Cultural Influence on Managerial Thinking

Abstract

Culture has always been a source of influence on human behaviour. It affects the way in which individual processes information and reasons in negotiation and other organisational decisions. In today's competitive world, the work place is more unstable and unpredictable than before. To make right judgment in the right context is the right choice of the present time. This study made an attempt to establish a link between organizational culture and managerial thinking. This kind of analysis would help managers to adapt particular tactics to effectively deal with people in one cultural context. The objective of the study was to examine the impact of organizational culture on managerial thinking and to develop possible OD interventions to enhance executive effectiveness. The present study followed a 2x2x2 factorial design of research where 400 managers/executives (front line and middle level) of MNCs and PSUs in manufacturing and service-oriented organisation were administered on Organisational Culture Questionnaire (Udai Pareek, 1989) and Managerial Thinking Style Inventory (Gangopadhyay, 1993). The findings of the study revealed that there exist significant difference between managers of MNCs and PSUs with regard to Managerial Thinking Styles and preference for a particular Organisational Culture Profile. The managers in MNCs preferred autocratic, technocratic and entrepreneurial culture profiles in comparison to managers of PSUs who showed preference for bureaucratic culture. With regard to managerial thinking, it was observed that managers of MNCs relied more on analyzer and implementer type of thinking style than the managers of PSUs who believed in collaborator style of thinking. The future implications of the study were discussed in the light of present findings in this paper. The authors have also suggested few possible OD interventions to enhance executive effectiveness.