Handy’s four types of organisational cultures Another model of culture, popularised by Charles Handy (1999) – and following work by Harrison (1972) – also presents organisational cultures as classified into four major types: the power culture, the role culture, the task culture, and the person or support culture. Handy’s approach may help you understand why you have been more comfortable in some organisations than others. Interestingly, although Handy chooses to talk about culture, he shows the structures associated with his culture types. This may be because of the difficulty of drawing something as diffuse as culture, but it also reinforces the fact that culture and structure are interrelated. Power culture Figure 18 Power culture Long description Handy illustrates the power culture as a spider’s web (see Figure 18), with the all-important spider sitting in the centre ‘… because the key to the whole organisation sits in the centre, surrounded by ever-widening circles of intimates and influence. The closer you are to the spider, the more influence you have’ (1999, p. 86). Organisations with this type of culture can respond quickly to events, but they are heavily dependent for their continued success on the abilities of the people at the centre; succession is a critical issue. They will tend to attract people who are power orientated and politically minded, who take risks and do not rate security highly. Control of resources is [Type text] Page 1
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Handy’s four types of organisational cultures
Another model of culture, popularised by Charles Handy (1999) – and following work by Harrison (1972) – also presents organisational cultures as classified into four major types: the power culture, the role culture, the task culture, and the person or support culture. Handy’s approach may help you understand why you have been more comfortable in some organisations than others. Interestingly, although Handy chooses to talk about culture, he shows the structures associated with his culture types. This may be because of the difficulty of drawing something as diffuse as culture, but it also reinforces the fact that culture and structure are interrelated.
Power culture
Figure 18 Power culture
Long description
Handy illustrates the power culture as a spider’s web (see Figure 18), with the all-important spider sitting in the centre ‘… because the key to the whole organisation sits in the centre, surrounded by ever-widening circles of intimates and influence. The closer you are to the spider, the more influence you have’ (1999, p. 86). Organisations with this type of culture can respond quickly to events, but they are heavily dependent for their continued success on the abilities of the people at the centre; succession is a critical issue. They will tend to attract people who are power orientated and politically minded, who take risks and do not rate security highly. Control of resources is the main power base in this culture, with some elements of personal power at the centre.
Size is a problem for power cultures. They find it difficult to link too many activities and retain control; they tend to succeed when they create new organisations with a lot of independence, although they usually retain central financial control.
This type of culture relies heavily on individuals rather than on committees. In organisations with this culture, performance is judged on results, and such organisations tend to be tolerant of means. They can appear tough and abrasive and their successes can be accompanied by low morale and high turnover as individuals fail or opt out of the competitive atmosphere. Working in such organisations requires that employees correctly anticipate what is expected of them from the power holders and perform accordingly. If managers get this culture right, it can result in a happy, satisfied organisation that in turn can breed quite intense commitment to corporate goals. Anticipating wrongly can lead to intense dissatisfaction and sometimes lead to a high labour turnover as well as a general lack of effort and enthusiasm.
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In extreme cases, a power culture is a dictatorship, but it does not have to be.
Stop and reflect
What kind of manager do you think would be happy in a power culture?
Stop and reflect
Role culture
Figure 19 Role culture
Long description
The role culture can be illustrated as a building supported by columns and beams: each column and beam has a specific role to playing keeping up the building; individuals are role occupants but the role continues even if the individual leaves. This culture shares a number of factors in common with Weber’s description of the ‘ideal-type’ bureaucracy.
This type of organisation is characterised by strong functional or specialised areas coordinated by a narrow band of senior management at the top and a high degree of formalisation and standardisation; the work of the functional areas and the interactions between them are controlled by rules and procedures defining the job, the authority that goes with it, the mode of communication and the settlement of disputes.
Position is the main power source in the role culture. People are selected to perform roles satisfactorily; personal power is frowned upon and expert power is tolerated only in its proper place. Rules and procedures are the chief methods of influence. The efficiency of this culture depends on the rationality of the allocation of work and responsibility rather than on individual personalities. This type of organisation is likely to be successful in a stable environment, where the market is steady, predictable or controllable, or where the product’s life cycle is long, as used to be the case with many UK public sector bodies. Conversely, the role culture finds it difficult to adapt to change; it is usually slow to perceive the need for it and to respond appropriately. Such an organisation will be found where economies of scale are more important than flexibility
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or where technical expertise and depth of specialisation are more important than product innovation or service cost – for example, in many public service organisations.
