The main aim of this thesis is to specify issues of a corporate culture, while focusing on its cultural dimensions and a possible motivation factor in the direction of the knowledge economy. This thesis compares the current situation and the motivational potential of corporate culture in two selected companies. The theoretical part describes basic concepts, procedures and opinions of individual authors on corporate culture, motivation and knowledge economy issues. For research of corporate culture in chosen companies two surveys are used: The Value Survey Module 94 & 2013 (VSM) and Color test of semantic differential (TBSD). The research has identified which dominant cultural dimensions are motivating in selected organizations. Proposed measures that can change current state are based on the own analysis and they are given in conclusion.

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:32:41Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2012-09-28Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T18:43:58Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 garcia_r_dr_mar.pdf: 2290813 bytes, checksum: e1015c0065bdc3e1bf383565d6071a15 (MD5) / Apresenta, a partir de uma fundamentação teórica multidisciplinar, a proposta do modelo de Diagnóstico de Interferências nos Fluxos Informacionais (DIFI). Em síntese, o modelo reconhece o indivíduo como um ser cultural em suas relações com as culturas organizacional e informacional no contexto das organizações. Destaca os valores culturais como os elementos propensos a representar, de forma mais objetiva, a cultura. Revisa as teorias relacionadas aos fluxos informacionais e traz as contribuições sobre abordagens críticas à Teoria Matemática da Comunicação. Sob a sustentação desses referenciais avança discutindo os assuntos relacionados às implicações psicológicas envolvendo o stress, o coping e a percepção de suporte informacional, sob a perspectiva das interferências nos fluxos informacionais e da incongruência discurso versus prática sob o viés cultural. O modelo DIFI é fundamentado e estruturado em cinco dimensões: a Cultural Fit (CF); a Informational Values Shared (IVS); a Informational Flows Interference (IFI); a Informational Values Perceived (IVP); e a Psychological Implications (PI). A questão de pesquisa que norteia o trabalho resume-se ao questionamento sobre a possibilidade do desenvolvimento e da validação de um modelo de diagnóstico, tendo como objetivo contribuir para que as ações de interferências nos fluxos informacionais emanadas das organizações sejam fundamentadas no planejamento prévio e na melhor compreensão das percepções individuais. Preliminarmente o instrumento foi submetido ao pré-teste que contou com 98 respondentes e serviu aos objetivos de validação e ajustes de seus componentes a partir da utilização da análise fatorial e de confiabilidade das escalas. Na aplicação definitiva a metodologia empregada é a pesquisa de campo, pela aplicação... / This study presents, from a multidisciplinary theoretical basis, the proposal of the model of Diagnostic of Interferences on Informational Flows (DIIF). In summary, the model recognizes the individual as a cultural being in its relations with informational and organizational cultures in the context of the organizations. It highlights the culture values as the elements which tend to represent culture on a more objective way. It reviews the theories related to informational flows and brings contributions on critical approaches to the Mathematical Theory of Communication. Under the support of these references, it advances, discussing issues about the psychological implications involving stress, coping and the perception of the informational support, from the perspective of interferences in informational flows and of the incongruence between speech and practice under the cultural bias. The DIIF is based and structured into five dimensions: the Cultural Fit (CF); the Informational Values Shared (IVS); the Informational Flows Interference (IFI); the Informational Values Perceived (IVP); and the Psychological Implications (PI). The research question that guides this study is the possibility of developing and validating a diagnostic model, aiming to contribute that the actions of interferences in informational flows from the organizations be based on the preplanning and on the better understanding of individual perceptions. Preliminarily, the instrument was submitted to a pretest with 98 respondents and served to the purposes of validation and adjustments of its components from the use of factor analysis and of reability of scales. In the final implementation, the field research was adopted, applying a structured questionnaire with one opened question and some closed ones, in a sample of 3,299 individuals, from 107,000 undergraduated students from a... (Complete abstract click electronic access below)

