ORGANIZATIONS AS CULTURESGareth Morgan

WHAT IS CULTURE?

Derived metaphorically from the idea of cultivation: the process of tilling and developing land.

Usually referring to the pattern of development reflected in a society’s system of knowledge, ideology, values, laws, and day-to-day ritual.

ORGANIZATION AS A CULTURAL PHENOMENON

What does political scientist Robert Presthus mean when he states we now live in an “organizational society”?

Important dimensions of modern culture are rooted in the structure of industrial society, the organization of which is itself a cultural phenomenon.

ORGANIZATION AND CULTURAL CONTEXT

How does Morgan compare organizational culture of factories in Japan to that of the rice fields?

What does Morgan describe to be some of the cultural differences between Japanese and Western cultures?

HOW CAN CULTURE CREATE A FORM OF “BLINDNESS”?

In providing taken-for-granted codes of action that we recognize as “normal,” it leads us to see activities that do not conform with these codes as abnormal.

There is considerable value in adopting the standpoint of the cultural stranger because, in becoming aware of the stranger’s point of view, we can see our own in a refreshingly new perspective.

CORPORATE CULTURES AND SUBCULTURES

What is meant by the term “corporate culture”?

Organizations are mini-societies that have their own distinctive patterns of culture and subculture.

Patterns of belief or shared meaning, fragmented or integrated, and supported by various operating norms and rituals, all of which can exert a decisive influence on the overall ability of the organization to deal with the challenges that it faces.

OBSERVING ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE

How would you describe the organizational culture of Nipissing University?

How does the organizational culture at Nipissing compare to the case examples given by Morgan?

How is the organizational culture at Nipissing different from other organizations you have been a part of?

CREATING ORGANIZATIONAL REALITY Harold Garfinkel:

The most routine and taken-for-granted aspects of social reality are in fact skillful accomplishments.

When we disrupt the norms of everyday life the ordered “reality” of life inevitably breaks down.

Karl Weick: The process in which we shape and structure our

realities is a process of enactment. Although we often see ourselves as living in a reality

with objective characteristics, life...requires that we take an active role in brining our realities into being through various interpretive schemes, even though these realities may then have a habit of imposing themselves on us as “the way things are.”

ORGANIZATION: THE ENACTMENT OF A SHARED REALITY

When looking at organizational analysing, Morgan asks:

What are the shared frames of reference that make organization possible?

Where do they come from? How are they created, communicated, and

sustained?

How would you answer Morgan’s questions?

ASPECTS THAT SHAPE ORGANIZATIONAL REALITY

Organizational structure Rules Policies Goals Missions Job descriptions Standardized operating procedures

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

What are the strengths and limitations of the cultural metaphor?