Organizational culture

About: Organizational culture is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 31507 publications have been published within this topic receiving 926787 citations. The topic is also known as: corporate culture & organisational culture.

The Supplier Selection Decision in Strategic Partnerships

Abstract: The Supplier Selection Decision in Strategic Partnerships The concept of partnerships between buyers and suppliers is receiving increasing attention in American industry. This article examines the issue of supplier selection in situations where the firm is considering a partnership type of relationship with potential suppliers. The argument is made that partnerships are different in nature than traditional buyer-supplier relationships, and thus require the consideration of additional factors in supplier selection. This study combines a literature review with the use of case studies of firms involved in buyer-supplier partnerships to develop additional factors that should be considered in the selection of supply partners. Four categories of additional factors are developed: (1) financial issues, (2) organizational culture and strategy, (3) technology, and (4) a group of miscellaneous factors. The issues included in these categories tend to be longer term and more qualitative than factors included in traditional supplier selection models. The article suggests that these additional factors supplement, rather than replace, the more traditional factors in developing strategic partnerships with suppliers. BACKGROUND Most of the research in the area of supplier selection focuses on the quantifiable aspects of the supplier selection decision - issues such as cost, quality, delivery reliability, and other similar factors. These are important criteria that should be considered in virtually any supplier selection decision. However, firms are becoming increasingly involved in "evergreen" or "strategic partnership" type relationships with suppliers. The purchasing literature suggests that this trend toward partnership activity can benefit the firm and, in many cases, should be pursued.[1] A strategic partnership between a buying and a supplying firm is defined here as a mutual, ongoing relationship involving a commitment over an extended time period, and a sharing of information and the risks and rewards of the relationship. As firms become involved in strategic partnerships with their suppliers, a new set of supplier selection criteria comes into consideration, equally as important as the more traditional criteria mentioned above. This new set of criteria considers "soft" factors that are difficult to quantify. These soft factors include issues such as management compatibility, goal congruence, and strategic direction of the supplier firm. With these issues in mind, the objective of this article is threefold. First, the article provides a brief review of the relevant literature and research in the area of supplier selection. Second, it discusses the difference in emphasis required in seeking a partnership type of buyer-supplier relationship, rather than a traditional, arms-length relationship. Third, through the use of an empirical case study of five manufacturing firms, the article explores the new, additional set of issues that becomes relevant to supplier selection when the firm seeks a "partnership" type of relationship with a supplier. REVIEW OF SUPPLIER SELECTION LITERATURE Supplier selection models may be based on the way in which model proponents believe a decision should be made (prescriptive/normative) or the way they believe decisions are actually made (descriptive). Most of the supplier selection models reviewed here fit in to the second category. Descriptive Research The key descriptive studies reviewed are summarized in Table 1.[2] All of these studies represent empirical, survey based research. Table : Table I SUMMARY OF DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH REVIEWED Study Methodology Focus Technical Marketing Survey Separates purchasing decisions into three categories: Consultants (1985) (1) direct materials,(2) capital, (3) indirect materials and services White (1978) Survey Understand the relationship between product categories and buying situations Dickson (1966) Survey Understand the factors considered in supplier selection, and attempt to determine the most important factors The first study, conducted by Technical Marketing Consultants, examines industrial purchasing trends and practices. …

Implementing information systems in health care organizations: myths and challenges

Abstract: Successfully implementing patient care information systems (PCIS) in health care organizations appears to be a difficult task. After critically examining the very notions of 'success' and 'failure', and after discussing the problematic nature of lists of 'critical success- or failure factors', this paper discusses three myths that often hamper implementation processes. Alternative insights are presented, and illustrated with concrete examples. First of all, the implementation of a PCIS is a process of mutual transformation; the organization and the technology transform each other during the implementation process. When this is foreseen, PCIS implementations can be intended strategically to help transform the organization. Second, such a process can only get off the ground when properly supported by both central management and future users. A top down framework for the implementation is crucial to turn user-input into a coherent steering force, creating a solid basis for organizational transformation. Finally, the management of IS implementation processes is a careful balancing act between initiating organizational change, and drawing upon IS as a change agent, without attempting to pre-specify and control this process. Accepting, and even drawing upon, this inevitable uncertainty might be the hardest lesson to learn.

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.

Creation, Adoption and Diffusion of Innovations by Subsidiaries of Multinational Corporations

Abstract: This paper reports some of the findings of a multi-phased, and multi-method study on the organizational attributes that facilitate creation, adoption, and diffusion of innovations by subsidiaries of multinational companies. Comparison of results obtained through case research in nine companies, multiple-respondent questionnaire surveys in three companies, and a single-respondent survey in 66 North American and European multinationals reveal unambiguous and positive impacts of normative integration through organizational socialization and dense intra- and inter-unit communication on an MNC subsidiary's ability to contribute to the different innovation tasks. The findings are less consistent with regard to the effects of local resources and autonomy and it appears that the influences of these two attributes are strongly mediated by the levels of normative integration and organizational communication.

The cross‐level effects of culture and climate in human service teams

Abstract: This two-level study of child welfare and juvenile justice case management teams addresses construct, measurement, and composition issues that plague multilevel research on organizational culture and climate. Very few empirical studies have examined both culture and climate simultaneously, and none have provided evidence that culture and climate are distinct or similar constructs. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), within-group consistency analysis (rwg), between-group differences (ICC and eta-squared), and hierarchical linear models (HLM) analysis provide evidence that climate and culture are separate constructs that vary by organizational unit, and are related to work attitudes, perceptions, and behavior. Findings link team-level culture and climate to individual-level job satisfaction and commitment, perceptions of service quality, and turnover. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.