OB test #2

Question 1

Organizational Culture

Answer 1

The share beliefs, values, and assumptions that exist in an organization.

Question 2

What does organizational culture do?

Answer 2

Culture provides uniqueness and social identity to organizations.
It represents a true “way of life” for organizational members.
It tends to be fairly stable over time.

Question 3

Pre-Entry & At-entry Issues(RTDOSR)

Answer 3

1. Realistic Job preview (RPJ)
2. The Psychological Contract
3. Developing Commitment in the New Recruit
4. Orientation
5. Socialization
6. Recognizing Types of Cultures and their practices

Question 4

How do Organizations develop early commitment in the new recruit?(VEIP)

Answer 4

1. Visibility
2. Explicitness
3. Irreversibility
4. Personal Volition

Question 5

Socialization

Answer 5

The process by which an employee begins to adapt to the values, norms, and beliefs of the organization and its members (culture)

Involves learning the organizations climate and “learning to fit in”

Proximal and Distal socialization outcomes

Question 6

Climate

Answer 6

members’ shared perceptions of the contingencies between behaviours that occur in the work environment and their consequences

Learning what behaviours are expected, acceptable, unacceptable.

Question 7

Strategic Importance of socialization. (CURES)

Answer 7

1. Clarifies expectations / how things are done
2. Uncertainty reduction theory
3. Reduces anxiety for new employees
   (will I fit in?) (will i enjoy the job/coworkers/etc?)
4. Effects employee attitudes and behaviour
   (job satisfaction, commitment)
   (Job performance)
5. Sets the tone of employment relationship

Question 8

Uncertainty reduction theory

Answer 8

“newcomers are motivated to reduce their uncertainty so that the work environment becomes more predictable and understandable”.

Question 9

Strategic importance of socialization

Answer 9

Socialization facilitates the social influence process and leads to greater identification and involvement with organizational norms and roles.

Question 10

what does socialization help

Answer 10

helps employees move from compliance to internalization

Question 11

Compliance

Answer 11

conformity to a social norm out of desire to acquire rewards or avoid punishment

Question 12

Identification

Answer 12

conformity to a social norm out of belief that those who promote the norm are attractive or similar to ones self

Question 13

Internalization

Answer 13

conformity to a social norm out of true acceptance of the beliefs, values, and attitudes that underlie the norm

Question 14

Socialization Vs Orientation (socialization)

Answer 14

process of employees adapting to organization (culture/climate)

Long-term process, often informal

Person-job fit; person-organization fit; person-group fit; organizational identification

Question 15

Socialization vs orientation (orientation)

Answer 15

Program that informs new employees about their job and company

short-term, often formal

Employee orientation programs

Employee Orientation Program for Entry Stress
(ROPES)

Question 16

The three stages of socialization (AER)

Answer 16

1. Anticipatory (pre arrival)
2. Encounter
3. Role Management (settling in)

Question 17

Realistic job preview (RPJ)

Answer 17

Info about job demands and working conditions - both positive and negative aspects

Question 18

Anticipatory (pre arrival)

Answer 18

1. Employees begin with certain expectations about organization and job
2. may be unrealistic - if unmet, result in dissatisfaction, turnover, etc.
3. Not all anticipatory socialization will be accurate or useful
4. RJP may be helpful

Question 19

Encounter (1)

Answer 19

1. Employee has started now job
2. inconsistencies between expectations and reality emerge
3. needs info re: policies, procedure, etc.
   E.g, via orientation program
   organizational issues, policies etc.
   benefits
   introductions
   job duties

Question 20

Encounter (2) Benefits of a good orientation program

Answer 20

1. Shows organization values to employee
2. reduces employee anxiety and turnover
3. reduces start-up costs
   clarifies job and organizational expectations
4. Improves job performance

Question 21

Role Management (settling in)

Answer 21

1. inconsistencies start to get worked out
2. employee begins to identify with organization
3. transition from being an “outsider” to feeling like an “insider”
4. Often involves taking on new attitudes, values, and behaviours to align with organizations
5. misalignment = dissatisfaction and turnover

Question 22

socialization tactics(CIFFSS)

Answer 22

1. collective vs individual
2. Investiture (affirm identity) vs divestiture (strip self-confidence)
3. formal vs informal (on the job)
4. fixed vs variable (timeframe)
5. sequential vs random
6. serial (experiences, role models) vs disjunctive
   Depends on Organization

Question 23

Institutionalized vs individualized socialization

Answer 23

Institutionalized; Formalized and structured program; reduces uncertainty and encourages new hires to stick to status quo.
Collective - Formal - sequential - fixed - serial - divestiture

Individual; Reflects relative absence of structure; encourages new hires to question status quo and develop their own approach to their role.
Individual - informal - random - variable - disjunctive - investiture

Question 24

Mentoring

Answer 24

• Career functions (coach, feedback)
• Psychosocial functions (role model, counselling)

Question 25

diagnosing a culture

Answer 25

symbols - use symbols to reinforce cultural values

ritual - rites, rituals, ceremonies can convey essence. E.g., casual fridays, Walmart

stories - The folklore of organizations – stories about past organizational events – is a common
aspect of culture

Question 26

subcultures

Answer 26

smaller cultures that develop within a larger organizational culture that are based on differences in training, occupation, or departmental goals.
* E.g., could be a different culture across faculties or across departments

Question 27

Strong vs weak culture

Answer 27

Strong; An organizational culture with intense and pervasive beliefs, values, and assumptions.

A strong culture provides great consensus concerning “what the organization is about” or what it stands for.
* E.g., WestJet Airlines

Weak; Weak cultures are fragmented and have less impact on organizational members.

There may be a gap between the culture that leaders envisions and the culture that
employees experience

Question 28

Assets vs Liabilities (strong culture concept)

Answer 28

Assets; Coordination
-Facilitate communication and coordination
-Conflict Resolution
-Sharing core values can resolve conflicts
-Financial Success

Liabilities;
-Resistance to Change
-Damage a firm’s ability to innovate
-Culture clash
-Strong cultures can mix badly when a
-merger or acquisition occurs
-Pathology

Question 29

socialization steps in strong cultures

Answer 29

Selection
Hazing
Training
Reward & Promotion
Exposure to core culture
organizational folklore
Role models

Question 30

Proactive socialization

Answer 30

The employee plays an active role in his/her own socialization by:
information seeking
relationship building
boss-relationship building
networking

Question 31

Phycological contract

Answer 31

beliefs held by employees regarding the reciprocal obligations and promises between them and their organization.

Question 32

breach of the phycological contract

Answer 32

employee perceptions that their organization has failed to fulfill one or more of its promises or obligations in the phycological contract