The importance of managing organisational culture for the sustainable implementation of lean systems in shared services is of increasing interest to researchers and practitioners. The current state of research demonstrates that companies have failed to establish a sustainable lean system with a virtuous continuous cycle of improvements. People and conflicting organisational cultures are conceived as the predominant reasons for lean failures. This study explains and explores the interdependencies of organisational culture and lean systems in captive shared services with regard to their potential of sustained performance and competitiveness. Hence, the research identifies the organisational cultural attributes and types that are addressed by a lean system, explores how culture management happened during a lean system implementation, and challenges the sustainability of the implemented lean system. So far, research has looked into the topics of organisational culture, shared service organisation, and lean system in isolation. This study is original as it synthesises all 3 topics. As this research places organisational culture influenced by leadership at the centre of its investigation, it critically applies not only Cameron and Quinn’s competing values framework (CVF), but also Martin’s 3 perspectives of culture as well as a synthesis of different relationship frameworks demonstrating the link between leadership, organisational culture, and organisational performance. This study is ground breaking as it critically looks at lean systems and their sustainability through the lens of organisational culture. Drawing on an in-depth case study conducted in a shared service organisation (SSO) of a global service company, this investigation applied a critical realist-based mixed-methods approach with a variety of primary data collection techniques. Different types of secondary data were used, also for the purpose of triangulation. A critical realist approach to thematic analysis was used to identify relevant stratified, institutional mechanisms. By applying a critical realist worldview, this research offers a multilevel understanding of the dynamics, contradictions and complexities when establishing a lean system. As a result, the study reveals that the implementation of lean systems in the service industry is not a linear approach as each instance and stage of culture management is unique. This multidimensional, culture-oriented interpretation, based upon pioneering empirical evidence from a global service company’s SSO, extends and deepens the understanding of the dynamic contradictions and complexity of lean system implementation that both constrain and enable organisational change. Key words: culture, shared services, lean, performance, leanness, lean sustainability, visual management, Competing Values Framework, leadership, mixed-methods, critical realism, culture management, continuous improvement.

Orientador: Barbara Fadel / Banca: Marta Lígia Pomim Valentim / Banca: Oswaldo Francisco de Almeida Júnior / Banca: Carla Aparecida Arena Ventura / Banca: Silvio Carvalho Neto / Resumo: Apresenta, a partir de uma fundamentação teórica multidisciplinar, a proposta do modelo de Diagnóstico de Interferências nos Fluxos Informacionais (DIFI). Em síntese, o modelo reconhece o indivíduo como um ser cultural em suas relações com as culturas organizacional e informacional no contexto das organizações. Destaca os valores culturais como os elementos propensos a representar, de forma mais objetiva, a cultura. Revisa as teorias relacionadas aos fluxos informacionais e traz as contribuições sobre abordagens críticas à Teoria Matemática da Comunicação. Sob a sustentação desses referenciais avança discutindo os assuntos relacionados às implicações psicológicas envolvendo o stress, o coping e a percepção de suporte informacional, sob a perspectiva das interferências nos fluxos informacionais e da incongruência discurso versus prática sob o viés cultural. O modelo DIFI é fundamentado e estruturado em cinco dimensões: a Cultural Fit (CF); a Informational Values Shared (IVS); a Informational Flows Interference (IFI); a Informational Values Perceived (IVP); e a Psychological Implications (PI). A questão de pesquisa que norteia o trabalho resume-se ao questionamento sobre a possibilidade do desenvolvimento e da validação de um modelo de diagnóstico, tendo como objetivo contribuir para que as ações de interferências nos fluxos informacionais emanadas das organizações sejam fundamentadas no planejamento prévio e na melhor compreensão das percepções individuais. Preliminarmente o instrumento foi submetido ao pré-teste que contou com 98 respondentes e serviu aos objetivos de validação e ajustes de seus componentes a partir da utilização da análise fatorial e de confiabilidade das escalas. Na aplicação definitiva a metodologia empregada é a pesquisa de campo, pela aplicação... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: This study presents, from a multidisciplinary theoretical basis, the proposal of the model of Diagnostic of Interferences on Informational Flows (DIIF). In summary, the model recognizes the individual as a cultural being in its relations with informational and organizational cultures in the context of the organizations. It highlights the culture values as the elements which tend to represent culture on a more objective way. It reviews the theories related to informational flows and brings contributions on critical approaches to the Mathematical Theory of Communication. Under the support of these references, it advances, discussing issues about the psychological implications involving stress, coping and the perception of the informational support, from the perspective of interferences in informational flows and of the incongruence between speech and practice under the cultural bias. The DIIF is based and structured into five dimensions: the Cultural Fit (CF); the Informational Values Shared (IVS); the Informational Flows Interference (IFI); the Informational Values Perceived (IVP); and the Psychological Implications (PI). The research question that guides this study is the possibility of developing and validating a diagnostic model, aiming to contribute that the actions of interferences in informational flows from the organizations be based on the preplanning and on the better understanding of individual perceptions. Preliminarily, the instrument was submitted to a pretest with 98 respondents and served to the purposes of validation and adjustments of its components from the use of factor analysis and of reability of scales. In the final implementation, the field research was adopted, applying a structured questionnaire with one opened question and some closed ones, in a sample of 3,299 individuals, from 107,000 undergraduated students from a... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Doutor