For employees, the role culture offers security and the opportunity to acquire specialist expertise; performance up to a required standard is rewarded on the appropriate pay scale, and possibly by promotion within the functional area. However, this culture is frustrating for ambitious people who are power orientated, want control over their work or are more interested in results than method. Such people will be content in this culture only as senior managers. The importance of Handy’s role culture is that it suggests that bureaucracy itself is not culture-free.
Stop and reflect
What kind of manager do you think would be happy in a role culture?
Stop and reflect
Task culture
Figure 20 Task culture
Long description
Task culture is job-or project-oriented, and its accompanying structure can be best represented as a net (see Figure 20). Some of the strands of the net are thicker or stronger than others, and much of the power and influence is located at the interstices of the net, at the knots. Task cultures are often associated with organisations that adopt matrix or project-based structural designs.
The emphasis is on getting the job done, and the culture seeks to bring together the appropriate resources and the right people at the right level in order to assemble the relevant resources for the completion of a particular project. A task culture depends on the unifying power of the group to improve efficiency and to help the individual identify with the objectives of the organisation. So it is a team culture, where the outcome of the team’s work takes precedence over individual objectives and most status and style differences. Influence is based more on expert power than on position or personal power, and influence is more widely dispersed than in other cultures.
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Task culture depends on teamwork to produce results. Groups, project teams or task forces are formed for a specific purpose and can be re-formed, abandoned or continued. The organisation can respond rapidly since each group ideally contains all the decision-making powers required. One example of a task culture is NASA, the US space agency, which in the 1960s had the specific task of putting a man on the moon before the end of the decade and bringing him back safely. Individuals find that this culture offers a high degree of autonomy, judgment by results, easy working relationships within groups and mutual respect based on ability rather than on age or status.
The task culture is therefore appropriate when flexibility and sensitivity to the market or environment are important, where the market is competitive, where the life of a product is short and/or where the speed of reaction is critical. Against this must be set the difficulty of managing a large organisation as a flexible group, and of producing economies of scale or great depth of expertise.
Control in these organisations can be difficult. Essential control is retained by senior managers, who concentrate on the allocation of projects, people and resources, but they exert little day-to-day control over methods of working or procedures, without violating the norms of the culture. This works well in favourable circumstances and when resources are available for those who can justify using them. However, when resources are not freely available, senior managers begin to feel the need to control methods as well as results, and team leaders may begin to compete for resources, using political influence. Morale in the work groups tends to decline and the job becomes less satisfying in itself, so that employees begin to reveal their own objectives. This necessitates the introduction of rules and procedures, the use of position or the control of resources by managers to get the work done. So the task culture has a tendency to change to a role or power culture when resources are limited or when the whole organisation is unsuccessful.
Most managers, certainly at the middle and junior levels, prefer to work in the task culture, with its emphasis on groups, expert power, rewards for results and a merging of individual and group objectives. It is most in tune with the current trends of change and adaptation, individual freedom and low status differentials – but it may not be an appropriate culture for all circumstances.
Stop and reflect
What kind of manager do you think would be happy in a task culture?
Stop and reflect
Person culture
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Figure 21 Person culture
Long description
Person culture is an unusual culture. It is not found in many organisations, yet many people espouse some of its values. This type of culture is illustrated by a loose cluster or a constellation of stars (see Figure 1.10). In this culture the individual is the focal point; if there is a structure or an organisation, it exists only to serve and assist the individuals within it, to further their own interests without any overriding objective.
Clearly, not many organisations can exist with this sort of culture, or produce it, since organisations tend to have some form of corporate objective over and above the personal objectives of those who comprise them. Furthermore, control mechanisms, and even management hierarchies, are impossible in these cultures except by mutual consent. An individual can leave the organisation, but the organisation seldom has the power to evict an individual. Influence is shared and the power base, if needed, is usually expert; that is, people do what they are good at and are listened to for their expertise.
Consultants – both within organisations and freelance workers – and architects’ partnerships often have this person-orientation. So do some universities. A cooperative may strive for the person culture in organisational form, but as it develops it often becomes, at best, a task culture, or often a power or role culture.
Although it would be rare to find an organisation in which the person culture predominated, you will often encounter people whose personal preferences are for this type of culture, but who find themselves operating in more orthodox organisations. Specialists in organisations, such as computer people in a business organisation, consultants in a hospital, architects in local government and university teachers benefit from the power of their professions. Such people are not easy to manage. Being specialists, alternative employment is often easy to obtain, and they may not acknowledge anyone as being in a position to exercise expert power greater than their own. Position power not backed up by resource power means nothing to such people, and coercive power is not usually available. They may not be influenced by group norms or relationships with colleagues, which might be expected to moderate their personal preferences. This leaves only personal power – and such people are often not easily impressed by personality.
