Chapter 2

Change, Coalitions, and Coping

J. L. Hart, S. Willihnganz, and G. Leichty

 Case Overview

In this case, organizational change is examined. A small family company has grown into a good-sized production plant. But the family metaphor originally adopted has continued—it simply expanded as more and more members joined the family. Employees are comfortable with this way of organizing and business has been good. Then, the owners decide to retire from daily operations and bring in outside managers to expand the operation. These newcomers don’t know the usual means of interacting and conducting business in this organization. Quickly, factions develop—the long-term family members align together, protesting the new methods and policies and working to preserve the “old familial” system, and the newcomers join forces to bring discipline to what they perceive as an immature, adolescent family. Tension is felt across the organization.

 Learning Objective

 This case examines organizational change and how root metaphor guides the change process, both facilitating and inhibiting it.

 Keywords and Definitions

Coalitions—groups that form to achieve their goals as opposed to those of another group; political opposition to another group.

Enculturated—fully socialized; become a full-fledged member of the organizational culture.

 Family culture—a metaphor for explaining a particular type of organization; the organization is like a family, possesses the characteristics of a family (e.g., closeness, informal communication).

 Shared values—organizations where members understand the key communicative processes in the organization and act according to commonly accepted organizational beliefs.

 Symbols—(also symbolic forms) examples of how shared meanings are expressed (e.g., stories, riturals).

 Key Case Concepts

 Organizational culture—an approach to studying organizations that emphasizes communication and regards an organization as a unique entity; sees culture as a system of shared meanings across organizational members that guides their actions and shapes their interpretations of events.

 Strong culture (strong organizational culture)—organizations where members possess high levels of shared values; i.e., the same goals and values.

 Weak culture (weak organizational culture)—organizations where members do not widely share values; that is, members in different areas have or emphasize different values; organizations where there are many subcultures and value fragmentation.

 References and Resources

 D’Andrade, R. G. (1984). Cultural meaning systems. In R. A. Shweder & R. A. LeVine (Eds.), Culture theory: Essays on mind, self and emotion (pp. 88–121). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Deal, T. E., & Kennedy, A. A. (1982). Corporate culture: The rites and rituals of corporate life. Reading, MA: Addison Wesley.

Douglas, M. (1997). The depolitization of risk. In R. J. Ellis & M. Thompson (Eds.), Culture matters (pp. 121–132). Boulder, CO: Westview.

Eisenberg, E. M., & Riley, P. (2001). Organizational culture. In F. Jablin & L. Putnam (Eds.), The new handbook of organizational communication (pp. 291–322). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Leichty, G., & Warner, E. (2001). Cultural topoi. In R. Heath (Ed.), Handbook of public relations (pp. 61–74). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Martin, J. (1992). Cultures in organizations: Three perspectives. New York: Oxford University Press.

 D’Andrade, R. G. (1984). Cultural meaning systems. In R. A. Shweder & R. A. LeVine (Eds.), Culture theory: Essays in mind, self and emotion (pp. 88–121). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Deal, T., & Kennedy, A. (1982). Corporate cultures: The rites and rituals of corporate life. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

Douglas, M. (1997). The depolitization of risk. In R. J. Ellis & M. Thompson (Eds.), Culture matters (pp. 121–132). Boulder, CO: Westview.

Eisenberg, E. M., & Goodall, H. L., Jr. (1997). Organizational communication: Balancing creativity and constraint. New York: St. Martin’s Press.

Eisenberg, E. M., & Riley, P. (2001). Organizational culture. In F. M. Jablin & L. L. Putnam (Eds.), The new handbook of organizational communication (pp. 291–322). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Faules, D. F., & Drecksel, G. L. (1991). Organizational cultures reflected in a comparison of work justifications across work groups. Communication Reports 4, 90–103.

Howard, L. A., & Geist, P. (1995). Ideological positioning in organizational change: The dialectic of control in a merging organization. Communication Monographs, 62, 110–131.

Kellett, P. M. (1999). Dialogue and dialectics in managing organizational change: The case of a mission-based transformation. Southern Communication Journal, 64, 211–231.

Leichty, G., & Warner, E. (2001). Cultural topoi. In R. Heath (Ed.), Handbook of public relations (pp. 61–74). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Martin, J. (1992). Cultures in organizations: Three perspectives. New York: Oxford University Press.

Meyer, J. (1995). Tell me a story: Eliciting organizational values from narratives. Communication Quarterly, 43, 210–226.

Peters, T., & Waterman, R. (1982). In search of excellence. New York: Harper & Row.

Schrodt, P. (2002). The relationship between organizational identification and organizational culture: Employee perceptions of culture and identification in a retail sales organization. Communication Studies, 53, 189–203.

 D’Andrade, R. G. (1984). Cultural meaning systems. In R. A. Shweder & R. A. LeVine (Eds.), Culture theory: Essays in mind, self and emotion (pp. 88–121). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Deal, T., & Kennedy, A. (1982). Corporate cultures: The rites and rituals of corporate life. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.

Douglas, M. (1997). The depolitization of risk. In R. J. Ellis & M. Thompson (Eds.), Culture matters (pp. 121–132). Boulder, CO: Westview.

Eisenberg, E. M., & Riley, P. (2001). Organizational culture. In F. M. Jablin & L. L. Putnam (Eds.), The new handbook of organizational communication (pp. 291–322). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Leichty, G., & Warner, E. (2001). Cultural topoi. In R. Heath (Ed.), Handbook of public relations (pp. 61–74). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Martin, J. (1992). Cultures in organizations: Three perspectives. New York: Oxford University Press.

Chapter 2 Questions

 1.    What are the potential long-term negative effects of the cultural changes at Gadgets Galore? What are the potential long-term positive effects?

 2.    What are the advantages and disadvantages of the family frame or metaphor?

 3.    What actions can Randy take to help employees regain balance in this situation?

 4.    What are the advantages of a widely accepted, family culture? What about the disadvantages?

 5.    What can other managers at Gadgets do to facilitate organizational recovery in this situation? What about employees in general?

 6.    What kinds of communication skills are especially important in helping Gadgets to recover?

 7.    What were the key mistakes made by organizational members in this case? What might have been done to alleviate problems and tensions as they occurred?

 8.    Given the degree of cultural splintering, what shape do you expect the future culture of Gadgets to take? Explain your answer.

 9.    What theories can be used to explain behavior in this case study?

 10.  Can a workplace be both fun and efficient over the long-run? Explain your position.

 11.  What kinds of training might be beneficial to organizational employees?

 12.  Is it possible for Randy to preserve the values that make Gadgets unique and fun, and simultaneously increase the size and market niche of the company? If so, how can he accomplish this outcome? If not, why?