Problem: Are You a Corporate-Culture Anthropologist?
Corporate-culture anthropologists are not digging in the dirt to retrieve artifacts of ancient civilizations. Instead, they study organizational behavior by systematically observing how an organization's members collectively think, act, and feel as they work to accomplish goals. Consider yourself a corporate-culture anthropologist and respond True or False to the following statements.
- I recognize that the shared assumptions of appropriate behavior guide the actions of an organization's members.
- I understand how values and beliefs help organizational members make sense of their roles.
- I understand how stories and myths convey an organization's values.
- I realize that an organization has heroes and heroines who are iconic representatives of its culture.
- I have observed how rituals reinforce an organization's culture.
- I am familiar with how ceremonies help to socialize organizational members.
- When analyzing an organization, I look for physical artifacts to understand its culture.
- I understand how an organization's founder influences its culture.
- I know that leaders are role models for exemplifying an organization's culture.
- I can make a mental connection between an organization's culture and its performance.
If you answered True to the majority of these questions, you are well on your way to becoming a corporate-culture anthropologist.