Stop and reflect
What kind of manager do you think would be suited to a person culture?
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Which of Handy’s categories is closest to your own organisation or department?
Identify a successful colleague and consider how they got ahead.
To what extent does this colleague display the attributes Handy suggests are best suited to the culture of your organisation?
To what extent do you display those attributes? How useful do you find Handy’s model?
Stop and reflect
There are limitations to Handy’s approach. There is a tendency to take Handy’s four cultures as fixed or ‘given’ styles – something an organisation has, rather than something that is created,
negotiated and shared by everyone involved in the organisation and which may evolve over time. None of the four types can claim to be better or superior; they are each suited to different types
of circumstances. Most real-life organisations tend to involve a mixture of cultures, and in Handy’s view each is suited to different types of circumstances, including different types of
personalities.
Theories of types of culture offer caricatures and simplifications of complex phenomena; the real world is always richer and more subtle. One way of gaining an insight into these complexities has been to explore the link between national culture and organisational culture. Before you consider this approach, you may find it helpful to reflect upon the two models you have considered so far.
Wikipedia’s:
Organizational culture is the collective behavior of humans who are part of an organization and
the meanings that the people attach to their actions. Culture includes the organization values,
visions, norms, working language, systems, symbols, beliefs and habits.[1] It is also the pattern of
such collective behaviors and assumptions that are taught to new organizational members as a
way of perceiving, and even thinking and feeling.[2] Organizational culture affects the way people
and groups interact with each other, with clients, and with stakeholders. [3]
At the same time although a company may have "own unique culture", in larger organizations,
Ravasi and Schultz (2006) state that organizational culture is a set of shared mental assumptions
that guide interpretation and action in organizations by defining appropriate behavior for various
situations. there is a diverse and sometimes conflicting cultures that co-exist due to different
Organizational culture is taught to the person as culture is taught by his/her parents thus
changing and modeling his/her personal culture.[4] Indeed employees and people applying for a
job are advised to match their "personality to a company’s culture" and fit to it.[28] Some
researchers even suggested and have made case studies research on personality changing.[29]
[edit]National and organizational culture
Corporate culture is used to control, coordinate, and integrate of company subsidiaries.[30] However differences in national cultures exist contributing to differences in the views on the
management.[31] Differences between national cultures are deep rooted values of the respective
cultures, and these cultural values can shape how people expect companies to be run, and how
relationships between leaders and followers should be resulting to differences between the
employer and the employee on expectations. (Geert Hofstede, 1991)
[edit]Multiplicity
See also: Biculturalism
Xibao Zhang (2009) carried out an empirical study of culture emergence in the Sino-Western
international cross-cultural management (SW-ICCM) context in China. Field data were collected
by interviewing Western expatriates and Chinese professionals working in this context,
supplemented by non-participant observation and documentary data. The data were then
analyzed in grounded fashion to formulate theme-based substantive theories and a formal theory.
The major finding of this study is that human cognition contains three components, or three
broad types of "cultural rules of behavior", namely, Values, Expectations, and Ad Hoc Rules,
each of which has a mutually conditioning relationship with behavior. The three cognitive
components are different in terms of the scope and duration of their mutual shaping with
behavior. Values are universal and enduring rules of behavior; Expectations, on the other hand,
are context-specific behavioral rules; while Ad Hoc Rules are improvised rules of behavior that
the human mind devises contingent upon a particular occasion. Furthermore, they need not be
consistent, and frequently are not, among themselves. Metaphorically, they can be compared to a
Work-groups within the organization have their own behavioral quirks and interactions which, to
an extent, affect the whole system. Roger Harrison's four-culture typology, and adapted by
Charles Handy, suggests that unlike organizational culture, corporate culture can be 'imported'.
For example, computer technicians will have expertise, language and behaviors gained
independently of the organization, but their presence can influence the culture of the organization
as a whole.
[edit]Legal aspects
Corporate culture can be found as a cause of injuries and be a reason for fining companies in US
like in the case of U.S. Department of Labor's Mine Safety and Health Administration that fined
of $10,825,368 Performance Coal Co. in April 2010, the largest fine in agency history, following
its investigation of explosion at the Upper Big Branch-South Mine, operated by Performance
Coal Co., a subsidiary of Massey Energy Co.[37]
[edit]Critical views
Criticism of the usage of the term by managers began already in its emergence in the early 80s.[10] Most of the criticism comes from the writers in critical management studies who for example
express skepticism about the functionalist and unitarist views about culture that are put forward
by mainstream management writers. They stress the ways in which these cultural assumptions
can stifle dissent management and reproduce propaganda and ideology. They suggest that
organizations do not have a single culture and cultural engineering may not reflect the interests
of all stakeholders within an organization.
