Designer Culture, Designer Employees and Post-occupational Solidarity - Essay Example

Topic: Cultural change of the organization Case Study: Corporate transformations: Designer culture, Designer employees and post-occupational Solidarity INTRODUCTION: Organizational culture, or corporate culture includes the attitudes, experiences, beliefs and values of an organization. Also, corporate culture can be interpreted as the specific group of values and norms that people and groups in an organization are sharing. For, such organizational culture controls the way companies interact with each other and with stakeholders outside the organization(Hill, 2001)alues is composed of the beliefs and ideas of the kinds of goals that every member of an organization should pursue. Also, it includes the ideas about the appropriate kinds or standards of behavior organizational members should use to achieve these goals. The organizational or cultural guidelines or expectations prescribe appropriate kinds of behavior that its employees should implement in particular situations. The following paragraphs will explain in detail how corporate cultural values controls the behavior of each organizational members towards one another from organizational values (Hill, 2001) Generally, top management officers could try to determine whether to continue with the current corporate culture or to change it. They may want to impose corporate values and standards of behavior in order to particularly reflect the objectives of the organization. In addition, there are generally standing internal cultures within the company’s workforce (Edsforth,2005) And, the interplay of post-industrial technologies, new organizational practices and wider social influences is effecting changes in corporate production and culture. This is debated that the deliberate reconstruction of corporate culture reconstructs the culture of the 20th century workplace(Casey, 2007). Furthermore, all the work groups within a corporation have their individual behavioral idiosyncrasies and communications that that influences the entire organization. Clearly, top management can willingly be infused outside culture into its work environment. For clarity, computer technicians usually have independently gained the expertise, language and behaviors of the organization, but the attendance of these technicians may affect the culture of the organization in its entirety. BODY Apply the knowledge of change theory and demonstrate analytical skills explicitly using theory to support the analysis of the organization, In the article How to make Life Changes Using Psychologist Kurt Lewin’s Unfreeze –Change – Freeze Method. Lose weight, change careers and more using this three step process(Goss, 2007) emphasized that most people hate change. But again, there is very popular saying that goes nothing in this world is permanent except change. For change compels people to exit their comfort zone. However, change occurs because it is the better alternative being stagnantly insensitive to change signals. And, people normally find that they are better off afterwards in most situations when the change is put into place. People find that it is difficult to find the cues that will prod them when and how to change their current organizational culture. Kurt Lewin was the early 1900’s psychologist who voiced his theory that change had to occur in three stages. He identified the stages as Unfreeze, Change, Refreeze. He emphasized that mastery of these phases and the understanding on how to apply them to the corporation’s benefit will aid the managers to roll out the changes in any area of the organization. In fact, this same theory can be used by individuals to make a very monetarily rewarding change of jobs(Oson, 2001). Personally, a person can change their relationship or even to change their health if it is needed. The foundation of Lewins model was transforming the state of a block of ice. If a person wants to change ice from one definite shape to a completely different form he or she could either try chipping away at the ice and wishing that it would come out looking somewhat similar to a person’s desired goal form. But, it could be easier in term of time spent to change the solid ice from a block into liquid and then freeze the water into the shape the person wants. This is basically the Kurt Lewin theory of unfreeze, change and freeze(Bird, 1993). In a real life situation, the steps are simple even if at times it could not be easy. The individual should unfreeze his present situation. The individual will then write the whys, when’s, who’s and what’s. After analyzing the four W’s here, such person can now decide when to effect the change and who are the persons or groups or companies affected by such person’s sudden change of mind(Phillips, 2003). So if the person’s dream is to decrease weight, your desired change was to lose weight, he or she may Unfreeze in the following way. The person will now list the compelling reasons why he or she must implement change. For example, he or she wants better health or to decrease the risks of being another diabetes or high blood statistics(Perkinson, 1995). The Unfreeze can be psychologically stressful or challenging. Next, the person will enter the second step which is to apply the change. The person here will not force himself or herself to eat less quantity of foods and exercise more. After the changes have been done, the final stage will set in. The final stage is Refreeze. After the person has decreased his or her weight, then he or she must continue with the new pattern of eating less food exercising in order to maintain the newspaper anew and lower weight. Schein Change(3 levels of culture: artifacts-espoused values basic,underlying assumptions)model. Edgar Schein, an MIT Management professor describes organizational culture as the residue of success within the organization. Schein further emphasizes that it is very difficult to change culture because of its magnitude. Culture change can even outlive the organizational products, founders, services and most of the physical Edgar Schein, an MIT Sloan School of Management professor, defines organizational culture as "the residue of success" within an organization. According to Schein, culture is the most difficult organizational attribute to