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ACCA Applied Knowledge · Business and Technology · Organisational culture

Dalton plc's annual report states that integrity is a core value. However, managers routinely ignore safety checks to meet deadlines, and staff who raise concerns are criticised. Which statement best explains this situation in terms of Schein's levels?

The espoused values, which state that integrity matters, conflict with the basic underlying assumptions revealed by behaviour, where deadlines come before safety and speaking up is punished. The real culture is shown by what people do, not by what the annual report says.

  1. AThe espoused values conflict with the basic underlying assumptions that actually drive behaviourCorrect
  2. BThe artefacts and the basic underlying assumptions are fully aligned
  3. CThe culture is purely a matter of formal structure
  4. DThere is no culture because the values are written down

Explanation

The stated value of integrity is an espoused value. Actual behaviour, such as ignoring checks and punishing those who speak up, reveals underlying assumptions that put deadlines first. The gap between the two shows the espoused values do not match the real culture. Aligned levels would show behaviour consistent with the stated values.

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