Parker (2000) has suggested that many of the assumptions of those putting forward theories of
organizational culture are not new. They reflect a long-standing tension between cultural and
structural (or informal and formal) versions of what organizations are. Further, it is reasonable to
suggest that complex organizations might have many cultures, and that such sub-cultures might
overlap and contradict each other. The neat typologies of cultural forms found in textbooks
rarely acknowledge such complexities, or the various economic contradictions that exist in
capitalist organizations.
Among the strongest and widely recognized writers on corporate culture with a long list of
articles on leadership, culture, gender and their intersection is Linda Smircich, as a part of the
of critical management studies, she criticises theories that attempt to categorize or 'pigeonhole'
organizational culture.[9][38] She uses the metaphor of a plant root to represent culture, describing
that it drives organizations rather than vice versa. Organizations are the product of organizational
culture, we are unaware of how it shapes behavior and interaction (also recognized through
Theory, editors Campbell Jones and Rolland Munro, Volume 53,
Issue Supplement s1, pp. 80–94, October 2005
Types of Organizational CultureBy organization culture, we mean, the strategies and attitudes deemed constant, and prevalent throughout the workforce hierarchy. Different organizations follow different work cultures in their workplace, and culture is what makes a workplace an organization. Here are the various organizational cultures that define even the minutiae of an aspect in the organization.Ads by GoogleProcess Improvement Solns Capture, Record, Document & Analyze Business Processes. Free Trial www.epiplex500.com
A number of us are aware as to how an organization functions; however, little do we know about a specific culture principled by the organization. Now, culture, as a term has a dynamic entity; however, it is not a recondite concept. Equanimity, and ethics prevail where a particular culture is followed in an organization. Like varied personalities, there are various types of organizational
cultures that function by adhering to a stipulated method of working, best-suited to their core business.✍ Cultures That Govern the Organization
The diverse organizational cultures that mold the structure of a business acumen are as follows:
Normative CultureIn a normative organization, the organization stresses on implementing the organizational procedures in the correct manner, and according to the norms and rules defined. This kind of culture is perceived to portray a high standard of business ethics.
Pragmatic CultureIn contrast to normative cultures, stress is laid on satisfying the wish of their clients. In this type of organizational structure, the client is virtually deified. The prime concern of every employee is to cater to the needs of the client, attain, and retain the business they may invite through the clients.
Academy CultureIn this kind of culture, employees are highly skilled, and the organization provides an environment for the development, and honing of employee skills. Examples of this kind of culture are hospitals, universities, and large corporations. Employees tend to stay with the organization, and grow with(in) it.
Collaborate Work CultureOften referred to as clan culture, an organization that adopts a collaborate culture offers a congenial and amiable environment to work in. The feeling one derives while working in this type of organization is that of comfort and coercive motivation. This organization consists of superiors who provide more of guidance, and less of governance. The organization is based on worker-welfare, where you have the employees' interest in the foreground with his skills valued, and performances handsomely rewarded. Insinuating and developing teamwork is the most vital element of the organization.
Adhocracy Work CultureIt is a type of organization that is altered to provide an environment to accrue one's creative acumen. Ideas are encouraged, and out-of-the-box thinking is an appendage-cum-motto. Dynamism is defined best when the workforce has the free will to conceive an out-of-the-ordinary idea; the development of which, may lead to success; inadvertently, to higher levels of morale, and monetary incentives.
Baseball Team CultureIn this kind of culture, the employees are 'free agents', and are highly prized. These employees find employment easily in any organization, and are highly in demand. There is, however, a considerable amount of risk attached to this culture, as it is very fast-paced. Examples of this kind of culture are advertising, and investment banking, to name a few.
Club Culture
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Usually, the employees stay with the organization for a long time, and get promoted to a senior post, or level. These employees are hand-picked, and it is imperative that they possess the specific skills required and desired, by the organization. Examples of this kind of organization are law firms, the military, etc.
Fortress CultureEmployees are not sure if the will be laid off or not by the organization. Very often, this organization undergoes massive changes. Few examples of this type of culture are loans and savings, large car companies, etc.
