How we Work: Geert Hofstede’s 6 Cross-Organization Cultural Dimensions
In the 1980s, the Dutch cultural psychologist Geert Hofstede returned to the study of culture, but focused on an analysis of organizational practices. The authors identified six cross-organizational dimensions that separate and define organizational cultures.
Watching this video is worth 3 Management Courses CPD Points*.
(See below for more details)
The Nature of Organizations
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This video is part of course module number 6.1.4
Program 6: Managing within Organizations
Course 1: The Nature of Organizations
Section 4: Organizational Culture
Other videos in this section include:
🎬 Introduction to Organizational Culture https://youtu.be/F_jEJBjE_J4
🎬 Cultural Web: Johnson & Scholes on Where Culture Originates https://youtu.be/i9hVuurBvh4
🎬 Quinn and Cameron: Competing Values Model of Organizational Culture https://youtu.be/eOnCetNa7Zc
🎬 Edgar Schein’s 3 Levels of Organizational Culture https://youtu.be/N37Foo0DOgE
🎬 National Culture within an Organization: Geert Hofstede’s 6 Cultural Dimensions https://youtu.be/eygJtngcqMs
LESSON NOTES
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Hofstede and his co-authors identified six cross-organizational dimensions that separate and define organizational cultures:
Process-oriented vs Results-oriented
Low risk, high efficiency vs a willingness to challenge, change, and adapt
Job-oriented vs Employee-oriented
Work-Oriented (staff feel driven to perform) vs Employee-Oriented (staff feel valued)
This is reminiscent of the distinction between Theory X and Theory Y
Professional vs Parochial
In a Professional culture, staff act differently at work, whereas in a parochial culture, they behave in similar (and probably less-formal) ways
Open systems vs Closed systems
The degree to which newcomers are made welcome and fit in quickly and easily.
Tightly versus vs Controlled
The flexibility of working practices and matters like dress, admin, and timekeeping, vs high levels of rigidity in the expectations on behavior, discipline, and work practices.
Normative vs Pragmatic
Normative cultures expect employees to follow strict rules, regulations, and procedures. Pragmatic cultures are far more easy-going as long as objectives like sales or customer service are met.
How an organization orients to these dimensions is partly a result of:
• The business or industry
• Its original national identity
Note that this work was based on research in only two countries, with a small sample of just 20 organizations. Therefore, their applicability may be limited.
Other organizational culture models share similar limitations. Here are some of the many dimensions various researchers and consultants have identified:
Organizational Effectiveness
Means-Oriented (focus on how) vs Goal-Oriented (focus on what)
Customer Orientation
Internally Driven (processes drive outside interactions) vs Externally Driven (outside interactions drive process design)
Focus
Local (workers identify with their business unit or their manager) vs Professional (workers identify with their role or skillset)
Empowered Culture
Controlled vs Empowered staff
Culture of Innovation
Stable vs innovative
Sales Culture
Service ethic vs Short-term profit
Culture of Safety
Extent of day-to-day focus on safety processes
RECOMMENDED EXERCISE
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1. Which of these cultural dimensions are most useful in describing your organization’s culture? (2 MC CPD Points)
2. And think back to other organizations you’ve worked in. How do the same dimensions highlight similarities and differences? (2 MC CPD Points)
3. If you could shift the position of your organization on one of these dimensions, to increase its performance, what shift would you make? (2 MC CPD Points)
4. And how might the organization approach making this shift? (2 MC CPD Points)
DOWNLOADS
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Paid resources
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RECOMMENDED READING
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– Understanding Organizations https://geni.us/oB774Do
– Images of Organization https://geni.us/hrOemEs
– Inside Organizations: 21 Ideas for Managers https://geni.us/YwwL
– Gods of Management: The Four Cultures of Leadership https://geni.us/bpPeC5
Managers Need a Basic kit to do your job well. Here are my top recommendations: https://kit.co/MikeClayton/manager-s-work-kit (the links are affiliated)
Management Courses Continuing Professional Development (CPD) Points
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