Ch. 12 Summary - Culture

This chapter is about culture and how it affects the workplace. The chapter defines culture as a communally produced and shared model or reality that communicates how a group is expected to behave, think, and feel as a society. It is the collection of beliefs, norms and customs of any particular group of people. Culture is learned, from the time we are infants. As we grow, our experiences with others in society give us a social knowledge that allow us to be members of a culture. When communicating with people from other cultures in the workplace, one should realize that they may communicate in slightly different styles and we should be aware of this or this may lead to misunderstandings. Fifty years ago, the workplace in America was much less diverse from what it is today. Up to seventy percent of the labor market today is women and minorities. There are several variables in workplace diversity. Some of these are age, race, socioeconomics, sexual preference, gender, and physical disability. It is important to be inclusive of all people who may fit in to any one of these categories because our world is so much more globally connected in the 21st century. Now all companies aren’t the same. Each has its own corporate culture, the way it is structured and its expectations of its workers. A companies deep culture is the companies identity, its beliefs and perceptions. Now a companies observable organizational culture is the parts that can be seen or heard. These involve performance interactions, such as norms, rites and rituals, heroes and organizational lore. Norms are the behavior codes that are accepted. Rites and rituals of companies can be very important to them. These may be ceremonies, celebrations and company activities that everyone at the company may believe is an integral part of being part of their corporate family. All companies have a corporate culture and the better you integrate yourself into it, the better off you will be. Our class, and our school, is very diverse and I feel good to be a part of it. I think this is a very good experience for all of the students, because it will give us the skills and knowledge to be able to communicate with people from all backgrounds and I believe communication, in all aspects of life, is the key to success.