ACCA Applied Knowledge · Business and Technology
Organisational Culture for ACCA Business and Technology
Organisational culture is the shared values, beliefs and ways of behaving that shape how people in an organisation act. To solve exam questions, name the model in the scenario, match each clue to a category, then say what it means for the business. Know Schein, Handy, Hofstede, Deal and Kennedy, and Johnson and Scholes.
What this chapter covers
This chapter covers what culture is and how to describe it. You learn several models. Each model sorts culture in a different way. Schein looks at levels, from visible signs to hidden assumptions. Handy gives four types: power, role, task and person. Hofstede compares national cultures using dimensions. Deal and Kennedy, and Johnson and Scholes (the cultural web), add other views.
The chapter also looks at what shapes culture, such as founders, history, size, industry, technology and country. It then covers how and why culture is changed, and how culture links to performance and fit with strategy, structure and people.
In the BT paper, culture connects to the sections on organisational structure and governance, leadership and management, and the wider business environment. Culture explains why a structure works or fails, why people resist change, and why a global business must adapt in different countries. Questions are objective tests, so you need to recognise a model from a short scenario and pick the right label.
Culture is a favourite topic for scenario-based objective questions because the models are easy to test. A short description of how a firm works can be matched to a Handy type, a Schein level or a Hofstede dimension. These are quick marks if you know the labels and their exact meaning. The ideas also help in other parts of BT, such as leadership, change and ethics, so the effort pays off more than once. Mixing up similar terms is the main way marks are lost, so careful, precise learning matters here.
Organisational culture: topics in the order to study them
- 1Meaning and Levels of Organisational CultureStart with a clear definition so every later model has something to attach to.
- 2Schein's Three Levels of CultureIt builds on the idea of visible and hidden culture and is simple to learn first.
- 3Handy's Four Cultural TypesIt is the most tested model for matching scenarios, and it links culture to structure.
- 4Hofstede's Cultural DimensionsIt moves from organisational to national culture, so learn it once the basic ideas are secure.
- 5Other Culture Models: Deal and Kennedy, Johnson and ScholesThese extra models are easier once you know the main ones and can compare them.
- 6Influences on and Changing Organisational CultureYou need the models first to describe what is being changed and why it is hard.
- 7Culture, Performance and Organisational FitThis ties everything together and links culture to strategy, structure and results.
How to prepare Organisational culture
Culture is a learn-the-labels chapter, so the aim is quick, accurate recognition. Use short, repeated sessions that suit a phone.
- Write a one-line definition of culture in your own words and check it covers shared values, beliefs and behaviour.
- Make a card for each model with its categories and one clue for each, such as a typical scenario phrase.
- Practise Schein by sorting examples into artefacts, espoused values and basic assumptions.
- Practise Handy by linking each type to a structure, for example role culture to rules and procedures.
- Learn Hofstede's dimensions by name and meaning, then apply each to a country-style example without stereotyping.
- Do objective questions in timed sets and review every wrong answer by naming the clue you missed.
- In the last days, recite the models from memory and compare with your cards.
Common mistakes in Organisational culture
Mixing up Schein's levels, for example calling a stated company value an artefact.
Fix: Ask whether it is something you can see or touch (artefact), something people say they believe (espoused value), or something unspoken they assume (basic assumption).
Confusing Handy's culture types with Handy-style structures or with each other, such as role and task culture.
Fix: Tie each type to a clue: one powerful centre, rules and job titles, teams and projects, or individual experts.
Treating Hofstede's dimensions as fixed facts about every person in a country.
Fix: Remember they describe general tendencies in national cultures, not individuals, and avoid stereotyping in your answers.
Mixing up national culture with organisational culture.
Fix: Check whether the scenario describes one firm's ways of working or a country's wider values.
Assuming one culture is always best.
Fix: Judge culture by fit with strategy, environment, structure and people, not by label.
Forgetting why culture change is difficult.
Fix: Remember that culture sits in habits and assumptions, so change takes time and meets resistance.
Last-day revision: Organisational culture
- Culture is the shared values, beliefs and norms that shape behaviour in an organisation.
- Schein has three levels: artefacts, espoused values and basic underlying assumptions.
- Artefacts are visible; basic assumptions are hidden and taken for granted.
- Handy's four types are power, role, task and person culture.
- Power culture centres on one person or a small group; role culture relies on rules and defined roles.
- Task culture is team-based and project-focused; person culture puts the individual first, as in a partnership of professionals.
- Hofstede compares national cultures using dimensions such as power distance and individualism versus collectivism.
- Hofstede also uses uncertainty avoidance and masculinity versus femininity.
- Deal and Kennedy link culture to risk and speed of feedback.
- Johnson and Scholes' cultural web shows culture through stories, symbols, power structures, control systems, rituals and routines, and organisational structure, around the paradigm.
- Founders, history, size, technology and national culture all influence culture.
- Culture is hard to change, and fit with strategy and structure supports performance.
Organisational culture practice questions
- Delta Co's mission statement says 'we put customers first'. Staff, however, routinely ignore complaints because they believe senior manageme…
- Which statement about the use of Hofstede's dimensions in business is most accurate?
- Which of Hofstede's cultural dimensions describes the extent to which less powerful members of a society accept that power is distributed un…
- Which of the following is the most likely reason why organisational culture is difficult to change?
- Which of the following best describes organisational culture?
- In Schein's model of organisational culture, which level is the most visible and includes things such as office layout, dress code and logos…
- Marlow plc has a strongly bureaucratic culture and wants to improve performance by becoming more innovative. Its directors announce a new mi…
- A partnership of independent barristers shares offices and a clerk, but each barrister pursues their own cases and career goals, and the org…
Organisational culture in other exams
The same ground in other exams, if you are preparing for more than one or want another angle on it.
Organisational culture: frequently asked questions
How are organisational culture questions asked in the BT exam?
They usually appear as objective test questions with a short scenario. You match the description to a model category, or pick a statement about culture that is correct. Read the clues carefully and name the model before choosing an option.
Which culture model should I learn first?
Start with the meaning of culture and Schein's three levels. Then learn Handy's four types, because they are easy to match to scenarios. Add Hofstede and the other models after that.
Do I need to know the cultural web in detail?
You should know it as Johnson and Scholes' tool for describing culture and its elements around the paradigm. Learn the element names and what each looks at. You do not need to go beyond recognising and applying them.
How much time should I spend on this chapter?
It is a lighter chapter than some in BT, but it supports leadership, change and structure. Aim for steady short sessions and plenty of practice questions rather than long reading.