D6: Management Philosophy

Intro › Level 1 › D6

Employee-oriented

Work-oriented

Employee orientation opposes a concern for people to a concern for completing the job, whatever the price may be. This aspect of the culture is most related to management philosophy.

A B C D

100

Some characteristics

The boss takes co-responsibility for our welfare

Personal problems are taken into account

It is difficult to get fired

Our welfare is our own business

Management is only interested in our output

We are put under pressure

Definition

In a very employee-oriented cultures people have the experience that personal problems are taken into account and that the organisation takes co-responsibility for the welfare of its employees, even if this is at the expense of the work (but the latter has been only in very rare cases found and then only if the culture scores between 0 to 10).

Existence of a very employee-oriented culture is often based on the assumption among top management that if one cares for one’s people they will care about the work they do.

In very work-oriented organisations there is heavy pressure to perform the task even if this is at the expense of employees. In extreme cases management may have this nagging feeling that if they don’t put their employees under continuous pressure nothing will happen as, according to them, people are by nature lazy. Implication.

Clarifications

Clarification 1
Clarification 2
Clarification 3

Many managers, when they first hear the names given to the two poles, employee- versus work-oriented, have a preference for work-orientation. Employee orientation sounds too soft according to them, forgetting that employees are their most important asset. Nevertheless, we have found that if management is too easygoing towards those who underperform many subordinates prefer them to become stricter. But, next to this, work-oriented characteristic most people prefer under all circumstances an employee-oriented culture regarding all other characteristics.

The scores on this dimension are most defined by the management philosophy of top management. Not only because it represents management philosophy, but also because the context has less influence on scores on this dimension than in the case of the other five autonomous dimensions. At the same time, this is the only autonomous dimension of the six which doesn’t have an internal normative window.

The only contextual aspect identified so far which has an influence on the scores on this dimensions is the financial/economic situation organisations find themselves in. This is often formulated as the “burning oil platform” in terms of: “if we don’t do our utmost best we will go down.”

Implications

Implication 1
Implication 2
Implication 3

There are no indications which support both assumptions. The assumption that if management cares for its people they will care for their work appears to be incorrect. An employee-oriented culture doesn’t support work motivation, but stay motivation. Thus, next to an open culture, an employee-oriented culture will help to create a pleasant work atmosphere. Also the assumption that if management does not put people under continuous pressure they will not perform well also appears to be incorrect. If pressure is exerted on people without a good reason, they will leave or, if no other opportunities exist, they will resist such pressure. One way to do this is by behaving busy while not being very productive. Anyway, productivity is, next to individual characteristics, very much defined by a goal-oriented culture on dimension D1. If there is a perceived need to work hard most people can cope with being put under pressure, but not for an extended period of time.

Management has, in the case of this dimension, the highest degree of freedom to create a culture of its choice.

The scores on this dimension will to a degree fluctuate according to the financial/economic situation organisations find themselves in.

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