Showing papers on "Organizational culture published in 2006"

A quarter century of Culture's Consequences: a review of empirical research incorporating Hofstede's cultural values framework

Abstract: Since Geert Hofstede's Culture's Consequences: International Differences in Work-Related Values (Sage, 1980) was published, researchers have utilized Hofstede's cultural values framework in a wide variety of empirical studies. We review 180 studies published in 40 business and psychology journals and two international annual volumes between 1980 and June 2002 to consolidate what is empirically verifiable about Hofstede's cultural values framework. We discuss limitations in the Hofstede-inspired research and make recommendations for researchers who use Hofstede's framework in the future.

Review: a review of culture in information systems research: toward a theory of information technology culture conflict

Abstract: An understanding of culture is important to the study of information technologies in that culture at various levels, including national, organizational, and group, can influence the successful implementation and use of information technology. Culture also plays a role in managerial processes that may directly, or indirectly, influence IT. Culture is a challenging variable to research, in part because of the multiple divergent definitions and measures of culture. Notwithstanding, a wide body of literature has emerged that sheds light on the relationship of IT and culture. This paper sets out to provide a review of this literature in order to lend insights into our understanding of the linkages between IT and culture. We begin by conceptualizing culture and laying the groundwork for a values-based approach to the examination of IT and culture. Using this approach, we then provide a comprehensive review of the organizational and cross-cultural IT literature that conceptually links these two traditionally separate streams of research. From our analysis, we develop six themes of IT-culture research emphasizing culture's impact on IT, IT's impact on culture, and IT culture. Building upon these themes, we then develop a theory of IT, values, and conflict. Based upon the theory, we develop propositions concerning three types of cultural conflict and the results of these conflicts. Ultimately, the theory suggests that the reconciliation of these conflicts results in a reorientation of values. We conclude with the particular research challenges posed in this line of inquiry.

Responding to Organizational Identity Threats: Exploring the Role of Organizational Culture

Abstract: In this paper, we present a longitudinal study of organizational responses to environmental changes that induce members to question aspects of their organization’s identity Our findings highlight the role of organizational culture as a source of cues supporting “sensemaking” action carried out by leaders as they reevaluate their conceptualization of their organization, and as a platform for “sensegiving” actions aimed at affecting internal perceptions Building on evidence from our research, we develop a theoretical framework for understanding how the interplay of construed images and organizational culture shapes changes in institutional claims and shared understandings about the identity of an organization

Innovation management measurement: A review

Abstract: Measurement of the process of innovation is critical for both practitioners and academics, yet the literature is characterized by a diversity of approaches, prescriptions and practices that can be confusing and contradictory. Conceptualized as a process, innovation measurement lends itself to disaggregation into a series of separate studies. The consequence of this is the absence of a holistic framework covering the range of activities required to turn ideas into useful and marketable products. We attempt to address this gap by reviewing the literature pertaining to the measurement of innovation management at the level of the firm. Drawing on a wide body of literature, we first develop a synthesized framework of the innovation management process consisting of seven categories: inputs management, knowledge management, innovation strategy, organizational culture and structure, portfolio management, project management and commercialization. Second, we populate each category of the framework with factors empirically demonstrated to be significant in the innovation process, and illustrative measures to map the territory of innovation management measurement. The review makes two important contributions. First, it takes the difficult step of incorporating a vastly diverse literature into a single framework. Second, it provides a framework against which managers can evaluate their own innovation activity, explore the extent to which their organization is nominally innovative or whether or not innovation is embedded throughout their organization, and identify areas for improvement.

Collaboration and Leadership for Effective Emergency Management

Abstract: Collaboration is a necessary foundation for dealing with both natural and technological hazards and disasters and the consequences of terrorism. This analysis describes the structure of the American emergency management system, the charts development of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and identifies conflicts arising from the creation of the Department of Homeland Security and the attempt to impose a command and control system on a very collaborative organizational culture in a very collaborative sociopolitical and legal context. The importance of collaboration is stressed, and recommendations are offered on how to improve the amount and value of collaborative activities. New leadership strategies are recommended that derive their power from effective strategies and the transformational power of a compelling vision, rather than from hierarchy, rank, or standard operating procedures.

Personality, context, and resistance to organizational change

Abstract: The article proposes and tests a model of resistance to organizational change. Contrary to most works on resistance, resistance was conceptualized here as a multifaceted construct. Relationships among resistance components and employees' personalities, the organizational context, and several work-related outcomes were examined. Through a study of 177 employees, both personality and context have been found to significantly associate with employees' attitudes towards a large-scale organizational change. These attitudes were, in turn, significantly associated with employees' job-satisfaction, organizational commitment, and intention to leave the organization.

