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Chapter 16 Organizational Culture Page 587
Questions for Review
16-1. What is organizational culture, and what are its common characteristics?
AACSB: Reflective thinking
16-2. What are the functional and dysfunctional effects of organizational culture?
employees to conform, which may lead to institutionalized bias.
iii. Barrier to acquisitions and mergers—incompatible cultures can
destroy an otherwise successful merger.
on people and the organization
Learning Outcome: Describe best practices for creating and sustaining organizational cultures
AACSB: Reflective thinking
16-3. What factors create and sustain an organization’s culture?
Answer: Cultures begin with the thoughts and values of the founders. The
values, and assumptions. Factors that sustain an organizational culture or keep it
alive are:
Chapter 16 Organizational Culture Page 588
adopted by the organization.
c. Socialization: the process that helps new employees adapt to the
organization’s culture.
AACSB: Reflective thinking
16-4. How is culture transmitted to employees?
AACSB: Reflective thinking
16-5. What are the similarities and differences in creating an ethical culture, a positive
culture, and spiritual culture?
Builds on employee strengths: focus is on discovering, sharing, and
grow in their jobs and careers.
Trust and respect: mutual trust, honesty, and openness.
Humanistic work practices: employee empowerment, job security.
positive culture, and a spiritual culture.
Chapter 16 Organizational Culture Page 589
AACSB: Reflective thinking
16-6. How does national culture affect what happens when an organizational culture is
transported to another country?
Learning Objective: Show how national culture can affect the way organizational culture is
transported to another country
Learning Outcome: Describe best practices for creating and sustaining organizational cultures
AACSB: Diverse and multicultural work environments; Reflective thinking
Experiential Exercise
Culture Architects
This exercise contributes to:
AASCB: Reflective thinking
Divide into groups of 3–4 students. Each group will be the founding “mothers” and
“fathers” of a new organization. The group will draw on what they learned in the chapter
and other materials to set the foundation for an effective organizational culture for their
new company. Each group will need to provide the following information about their new
culture, and justify their answers:
Name of the Organization:
Product or Service Provided:
Founding Members:
Mission or Vision Statement:
3 Primary Values Guiding the Organization:
16-8. Do you think this foundation will definitely lead to the culture you intended?
intended?
Chapter 16 Organizational Culture Page 590
16-9. What types of specific socialization practices could you use so that new
employees can best adapt to the organizational culture?
Ethical Dilemma
Culture of Deceit
This exercise contributes to:
culture, and a spiritual culture.
Learning Outcome: Describe best practices for creating and sustaining organizational cultures
AASCB: Ethical understanding and reasoning abilities; Reflective thinking
We have noted throughout this chapter, and the text overall, that honesty is generally the
best policy in managing OB. But that doesn’t mean honest dealing is always the rule in
business.
their professional identities, however, exaggerated how often the coin turned up heads.
People in other professions didn’t do so—the tie between professional identity and
dishonesty was unique to those who worked in banking. These results are certainly not
limited to the banking industry. Many other ways of priming people to think about
of others has been encouraged. Domenico Scala, FIFA’s audit and compliance committee
chair, noted, “To support the change we need a culture that censures inappropriate
behavior and enforces rules vigorously, fairly, and [is] responsive.” There is general
consensus that to overcome corruption, those in positions of authority must demonstrate
communicate clear expectations for ethical behavior.
Chapter 16 Organizational Culture Page 591
Fortunately, evidence shows that asking people to focus on relationships and the way they
spend their time can actually make them behave more honestly and helpfully. This
overcome corruption.
Sources: F. Gino, “Banking Culture Encourages Dishonesty,” Scientific American, December 30, 2014,
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/banking-culture-encourages-dishonesty/; A. Cohn, Alain, E. Fehr, and M. A. Maréchal,
“Business Culture and Dishonesty in the Banking Industry,” Nature, 014, doi: 10.1038/nature13977; L. Geggel, “FIFA Scandal: The
Complicated Science of Corruption,” Scientific American, May 31, 2015,
Questions
16-10. What are the negative effects of a culture that encourages dishonesty and
corruption on its reputation and employees?
