Culture and Values

What is it all about and why is it important to you in systems implementation?

'Culture' is frequently defined in an organisation context as the core beliefs, traditions and values of the organisation. It is vitally important for systems implementers to understand. Frequently, systems implementations are seen to challenge traditional beliefs and this can make systems implementation very complex. It means that the systems implementer will need to deal with a range of non-technical and non-system issues in addition to his/her core systems remit. It is quite common for a systems implementer to have a mandate which contradicts the culture of the organisation, for example you may have a mandate to implement a 'self-service' HR system in a culture which is pre-occupied with hierarchical approval and multiple cross-checking. Another definition of culture is 'The way things are done in this place.' It follows that if as a system implementer you are trying to change 'the way things are done in this place' you need to pay attention to the concept of culture.

Cultural Types

Educational establishments are often seen as hierarchical and resistant to cultural change. It may be worthwhile looking at some common characteristics of such organisations so that you can have some sort of analytical benchmark to see which pattern fits your organisation. Shown below is a table showing common characteristics of hierarchical organisations and high performance organisations.

There is an important difference between the two types of organisation which can be characterised by the contrast between internal and external focus. A hierarchical organisation is pre-occupied with itself. A High-Performance organisation is pre-occupied with outputs and success. The ultimate hierarchical organisation sees its ultimate goal as self-perpetuation whereas a High Performance organisation is changing and adaptive to its external environment.

Of course, we must emphasise that no organisation will fit these stereotypes 100%. They are models or benchmarks against which we can try to analyse our own organisational culture. Particularly in colleges and universities it is important that we acknowledge another key warning. Most of us do not work in a single culture. Colleges and universities are a rich mixture of academic and other sub-cultures so it is a mistake to think of our organisation as a single monolithic cultural entity. To use a common example, colleagues in Engineering Departments can approach academic and organisational issues from a very different perspective than colleagues in, say, Social Science or Art Departments. This is easy to see and understand.

It should also be easy to appreciate the extent to which we are each part of our own network and sub-culture. As human beings we gravitate towards those who share our outlook and perspectives on life and tend to communicate more frequently with these colleagues. As systems implementers we need to break out of our own sub-culture and penetrate others. We need to be able to find common ground which will enable everyone in the organisation (or at least the majority on whom success depends) to see the benefit in the proposed system implementation. How do we do this?

Most commentators see the only successful method of doing this is an appeal to people's values. This is at two levels - the values of the organisation and the values you hold dear. What are values and what role do they play in the organisation?

'The starting point ... lies in ensuring that the value systems of the business are congruent with the values and aspirations of the individuals. These values are the glue that holds the whole thing together. The values which permeate an organisation from top to bottom produce the invisible framework which substitutes for continuous control and perennial hands-on meddling with tiny details The values system should engender trust and confidence and should force more and more clarity ... It acts as an invisible quality standard as well as a constant reference point and spur and, because values can seldom be absolute, it represents a crawling ratchet of self-improvement.'(Harvey-Jones J. 1994 - 'All Together Now' Mandarin Books p24).

This quotation from John Harvey-Jones places values at the heart of the organisation. They are the embodiment of the reasons the organisation exists in the first place. As a systems implementer you will need to be conscious of the organisation's prevailing value system and the culture because (particularly if it manifests more hierarchical tendencies) you need to ensure that changes you propose do not challenge the hierarchy. Remember that its prime purpose is self-preservation. You will need to be able to explain system changes as ones which are congruent with the organisation's goals. In an Education context this should be done by reference to the goals of supporting Learning and Teaching in its broadest sense.

You should also be conscious of your own personal value system and check whether it 'fits' with your organisation. In this lies a contradiction. You will find the greatest chance of success in systems implementation if you can convince the organisation that your system will support its culture and value system. One way of doing this is to become a personal example of the prevailing value system so that you will not be perceived as a threat and might also be perceived as a champion. On the other hand if you embody a set of values which is perceived (perception is important!) as incongruent with the organisation's prevailing values, you are doomed to failure.

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