Lessons from Innovation Empirical Studies in the Manufacturing Sector: A Systematic Review of the Literature from 1993-2003

Abstract: Provides a systematic review of empiricalarticles published in scholarly periodicals between 1993 and 2003 on the topicof technological innovations in the manufacturing sector. The goals of thisreview are to identify the variables that determine the innovative behavior andcapacity of firms and to explore how the authors of the articles approached andmeasure innovation. A careful study of 108 articles uncovers various internal variables (i.e.,specific to the firm) and contextual variables (i.e., related to the firm'senvironment) that shape a firm's innovative activities. The internal variablescan be grouped into such categories as general firm characteristics,strategies, structure, control, organizational culture, the management team andfunctional assets. Among the external variables are such types asindustry, region, networking, knowledge and technology acquisition and publicpolicies. Results show that the relationship linking several of these variableswith innovation is often moderated by an interaction with other variables. Firmmanagers and policy makers wishing to foster innovation more effectively canlearn from the results of this study. (SAA)

An Empirical Examination of the Influence of Organizational Culture on Knowledge Management Practices

Abstract: Knowledge management to facilitate the creation, storage, transfer, and application of knowledge in organizations has received wide attention in practice and research in the past several years. Often cited as a significant challenge in knowledge management practices is the issue of organizational culture. Although many studies raise the issue of organizational culture's influence on knowledge management success, few investigate the way in which this influence manifests itself. This paper aims to explore how organizational culture influences knowledge management practices. Using a case study method, we examine the cultural values and knowledge management approaches within a large global information services company and one of its knowledge communities. The findings highlight the influence of culture on the use of knowledge management technologies and the outcomes of such use.

Corporate social responsibility in the multinational enterprise: strategic and institutional approaches

Abstract: What is the relationship of global and local (country-specific) corporate social responsibility (CSR) to international organizational strategy? Applying the strategic logic of the Bartlett and Ghoshal typology to the realm of CSR, multinational firms should respond to pressures for integration and responsiveness from salient stakeholders. However, an institutional logic would suggest that multinational firms will simply replicate the existing product-market organizational strategy (multidomestic, transnational, global) in their management of CSR. These alternative approaches are tested with a survey instrument sent to MNEs operating in Mexico. The results of this study are consistent with the proposition that institutional pressures, rather than strategic analysis of social issues and stakeholders, are guiding decision-making with respect to CSR. We develop implications for MNE management and research, as well as public policy.

Who cares about corruption

Abstract: This paper examines the impact of corruption on foreign direct investment (FDI). It argues that corruption results not only in a reduction in FDI, but also in a change in the composition of country of origin of FDI. It presents two key findings. First, corruption results in relatively lower FDI from countries that have signed the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions. This suggests that laws against bribery abroad may act as a deterrent against engaging in corruption in foreign countries. Second, corruption results in relatively higher FDI from countries with high levels of corruption. This suggests that investors who have been exposed to bribery at home may not be deterred by corruption abroad, but instead seek countries where corruption is prevalent.

Relationships among organizational family support, job autonomy, perceived control, and employee well-being

Abstract: The authors analyzed data from the 2002 National Study of the Changing Workforce (N = 3,504) to investigate relationships among availability of formal organizational family support (family benefits and alternative schedules), job autonomy, informal organizational support (work-family culture, supervisor support, and coworker support), perceived control, and employee attitudes and well-being. Using hierarchical regression, the authors found that the availability of family benefits was associated with stress, life satisfaction, and turnover intentions, and the availability of alternative schedules was not related to any of the outcomes. Job autonomy and informal organizational support were associated with almost all the outcomes, including positive spillover. Perceived control mediated most of the relationships.

Cultural and leadership predictors of corporate social responsibility values of top management: a GLOBE study of 15 countries

Abstract: This paper examines cultural and leadership variables associated with corporate social responsibility values that managers apply to their decision-making. In this longitudinal study, we analyze data from 561 firms located in 15 countries on five continents to illustrate how the cultural dimensions of institutional collectivism and power distance predict social responsibility values on the part of top management team members. CEO visionary leadership and integrity were also uniquely predictive of such values.

Organizational culture and performance measurement systems

Abstract: The aim of this study is to articulate and test the relationships between organizational culture and two attributes of performance measurement systems (PMS), namely the diversity of measurement and the nature of use. The results of a survey reveal that top managers of firms reflecting a flexibility dominant type tend to use more performance measures and to use PMS to focus organizational attention, support strategic decision-making and legitimate actions to a greater extent than top managers of firms reflecting a control dominant type.

