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Business Transformation and Organizational Culture:: The Role of Competency, IS and TQM

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  • Philip, George
  • McKeown, Ian

Abstract

The broad aim of this paper is to examine the contribution which anthropology can make in the study of organizational culture and more specifically, in examining the relationship between culture and business transformation. In the 1970s, Mary Douglas, the world renowned British anthropologist, put forward the cultural theory of grid and group (G/G) which identified four distinct cultural typologies to define the position of an individual within a society. This model, which was developed originally to make a study of the social anthropology of religion among primitive African tribes, has more recently been used variously to describe many aspects of culture; however much less effort has been put into relating it to business organizations and in particular examining the role of organizational culture in business transformation. This is surprising given that cultural concepts have their roots in social anthropology. Since business transformation is primarily about fundamental changes in organizational culture, the purpose of this article is to argue that Douglas's theory provides an effective framework for analyzing and understanding the cultural changes which are necessary for successful organizational transformation. This is demonstrated by applying it to a major case study of an engineering/aerospace company in the UK. The cultural changes have been brought about through a range of strategies such as the development of managerial and organizational competencies, information systems, and quality management practices. It is a significant case study in that the organization has undergone radical transformation and secondly the transformation has been highly successful. An attempt is also made to compare the G/G model with other models including an examination of the wider applications of the model in the practice of management. The limitations and pitfalls of applying a cultural typology approach to organizational analysis are also briefly considered.

Suggested Citation

  • Philip, George & McKeown, Ian, 2004. "Business Transformation and Organizational Culture:: The Role of Competency, IS and TQM," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 22(6), pages 624-636, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:eurman:v:22:y:2004:i:6:p:624-636
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    Cited by:

    1. Jeroen Maesschalck & Heidi Paesen, 2021. "Profiling Organizational Culture: Using Grid-Group Cultural Theory as a Lens to Take a Snapshot of an Organization’s Culture," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(4), pages 21582440211, November.
    2. Stephen Jackson & Meng Seng Wong, 0. "A cultural theory analysis of e-government: Insights from a local government council in Malaysia," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 0, pages 1-15.
    3. Rubino, Michele & Vitolla, Filippo & Raimo, Nicola & Garzoni, Antonello, 2019. "Cultura nazionale e livello di digitalizzazione delle imprese europee: evidenze empiriche," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, pages 581-593.
    4. Stephen Jackson & Meng Seng Wong, 2017. "A cultural theory analysis of e-government: Insights from a local government council in Malaysia," Information Systems Frontiers, Springer, vol. 19(6), pages 1391-1405, December.
    5. Olga Gjerald & Torvald Ogaard, 2012. "Basic Assumptions of Service Employees: Influence on Job Performance and Market-oriented Behaviors," International Journal of Business Administration, International Journal of Business Administration, Sciedu Press, vol. 3(6), pages 1-12, November.
    6. Airlangga Hartarto & Jenri MP Panjaitan & Sumiyana Sumiyana, 2020. "A new method to empower organizational readiness for change in Indonesian SMEs," Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Issues, VsI Entrepreneurship and Sustainability Center, vol. 8(2), pages 230-252, December.
    7. João Barata & Paulo Rupino da Cunha & Ana Paula Melo Santos, 2018. "Mind the Gap: Assessing Alignment between Hospital Quality and its Information Systems," Information Technology for Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(2), pages 315-332, April.
    8. Ghafoori, Arman & Gupta, Manjul & Merhi, Mohammad I. & Gupta, Samrat & Shore, Adam P., 2024. "Toward the role of organizational culture in data-driven digital transformation," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 271(C).
    9. MIHU Cantemir & PITIC Antoniu Gabriel & BAYRAKTAR Dorin, 2023. "Drivers Of Digital Transformation And Their Impact On Organizational Management," Studies in Business and Economics, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Faculty of Economic Sciences, vol. 18(1), pages 149-170, April.
    10. Melissa Liborio Zapata & Lamia Berrah & Laurent Tabourot, 2022. "Identifying the scope of the implications of a Digital Transformation A formal approach to define the business dimensions involved," Post-Print hal-03544876, HAL.
    11. Latifi, Mohammad-Ali & Nikou, Shahrokh & Bouwman, Harry, 2021. "Business model innovation and firm performance: Exploring causal mechanisms in SMEs," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    12. Jan Jöhnk & Philipp Ollig & Patrick Rövekamp & Severin Oesterle, 2022. "Managing the complexity of digital transformation—How multiple concurrent initiatives foster hybrid ambidexterity," Electronic Markets, Springer;IIM University of St. Gallen, vol. 32(2), pages 547-569, June.
    13. Kavita Singh, 2010. "An Analysis Of Relationship Between The Learning Organization And Organization Culture In Indian Business Organization," Organizations and Markets in Emerging Economies, Faculty of Economics, Vilnius University, vol. 1(1).

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