Week 10 Application Assignment-Lauren Y. Walker

This week’s readings provided a cogent definition of what makes for organizational culture and the benefits of a strong culture; it is the assumptions that underlie the values, and determine the behavioral patterns or norms demonstrated by those members of the entity (Sorenson, 2009; Schein, 1983).  The organizational culture of a firm, by and large, dictates how things get done.  Depending on the position of the company in its growth, the culture of the organization can prove to enhance its competitive edge or be a detriment.  Sorenson (2009) contends that strong organizational cultures enable firms to produce at a higher level.  The three advantages to a firm possessing a strong organizational culture are: 1) it facilitates social control, dictating what the behavioral norms will be; 2) such a strong culture can provide employees with motivation to perform at a higher level because there is the perception that each individual is free to “choose” how to behave; 3) and a culture firmly rooted in the organization better insures there is less uncertainty about decisions, as there are set goals and practices established (Sorenson, 2009).   

This information posed the question of how the culture of an organization is established and if there is a difference in culture of an organization based on the type of manager in place.  Schein, 1983, purports that the culture of an organization is shaped by the founder of the organization’s personality.  The biases of the company’s founder, based on their personal cultural experiences are the foundation for an organization’s culture.  These are intertwined into the organization by certain cues.  For instance, a manager can encourage the “lieutenants” in the company to be innovative, provide extensive training and consulting assistance, all to produce highly skilled managers, but offer no incentives or rewards as it relates to increased compensation or stock options to them specifically, but offer such perks to family members who have not performed in similar fashion.  This type of cue can create a counter culture within the organization and that belief can then permeate the group as opposed to the culture that the manager originally had in mind.  An action on the part of a manager to vet decisions laterally and from the top down, can give the impression to subordinates that they don’t have trust from their manager, as every decision, no matter how long it takes to evolve, must be by committee.  These are a couple of non-verbal cue that a manager can consciously, but often times, unconsciously express, thus creating a particular.  More explicit procedures in implementing the culture of an organization is by statements about their philosophy, the design of the building or workspace or stories and myths about key people or events associated with the organization.  

When analyzing a founder/owner “manager” as opposed to a professional manager and the culture of the organization based on manager type, four areas of motivation can contribute to the firm’s culture; emotional orientation, analytical orientation, interpersonal orientation and position within the firm.  While there are several differences under each category, as I read these, I thought that those listed below illustrate the cultural message communicated that a prospective new hire should consider in their job search and employees should be cognizant of as the atmosphere changes because it is this culture that will set the tone for the work environment:

                             Owner Professional Manager

Emotional orientation	Concerned with creating & building	Concerned w/ surviving, growing
Analytical orientation	Trust own intuition	Analytical; cautious about intuition
Interpersonal orientation	View individuals as individuals	View individuals as members of categories, e.g. employees, suppliers, etc.
Difference in position	Possess the privilege & risk of ownership	Minimal ownership, if any; fewer privileges & risks

References:

Schein, E.H. (1983). "The role of the founder in creating organizational  

    culture".  Organizational Dynamics, pp. 13-28

Sorenson, J. (2009).  Note on Organizational Culture.  Harvard Business School, pp. 1-6