the activity and how soon the results of its actions are visible. The combination of these two criteria allows us to distinguish four cultures110.
1. The culture of the tough macho. Dominated by young, educated, brilliant heroes. They are dynamic and have lots of ideas. The atmosphere at work is youthful; there is a climate of quick action and risk-taking. The organisational culture is characterised by fighting and individualism. Success is what counts.
←61 | 62→
2. Culture focused on the company. The organisation’s heroes are people who persistently fulfil their plans. They are mature and act calmly. They are a kind of mentor. They assume that the environment is a source of threat to the organisation, so it is better to make good, well-thought-out decisions. Orientation towards group actions and partnership. Hierarchy is of significance, and attention is paid to the order of meetings and speeches given during them. A scientific and technical atmosphere prevails.
3. ‘Work hard, play hard’ culture. The heroes are active people, devoted to work. They think one has to work hard and have some fun. In this case, personal contact is of great importance. Many meetings and events are held, and the people celebrate together. Many people believe that the organisation’s environment is full of opportunities, which should be skilfully used.
4. A culture of process. An organisation is dominated by the subordination to rules, impersonality and minimalism. What counts at work is stability and fulfilling tasks based on rules and procedures. Heroes are hard-working people who appreciate stability and make no mistakes, even in difficult situations. The role of a hierarchical order and formal positions occupied by individual members is emphasised. In this case, interpersonal relationships are of an artificial character.
Because of the need to shape a pro-effective culture, it is necessary to examine the concepts distinguishing the types of cultures favouring changes. One of the models which allow us to analyse the convergence between culture and the possibilities of changing it is N. H. Snyder’s model. It distinguishes two dimensions: (1) orientation towards the organisation and (2) orientation towards achievements. Thus, there are four types of organisational cultures: quality-oriented culture (which values effective planning, accepts changes and is oriented towards solving problems); creative culture (dominated by innovation, entrepreneurship, taking risks and initiating changes); productive culture (characterised by effectiveness, coherence, strict procedures, rituals in action and resistance to changes), and supportive culture (teamwork, cooperation, growth and responding to changes)111. The model by T. J. Peters is similar. It distinguishes four types of culture, depending on their influence on innovation, action, control and harmony of the culture in an organisation (Tab. 13).
| Orientation towards employees | Orientation towards work | |
| External orientation | Culture of innovationAn organisational culture oriented towards innovative change, which has a tendency to take risks. Informal, direct contacts prevail. Can be chaotic. | Culture of actionAn organisational culture oriented towards action, achievements, and results. Initiative is what counts the most. Perfect, professional actions are rewarded. An organisation is characterised by the acceptance of changes. There may be problems with delegating responsibilities. |
| Internal orientation | Culture of harmonyAn organisational culture dominated by deliberation. People and teamwork are most important. External values are accepted only when they correspond to those shared within the organisation. The priorities are cultural values, which influence strategic decisions. Insusceptibility to changes. | Culture of controlAn organisational culture oriented towards strong control. Conservatism and bureaucracy prevail. A very hierarchical structure. Formal contacts and written communication dominate. Reluctance to taking risks. Subordinates strongly oppose all changes. A closed organisation. |
O’Reilly, Chatman and Caldwell (1991) created An organisational Profile Model, which distinguished as many as seven dimensions: innovation, stability, ←62 | 63→respect for people, orientation towards effects, accuracy, orientation towards teamwork, aggressiveness. An organisational profile is a diagnostic tool, which allows one to correlate organisational culture with the personality traits of leaders, management and employees of the given organisation. This makes it possible to define and measure employees’ involvement and loyalty, which then allows for assessment of the effectiveness of the culture112.
The cultural model which is used to diagnose problems and allows for planning of intervention was designed by D. Denison. It is based on the assumption of coherence between organisational culture and strategy and distinguishes four dimensions, each divided into three operational dimensions:←63 | 64→
1. Mission is divided into the parameters of strategic direction, strategic aims and the organisation’s vision.
2. The ability to adapt was described with the use of the creation of changes, orientation towards customers and organisational learning.
3. Involvement was analysed with the use of empowerment, orientation towards teams and the development of skills.
4. Coherence consists of the basic values, consistency and integration.
Diagnosis of a culture leads to the description of a culture model from the point of view of its flexibility, stability and openness, which in turn allows us to foresee its effectiveness.
For the purpose of his own research, R. A. Cooke devised An Organisational Culture Inventory, which makes it possible to measure the intensity of 12 norms of organisational behaviour, located within three areas: 1) cultural constructivism, 2) passivity and defensiveness, and 3) aggression and defensiveness. This model makes use of normative assumptions and a constructive culture, accepting it as positive and effectiveness-oriented, while the other two types of culture are just the opposite. Constructive cultures are oriented towards social relationships and satisfying the higher needs of the organisation’s members. They value working in groups, which is especially important in the case of complex, creative work. The norms of conservative cultures include achievements, self-fulfilment, encouragement to develop, as well as a sense of belonging and cooperation. Passive and defensive cultures are oriented towards tasks and cooperation with people who do not pose a potential threat to professional status or position. The key element is the defence of one’s position in an organisation with the use of a network of influences, satisfying superiors’ needs, as well as avoiding confrontation and conflict. This type of culture results in lower motivation and a drop in the effectiveness of employees. Norms, with the use of which the passive and defensive culture is operationalised, include striving for approval, conventionalism, dependence and avoidance.
