Chapter 3 organizational culture and

environment: the constraints

The usefulness of management

• The omnipotent view– The view that managers are directly

responsible for an organization’s success or failure.

• The symbolic view– The view that much of an organization’s

success or failure is due to external forces outside managers’ control.

• Realty suggests a synthesis.

The organizations’ culture

• Organizational culture: the shared values, principles, traditions, and ways of doing things that influence the way organizational members act.– Attention to detail– Outcome orientation– People orientation– Team orientation– Aggressiveness– Stability– Innovation and risk taking

Strong and weak culture

Strong culture Weak culture

Values widely shared Values limited to a few people—usually top management

Culture conveys consistent messages about what’s important

Culture sends contradictory messages about what’s important

Most employees can tell stories about company history/heroes

Employees have little knowledge of company history or heroes

Employees strongly identify with culture

Employees have little identification with culture

Strong connection between shared values and behaviors

Little connection between shared values and behaviors

How about the culture in your class? In Wuhan? In China?

The source of culture

• Founders and history.

• How an organization’s culture continues?

• How employees learn culture?– Stories– Rituals– Material symbols– Language

Current organizational culture issues facing managers

• Creating an ethical culture

• Creating an innovation culture– Challenge and involvement, trust and

openness, idea time, playfulness/humor, conflict resolution, debates, risk taking

• Creating a customer-responsive culture

Spirituality and organizational culture

• Strong sense of purpose.

• Focus on individual development.

• Trust and openness.

• Employee empowerment.

• Toleration of employee expression.

environment

• External environment– Those factors and forces outside the organiza

tion that affect the organization’s performance.

• Internal environment– Mermber of organization– management

customers

suppliers

The organization

Public pressure groups

competitors

government

global

Political

legal

sociocultural

technological

demographics

economics

Specific and general

Stakeholder vs. shareholder

• Stakeholder– Any constituencies in the organization’s envir

onment that are affected by the organization’s decision and actions.

– Balance of stakeholder

• Shareholder– Owner of the organization’s assets. – Maximiazation of shareholder interest.

organization

customers

Social and political action

group

competitors

Trade and industry

associationsgovernments

suppliers

shareholders

unions

employees

Which one is most important?

Could you give more stakeholder in China?