Are Leaders Portable

Abstract: Does management talent transfer from one company to another? The market certainly seems to think so. Stock prices spike when companies announce new CEOs from a talent generator like General Electric. But how do these executives perform over the long term? The authors studied the careers of 20 former GE executives who went on to lead other major organizations, with strikingly uneven results. Even the best management talent, the authors found, is transferable only if it maps to the challenges of the new environment. More specifically, the authors identified five types of skills that may or may not transfer to a new job: general management human capital, or the skills to gather, cultivate, and deploy financial, technical, and human resources; strategic human capital, or individuals' expertise in cost cutting, growth, or cyclical markets; industry human capital, meaning the technical and regulatory knowledge unique to an industry; relationship human capital, or the extent to which a manager's effectiveness can be attributed to his or her experience working with colleagues or as part of a team; and company-specific human capital, or the knowledge about routines and procedures, corporate culture and informal structures, and systems and processes that are unique to a company. The GE executives' performance as CEOs depended on whether their new organizations were able to leverage each type of skill. The authors'findings challenge the conventional wisdom on human capital, which holds that there are two types of skill: general management, which is readily transferable, and company specific, which is not. In fact, they argue, other types of management capabilities can make a significant contribution to performance, and company-specific skills can be an asset in a new job.

Advancing Health Disparities Research Within the Health Care System: A Conceptual Framework

Abstract: We provide a framework for health services-related researchers, practitioners, and policy makers to guide future health disparities research in areas ranging from detecting differences in health and health care to understanding the determinants that underlie disparities to ultimately designing interventions that reduce and eliminate these disparities. To do this, we identify potential selection biases and definitions of vulnerable groups when detecting disparities. The key factors to understanding disparities were multilevel determinants of health disparities, including individual beliefs and preferences, effective patient-provider communication, and the organizational culture of the health care system. We encourage interventions that yield generalizable data on their effectiveness, and that promote further engagement of communities, providers, and policy makers to ultimately enhance the application and the impact of health disparities research.

Cultural influences on knowledge sharing through online communities of practice

Abstract: – The purpose of this study is to explore cultural factors influencing knowledge sharing strategies in virtual communities of practice., – A qualitative research design was employed. Data collection was based on in‐depth interviews. The authors assumed that such factors as degree of collectivism, competitiveness, the importance of saving face, in‐group orientation, attention paid to power and hierarchy, and culture‐specific preferences for communication modes, would explain differences in knowledge seeking and sharing patterns., – The results showed that these factors had different levels of importance among employees in the three participating countries. The issue of saving face was less important than expected in China. Modesty requirements as well as a high degree of competitiveness among employees were found to be serious barriers to information sharing in China, but not in Russia and Brazil. Perceived differences in power and hierarchy seemed to be less critical in all three countries than initially assumed., – Since this study was conducted among the online community members of Caterpillar Inc., the results could be affected by factors unique to this specific case. Thus, future research should investigate the influence of other factors such as the organizational culture, or occupational groups on knowledge sharing strategies., – Before any introduction of country‐specific knowledge sharing systems, a cultural needs assessment should be conducted., – The impact of national culture factors on knowledge sharing has been largely neglected in the literature, and the findings will assist knowledge managers charged with the design of flexible knowledge management systems.

The Impact of Leadership and Change Management Strategy on Organizational Culture and Individual Acceptance of Change during a Merger

Abstract: This article reports a longitudinal study that examined mergers between three large multi-site public-sector organizations. Both qualitative and quantitative methods of analysis are used to examine the effect of leadership and change management strategies on acceptance of cultural change by individuals. Findings indicate that in many cases the change that occurs as a result of a merger is imposed on the leaders themselves, and it is often the pace of change that inhibits the successful re-engineering of the culture. In this respect, the success or otherwise of any merger hinges on individual perceptions about the manner in which the process is handled and the direction in which the culture is moved. Communication and a transparent change process are important, as this will often determine not only how a leader will be regarded, but who will be regarded as a leader. Leaders need to be competent and trained in the process of transforming organizations to ensure that individuals within the organization accept the changes prompted by a merger.

Transformational leadership, initiating structure, and substitutes for leadership: a longitudinal study of research and development project team performance.