Aggressive and defensive cultures are oriented towards tasks, competition and individual needs. The key value is power, which can lead to entanglement in internal status conflicts, which results in lower effectiveness. Employees are encouraged to compete, and they strive to strengthen their influence. The most important norms include opposition and criticism of others, fights over power and influence, competitiveness (the aim of which is to defend one’s own position), and perfectionism leading to attachment to the process and details.
G. Hofstede proposed typical models of organisational culture, characteristic of chosen cultural circles. The two key dimensions in this case are power ←64 | 65→distance and uncertainty avoidance, the combination of which gives rise to a typology of four models of ideal organisational cultures, characteristic of five cultural circles113:
A two-dimensional typology of organisational cultures, which draws on G. Hofstede’s concept, was proposed by C. Hampden-Turner and F. Trompenaars. The combination of these dimensions created four ideal models, described metaphorically as: Incubator, Guided missile, Family and the Eiffel Tower, which are references to the types of organisational culture characteristic of different cultural circles:
One of the oldest concepts of cultural management includes the notion of organisational climate. A climate is what the employees of a given organisation believe to exist, but is not necessarily what actually is. The author lists four types of organisational climate: autocratic, bureaucratic, innovative and informal. The climate of a given organisation is the result of the dominant form of its ←65 | 66→management’s motivation, which can be oriented to achievement, power, security or a sense of belonging. In consequence, the motivation of power, resulting from the need to exercise influence and to control others, leads to the creation of an autocratic climate, dominated by power and influence, as in the case of R. Harrison’s culture of power. Interpersonal relationships include, on the one hand, domination, and on the other, submission. Promotion is related to fulfilling superiors’ orders without any mistakes. Organisational power focuses on controlling the information flow and increasing the extent of the subordination of others. The motivation of achievements contributes to the creation of an innovative climate. This type of culture is dominated by creativity, the broadening of knowledge and the development of the skills and qualifications which are most useful to the fulfilment of its tasks. Management focuses on achieving the best results possible, encouraging its employees to be active and creative. Organisations of this type adjust flexibly to the different tasks and requirements of their environment. With the motivation of security, the striving for minimising physical and social threats creates a bureaucratic climate. This is clearly oriented towards stability, based on norms, rules and procedures. The management protect themselves by avoiding unforeseen events and risky ventures. Hierarchy plays an important role here, and internal organisation is formalised. Employees are passively subject to strict rules of action, which they have no influence on, while their development consists mainly in the assimilation of rules, regulations and skills that are formally certified. From the point of view of an informal climate, ←66 | 67→being part of a group is of key importance. This climate favours the ability to establish relationships and work in a team, while employees are equal partners who shape their activities together. The dominant value in an organisation is being accepted by the environment. Management focuses on the smoothing out of the influences of different employees, the development of social sensitivity, and the habit of helping and supporting others.
C. Sikorski divides organisational cultures by the attitude of the organisation’s members to cultural dissonance. Cultural dissonance is related to the existing differences between the ways employees think and behave in organisations, which are the most common reasons for conflict and misunderstanding. Cultural dissonance hinders the organisation’s functioning, especially in the case of multicultural organisations, international corporations and organisations including a number of different subcultures. The attitude towards this phenomenon is an important feature of organisational culture, which should be treated as a separate criterion for the typology of organisational cultures.
| Acceptance of cultural dissonance | Lack of acceptance of cultural dissonance | |
| Antagonistic relations | Culture of rivalryAn organisational culture characterised by strong rivalry. Its members believe that it is necessary to prove their superiority. There is a need to participate and have team achievements. A collectivist culture, focusing on the roles played by people. A heterogenic culture. There is a clash of different cultural patterns. Presence-oriented. | Culture of dominanceA characteristic feature of this culture is its members’ belief that they are superior. It is a homogenous culture, which includes models of behaviour in accordance with tradition. There is a tendency to subordinate the organisation’s activity to models of national culture and a strong need for security, and in consequence, avoiding uncertainty. A collectivist culture. A paternalist management style. Past-oriented. |
| Non-antagonistic relations | Culture of cooperationThis culture is characterised by routine activities in a competitive environment, focusing on the quality of bonds and dialogue between people. A heterogenic culture. The rules of autonomy, equality, respect for differences. The rule of harmony with the environment. In the case of activities, a larger emphasis is placed on the customers’ needs than on the competition. Identification with culture. A feminine culture – avoiding conflicts and rivalry. Democratic management style. | Culture of adaptationA culture oriented towards non-routine activities in a competitive environment, focusing on the quality of bonds and dialogue between people. This culture is homogenous in the area of values. Subordination to the formal aims of the organisation. Emphasis on the customers’ needs and one’s own professional development. A strong need for achievements and internal motivation. A large tolerance for uncertainty. Short power distance (a partner-like nature of relationships). Individualist orientation towards achievements, combined with an objective assessment of everyone’s needs and aims. Future-oriented. |
