Social, Cultural and Ethical Dimensions Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Social, Cultural and Ethical Dimensions - Essay Example The sum of these shared philosophies, assumptions, values, expectations, attitudes, and norms bind the organization together. Truly, organizational culture may be perceived as the manner in which an organization solves problems to achieve its specific goals and to maintain itself over time, it is holistic, historically determined, socially constructed and difficult to change (Hofstede, 1980). Organizational culture has a pivotal role in many companies as they developed new strategies in organizational management. It is a central aspect to many theories and prescriptions of management. However, despite frequent prescriptions to manage culture in diverse national contexts, little empirical evidence has been forwarded in contexts other than the UK and the US (Harris & Metallinos, 2002). Hofstede (1980) emphasized the strong impact of national culture in terms of the regional differences, and the following broad categories are suggested for European organizational models, like Germanic, Scandinavian, Anglo-Saxon and Latin. The members of the organization bring their own individual experiences, beliefs and values. Individuals are allowed in work-groups within the organization have their own behavioral quirks and interactions which, to an extent, affects the whole system. In addition, a In addition, a task culture can be devised; for instance, a computer technician will have expertise, language and behaviors gained independently of the organization that set them apart from their colleagues, but their mere presence can influence the culture of the organization. With all this, the senior management may determine the corporate culture that they may wish to impose corporate values and standards of behavior that specifically reflect the objectives of the organization. Hofstede identified five characteristics of culture in his study of national influences: Power distance - The degree to which a society expects there to be differences in the levels of power. A high score suggests that there is an expectation that some individuals wield larger amounts of power than others. A low score reflects the view that all people should have equal rights. Uncertainty avoidance reflects the extent to which a society accepts uncertainty and risk. individualism vs. collectivism - individualism is contrasted with collectivism, and refers to the extent to which people are expected to stand up for themselves, or alternatively act predominantly as a member of the group or organization. Masculinity vs. femininity - refers to the value placed on traditionally male or female values. Male values for example include competitiveness, assertiveness, ambition, and the accumulation of wealth and material possessions. Long vs. short term orientation On the other hand, corporate organizations in the 1980's have been adopting and installing programs of organizational restructuring and re-engineering. Most of the programs are based on the principles and practices of a widely popular management strategy often called Total Quality Management, participative management or "the learning organization," or some other vernacular title for a program of organizational structural and cultural change (Casey, 1999). These changes were then had been aptly devised in different corporate