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Peninsula Technikon, Cape Town, 2004 / Organizational identification has been regarded as a new control strategy for modem organizations. High levels of organizational members' identification result in various benefits to organizational performance. Among organizational theorists there exists a strong school of thought, which sees organizational culture as the antecedent to organizational identification. Culture, and therefore also organizational culture, is a complex and integrative phenomenon which encompasses the values, assumptions, interactions and behaviours within a particular group. As point of departure, this research adopted Martin's (2000:26) argument that culture is best studied through the cultural artefacts, being the most visible manifestations also of deep-seated values and assumptions. Previous studies on organizational culture-related organizational behaviours have been conducted mostly in a Western-cultural context. It was hoped, by this research, to fill the theoretical gap by establishing a link between organizational culture and organizational identification in Chinese organizations. The relationship between organizational culture and organizational identification was investigated through a survey conducted in three Chinese organizations representing a cross section of industry. The six organizational cultural dimensions, as identified by Glaser, Zamanou, and Hacker (1987: 192-193), formed the basis for the survey instrument, the purpose of which was to establish if, and to what extent, organizational culture, IV as reflected in these dimensions in their positive manifestation, were seen as contributors to organizational identification on the part of employees. The data analysis and interpretation showed that Chinese employees viewed all six cultural dimensions as having a positive influential power on organizational identification. This could be accepted as proof that the theories that organizational culture enhances organizational identification (Kunda, 1992; Ray, 1994; Tompkins and Cheney, 1985; Trice and Beryer, 1993) can be applied both in the Westem-cultural context and Chinese-cultural context. By applying the Friedman and Wilcoxon signed-ranks tests it was established that, among the six cultural dimensions, 'Morale' and 'Supervision' were the most influential dimensions of culture according to the responses of Chinese employees; 'Information Flow', 'Teamwork' and 'Meetings' were the least influential dimensions. As indicated, the study was limited to a survey of employees as regards the six dimensions of organizational culture. Further research would be required in order to provide more concrete and extensive proof of the role played by organizational culture in nurturing employee identification and concomitant commitment.

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2009 / Within China's the hotel industry, they are known as expatriate managers and. on behalf of parent multinational hotel corporations, provide an element of control and co-ordination within local operating units. On average, organisations spend over two and a half times more money to send an employee on an expatriate assignment than they would if they hired employees locally. Expatriate managers have been faced with new and complex organisational cultures and work practices. In order to avoid expensive failure costs and to manage suci:essfuJly, an exploration of the issues that face international hotel managers in China. is both timely and relevant A qualitative case study approach was used for this thesis, while secondaIy dala was obtained from private, as well as public sources. Primary data was collected via questionnaires from hotel managers comprising both locals and expatriates. whilSt specific questions were exclusively posed to expatriate managers. Through collection and analysis of infonnation and data, and a thorough understanding of the research problem, this study provides a useful reference for expatriate hotel managers who are confronled with the issues of managing Chinese employees, as well as basic Chinese cultural, ethical and business valUes. Primarily this research examines challenges, which mostly arise from cross-cuIturaI differences between Westem and Chinese values, as well as a range of diverse organisational cultures and management styles within China's hotel industry. South Africa has become China's the biggest trading partner within Africa, while an increasing number of South African companies invest in China. The research is paramount to any foreign organisation that wants to conduct business in China.

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Date Unknown / Organisations in many industries, such as energy, banking and electronics, have faced increasingly complex and changing environments brought about by deregulation, technological revolution, foreign competition and unpredictable markets. Key to the success of these organisations is the development of a particular culture for the organisation. A well-conceived and well-managed organisation culture closely linked to organisation success, can also mean the difference between success and failure in the present demanding environment. Organisational culture has been assumed to have important implications, not only for the individual's affective reactions to organisational life, but also for organisational effectiveness. This study investigates the relationship between organizational culture and effectiveness in the Western Cape banking industry. Beginning with an existing model of organizational culture and effectiveness, the paper presents a linked study. The study uses survey data from six organizations designed to test the applicability of the model in the context of the Western Cape banking industry. The results support Denison's findings, namely that organisational culture has a positive impact on effectiveness. The discussion includes several recommendations for future research.

Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Technology: Business Administration in the Faculty of Business Management at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. / Modern human resource management suggests that organisations that have succeeded in the business arena have done so through good people management practices and employees who display productive behaviour above and beyond their formal job descriptions. General thought behind job satisfaction supports that happy employees are inclined to be more productive, creative and committed to their jobs, all of which are essential to achieving an organisation’s bottom line. Organisational citizenship behaviour is another factor that is regarded as important for achieving organisational effectiveness. There has been some disagreement regarding the nature of the relationship between job satisfaction (JS) and organisational citizenship behaviour (OCB). Some studies have shown that OCB is as a result of JS. Following these studies, this research paper focuses on the extent to which JS influences OCB among a sample of employees within a Western Cape government office. Employees at the government office (N =105), selected through convenience sampling, were surveyed regarding their level of JS and their readiness to display OCB. Quantitative data was collected through a paper-based survey, using validated standardised questionnaires to measure both JS and OCB. The results show that respondents reported moderate levels of JS and OCB. Through the study it was established that there is a significant relationship between JS and OCB. Furthermore, the JS dimensions of ‘internal work motivation’ and ‘growth satisfaction’ explained 25% of the variance in OCB. This research investigated the relationship between OCB and JS in a South African context, providing insight into their relationship in a public sector organisation. In terms of practical significance, exploring the relationship between JS and OCB can provide insight for management and guidance for human resource practices, which can assist in improving JS and therefore the success of a business.

Thesis (MTech (Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2006. / This study investigated whether the different home languages of employees of a large financial institution in the Western Cape had an influence of their perception of organisational structure and processes. The author conducted a series of interviews with management-level employees who speak Afrikaans, English and Xhosa as home languages in an attempt to ascertain the extent of the influence of individual cultures on perceptions and actions in corporate society. Specific attention was given to how these individuals perceived meetings, decision-making processes and conflict. These interviews were transcribed verbatim and studied by means of narrative analysis using a specialised software package to provide a better insight into the roles language and culture play within the South African organisation. Based on the narratives provided by the respondents in this study, the author concluded that individual culture does play a significant role in the perceptions of organisational structures such as conflict management,interaction during meetings, decision-making and acceptance of authority.

Thesis (MTech (Business Information Systems))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2017. / The aim of this study was to explore the social determinants for the institutionalisation of knowledge sharing within an organisation. Institutionalisation offers stabilising benefits and contributes to nurturing a culture of knowledge sharing. Systematic sharing of knowledge cannot take place unless there are procedures, policies and guidelines for knowledge sharing. Giddens’s concept of duality of structure was used as the theoretical lens. Institutionalisation is considered to be rules that are shared and that recognise categories of social actors and their applicable activities or relationships (Barley & Tolbert, 1997). Challenges arise when knowledge sharing is not as efficient as it should be due to many constraints. One of them is inadequate procedures and policies for knowledge sharing. Systematic sharing of knowledge cannot take place unless there are procedures, guidelines and policies for knowledge sharing (Riege 2005). Sharing of knowledge cannot be effective if suitable procedures and processes are not in place (Riege, 2005:28-32). The research used a mixed method approach and employed an interpretive case study methodology. A focus group was conducted from a qualitative stance, followed by a survey from a quantitative perspective with senior, medium and junior-level staff members working within the Development Information and Geographic Information Systems department of a selected municipality in the Western Cape, South Africa. The sample represents a hundred percent of the population being all sixty staff members for the DI & GIS department, from which seven were used for the focus group from the qualitative perspective and the remainder for the quantitative survey. For the qualitative side, content analysis was used to analyse data generated from the focus group, while a descriptive statistical analysis was employed to analyse the data gathered from the quantitative survey. The findings suggest that organisational structure, policies, processes, corporate governance and technology are major enablers for the institutionalisation of knowledge sharing in an organisation. Management support and organisational culture were also recognised as social factors for knowledge sharing institutionalisation. New strategies for reinforcing efforts to nurture and invigorate the institutionalisation of knowledge sharing within an organisation were generated and presented as a general framework.