NATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE

Culture is one of the factors that influence on how the organization makes decisions, communicates and structures its roles and relationships. The national culture is a culture that characterizes a national group and influences the behavior of individual members, it distinguished members from one human group from others and it includes a system of values. While the organizational culture are all the whole collection of attitudes, experiences, beliefs and values of an organization. (Aspects of corporate culture: symbols, norms, ceremonies). There are six factors that determined it: dominant characteristics (first thing you see), organizational leadership, the management of employees, the organization glue (what joins together employees in an organization “loyalty, friendship”), strategic emphases (what do really aim for) and criteria of success. It’s important for me to mention some characteristics of corporate culture: first it provides compromise about organizations values, second it gives a sense of identity, guides behavior and provides controls for desirable behavior and finally it is very common to found that the values were established a few years ago, when it was founded the company. 

The following picture shows the relationship between culture, identity and image:  

Source: Hatch & Schultz, 2002. Retrieved February 27, 2011, From: Your Building, Prospering From Sustainability: http://www.yourbuilding.org/Article/  

culture: "the way we do things around here"

Identity: "how we see ourselves"

Image: "how we want others to see us"

This video will helps us understand a little bit more the definition of organizational culture:

DISCUSSION: Do you think that is possible to change corporate culture? How would you do it?

I believe that is possible to change organizational culture, but there are certain challenges that managers have to affront to be able to create this kind of change in their organizations. First they have to take in mind that culture change is neither easy nor quick, since creating and implanting significant change may well be a five year exercise. Second, managers have to understand that some people are more receptive to change than others, it is important to always keep in mind that different people, and different parts of the organization, are likely to be more receptive to cultural change than others. Because of this, change will not occur in a uniform way across the organization.  A way to do it is by implementing powerful leadership managers, which can lead people to commitment to the organization, also the leadership have to take in mind that depending of the job that the person is doing the risk that they see in change is different from one to another.  

Reference:

- Mead, Richard,2004. International Management: Cross-Cultural Dimensions London: Blackwell Publishing.Chapter 1.