Oci

"The Organizational Culture Inventory (OCI) provides a point-in-time picture of the culture of your organization in terms of 12 specific types of behavioral norms. It focuses on the behavioral patterns that members believe are required to 'fit in' and 'meet expectations' within their organizations." (OCI Interpretation & Development Guide, p. 3.)

Part I - Introduction

The organization that I selected to study was my own company, Action, Inc. ("Action").* (* the name of the company has been changed for this project.) This seems a logical choice, since I have an abundance of knowledge about this organization. I have been working at Action since 1990 (from 1990 - 1996 part-time while in college, then from 1998 to the present, full-time, as their only Human Resources representative). During this time, I have watched this organization grow from a 6-person company to a 75-employee company.

Part II - Current Culture

II A. Cultural Type

As we can see in the accompanying OCI Circumplex, Action is strongest in the Passive / Defensive Styles. This Passive / Defensive culture is generally one "in which members believe they must interact with people in ways that will not threaten their own security." (OCI Interpretation & Development Guide, p. 3.)

Action's Primary style is Conventional (4 O'clock position). This was the cultural norm with the greatest percent score: 97%. According to the OCI Interpretation & Development Guide, a "Conventional culture is descriptive of organizations that are conservative, traditional, and bureaucratically controlled. Members are expected to conform, follow the rules, and make a good impression. Too conventional a culture can interfere with effectiveness by suppressing innovation and preventing the organization from adapting to changes in its environment. ...encourages members to follow rather than lead," (p. 41) .

Action's Secondary style is Dependent (5 O'clock position). This was the cultural norm with the second greatest percent score: 96%. A "Dependent culture is descriptive of organizations that are hierarchically controlled and non-participative. Centralized decision making in such organizations leads members to do only what they're told and to clear decisions with superiors." (OCI Guide, p. 42.)

Action's Weakest style is Humanistic-Encouraging (1 O'clock position). This was the cultural norm with the lowest percent score: 5%. A "Humanistic-Encouraging culture characterizes organizations that are managed in a participative and person-centered way. Members are expected to be supportive, helpful, and open to influence in their dealings with one another." (OCI Guide, p. 22.)

I am not at all surprised by these results. I surmised most of this by observation and experience, but never before had a proper label for it. Actually, I am a bit surprised about the degrees or percentages represented on the Circumplex; I didn't expect that the styles would be so very high in some areas and so severely lacking in others.

II B. Behaviors Associated with the Current Cultural Type

In this section, I will describe the behaviors that are associated with the current cultural types at Action. The top three Primary styles are Conventional (97%), Dependent (96%), and tied for 3rd place are Power and Competitive (95%).

1. What behaviors are associated with the primary styles and reinforced by Action's current culture? Based on my observations and experiences at Action, I have two examples of the primary styles at Action:

a. Recently, one of the two VP's at Action, Jim, was micromanaging an ongoing recruiting effort by keeping an inordinately close track of my activities and the activities of one of the Hiring Managers. He told me that he felt that the Hiring Manager was 'dragging his feet' on the requirement, and I found out the next day that he told the Hiring Manager that I was dragging my feet on the requirement. This is indicative of one of the signs of a Conventional culture, where you "tell people different things to avoid conflict," (OCI Guide, p. 41); and

b. Another example of my experience with Action's primary styles happened about two months ago. One of the two VP's, Jim, came into my office after hours and asked me what I thought about his idea of speaking with a new employee about a personnel issue that had arisen soon after the new hire took place. During his explanation of why he felt he needed to get involved, he cited some old information about the situation. I proceeded to give him updated information on the situation and tell him the reasons why I felt it was not necessary for him to get involved at this time.

He clearly did not agree with my point of view and proceeded to interrupt me several times to disagree with me, to which I responded by asking him not to interrupt me so I could finish my thoughts and answer his questions. He was clearly ruffled when he left my office that night. The next day, my boss (Jane, the other VP in the company) called me in and informed me that Jim was very upset with me and that he told her that it was "extremely unprofessional" of me to "question an officer of the company on a proposed course of action." I was absolutely flabbergasted ! After all, he came in and asked me what I thought, and I explained it to him from my point of view. I told Jane my perception of the exchange, including the interruptions and my request that he not interrupt me, and asked her what she thought of the situation from my point of view. She hesitated and then answered, "Well, Jack [the President] and Jim feel...." It was immediately clear to me that I did not have an ally in her after those words came out of her mouth. This is clearly an example of the Dependent expectations listed in the OCI Guide: "never challenge superiors, do what is expected, be a good follower, please those in positions of authority..." (p. 42).

The top three Weakest styles at Action are Humanistic-Encouraging (5%), Affiliative (7.5%), and Self-Actualizing (8%).

2. What behaviors are associated with the weakest styles and not reinforced by Action's current culture? Based on my observations and experiences at Action, I have two examples of the weakest styles at Action:

a. I have often observed one of the VP's, Jane, telling her subordinates exactly how to deal with a situation, even down to telling them verbatim what to write in