Volkswagen saw its stock value and corporate reputation plummet after it was
the world.
16-11. Why might some organizations push employees to behave in a dishonest or
counteract?
Answer: The answer to this question will depend on the student’s ethics and will
16-12. What actions can you take as a new employee if you are pressured to violate your
own ethical standards at work? How might mid-level employees’ responses to this
question differ from those of more senior managers?
Answer: Again, responses to this question will vary by student. Most students
standards.
Case Incident 1
The Place Makes the People
This exercise contributes to:
Learning Objectives: Identify the factors that create and sustain an organization’s culture; Compare the
AASCB: Reflective thinking
Chapter 16 Organizational Culture Page 592
At Gerson Lehrman Group, you won’t find an employee working in a cubicle day after
day. You also won’t find an employee working in a free-form open office area
flatter and the need for creativity and flexibility has increased, the “open office” plan has
become a mainstay of the business world. The goal is to encourage free-flowing
conversation and discussion, enhance creativity, and minimize hierarchy—in other words,
to foster a creative and collaborative culture and remove office space from its status
position.
So, is the activity-based hybrid described earlier a potential solution? With its constantly
shifting workspace and lack of consistent locations, this may be an even less controlled
environment than an open office. However, it does signal a culture that values the
autonomy of individual workers to choose their own best environment at a particular
command-and-control culture.
Whether a traditional, open, or activity-based design is best overall is obviously hard to
say. Perhaps the better question is, which type will be appropriate for each organization?
Sources: B. Lanks, “Don’t Get Too Cozy,” Bloomberg Businessweek, October 30, 2014,
http://www.businessweekme.com/Bloomberg/newsmid/190/newsid/271; M. Konnikova, “The Open-Office Trap,” New Yorker,
Organizational Behavior 35 (2014): 1169–1184.
Questions
16-13. How might different types of office design influence employee social interaction,
without an innovative culture?
Chapter 16 Organizational Culture Page 593
Management. Student responses will vary.
16-14. Can the effects of a new office design be assessed objectively? How could you go
culture?
16-15. Do you think certain types of office design can be utilized to create a more ethical
or spiritual culture? Why or why not? If yes, how can office design be utilized to
create an ethical culture?
Case Incident 2
Active Cultures
This exercise contributes to:
AASCB: Reflective thinking
Employees at many successful companies start the day by checking the economic
forecast. Patagonia’s Ventura, California, employees start the day by checking the surf
forecast. The outdoor clothing company encourages its workforce to take time from the
work day to get outside and get active. For Patagonia, linking employees with the natural
culture. The company has an on-site organic café featuring locally grown produce.
Employees at all levels are encouraged through an employee discount program to try out
activewear in the field. And highly flexible hours ensure that employees feel free to take
the occasional afternoon off to catch the waves or get out of town for a weekend hiking
trip.
Chapter 16 Organizational Culture Page 594
through a more holistic lens other than profit.” However, she is quick to add, “Profit is
important; if it wasn’t you wouldn’t be talking to me.”
Patagonia’s culture obviously makes for an ideal workplace for some people—but not for
http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/a-company-thatprofits-as-it-pampers-workers/2014/10/22/d3321b34-4818-11e4-b72e-d60a9
229cc10_story.html; and D. Baer, “Patagonia CEO: ‘There’s No Way I Should Make One Decision Based on Quarterly Results,’”
Business Insider, November 19, 2014, http://www.businessinsider.com/patagonia-ceointerview-2014-11.
Questions
16-16. What do you think are the key dimensions of culture that make Patagonia
successful? How does the organization help to foster this culture?