change, outlasting organizational products, services, founders and leadership and all other physical features of the organization. His impression of the organizational model illumines culture from the side of the observer, described by 3 cognitive change levels of organizational culture(Schein, 2005). Clearly, the first and most cursory level of Scheins model depicts that the organizational attributes is easily visible, can be felt and heard by the uninitiated observer. This leve encompasses the facilities, furnishings, visible awards and recognition, offices, the way that its members dress, and how each person visibly interacts with each other as well as the organizational outsiders(Geller, 1984) Second, the next level operates with the acknowledged culture of an organizations members. Here, company mission statements, slogans, and other operational creeds are often voiced out, and local and personal values are proudly spread around within the organization. At this level, the organizational behavior may be normally studied by interviewing the organizations participants. Questionnaires can also be used to gather attitudes about organizational membership. Third, the deepest level occurs here. The organizations tacit hypothesis are found are found here. The elements of organizational culture that are hidden from view and can not be cognitively identified in everyday interactions between organizational members. Additionally, these are the elements of culture that are forbidden in the discussion sessions within the organization. Also, most of the unspoken rules already exist without the conscious knowledge of the membership. Furthermore, the members of the organizations having garnered the minimum experience to comprehend the deepest level of organizational culture normally familiar with the company’s attributes over time. Consequently, this strengthens the invisibility of their existence. Surveys and casual interviews with organizational members cannot draw out these attributes. More in depth analysis and scrutiny must be exercised to first identify then understand organizational culture at this level. Outstandingly, culture at this level is the fundamental and driving element that organizational behaviorists needs to see. Applying Schein’s model, comprehending paradoxical organizational behaviors has now been very apparent. For example, an organization can recognize highly aesthetic and moral standards at the second level of Scheins model when consecutively showing curiously contradicting behavior at the third and deepest level of culture. On the surface, organizational rewards could give the signal that one organizational norm is intended but at the deepest level the signals show something completely different. This shows that This insight gives an understanding of the difficulty organizational newcomers have in absorbing organizational culture and why it takes time to become accustomed to the new culture. In addition, simply understanding culture at the deepest level may not be enough to institute cultural change because the dynamics of interpersonal relationships (often under threatening conditions) are padded to the dynamics of organizational culture while attempts are made to institute desired change. Analyze why there is cultural change in the organization, To repeat, there is a saying that goes there is nothing permanent in this world but change. There must be cultural change because the members of the organization have to be authorized and motivated in order for real change to take place. For, people need to reach that situation where all of management and staff are both able and willing to change. Another reason is that the culture of the customers continuously vary from one country to another and from one state to another. And, culture changes also as years progress. Change in culture occurs because the mission, vision and the set of organizational objective constantly change based trends and the news. The mission is what inspires the members of the organization to feel good when performing their jobs. In fairness, cultural change occurs because the full cost of a cultural change programs is sometime difficult to add up as part of the organization’s benefits. Another reason is that management has the time and effort (in planning, listening, responding and communicating) to invest in cultural change. On the contrary, cultural change may result to trashing the companies’ well loved status symbols. These symbols are oftentimes the hindrances to effective teamwork across all levels of staff and management. And, cultural change occurs because management often has to master new tricks, such as how to sell themselves to organizational staff, customers, suppliers and other stakeholders of the company as well. Furthermore, cultural change occurs for management must continue to find new and better ways to lead the organization as the company buys raw materials needed to form part of the finished products that the culturally changing clients buys(Sarason, 1971). What are the reasons for the success? Why? There are many reasons for the success of cultural change. For one, the increase in the revenues due to the change in cultural values in the organization cannot be debated. Another reason for the success is that the people within the organization feel that they have been part of the cultural change thereby giving them the encouragement to push through with the new organizational culture. Another reason for the success is that there is lesser resistance from the members of the organization from what had been projected. For example, the accounting clerk has to implement the new cultural change where he or she is now required to visit customers to determine whether they have any comments and suggestion that could help the company better its services. Explore how the issue(s) can been seen from different perspectives and the implication arising from these to deepen analysis further. In the article In defense of globalization: why cultural exchange is still an overwhelming force for good – Globalizatio(Legrain, 2003) the fears that globalization is imposing a deadening cultural uniformity are as ever-present as Coca-Cola, McDonalds, and Mickey Mouse. For, there are many people who hate the thought that local cultures and national identifies are dissolving into a