Abstract: Transformational leadership, initiating structure, and selected substitutes for leadership were studied as longitudinal predictors of performance in 118 research and development (R&D) project teams from 5 firms. As hypothesized, transformational leadership predicted 1-year-later technical quality, schedule performance, and cost performance and 5-year-later profitability and speed to market. Initiating structure predicted all the performance measures. The substitutes of subordinate ability and an intrinsically satisfying task each predicted technical quality and profitability, and ability predicted speed to market. Moderator effects for type of R&D work were hypothesized and found whereby transformational leadership was a stronger predictor of technical quality in research projects, whereas initiating structure was a stronger predictor of technical quality in development projects. Implications for leadership theory and research are discussed.

Organizational Culture and Climate and Mental Health Provider Attitudes Toward Evidence-Based Practice

Abstract: Mental health provider attitudes toward adopting evidence-based practice (EBP) are associated with organizational context and provider individual differences. Organizational culture and climate are contextual factors that can affect staff acceptance of innovation. This study examined the association of organizational culture and climate with attitudes toward adopting EBP. Participants were 301 public sector mental health service providers from 49 programs providing mental health services for youths and families. Correlation analyses and multilevel hierarchical regressions, controlling for effects of provider characteristics, showed that constructive culture was associated with more positive attitudes toward adoption of EBP and poor organizational climates with perceived divergence of usual practice and EBP. Behavioral health organizations may benefit from consideration of how culture and climate affect staff attitudes toward change in practice.

The Use of Humor in the Workplace

Abstract: Executive Overview Humor is a common element of human interaction and therefore has an impact on work groups and organizations. Despite this observation, managers often fail to take humor seriously or realize its numerous benefits. Humor is more than just funny concepts; it represents a multifunctional management tool that can be used to achieve many objectives. This article describes how managers can use humor to reduce stress and enhance leadership, group cohesiveness, communication, creativity, and organizational culture. Specifically, we suggest humor styles that are best suited to realize these outcomes. Additionally, the effect of humor on organizational outcomes is moderated by individual differences such as ethnicity and gender. Much like selecting the proper tool from a toolkit, managers can select the appropriate humor style suitable for the desired organizational outcome, adjust for individual differences, and achieve positive organizational outcomes.

Handbook of organizational learning and knowledge management

Abstract: The fully revised and updated version of this successful Handbook is welcomed by management scholars world-wide. By bringing together the latest approaches from the leading experts in organizational learning & knowledge management the volume provides a unique and valuable overview of current thinking about how organizations accumulate 'knowledge' and learn from experience. Key areas of update in the new edition are: - Resource based view of the firm - Capability management - Global management - Organizational culture - Mergers & acquisitions - Strategic management - Leadership

Justice and Leader-Member Exchange: The Moderating Role of Organizational Culture

Abstract: We hypothesized that organizational culture moderates the relationship between justice perceptions and leader-member exchange (LMX). In a sample of 516 teachers from 30 high schools in Turkey, we found that one dimension of culture from the Organizational Culture Profile, respect for people, strengthened the relationship between interactional justice and LMX, and another dimension, team orientation, weakened that relationship. Furthermore, aggressiveness strengthened, whereas team orientation weakened, the relationship between distributive justice and LMX. Finally, we found that in team-oriented schools, LMX was higher.

Divergent effects of transformational and passive leadership on employee safety.

Abstract: The authors concurrently examined the impact of safety-specific transformational leadership and safety-specific passive leadership on safety outcomes. First, the authors demonstrated via confirmatory factor analysis that safety-specific transformational leadership and safety-specific passive leadership are empirically distinct constructs. Second, using hierarchical regression, the authors illustrated, contrary to a stated corollary of transformational leadership theory (B. M. Bass, 1997), that passive leadership contributes incrementally to the prediction of organizationally relevant outcomes, in this case safety-related variables, beyond transformational leadership alone. Third, further analyses via structural equation modeling showed that both transformational and passive leadership have opposite effects on safety climate and safety consciousness, and these variables, in turn, predict safety events and injuries. Implications for research and application are discussed.

Knowledge management enablers: a case study

Abstract: Purpose – To analyze the crucial role that enablers play in carrying out knowledge management within the enterprise.Design/methodology/approach – This research uses the method of a case study and has directed the survey on Advanced Semiconductor Engineering, Inc. (ASE) and VIA Technologies, Inc. (VIA). It is anticipated through the case study of these two companies that it will be possible to verify the finding of enablers concluded by other papers, thus showing the inter‐relationship between theory and business.Findings – It is found that among the enablers: on the part of strategy and leadership; obtaining top managements' support is most important; among organization culture enablers is the forming of an atmosphere and culture of sharing is most important but needs to be supplemented by informational technology; among people enablers, other than training courses and channels that provide learning, employee incentive program is one of the executing key factor; and among informational technology enablers...