16-17. Does Patagonia use strategies to build its culture that you think could work for
other companies? Is the company a useful model for others that aren’t so tied to a
lifestyle? Why or why not?
16-18. What are the drawbacks of Patagonia’s culture? Might it sometimes be a liability,
and if so, in what situations?
Management. Student responses will vary.
MyLab Management
culture?
culture?
16-21. MyLab Management Only—comprehensive writing assignment for this chapter.
Instructor’s Choice
Chapter 16 Organizational Culture Page 595
Applying the Concepts
This exercise contributes to:
Learning Objective: Describe the common characteristics of organizational culture
Learning Outcome: Describe best practices for creating and sustaining organizational cultures
AASCB: Reflective thinking
In the land of tech gadgets, it is literally a “here today, gone tomorrow” philosophy that
drives the market space. Such was almost the case for TiVo. TiVo allows a viewer to
capture a digital recording and replay it at a later time. It was a great invention for a
while. However, technology seemed to pass TiVo while it was on slow play. Today, TiVo
seems old hat with more modern advances brought about by Apple Computers (iPod) and
others. To its credit, the management at TiVo has not given up. Instead, TiVo guru Arthur
van Hoff developed Dr. Strangeberry software that allows the TiVo user to grade digital
content from the Internet and transfer it to a TV or an array of other devices. Today, TiVo
devices can only do their recording and time-shifting on programs piped in from standard
cable or satellite feeds. Dr. Strangeberry will change all this and in the process will give
TiVo time to get its digital act together.
Using a search engine of your own choosing, visit the TiVo website at
www.tivo.com. Based on what you find at the website, what can you tell about
new developments at TiVo? What can you learn about Dr. Strangeberry?
Based on what you found on the TiVo website or through some other
investigation, what does TiVo need to do organizationally to keep its company
from reaching obsolescence?
If you were the CEO of TiVo, what cultural changes would you attempt to
encourage? Explain and comment on why you would make the changes.
Instructor Discussion
Many of the students will know about TiVo but most will not own one; therein lies some
of TiVo’s problem. For additional information on TiVo and its challenges read “Saving
TiVo” by Kim Girard in Business2.0, September 2004, pp. 92–100. Students will discover
that TiVo needs to do a refit on their organizational structure and culture. The company
had a great idea, pursued the idea, and stopped innovating in the process. Soon other
companies passed them by. Without the advent of the Dr. Strangeberry software, most
experts believe TiVo would already be gone. If many in the class have not heard of TiVo,
it might be easiest to explain via brochures that can be obtained in any electronics retailer
such as Best Buy. Have students discuss alternative cultures that might spur innovation
and adaptation at TiVo.
Exploring OB Topics on the Web
This exercise contributes to:
Learning Objective: Describe the common characteristics of organizational culture
Learning Outcome: Describe best practices for creating and sustaining organizational cultures
AASCB: Reflective thinking
Chapter 16 Organizational Culture Page 596
Exploring OB Topics on the World Wide Web
1. What do you think it would be like working for the “Happiest Place on Earth?” Of
even references culture—but it is not necessarily referring to corporate culture. Be
2. How does a change agent go about changing the corporate culture? The task, no
Businesses in Productively Implementing Projects:
http://www.lynco.com/Business-Consulting.html. Read the article and try to think
be prepared to discuss your case.
3. How does one differentiate between a strong and a weak culture? The Denison
“Organizational Culture Survey”
https://www.denisonconsulting.com/culture-surveys/. It is an internal tool used by
4. Career Bliss? Really? Go to Spirituality at Work’s website
principles into the corporate culture. Write a short paper of the concept of
Bring it to class for further discussion.
5. Becoming a more customer-responsive organization can be a difficult culture
change. Learn how CRHC did it at CIO’s “Project Management Helps IT Group Grow
More User-Friendly”
text. In the article, find examples of key variables in the story of CRHC’s change process.
Bring it to class for further discussion.