Macho CultureThe most important aspect of this kind of culture is big rewards, and quick feedback. This kind of culture is mostly associated with quick financial activities; like, brokerage, and currency trading. It can also be related to activities, like, a sports team, a police team, or branding of an athlete. This kind of culture is does not eschew high levels of stress; instead they are known to reach the apotheosis of efficiency. The employees are expected to possess a strong mentality for survival in the organization.
Work Hard/Play Hard CultureThis type of organization does not involve much risk, as the organizations, already, consist of a firm base coupled with a strong client relationship. This kind of culture is predominantly opted by the large-scaled organizations that have gained their customers' trust and support; subsequently rolling out a steadfast customer help service. The organization, with this kind of culture, is equipped with specialized jargon, and is qualified with multiple-team meetings.
Bet Your Company CultureIn this kind of culture, the company makes big, and important decisions over high stake endeavors. It takes time to see the consequence of these decisions. Companies that postulate experimental projects, and researches as their core business proposition, adopt this kind of culture; for instance, a company designing experimental military weapons may implement the said type of culture.
Process CultureThis type of culture does not include the process of feedback. In this kind of culture, the organization is extremely cautious about the adherence to laws, and prefers to abide by them. This culture bestows consistency upon the organization, predominantly meant for public services.
One of the most difficult tasks to undertake in an organization, is to change its work culture. A change in the organizational culture requires an organization to make amendments to its policies, workplace ethics, and management system. It needs to start right from its base functions; including, support functions, operations, and the production floor, which finally affects the overall output of the organization. It requires a complete overhaul of the entire system, and not many organizations prefer it as the process is a long, and tedious one, which requires patience, and endurance. However, when an organization succeeds in making a change on such a massive level, the results are almost always positive, and fruitful. The different types of organizational
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cultures aforementioned, surely, must have helped you to understand them. You can also adopt one of them for your own organization; however, persistence, and patience, ultimately, is the essence.
Read more at Buzzle: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/types-of-organizational-culture.html
Let us understand the various types of organization culture:
1. Normative Culture: In such a culture, the norms and procedures of the organization are predefined and the rules and regulations are set as per the existing guidelines. The employees behave in an ideal way and strictly adhere to the policies of the organization. No employee dares to break the rules and sticks to the already laid policies.
2. Pragmatic Culture: In a pragmatic culture, more emphasis is placed on the clients and the external parties. Customer satisfaction is the main motive of the employees in a pragmatic culture. Such organizations treat their clients as Gods and do not follow any set rules. Every employee strives hard to satisfy his clients to expect maximum business from their side.
3. Academy Culture: Organizations following academy culture hire skilled individuals. The roles and responsibilities are delegated according to the back ground, educational qualification and work experience of the employees. Organizations following academy culture are very particular about training the existing employees. They ensure that various training programmes are being conducted at the workplace to hone the skills of the employees. The management makes sincere efforts to upgrade the knowledge of the employees to improve their professional competence. The employees in an academy culture stick to the organization for a longer duration and also grow within it. Educational institutions, universities, hospitals practice such a culture.
4. Baseball team Culture: A baseball team culture considers the employees as the most treasured possession of the organization. The employees are the true assets of the organization who have a major role in its successful functioning. In such a culture, the individuals always have an upper edge and they do not bother much about their organization. Advertising agencies, event management companies, financial institutions follow such a culture.
5. Club Culture: Organizations following a club culture are very particular about the employees they recruit. The individuals are hired as per their specialization, educational qualification and interests. Each one does what he is best at. The high potential employees are promoted suitably and appraisals are a regular feature of such a culture.
6. Fortress Culture: There are certain organizations where the employees are not very sure about their career and longevity. Such organizations follow fortress culture. The employees are terminated if the organization is not performing well. Individuals suffer the most when the organization is at a loss. Stock broking industries follow such a culture.
7. Tough Guy Culture: In a tough guy culture, feedbacks are essential. The performance of the employees is reviewed from time to time and their work is thoroughly monitored. Team managers are appointed to discuss queries with the team members and guide them whenever required. The employees are under constant watch in such a culture.
8. Bet your company Culture: Organizations which follow bet your company culture take decisions which involve a huge amount of risk and the consequences are also unforeseen. The principles and policies of such an organization are formulated to address sensitive issues and it takes time to get the results.
9. Process Culture: As the name suggests the employees in such a culture adhere to the processes and procedures of the organization. Feedbacks and performance reviews do not matter much in such organizations. The employees abide by the rules and regulations and work according to the ideologies of the workplace. All government organizations follow such a culture.