Organizational Culture and Social Networks

These flashcards cover key concepts related to organizational culture and social networks, including definitions of power, influence, and types of relationships.

Organizational Culture

A set of shared beliefs, values, and assumptions that exist within an organization.

Beliefs

Justifications that we articulate when asked to explain something.

Assumptions

Things we take for granted that we would not articulate when asked to explain.

Cultural Artifacts

Things we use to notice and understand culture, such as stories, language, symbols, ceremonies, and actions.

Socialization

The process of changing people's values and beliefs to align with organizational culture.

Types of Power - Positional

Power derived from one's formal position or job in an organization.

Legitimate Power

Power derived from formal position within the organization.

Coercive Power

Power derived from using punishment or threats.

Reward Power

Power derived from the ability to provide positive outcomes or prevent negative ones.

Types of Power - Personal

Power derived from personal characteristics rather than formal position.

Expert Power

Power derived from possessing special information or expertise valued by the organization.

Referent Power

Power derived from being well-liked or a role model to others.

Organizational Politics

Informal influence in organizations that helps members build alliances, achieve changes, and make decisions.

Political Skill

The ability to understand others and use that knowledge to influence them effectively.

Social Network

A visual representation of relationships consisting of nodes (people) connected by edges (ties).

Centrality - Degree

A measure of how many people an individual is tied to within a network.

Centrality - Betweenness

A measure of how often an individual appears on the shortest paths between others in a network.

Centrality - Closeness

A measure of how easily an individual can reach every other actor in a network.

Benefits of Organizational Culture

Coordination - employees understand what they are expected to do
Motivation - employees have strong identification with the organization
Control - employees are constrained by norms and reward / punishment mechanisms

Times when organizational culture is worthwhile strategically

Org performance depends on consistent behavior, but monitoring is difficult
Stability and reproducibility across people and time is crucial to org’s competitive advantage
Motivation is important but money is limited