After completing this course students:
- are able to analyse tensions between policies and practices in and between organizations from a cultural approach to organizing;
- have understood the ambiguity, multivocality and contextuality of organizational processes;
- have understood the concepts of over- and under organizing;
- are able to reflect on the practical and theoretical value of a cultural approach on organizational processes.
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Organizations are confronted with a complex assignment to strike a balance between bureaucratic an collectivist practices in order to keep the organization from under- or over organizing. For this, the management of organizations are able to make use of a range of policy instruments. However, organizational policies do not necessarily lead to a change in organizational practices. A gap exists between intentions of organizational policies and actual organizational practices and outcomes.
This course studies organizational implementation processes through a cultural approach to organizing. Central concepts and methods for such an analysis are symbolic artefacts, organization-scapes, ethnography and collectivist practices. A cultural approach of the problem ‘between plan and practice’ leads to the proposition that this gap will not be narrowed when the formulation of policies is more accurate.
Rather than viewing organizational policies as a mere instrumental ‘act’, this approach views policy as an expressive and symbolic ‘act’. We view organizational policies as a cultural phenomenon, because every organizational policy is the result of contested meanings and a history of ideas. Those characteristics make organizations and their policies inherently ambiguous and multi-vocal. Attention for the role of symbolic artefacts, sense making, hidden meanings and interpretation are core to this approach.
The inherent gap between organizational policies and practices, of course leads to the question how this ambiguity can be managed. This topic will be discussed and studied extensively. You will contribute actively in interactive work groups and you will compile a comprehensive case study. In small sub groups you will analyse a specific case from a cultural approach to organizational processes.
Please note that for non-USG bachelor students the course Introduction public administration and organizational science (USG5520/USG5020) or another introductional course covering the subject of public administration is recommended.
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