MGT 212: Organizational

Management 
Mid 1 Lecture 2- Culture, Constrains &
Challenges for Managers

MD Asif Hossain 
Today’s Topic

 Discuss
view of Management: Omnipotent &
Symbolic 
 Examine the challenges in the External & Internal
environment 
 Characteristics of organizational culture
 The challenges managers are facing in terms of
organizational culture.
 Current cultural issues organization are facing
 View of Management: Omnipotent &
Symbolic
 Omnipotent View of Management

- Managers are directly responsible for success or

failure.
- Someone have to be held accountable when organization
performance is low regardless of the reason.
-The quality of the organization is determined by the
quality of its managers
- For example, Football Coach  
External Environment that Effect the
Organization

Stakeholders
 Common Stakeholders of an
Organization.
Stakeholders
Any constituencies in the
organization’s
environment that are
affected by an
organization’s decisions
and actions
View of Management: Omnipotent &
Symbolic (Cont.)

 Symbolic View of Management

- Most of the organizational success/failure is due to

external factors. These are usually out of the manager’s
control.
-  Such as the economy, customers, government policies,
competitors’ action, industry conditions and decisions
made by previous managers
- According to the symbolic view, the actual part that
management plays in the success or failure of an
organization is minimal. 
Constrain And Challenges

 Reality: Managers are neither all-powerful nor helpless. 

 External Environment/Organizational Environment both
imposes constraints on manager’s operation.

External Internal
How External Environment Affects
Managers
 Jobs and Employment-
- (Recession= people losing jobs; layoff; graduates finding it difficult
to get jobs)
- The economic condition also effects how a company hires. (For
example, Managers going for freelancers/part-timer)
 Assessing Environmental Uncertainty- It gets difficult for
organizations to access the degree of changes in the business
environment.
 Managing Stakeholders/Relationship- Its important in any business
to build relationship with stakeholders. As any decisions will effect
stakeholders and stakeholders effect the decision making as well.
Video

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4cBN8xH-5Q
w
Organizational Culture
 Definition:
The shared values, principles, traditions, and ways of doing
things that influence the way organizational members act and
that distinguish the organization from other organizations.

This definition Implies:

 Culture is Perception (Something based on what they experience
within the culture)
 Culture is Descriptive (How the people working in the
organization explains it)
 Culture is Shared Term (It shared/shaped by different
individuals in the organization)
Dimensions of Organizational Culture
Apple’s dedication towards Attention to
details

Story Time
Where Culture Comes from and How it
Continues
Organizational Culture (Cont.)
 Strong Cultures
 - Those in which the key values are deeply held and widely shared.
 -They have a greater influence on employees

 Factors Influencing the Strength of Culture

- Size of the organization
- Age of the organization
- The strength of the original culture
- Clarity of the cultural values
Strong vs Weak Cultures
Strong
 Values widely shared
 Culture conveys consistent
messages about what's important
 Most employees can tell stories
about company history or heroes
 Employees strongly identify with
the culture
 A strong connection between
shared values and behaviours
Weak
 Values limited to a few people—
usually top management
 Culture sends contradictory
messages about what's important
 Employees have little knowledge
of company history or heroes
 Employees have little
identification with the culture
 Little connection between shared
values and behaviours
How Employees Learn Culture

 Stories- Narratives of significant events or actions of

people that convey the spirit of the organization
 Rituals- Repetitive sequences of activities that express
and reinforce the values of the organization
 Materials Artefacts and Symbols- Physical assets
distinguishing the organization
 Language- Phrases, acronyms, and jargon of terms, Words
meaning specific to an organization.
How Culture Affects Managers
 Cultural Constraints on Managers
 Whatever managerial actions the organization
recognizes as proper or improper on its behalf
 The culture conveys to managers what is appropriate
behaviors and what is not.
How Culture Affects Managers (Cont.)
 3 Current Cultural Issues

Innovative Culture,
Responsive Culture &
Sustainable Culture
Innovative Culture
 Challenge and Involvement: Are employees involved/motived by long
term goals and success of the organization?
 Freedom- Are employees provided enough freedom on how to do their
tasks
 Trust and openness- Are employees supportive and respectful of each
other
 Idea Time- Do individual have time to elaborate on a new idea before
taking action.
 Playfulness/ Humor- It the workplace environment fun
 Conflict Resolution- Are issues resolved based on the good of the
organization or personal interest
 Debates- Are employees allowed to express an opinion
 Risk-taking- Do managers tolerate uncertainty? Are they rewarded for
risks
Customer Responsive Culture
Example of Customer Responsive Culture

Story Time

Claims they are obsessed

with customer
satisfaction.
 Omnipotent VS Symbolic Views
 What is Organizational Culture  
 How does internal/external environment effect the
manager’s decision making?
7 Dimensions that shapes the culture.
 Strong vs. weak Culture
 Cultural Issues- Innovative/ Customer responsive.
ANY QUESTIONS ?
Further Reading

 Chapter7- Management 14th Edition- Stephen P.

Robbins, Mary Coulter