How do Organizations Assess Their Organization’s Culture? What Tools are Available?
Organizations use a variety of approaches to assess their cultures. Some may carry out focus groups among staff members and consumers. The focus groups, from different stakeholders, ensure that managers can analyze both external and internal perceptions of a company’s culture. Alternatively, certain firms may prefer quizzes; these may be administered among employees or company leaders. Some businesses may use retreats and meetings that allow firms to brainstorm about what they stand for (Cameron & Quinn, 2005).
In these processes, organizations have a variety of tools to utilize. One such example is Schein’s cultural assessment tool. This focuses on an analysis of the artifacts (processes and structures), espoused values and assumptions in a company (Schein, 2005). Managers administer it through physical observations and employee discussions. Another instrument is the critical incident analysis tool. This one requires an atmosphere of transformational leadership before implementation. The assessment works by identifying pivotal incidents in the organization and soliciting feedback from staff, managers or other stakeholders. Some companies prefer the appreciative inquiry tool. This one dwells on analyzing the situations that work in order to use them as a platform for developing the organization in the future.
A leader who understands his or her organization would be better able to lead his or her NGO. This is because he or she would merge company strategies and goals with the culture in his or her firm. Business leaders fail because they copy best practices from other companies without thinking about how employees will respond to their initiatives. Knowing one’s organizational culture allows a business leader to make appropriate programs and policies at work. For example, one can design employee recruitment tools that fit the work culture; if the company is IT oriented, it can rely heaving on new methods of online recruitment, but if this is not the case, then it can use uncomplicated online techniques.
My current organization has a multi-active culture (as described in the Lewis model). This is because it is a social work entity. One must build relationships with clients, sponsors and other stakeholders that interact with the group. Furthermore, because the organization is a non-profitable one, then all workers must personally contribute towards its success.
Contrasting Cultures
The journal entry is an exploration of the relationship between national culture, information technology and organizational culture. The author used secondary research to come up with his definitions, theories and associations. He did this by defining the terms, and then meticulously coming up with models to link the three parameters of national culture, information technology and national culture. The research was crucial in determining whether IT can be implemented satisfactorily. Organizations can then forecast the patterns of information success. It can also apply to other organizations that may be interested in implementing a new policy. They can use those principles to assess the effectiveness of their strategies in the future.
In this analysis, the author argues that national and organizational cultures determine one’s choice of communication media technologies to be used in a company. The cultures prevailing in an organization also determine the assumptions that managers make about the ability of the information technology to accomplish goals. Culture also alters the use of those technologies within an organization. Sometimes this may depend upon national preferences or company-based inclinations.
Therefore, one may say that this author was providing a practical analysis of the usefulness of organizational and national cultures (Yeganehu, 2006). He uses IT-based projects to identify the relative effectiveness of this knowledge. Alvin and Joachimsthaler (1992) support these assertions. They believe that task types in a certain organization can affect the implementation of work policies. They also assert that external factors and organizational factors can alter the ability to succeed in these organizations. In their explanation, organizational factors encompass company cultures while external factors reflect national cultures. Their findings concur with Yeganehu (2006).
Hofstede (1991) also established that there were considerable differences in the manner in which countries transferred technology. He found that a country’s economic status, its culture, market characteristics and behavioral factors altered technology acceptance. These revelations support the assertion that national and organizational cultures come together to alter work processes.
Yeganehu (2006) also gave recommendations on how managers can react to technology and culture misfits. He affirmed that managers only have three options when a misfit occurs. First, they can reject the new technology and look for one that matches the organizational and national culture in the company. Alternatively, they may opt to change the technology prior to implementation.
The last option is to carry on with adoption, but to realize that problems will arise in the process. The author believed that cultures are difficult to change. Therefore, the best option should be either redesigning or abandoning the new technological system. This research shows the impact of culture on IT, rather than the effect of IT on culture. These findings are fundamental in exertion of control within a firm especially when introducing new work processes; they do not have to be confined to Information technology.
References
Alvin, M. & Joachimsthaler, E. (1992). Revisiting DSS implementation research: a meta analysis of the literature and suggestions for researchers. MIS quarterly, 3, 95-116.
Cameron, K. & Quinn, R. (2005). Diagnosing and changing organizational culture. CA: Jossey Bass.
Hofstede, G. (1991). Cultures and organizations: software of the mind. NY: McGrawhill.
Schein. E. (2005). Organizational culture and leadership. CA: Jossey Bass.
Yeganeh, M. (2006). The impact of national and organizational culture on information technology. Library and Information Science MLS, 86 (69), 20-34.