Foundation of org behavior

6.2 Discussion: Organizational Culture

Getting Started

How would you describe the climate and culture of your organization? What is accepted? What is expected? What is valued? What is not? What would we see if we walked around your organization and looked at decorations and interactions between people? What would we hear? All these things (and more!) are part of the culture. Culture is our shared way of thinking, doing, and being. Culture is such an important concept to organizational leadership and such a vast area of study that you will be considering it in various assignments throughout the remainder of the LDR courses. This assignment will give you the opportunity to examine the impact of culture in your organization and begin to build a solid foundation for considering organizational culture in future leadership topics in your academic program.

Upon successful completion of this discussion, you will be able to:

· Explain the factors that contribute to a healthy organizational culture.

Background Information

Anytime humans begin to function in groups (e.g., family, church, business, athletic teams), patterns of interaction begin to emerge. Subconscious assumptions form and are passed on to others that join the group (e.g., hired or the next generation). Beliefs and values emerge out of those assumptions. Behaviors and other artifacts develop that reflect those fundamental assumptions, beliefs, and values. We can talk about things such as norms and expectations as well as rewards and punishments for the activity that aligns to or deviates from the group's cultural perspective. If a group is very large, it is likely that subcultures and even counter cultures will be part of the complex fabric.

From an organizational behavior perspective, not only can we talk about the individual level of analysis and the group or team level (each of which has cultural implications and applications), we can also talk about the organization as a whole.  We might say that an organization is a collection of individuals in a social relationship that also forms as a team of teams or a group of groups.

Culture develops. Culture influences. Your organization has a culture. That culture influences why you do what you do and say what you say in your organization.

Instructions

1. Review the rubric to make sure you understand the criteria for earning your grade.

2. Read  Chapter 15(PDF document)  in the text An Introduction to Organization Behavior.

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1. For more in-depth reading (optional), read:

a. Schein  Chapter 1(new tab) : How to define culture in general

b. Schein  Chapter 2(new tab) : The structure of culture

1. Provide an initial post (250-300 words) by Day Four that addresses the following questions. Be sure to include at least two sources other than your assigned course materials to help inform your discussion posting and responses.

a. Utilizing the concepts from the reading (textbook) and other research, describe your organizational culture. If you were to describe it in three or four key sentences, how would you do so?

b. Select one other topic we have studied in this course. How does it relate to your organization’s culture?

c. What leadership best practices might you suggest enhancing the organizational culture of your workplace?