THE DIVERSITY OF CULTURE

The development process described above may result in a culture that characterizes the whole organization. But there may be different cultures within organizations. For example, the culture of an outward-looking marketing department may be substantially different from that of an internally focused manufacturing function. There may be some common organizational values or norms, but in some respects these will vary between different work environments.


                                          THE COMPONENTS OF CULTURE


Organizational culture can be described in terms of values, norms, artefacts and leadership or management style.


Values


Schiffman and Kanuk (1994) state that: ‘Values help to determine what we think is right or wrong, what is important and what is desirable.


Values are beliefs in what is best or good for the organization and what should or ought to happen. The ‘value set’ of an organization may only be recognized at top level, or it may be shared throughout the business, in which case it could be described as value driven.


The stronger the values, the more they will influence behaviour. This does not depend upon their having been articulated. Implicit values that are deeply embedded in the culture of an organization and are reinforced by the behaviour of management can be highly influential, while espoused values that are idealistic and are not reflected in managerial behaviour may have little or no effect. It is ‘values in use’, values that drive desirable behaviour, that are important.


Some of the most typical areas in which values can be expressed, implicitly or explicitly, are:


● performance;

● competence;

● competitiveness;

● innovation;

● quality;

● customer service;

● teamwork;

● care and consideration for people


Values are translated into reality (enacted) through norms and artefacts as described below. They may also be expressed through the media of language (organizational jargon), rituals, stories and myths.