As I define "organizational culture" for a course I am writing, this seems equally appropriate for a blog. So here goes.
What is organizational culture?
In defining "culture" as it refers to an organization, we first define the word as it pertains
to individuals.
Culture: Individual and Societal
According to the definition and description of "culture" at the online encyclopedia Wikipedia
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/), culture "refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activity significance". Varying theories for understanding and criteria for evaluating, human activity result in different definitions of culture.
One suggested definition of culture from the 19th century is that culture (civilization) "is a complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by [man] as a member of society". (Sir Edward Burnett Tylor, 1832-1917. English anthropologist.) This definition seems focused on individuals as cultural entities.
A more-recent 21st century definition of culture suggests that culture is the "set of distinctive
spiritual, material, intellectual and emotional features of society or a social group, and that it
encompasses, in addition to art and literature, lifestyles, ways of living together, value systems,
traditions and beliefs". (UNESCO-United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural organization's Declaration of Cultural Diversity http://www.unesco.org/education/imld_2002/unversal_decla.shtml.) This definition seems focused on groups as cultural disseminators.
The Dictionary of Modern Sociology (Thomas Ford Hoult. Littlefield Adams.) notes that culture consists of three elements-values, norms, and artifacts. Values consist of ideas about what in life seems important, and guide other aspects of culture. Norms are expectations of people's behaviors, based on values, communicated and enforced by laws, sanctions, or rules. Artifacts are material things that represent, in some manner, the culture's values and norms.
Organizational Culture
Take from the previous definitions and apply them to organizational or corporate culture, we define said culture as the attitudes, values, beliefs, norms and customs of an organization. Organizational culture differs from an organization's structure in that structure is the hierarchy of how people organize within and relate to the organization. (Too many "organizations", yet?) Organizational culture is more esoteric in that it is less tangible. Yet, it can be identified and measured through appropriate instrumentation and evaluation techniques.
Cultural Levels
Individual and societal cultures encompass as many levels as there are identities to own. On some broad, encompassing levels, societal culture defines the individual. (Ex: culture of the human race; culture of being female or male.) On another level, regional culture defines the individual. (Ex: nationalities; ethnicities; regions of a country.) Yet another level of culture lends itself more to how individuals identify themselves. (Ex: beliefs; professions; socio-economics; races; abilities; orientations; interests.)
Serious students and practitioners of sociology, anthropology, psychology, and the like can debate and dissect my above statements as much as they / you deem necessary. Remember that I am a businessperson with an organizational, humanistic, behavioral focus rather than a specialist in scientific fields. I netted-out what are, in reality, complex, detailed, continually researched definitions and concepts.
I like Edgar Schein's description of three cultural levels within an organization. (Edgar Schein.
Professor, MIT Sloan School of Management, author of "Organizational Culture and Leadership". Jossey-Bass.) Schein notes that culture is an organizational attribute posing the greatest challenge to organizational change. Culture overrides and outlasts the products, services, people, processes, and other physical attributes of an organization.
[NOTE: Next blog entry will continue with the second of culture in his model of organizational culture.]
Resources:
- Google "organizational culture". Prepare to spend a day reading the results!
- Book: Corporate Cultures: The Rites and Rituals of Corporate Life. Deal T. E. and Kennedy, A. A. Penguin Books.
- Book: Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't. Collins, Jim. Collins.
Sylvia
