Organizational culture is fundamentally about symbolic meaning and as such cannot be managed. Discuss - Essay Example

It is fundamental to note that the culture of an association varies from one organization to the next. This is for the reason that employees in the diverse organizations have disparate opinions and outlooks regarding different concerns in the organization. This essay will endeavor to assess the concept of culture and how the same is symbolic in the organization. Also, the essay will put into context the factors that culture is general, integrated, figurative, and adaptive. Body Organizational culture has been described as suppositions that are shared by a group of people as seen in the work of Schein1.

This involves the adjustment of the organization to the outside world, and incorporation the internal concepts so as the association can invent a method in which the organization can adjust its members to the attainment of the organizational goals2. Champoux indicates that the members in the organization are able to be respond to the situation by coming up with plans towards solving the same issues, in the event that an organization is faced with a setback3. Schein, on the other hand, indicates that an understanding of the psychology of people, their social aspect and generally human relations allows the organization evaluate them in the organizational culture4. . At each faction, there is a deeper denotation of the entire concept, at times symbolic, at other times, cognitive.

There are various major levels of organizational culture, according to Schein6. Foremost, is the discernible artifact, the adopted values by the organization and lastly, the major underlying suppositions7. In relation to the discernible artifacts, Schein refers to them as opinions, the actions taken by an organization, and the beliefs that an organization holds. It is through the observable artifacts that the organization establishes what is central and significant to be adopted in the organization8.

The discernible artifacts are inclusive of the physical characteristics of the association- the buildings, the publications, pieces of art by the organizations, its products, as well as the technology applied in the organization9. The observable artifacts can be devised from the mission and vision statement of the organization, and its values. In addition, the same can be seen in the language by the affiliates of the organization, its accounts of the times, practices and the ceremonies conducted by the organization10.

This is an obvious indication that organizational culture is unmistakable in the manner in which the organization adheres to the myths of the organization and upholds the rituals of the organization. Organizational culture can be said to be symbolic in that the values that are advocated by the organization are the ones that are campaigned by the leadership of the organization11. In the argument by Schein, the management team of the organization expects that the employees display an expected level of discipline as expected of them by the management12.

In this case, the values portrayed by the employees are