crass all-American consumerism. And, such cultural imperialism is popularly accepted to ram down the throats of other countries that American cultural values and products, promote its commercial enterprises at the expense of the authentic, and substitute shallow gratification for deeper satisfaction(Frederick, 1995). For, Thomas Friedman, the columnist for the New York Times and author of The Lexus and the Olive Tree, persists in his theory that that globalization means "globalizing American culture and American cultural icons." On the contrary, Naomi Klein, a Canadian journalist and author of No Logo debates that that "Despite the embrace of polyethnic imagery, market-driven globalization doesnt want diversity; quite the opposite. Its enemies are national habits, local brands, and distinctive regional tastes." The new cultural change is that globalization involves the imposition of Americanized uniformity, rather than an explosion of cultural exchange. This is one of the main products of our borderless economy where American people can buy and sell goods to places such as Africa, India, China, Malaysia, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Canada, Mexico and other places just by the click of the mouse in an online computer at the wee hours of the morning. In general, the young people prefer a cultural change for they liken it as invading uncharted territories. On the contrary, older people prefer to hang on the old ways because they are more comfortable and at ease there. In the end, cultural change must be embraced by the organization and its members with open arms in order to stay way above the competition in terms of revenues bigger cut of the customer pie(Edsforth, 1991). Globalization frees people from the tyranny of location. With the internet, we can now see the news and cultures of people from the eastern, western, northern, southern and the other side of the world(Patai, 1962). In fact, Mcdonalds and many American appliances are being sold to people from different cultures around the world. Coke and Pepsi have literally taken over all the countries in the world. Hollywood, football, soccer, baseball and basketball have been accepted outside the American borders because the foreign cultures have been scrutinized and accepted by the American companies. This is the best reason why culture change is the magic ingredient to permit the organization to stay abreast of the competition until the next decade or more. The American organization must study and infuse the cultures and traditions of people around the world because their products should take notice of the culture there(Aaltia, 2002). CONCLUSIONS Highlight any implications or reasons you have learned about the management of change and change theory from the analysis of the case study. Globalization frees people from the tyranny of location. With the internet, we can now see the news and cultures of people from the eastern, western, northern, southern and the other side of the world(Bird, 1971). In fact, Mcdonalds and many American appliances are being sold to people from different cultures around the world. Coke and Pepsi have literally taken over all the countries in the world. Hollywood, football, soccer, baseball and basketball have been accepted outside the American borders because the foreign cultures have been scrutinized and accepted by the American companies(Skelton, 1999). This is the best reason why culture change is the magic ingredient to permit the organization to stay abreast of the competition until the next decade or more. The American organization must study and infuse the cultures and traditions of people around the world because their products should take notice of the culture there. There is no standard formula for changing the culture of an organisation - there are a variety of tools and techniques. The organization must choose the one most appropriate for their specific situation. The company should identify the critical success factors that are unique to their particular environment. Definitely, as was explained in The Basics of Team Building, the main objective is to change global behaviours and attitudes thereby resulting to a worldwide culture(Oden, 1997). This is a conglomeration all the cultures of the world. Last, the workers and the organization are now have focused on the family concept and the clan control culture. Likewise, employees are energetically working hard to fill their customers(Cassey, 2007). REFERENCES: Casey, C., Designer Culture, Designer Employees and ‘Post-occupational’ Solidarity, Sage, London, 1996 Charles W. L. Hill, and Gareth R. Jones, (2001) Strategic Management 5th Edn, Houghton Mifflin, MeansBusiness, Inc., New York Schein, E.H. (2005) Organizational Culture and Leadership, 3rd Ed., Jossey-Bass Edsforth et al., Popular Culture and Political Change in Modern America, State University of New York Press, New York, 1991 Oson, G., Eoyang, G., Facilitating Organization Change: Lessons from Complexity Science, Jossey-Bass, New York, 2001 Phillips, W., Nightmares of Anarchy: Language and Cultural Change, 1870-1914 Bucknell University Press, Lewisburg, PA.,2003 Perkinson, H., How Things Got Better: Speech, Writing, Printing, and Cultural Change Bergin & Garvey, Connecticut, 1995 Geller, E., Forbidden Books in American Public Libraries, 1876-1939: A Study in Cultural Change, Greenwood Press, Connecticut, 1984 Frederick, W., Values, Nature, and Culture in the American Corporation, Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1995 Edsforth et al., Popular Culture and Political Change in Modern America Book by Ronald Edsforth, Larry Bennett, Michael Barkun, Lizabeth Cohen; State University of New York Press, New York,1991 Skelton, T., Culture and Global Change, Routledge, New York, 1999 Oden, H., Managing Corporate Culture, Innovation, and Intrapreneurship Book by Howard W. Oden; Quorum Books, Connecticut, 1997 Aaltia, I. Mills, A., Gender, Identity, and the Culture of Organizations Routledge, New York, 2002 Patai, R., lden Road: Society, Culture, and Change in the Middle East University of Pennsylvania Press, Pennsylvania, 1962 Sarason, S., The Culture of the School and the Problem of Change, Allyn and Bacon, Boston, 1971 Bird el tal, Mapping the Futures: Local Cultures, Global Change, Routledge, New York, 1993 Read More