According to Schein (2004), what is organisational culture?
Shared basic assumptions and beliefs that unconsciously shape members’ taken-for-granted view of their organisation and its environment.
According to Schein (2004), what are the four layers of organisational culture?
Values, beliefs, behaviours, and taken-for-granted assumptions.
How do organisational values differ from beliefs in how they are expressed?
Values are often broad and explicitly stated, while beliefs are more specific and inferred from members’ discussions of organisational issues.
What do newcomers learn through organisational socialisation?
The less obvious rules for acceptable and unacceptable behaviour.
How do newcomers learn expected behaviour in loose organisational cultures?
They largely observe and adopt others’ behaviour.
How are newcomers taught expected behaviour in strict organisational cultures?
They are explicitly inducted into expected behaviours.
How can strong organisational cultures affect different employees, according to Kuenz’s *Inside the Mouse: Work and Play at Disney World* (1995)?
They can provide structure and comfort to some employees but feel stifling or controlling to others.
What does Kuenz’s *Inside the Mouse: Work and Play at Disney World* (1995) imply about cultural strength alone?
It does not determine whether a culture is beneficial or harmful.
What is a subculture within an organisation?
A group culture that differs from the organisation’s main culture.
Which source identifies common organisational subcultures?
Pettinger, 2007.
Which subcultures does Pettinger identify as common in organisations?
Canteen cultures, elites and cliques, and informal norming.
Which work and year present Drennan’s twelve factors shaping organisational culture?
*Transforming Company Culture*, 1992.
Which factors shape organisational culture according to Drennan?
Dominant leadership; business history and tradition; technology and products or services; industry, sector and competition; customers and their expectations; company expectations based largely on past performance; information and control systems; legislation and the wider business environment; procedures and policies; reward systems and performance measurement; organisation and resources; and goals, values and beliefs reflected in objects, actions and language.
What are values, according to Nystrom (1990)?
Enduring normative beliefs about proper conduct and preferred or desired outcomes.
How enduring are values, and what do they concern?
They are generally enduring and concern behaviour and desired outcomes.
What can make behaviour appear inconsistent with stated values, according to Rokeach (1968)?
Values can conflict, and different situations can activate different values.
Why may a business described as not value-based still be guided by values?
It may be guided by values such as power, wealth, economic growth, or competition.
What is true of every organisation or activity regarding values?
No organisation or activity is value-free.
How does the Schwartz Value System model relationships among value types?
As a dynamic, interdependent system with compatible and opposing value types.
Which source introduced the Schwartz Value System in 1987?
Schwartz and Bilsky, 1987.
How many broad value types does the Schwartz Value System identify?
10 broad value types.
Which source identifies 10 broad value types in the Schwartz Value System?
Schwartz et al., 2012.
Which values belong to self-enhancement in the Schwartz Value System?
Power, achievement, and hedonism.
Which source describes the four value groupings in the Schwartz Value System?
Schwartz and Bilsky, 1987.
Which two dimensions oppose each other in the Schwartz Value System?
Self-enhancement versus self-transcendence, and openness to change versus conservation.
Which source describes the opposing dimensions in the Schwartz Value System?
Schwartz and Bilsky, 1987.
What are organisational values?
Values shared by enough people in an organisation to characterise it, even if not every member shares every value.
At which four levels can culture shape business practices?
National, regional, organisational, and professional levels.
What kinds of practices and expectations are included in organisational behaviours?
Prescribed routines and structures, plus informal expectations such as dress codes and social interaction patterns.
According to Schein (2004), what forms the core of organisational culture?
Taken-for-granted assumptions.
What can shape taken-for-granted assumptions in an organisation?
Collective experiences such as organisational crises.
What training programme do Disneyland recruits undertake, according to van Maanen (1991)?
A 40-hour programme covering Disneyland’s history, philosophy, regulations, and work procedures.
What does van Maanen (1991) identify as part of Disneyland socialisation?
Detailed rules for appearance, customer interactions, role performance, and costumes.
What mechanisms reinforce Disneyland’s socialisation, according to van Maanen (1991)?
Supervisory monitoring and informal peer pressures.
How can an R&D team’s task-oriented subculture benefit a hierarchical organisation?
It can help the team perform appropriately.
How can elite subgroups harm an organisation’s resource allocation?
They can direct critical resources towards themselves.
What effect can elite subgroups’ influence have on other members?
It can generate resentment.
What causes informal norming to conflict with organisational norms?
People are pressured to adopt nearby colleagues’ attitudes and norms.
Which source associates UK police subcultures with discriminatory conduct and mistaken shootings?
Dodd.
How can values influence action, according to Schwartz and Bilsky (1987)?
They can motivate people to pursue outcomes they consider desirable.
What do power values concern?
Wealth, social status, and authority.
What do self-direction values emphasize?
Independence and shaping one’s own destiny.
What may motivate managers of multigenerational family businesses?
Tradition and filial responsibility.
What may achievement-motivated people seek besides performing well?
Recognition for their performance.
Which work by Schaefer, Williams and Blundel links SME environmental engagement with owner-managers’ values?
Individual values and SME environmental engagement, 2020.
What benevolence values may motivate small-business owner-managers’ environmental programmes?
Leaving a better world for their children and providing a good working environment.
Why do organisational values tend to remain stable as employees change?
New employees may be selected for shared values or socialised into them.
Answer 20 questions on Organisational Culture and Values.
1. What best describes organisational culture in Schein’s framework?
2. Which set names Schein’s four layers of organisational culture?
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