Changing the Organizational culture - Some school of thoughts -- Part # 2

How Can I Change Organizational Values? You Can’t!

Organizational values are the shared attitudes people have about what is right and wrong to do in an organization. Our personal values are shaped by our parents, our teachers, our friends, our religious and spiritual guides and by the society in which we are raised. When our personal values are compatible with our employer’s values we feel comfortable working in that environment. Values, like culture, can’t be measured, touched or seen. We can observe how people act and infer values but organizational values took a long time to create and a new “values document” won’t overturn those very easily. In such case, why don’t we just change the attitudes?

How Can I Change People’s Attitudes? You Can’t!

Well, maybe with the proverbial “2x4 attitude adjuster”. Attitudes develop as a result of personal experiences with people and situations. A person will develop a set of personal biases, prejudices and opinions based on their view of how the world operates. I know this is getting old, but you can’t measure, touch or see attitudes either. Like the situations above, you can merely observe and interpret what people do and say and how they behave. There is no direct measurement. At the least I hope we can change the people’s behaviors. Shall we give it a try?

How Can I Change People’s Behaviors? Be Careful!

Don’t jump to a conclusion too quickly. Yes, there is an entire body of research involving behavior modification. Through the appropriate use of “rewards and punishments” you can alter behavior of people or animals. But are we sure of what kind of behaviors we want people to exhibit?

Keep in mind, that in a business setting, people’s behaviors might be a result of the “role” they are expected to play and do not reflect the true personal behavior patterns of that individual or group of people. A generous, mild mannered person might exhibit the behavior of a tight fisted tyrant if their role in the organization is that of “cost cutter”. Oops!! Isn’t it getting complicated? Why don’t we just explore the possibility of changing the people’s roles in the organization?

To be continued…..

Changing Organizational Culture - some school of thoughts

Many organizations decide at some point that they need to “change our corporate culture” so they can be more competitive in the marketplace. Here are some thought provoking comments should you decide that if you are one among those organizations. The following hierarchical model will be used to guide the reader.

• Culture
• Value
• Attitude
• Behavior
• Roles
• Process & Procedures

How Can I Change Organizational Culture? You Can’t!

It is not so easy. The only quick and significant way would be to get rid of everyone and start all over again; meaning massive layoffs, extensive rehiring and restructuring.

What is the “Organizational Culture”? Well, sociologists, anthropologists and archeologists spend entire careers trying to understand and reconstruct cultures. In a business setting we might describe “culture” as the collective shared beliefs, goals and values of the employees. It takes decades to create cultures so it is doubtful that a consultant or executive proclamation or edict will significantly alter the values of the employees.

Jack Welch took over two decades to create the “GE Way”. IBM, Microsoft and other leading organizations have taken many years to fashion a corporate culture. In fact, “culture” can’t be measured, touched or even seen. One can observe some semblance of the shared values and norms by listening to what people say, the rituals they perform, the way they dress, their dances and music and what is generally important to them. But those are open to interpretation as scientists discover when attempting to excavate a site. So shift the focus from changing the culture. That leaves with changing “values”.

to be Continued….