1. The Cultural Context of Human
Resource Management
Mayur Panchal, Mateusz Wojtanowski
2. Plan of the presentation
Mateusz
Definition of culture
Levels of mental programing
Contextual factors of HRM
Hofstede’s dimensions of national culture
Is the cultural context important?
Reservations
„Tip of the iceberg”
Mayur
Introduction of culture context to HRM
Aspect of Organizational culture
Characteristics of culture
Organizational culture in context of HRM
Do Organizations Have Uniform Cultures?
How Organizational Culture Forms?
How Employees Learn Culture
O.C as value system
3. What is the culture?
„Common patterns of belief, asumptions,
values and norms of behaviour of human
groups” (Aycan, Kanungo, Mendonca, et
al.).
„Mental programs that are shared by groups
of people and that condition their responses
to their environment” (Hofstede).
5. HRM – contextual factors
(Jackson, Shuler)
Internal - technology, structure, size,
organizational life cycle stage, and
business strategy.
External - legal, social, and political
environments; unionization; labor market
conditions; industry characteristics; and
national cultures.
6.
7. Hofstede’s dimensions of national
culture
Individualism vs Collectivism
Masculinity vs Feminity
Uncertainity Avoidance
Power Distance
Time Orientation
Indulgence vs Restraint
8. Individualism (individuality, uniqueness) vs
Collectivism (conformity, interdependence)
Masculinity (ambition, acquisition of wealth)
vs Feminity (overlap of social gender roles,
tenderness)
9. Uncertainity avoidance – express degree to
which the members of a society feel
uncomfortable with uncertainty and ambiguity.
Strong Uncertainity Avoidance Index
(intolerant for new ideas, rigid codes) vs Weak
UAI („practice counts more than principles”).
10. Power Distance – measure of handling with
unequality among society.
Strong Power Distance Index (acceptation of
hierarchical order among less powerful
members) vs Weak PDI (people want equal
distribution of power)
11. Long Term Orientation („modern education
as way to prepare for the future”) vs Short
Term Normative Orientation (time honoured
traditions, sceptical attitiude towards societal
change)
Indulgence (gratification of natural human
drives to enjoy life) vs Restraint (strict social
norms)
12. Is the cultural context important?
Globalization and evolution of international
enterprises demand awereness of in how
human resources are managed among
countries.
13. „Because countries often have unique
cultures (i.e. values, norms, and customs) it
is widely presumed that multinational
enterprises must understand the culture(s) of
the region(s) in which they operate in order
to effectively manage their human
resources” (Jackson, Shuller).
14. Some types of HRM systems can be used
effectively across countries that are
culturally quite dissimilar.
Hofstede – organizational and industry
characteristics may be more important
than national cultures as determinants of
managerial practices and employee
behaviors.
Reservations
15. „Tip of the iceberg”. Why culture
of others often seems to be
strange? (C. Thomas, B.
Lazarova)
Visible artifacts of the culture
Deeper set of meanings
16. Organizational Culture
The pattern of shared values, beliefs
and assumptions considered to be the
appropriate way to think and act within
an organization.
◦ Culture is shared
◦ Culture helps members solve problems
◦ Culture is taught to newcomers
◦ Culture strongly influences behaviour
17. Introduction to culture context of
HRM:-
Culture is a powerful determinant in how
human performance problems are
perceived and how their solutions in the
form of employee development
interventions are created, implemented
and evaluated.
18. Aspects of culture:-
There are,
Culture is learned
Culture is shared
Systematic and organized.
Culture is something that is shared by
a specific group of people and is not
readily available to individuals outside
groups.
19. Characteristics of Organizational
Culture:-
Norms
Innovations and risk taking
Attention to detail
Outcome orientation
People orientation
Team orientation
Aggressiveness
Stability
20. Organizational culture in a
context of HRM:-
On one hand organizational culture is
an environment for a positive or
negative development of the human
potential (Brown, 1998).
21. Organizational culture in a
context of HRM( conti.) :-
On the other hand according to “E.
Schein organizations need to involve a
consensus on two sets of issues: -
“those witch help the group adapt to
the external environment; -
those witch help the organization to
integrate, its internal process –
internal integration of individuals in
organization, in organizational culture
(Schein, 1985).
22. Core function of organizational
culture:-
The core function of organizational
culture is to facilitate the development
of human potential, including its
innovative and creative potential.
23. Do Organizations Have Uniform
Cultures?
Organizational culture represents a
common perception held by the
organization members.
Core values or dominant (primary) values
are accepted throughout the organization.
◦ Dominant culture
Expresses the core values that are shared by a majority
of the organization’s members.
◦ Subcultures
Tend to develop in large organizations to reflect common
problems, situations, or experiences.
25. Keeping a Culture Alive
Selection
◦ Identify and hire individuals who will fit in with the
culture
Top Management
◦ Senior executives establish and communicate
the norms of the organization
Socialization
◦ Organizations need to teach the culture to new
employees
27. Socialization is a process made up of three stages:
Pre-arrival - All the learning occurring before a new
member joins.
Encounter - The new employee sees what the
organization is really like and confronts the
possibility that expectations and reality may
diverge.
Metamorphosis - The relatively long-lasting
changes take place. The new employee masters
the skills required for the job, successfully performs
the new roles, and makes the adjustments to the
work group’s values and norms.
Socialization Process
28. • Organizational culture management is in a direct
interaction with human resource management.
P. Drucker believes that at the present as well as
in the future there is no question of what is the
sole and proper organization (also
organizational culture) type, because
organization is only a tool, which is irrelevant
without humans. It is a moral as well as social
phenomenon
• Organizational culture is associated with
behavior (also leadership style), stories,
language, rituals, ceremonies, myths, heroes, etc
29. Stories – Depicting the past events of the
organization. Some organizations actually try to
manage this element of culture learning.
Rituals – Repetitive sequential activities reinforcing
the values of the organization.
Material Symbols – Conveying social equality,
desired organizational behavior, etc. by the top
management.
Language – Acceptance and preservation of
culture.
How Employees Learn
Culture
30. organizational culture as value
system which determine attitude.
:-
Values are defined as ideas and objects
with a special meaning on a personal as well
as organizational level. They determine basic
assumptions about the reality, human
nature and relationships. Attitude is
valuation
It is described by a,
- cognitive aspect (positive or negative
views),
- affective aspects (emotions and feelings),
and
- behavioral aspects (specific actions)
31. Culture adapts to diverse circumstances.
Managers need to understand the nature and role
of culture.
Managers must understand the importance of
culture for organizational change.
Corporate culture also impacts the day-to-day
decision-making of the organization.
Conclusion
