A Primer on Organizational Culture

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A Primer on Organizational Culture
Rites and their practical and expressive
consequences

• Wayne Smith, Ph.D.
• Department of Management
• CSU Northridge

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SFVSC T-shirt
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Student SuccessCultureSurface Attributes

• Physical Setting
• Those things that physically surround people and
  provide them with immediate sensory stimuli as
  they carry out culturally expressive activities
• Artifacts
• Material objects manufactured by people to
  facilitate culturally expressive activities
• Language
• A particular manner in which members of a group
  use vocal sounds and written signs to convey
  meanings to each other
• Gesture
• Movements of parts of the body used to express
  meanings
• Symbol
• Any object, act, event, quality, or relation that
  serves as a vehicle for conveying meaning,
  usually representing another thing
• Story
• A narrative based on true eventsoften a
  combination of truth and fiction

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Student SuccessCultureSub-Surface Attributes

• Legend
• A handed-down narrative of some wonderful event
  that has a historical basis but has been
  embellished with fictional details
• Folk-tale
• A completely fictional narrative
• Myth
• A dramatic narrative of imagined events, usually
  used to explain origins or transformations of
  something. Also, an unquestioned belief about
  the practical benefits of certain techniques and
  behaviors that is not supported by demonstrated
  facts
• Ritual
• A standardized, detailed set of techniques and
  behaviors that manages anxieties but seldom
  produces intended, practical consequences of any
  importance
• Rite
• A relatively elaborate, dramatic, planned set of
  activities that combines various forms of
  cultural expression and that often has both
  practical and expressive consequences

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Physical SettingThose things that physically
surround people and provide them with immediate
sensory stimuli as they carry out culturally
expressive activities
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Cell Tower hidden infra.
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LAPD Disp. - wide
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LAPD Disp. - scores
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ArtifactsMaterial objects manufactured by
people to facilitate culturally expressive
activities
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VW car club
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In N Out burger -wide
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LanguageA particular manner in which members of
a group use vocal sounds and written signs to
convey meanings to each other
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Semantics Paradigm
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Semantics FAA customers
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GestureMovements of parts of the body used to
express meanings
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SymbolAny object, act, event, quality, or
relation that serves as a vehicle for conveying
meaning, usually representing another thing
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Upside-down horseshoe
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SFVSC T-shirt
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StoryA narrative based on true eventsoften a
combination of truth and fiction
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Culture United Rentals - 2
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LegendA handed-down narrative of some wonderful
event that has a historical basis but has been
embellished with fictional details
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Culture United Rentals - 2
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Folk-taleA completely fictional narrative
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MythA dramatic narrative of imagined events,
usually used to explain origins or
transformations of something. Also, an
unquestioned belief about the practical benefits
of certain techniques and behaviors that is not
supported by demonstrated facts
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Santa Anita missing 13
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RitualA standardized, detailed set of
techniques and behaviors that manages anxieties
but seldom produces intended, practical
consequences of any importance
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Santa Anita missing 13
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RiteA relatively elaborate, dramatic, planned
set of activities that combines various forms of
cultural expression and that often has both
practical and expressive consequences
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Santa Anita missing 13
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Sources

• This presentation is adapted from the following
  article
• Beyer, J., and Trice, H. (1987), How an
  Organizations Rites Reveal Its Culture,
  Organizational Dynamics

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Back-pocket Slides
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Cultural Forms

• These types are neither
• Mutually-exclusive, nor
• Collectively-exhaustive

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Rites

• Rites of Passage
• Rites of Degradation
• Rites of Enhancement
• Rites of Renewal
• Rites of Conflict Resolution
• Rites of Integration

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Rite of Passage
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Spelling Nosie/Noise
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Rite of Degradation
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Spelling Nosie/Noise
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Rite of Enhancement
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Rite of Renewal
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Rite of Conflict Resolution
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Spelling Nosie/Noise
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Rite of Integration
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Social Consequences

• Practical Consequences
• Evident
• A thorough evaluation of candidates potential
  and improvement in their administrative skills so
  that only the best qualified candidates are
  promoted to management positions
• Hidden
• The relative priorities placed on various areas
  of performance in the company are communicated
  and enforced
• members of management who act as trainer sharpen
  and reinforce their own skills
• new and old managers size up one anothers
  strengths and weaknesses

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Social Consequences

• Expressive Consequences
• Evident
• The transformation of the successful candidates
  social identity among people both within and
  outside of the organization
• Hidden
• The enhancement of the prestige of the managerial
  role within the company
• the motivation of non-management personnel to
  perform according to priorities
• the development of social and emotional bonds
  among managers

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Managing Cultures

• At root, cultural skills are learned by
  experience, not learned by education
• A new manager needs to know the ropes to skip
  and the ropes to know
• A new manager needs to which aspect of culture to
  use when to achieve a personal or organizational
  goal
• Boiling frog syndrome