MGT5OBR: A Comparative Report on Organizational Culture Theories

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of organizational culture, primarily focusing on Edgar Schein's perspective and comparing it with other relevant theories, including Mary Douglas' cultural theory and an empirical study of Spanish firms. The analysis covers the evolution of organizational culture, its impact on organizational functioning, and the significance of factors such as adhocracy and hierarchical relationships. The report critically evaluates the strengths and shortcomings of each theoretical perspective, highlighting the importance of understanding both internal and external factors influencing organizational culture. Recommendations are provided for managers to foster inclusive behavior, respect, and a broader organizational vision to cultivate a healthy organizational culture that promotes flexibility and growth. The report concludes that a multifaceted approach is essential for effectively applying organizational culture principles within an organizational context. Desklib offers a wealth of resources for students, including past papers and solved assignments.

Running head: ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
Organizational culture
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author Note

1ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
Introduction
The aim of the paper is to analyze the issue or organizational culture from the perspective
of the author, Edgar Schein. This paper will be focused on the ideas of organizational culture and
the nuances attached to it. The initial paper will be focused on the notion of organizational
behavior followed by the detailed analysis of other aspects of organizational culture, their
theories and its significance in the present context.
Discussion
Organizational culture is a concept which is diverse and complex, and when it is applied
to the present context, the idea changes according to the application (Schein, 1984). Each
organization follows a particular model of organizational culture, and it is based argued by the
author that organizational culture is transferred through one hierarchy to another within the
organizational context (Schein, 1984). The central argument of the author is that the evolution of
the concept of organizational culture is more important to understand before analyzing the issue
(Schein, 1984). Hence, the focus of the article is a complex concept that developed within the
organization through a process of evolution (Schein, 1984). It is also argued by the author that
the organizational culture is the process of learning that takes place within the organizational
interaction (Schein, 1984). It is defined as the process of change and dynamism arising through
human interactions. It is an interrelated process and not an isolated process (Schein, 1984. It
includes the process of interrelation and change occurring within them. It could be better
understood by refereeing to the idea of culture and link it with the idea of organizational culture
(Schein, 1984). According to the author, organizational culture is a dynamic concept as the idea

2ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
of culture in general. Hence, it could be said, and the idea is dynamic and contextual (Schein,
1984). The reason behind this dynamism is that it deals with the human relationship within a
changing space and time (Schein, 1984). The author opines that through the method of
analyzing the organizational culture within a particular organization is observation and interview
(Schein, 1984). However, it could be achieved by conducting a joint-inquiry approach to find out
the nuances through the interaction of the employees of the organization. This will be helpful in
finding the underlying values of the organization. The author argues that understanding the
organizational culture s important to find out the organizational structure and their future
prospects (Schein, 1984). What is important to note is that the study of organizational culture can
be completed with the study of a few organizations and their comparisons (Schein, 1984).
However, it is equally important to consider that organizational culture has a certain positive
impact on the organizational functioning. It is significant to consider the concept within the study
of management as a healthy organizational culture will be beneficial for the functioning of the
organization (Schein, 1984). To analyze the issue, it is to be considered that an empirical study
has been conducting by taking up the case study of 253 Spanish firms where it is found that
healthy organizational culture has a positive impact in the productivity and helps in giving the
company a competitive edge (Naranjo‐Valencia et al., 2017). According to the Schein (1984),
adhocracy has a significant impact on the success of the company and not the culture of
hierarchical relationships within the organization. Hence, it is important to build a strong
organizational culture that will help in the overall growth of the company.
The concept of organizational culture is better understood by refereeing it to the theory
proposed by Mary Douglas namely, the cultural theory (Matheson, 2019). According to the
theory, there are four tents of organizational culture; namely, hierarchy, individualism,

3ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
egalitarianism and fatalism are prevalent in all the organizational culture (Matheson, 2019). One
type of organizational culture is differentiated from the other on the basis of their regulation and
integration within the organization. The author quotes the example of the Australian Public
Service (Matheson, 2019). According to the theory, there are two concepts of grid and group. It
is the integration of the individual and social level that determines the organizational culture of
an organization. However, it is to be noted that the author has primarily focused on the case
study of the APS (Australian Public service) and it is narrow in its outreach (Matheson, 2019).
However, it is to b considered that analyzing and understanding the organizational culture is an
important tool of management.
Critical analysis of the issue
As per the opinion of the author, it is argued that the cultural theory is essential in
understanding the presence of unity and commonality within the employees of an organization
and how this helps in building a sense of identity (Matheson, 2019). This is part of the
organizational culture where the employees grow an attitude of concern for the fellow employees
of the organization (Matheson, 2019). However, it is important to consider form other
perspectives. For example, it is an organizational culture important for a company from the
perspective of competition in the market (Matheson, 2019). Hence, it is important to understand
the source of the issue. This is also important because the organizational culture has developed
over time and it is crucial to find out the source of the issue (Schein, 1984). Due to the
complexity of the issue of organizational culture, the evolutionary process is more important to
consider. It is to be noted that the issue of organizational culture is defined from different
perspectives. The shortcomings of the theory are that it focuses only on the evolutionary process

4ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
and do not highlight the other aspects of it. The author considers the issue from by taking into
consideration the internal and external factors of the organization (Schein, 1984). It is the process
of continuous learning and sharing of ideas within the different hierarchies of the organization
(Schein, 1984). It is used as the tool to find the underlying component of the organization and the
values and culture of the organization. The author has particularly focused on the issue of human
interactions and culture as a result of that interaction. In finding the underlying factors of
organizational culture, there are certain approaches mentioned by the author (Schein, 1984). It is
the analysis of the socialization process of the members, their responses to certain incidents and
the organizational history and its culture. It is crucial to consider the approach of the author in
dealing with the subject of organizational culture (Schein, 1984). This article provides an overall
understanding of the issue of organizational culture and its implications within an organizational
context even though it does not provide much information about the issue in the current
perspective. The focus of the author has been finding the historical factors behind the evolution
of the concept of organizational culture and tends to ignore the other aspects of the issue (Schein,
1984). It has ignored the issues of its application in growth and development of the organization.
To have an all-encompassing idea of the issue of organizational behavior, it is important to
understand and analyze the issue from other perspectives.
The article by Schein is a reflection of the issue of the evolution of the concept while the
article by Naranjo-Valencia (2017), organizational culture is a concept which is to be
considered more than the evolutionary factors. It is important to see how organizational culture
can work as a key factor in gaining commercial benefit for the company. A culture of integration
and cooperation is essential to ensure the efficiency and productivity of the company (Naranjo‐
Valencia, 2017). The future prospects of the company can be derived by looking into the kind of

5ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
organizational culture they pose. Since the data driven by the case study of 253 Spanish firms
proved to have a positive impact on the organizational growth, it should be said that
organizational culture is a crucial issue to be considered for the functioning of an organization
(Naranjo‐Valencia, 2017). Moreover, the data is driven out of the primary research conducted,
and it is concluded that when a company aspires for a new product launch in the market, the role
of organizational culture comes into the play (Naranjo‐Valencia, 2017). It is efficient
productivity based on the idea of adhocracy that will help the organization to perform efficiently.
As per the data, then a culture of adhocracy has a better chance of success than the culture of
hierarchy because an analysis of the differentiation and comparison between multiple companies
have provided data that such organizational culture is helpful to the growth of the company
(Naranjo‐Valencia, 2017). Hence, it is to be noted that the culture of a healthy relationship within
a company is significant and it is important for the companies to consider the issue of
organizational culture with greater importance (Naranjo‐Valencia, 2017).
The article by Matheson (2019), the cultural theory of Douglas focuses on the structure of
organizational culture and its operations from a theoretical perspective. This is important because
it is a holistic understanding of the issue can only be derived from the consideration of the
theoretical paradigms. The author has tried to find out the issue of organizational culture by
considering any of the four cultures mentioned (Matheson, 2019). The two dimensions of grid
and groups are further divided into the four subgroups, and it is concluded by the author that
cultural biases can develop as a result of the social integration and regulation (Matheson, 2019).
This perspective stands out to be different from the rest of the two because it is concerned with
finding the amount of integration, communication and interaction among the employees and the
other layers of the organization by looking into the extent of hierarchical impact in shaping the

6ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
behavior of the employees (Matheson, 2019). The author focuses on the issue of higher
regulations leads to lesser productivity and week organizational culture whereas the higher level
of leniency leads to the higher level of productivity of the employees and the company as a
whole (Matheson, 2019). This is important to consider because having an understanding of the
grid and group system of an organization can be useful for enhancing the competitive edge of the
company (Matheson, 2019).
What is important here is to notice that each of the articles differ from each other in terms
of their way of considering the issue. The general idea here is the organizational behavior:
however one is focusing on the evolutionary aspect of it while the author is looking into the
contextual application of the organizational culture in generating higher growth and productivity
of the organization.
Recommendations
1. The first important issue to be taken up by the managers of the company is an
inclusive behavior. The managers of the company have to ensure that all the
employees are included in the growth process and the motive of the company should
be too uplifted and empowered within the structure.
2. The second most important aspect for the managers should be to include the
environment of respect for each of the hierarchy. A relationship of authority
decreases the amount of respect. Hence it is important to foster respect and growth
within the organization, and it is the responsibility of the managers to create this kind
of environment.

7ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
3. The managers should be having an approach with a broader vision of the
organization. This will help to develop an environment of healthy organizational
culture by generating optimism within the organizational structure.
Conclusion
Organizational culture is a multifaceted concept. It is defined as the process of certain
values which leads to the growth of psychological and social environment within the
organizational context. A healthy organizational culture should be focused on the issue of higher
flexibility and growth. Therefore, it is important to consider the issue of organizational culture
from all the perspectives in order to apply it in the real context which can foster growth,
development and a better competitive edge in the market. This paper tried to analyze the idea of
organizational culture and its different nuances based in perspective given by the authors, and it
can be said that for effective management of relationship and efficient growth of the company,
the idea of organizational culture should be considered by the organization in the near future.

8ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
References
Matheson, C. (2019). Four Organisational Cultures in the Australian Public Service: Assessing
the Validity and Plausibility of Mary Douglas’ Cultural Theory. Retrieved from
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/229486034_Organisational_Structures_in_the_A
ustralian_Public_Service
Naranjo‐Valencia, J. C., Jimenez‐Jimenez, D., & Sanz‐Valle, R. (2017). Impact of
Organisational Culture on New Product Success: an Empirical Study of Spanish
Firms. European Management Review, 14(4), 377-390.
Schein, E. H. (1984). Coming to a new awareness of organizational culture. Sloan
management review, 25(2), 3-16.