The World's Newest Profession: Management Consulting in the Twentieth Century

Abstract: In The World's Newest Profession, Christopher McKenna offers a history of management consulting in the twentieth century. Although management consulting may not yet be a recognized profession, the leading consulting firms have been advising and reshaping the largest organizations in the world since the 1920s. This groundbreaking study details how the elite consulting firms, including McKinsey & Company and Booz Allen & Hamilton, expanded after US regulatory changes during the 1930s, how they changed giant corporations, nonprofits, and the state during the 1950s, and why consultants became so influential in the global economy after 1960. As they grew in number, consultants would introduce organizations to 'corporate culture' and 'decentralization' but they faced vilification for their role in the Enron crisis and for legitimating corporate blunders. Through detailed case studies based on unprecedented access to internal files and personal interviews, The World's Newest Profession explores how management consultants came to be so influential within our culture and explains exactly what consultants really do in the global economy....

Exploring knowledge sharing in ERP implementation: an organizational culture framework

Abstract: This is a multi-site case study of firms that have implemented enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems. It examines eight dimensions of culture and their impact on how ERP implementation teams are able to effectively share knowledge across diverse functions and perspectives during ERP implementation. Through synthesizing the data, we develop a cultural configuration that shows the dimensions of culture that best facilitate knowledge sharing in ERP implementation. The results also indicate ways that firms may overcome cultural barriers to knowledge sharing. A model is developed that demonstrates the link between the dimensions of culture and knowledge sharing during ERP implementation. Possible research questions on which future research can be based are also identified.

Organizational culture and transformational leadership as predictors of business unit performance

Abstract: Purpose – The aim of the study was to examine the relationship between transformational leadership and organizational cultural orientations, as well as the joint effect of transformational leadership and organizational culture on business unit performance.Design/methodology/approach – About 300 employees of a large financial organization in Greece filled in a number of questionnaires measuring organizational culture orientations and transformational leadership. The measurement of business unit performance was obtained by the organization under study.Findings – A path analysis showed that the achievement and adaptive cultural orientations had a direct effect on performance. Moreover, transformational leadership and humanistic orientation had an indirect positive impact on performance via achievement orientation.Research limitations/implications – A research limitation is that the causal direction of the relations between the predictors and the criteria has been partially established by controlling for the ...

Leader–member exchange (LMX), paternalism, and delegation in the Turkish business culture: An empirical investigation

Abstract: Although businesses increasingly operate across cultures, there is a paucity of research that examines the influence of national culture on leadership practices. This study uses a structural equation modeling approach to investigate relationships among leader–member exchange (LMX), delegation, paternalism, and job satisfaction in Turkish business organizations. Results from a survey study of N=185 full-time employees from Turkish companies support the relationship of LMX to delegation and job satisfaction. However, the effect of LMX on job satisfaction is mediated by paternalism, an emic cultural dimension. Results suggest that delegation might not be an effective management tool in the Middle Eastern context.

Organizational climate partially mediates the effect of culture on work attitudes and staff turnover in mental health services.

Abstract: Staff turnover in mental health service organizations is an ongoing problem with implications for staff morale, productivity, organizational effectiveness, and implementation of innovation. Recent studies in public sector services have examined the impact of organizational culture and climate on work attitudes (i.e., job satisfaction and organizational commitment) and, ultimately, staff turnover. However, mediational models of the impact of culture and climate on work attitudes have not been examined. The present study examined full and partial mediation models of the effects of culture and climate on work attitudes and the subsequent impact of work attitudes on staff turnover. Multilevel structural equation models supported a partial mediation model in which organizational culture had both direct influence on work attitudes and indirect influence through organizational climate. Work attitudes significantly predicted one-year staff turnover rates. These findings support the contention that both culture and climate impact work attitudes and subsequent staff turnover.

The Multinational Corporation as a Multilingual Community: Language and Organization in a Global Context

Abstract: This paper develops a framework for analyzing the multinational corporation (MNC) as a multilingual community in which parent functional language and subunit functional languages are concurrently used and recursively linked through an intra-corporate communication network. The unit, breadth and intensity of an MNC's language system are designed to apply global strategies within the context of evolving environmental and organizational realities. To the extent that language design is the product of deliberate choice, we suggest that headquarters functional language is determined by the MNC's international strategy, organizational structure, and transnationality, while subunit functional language is designed in accordance with organizational form, strategic role, and expatriate deployment. Aligning language systems with organizational strategy and dynamics improves MNC communication, coordination, and knowledge-sharing.