ADMIN •
4.2 CHANGE MODEL FOR THE CASE ANALYSIS
4.4.1 NUL's Current Organizational Culture
In mapping out NUL's current organizational culture, the deeper levels of assumptions and beliefs shared by members of the organization are identified as aspects that define NUL's current cultural context for change. NUL's cultural web is mapped from information sought from the EYMAR (2000/1).
Figure 4.3 NUL's Current Organizational Culture Web
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Source: Adapted from Balogun and Hai ley (1999)
The assumptions and beliefs as identified in Figure 4.3 are held in the paradigm and are hedged around and connected to everyday visible behaviour by the other aspects of the web surrounding the paradigm. These form the tangible aspects of the organization such as structures and control systems as well as harder to define aspects such as formal and informal power structures, symbols, stories, myths, routines and rituals.
• The Paradigm: NUL is characterized by a paralysis of an inefficient and ineffective workforce resulting from low staff morale and poor motivational rewards and a lack of appropriate celebration of staff successes. Though management realizes the decline in
staff efficiency and effectiveness, nothing has been done to improve the situation, and it seems to be sinking deeper and deeper by the day.
• Symbols: These refer to managerial and general staff activities that are substantive enough to illustrate organizational culture-strategic fit. These actions are important in cultural analysis as they signal the kind of behaviours that influence the performance output of any organization. At NUL there is staff division according to academic and non- academic categories. This distinction creates a sense of low staff morale especially within the non-academic staff, which affects on the NUL's overall organizational performance and delivery of its services. An ageing long service workforce also characterizes the organization. The danger of such a workforce is that it believes in doing things the old- fashioned way, being less dynamic and prefers old-fashioned, and conservative way of doing things as well as staying with the tried and tested. Also long-term serving staff feels too secure in their jobs, that they sometimes become redundant. Thus, in every decision to be made, there will always be reference on how things have always been done.
• Power Structures: The leadership style follows a matrix structure with a lot of managerial levels, characterized by some bureaucratic bottlenecks. This delays decision- making and makes management of the institution very complex. The University management is also challenged by highly unionized labour. This sometimes has a bearing on the decisions made and on the appointment of managerial staff members. With the current organizational structures, it is not clear who reports to whom, and this makes the establishment of the positions of departmental heads doubtful. Especially when through appointment contracts people can report directly to the appointments office, Registrar or Pro-Vice Chancellor, instead of following proper lines of command starting from respective heads and directors to senior management structures.
• Organizational Structures: The organizational structures are based on functional department management with highly centralized decision-making. As a result problem solving takes a long time due to the committee system of decision-making moving from departmental level to higher levels and subsequently to Senate and University Council where the final decisions are made.
• Control Systems: Control systems are standardized across all departments but are managed centrally. There is poor accountability and control of financial resources, as well as poor tracking of staff whereabouts during office hours. Office time is misused and spent on irrelevant and personal activities. Staff members come and go as they please, as there are no strong control mechanisms restricting human resources movement. The fact that there is no clear-cut dress code, allows staff to dress anyhow and one cannot tell the difference between a student and a lecturer. Communication is largely formal and more often done through memos for future reference. Staff promotion is done through departmental assessment for non-academic staff based on individual performance. For academic staff, assessment is done through academic criteria set out in the University statutes.
• Routines and Rituals: The main routine activities at NUL are teaching and research, which form the core business of the University. These activities, however, need some reviewing so as to remain relevant and of benefit to stakeholders. Most of the staffs time is spent attending committee meetings. This has an impact on staff efficiency and effectiveness. The University has instituted training programmes that assist in the training of staff member to acquire higher degrees and as well as to attend courses and workshops to refresh their skills. Academic staff is given first preference in the allocation of training opportunities. This is a result of the University's localization policy of replacing expatriates with qualified local staff members especially core academic staff members. It should be noted that for NUL, like most Third World universities, 100% localization is not advisable, as these universities have not yet reached the optimal levels of self-sufficiency.
• Stories and Myths: A significant part of NUL's culture emerges from the stories told by old staff members to new employees to illustrate the importance of certain values, beliefs and ways of operating. There is also emphasis on how things are done and how they have always been done. This somehow creates resistance to change by reinforcing old and outdated behaviours. Politics have their own way with staff members, especially through union affiliation. The newsletter that is intended to keep staff informed of the institutes activities most often publishes information that is not useful to the intended readership.
4.4.2 NUL's Future Organizational Culture
The future organizational culture of NUL mapped out In Figure 4.4 is informed by the recommendations of the EYMAR (2000/ I).
Figure 4.4 NUL's Future Organizational Culture Web
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Source: Adapted from Balogun and Hailey (1999)
• The Paradigm: Through the transformation NUL would like to achieve success and meet its stakeholder needs through improved staff efficiency and effectiveness, as well as through service excellence. This will help the University to discharge its services on time
and in the creation of market-related programmes and discarding less beneficial programmes. The University, through improved efficiency will be able to overcome problems caused by delays in decision-making and bureaucratic bottlenecks, in order to meet stakeholders' needs adequately.
• Symbols: The University Faculties and Institutes are to be consolidated and reduced in number from six Faculties to three, and from four Institutes to one Directorate of Research. The consolidation is expected to reduce staff redundancy, duplication of services as well as better management of resources from flatter management structures.
• Power Structures: Administrative power is to be devolved from central administration to academic faculties. Both financial and human resources are to be managed from the faculty level reporting to the Heads of Schools and Deans of respective Departments.
• Organizational Structures: NUL is to change its organizational structures to more organic hierarchical managerial and organizational structures with flatter management levels. Decision-making is to be decentralized to departmental level. The flexibility and dynamism of the structures will allow management to be more responsive to staff and institutional problems as well as to reduce bottlenecks and bureaucratic red tape.
• Control Systems: In order to increase staff morale the University intends to be more accountable and increase communication between top management and staff. It also wants to reward and acknowledge staff successes. The University will review its promotions criteria to be performance-related, with assessment conducted at departmental level informing central administration and appointments office. Recruitment has also to be done departmentally in order for the University to start recruiting relevantly qualified staff members. As indicated earlier, departmental budgets and financial services will be controlled by Deans of Faculties not centrally as was the case before. Management will follow formal lines of command and discipline.
• Routines and Rituals: The University would like to concentrate more on its core activities of teaching and conducting relevant research as well as ensuring that academic departments work harmoniously with academic support services such as the library, in
delivery service excellence to stakeholders. As recommended by the management audit reports, the University intends to review its academic programmes so as to develop market-related and relevant academic and research programmes. As a result training programmes and scholarship awards should also be reviewed. This has to be done so as to match staffing requirements with programmes offered. In relation to this is matching of staff intake in relation to availability of Facilities, and the staff student ratio should allow for conducive ease of learning. Communication is to be improved and opened for increased accountability and transparency. Moreover, management should devise a means of awarding and recognizing staff successes. For the University to be able to concentrate all efforts on core business, the committee-based system of reporting and decision-making has to change. Consolidation of faculties and devolution of decision-making powers should change the number of committees and reduce time spent attending meetings and doing private consultancy works.
• Stories and Myths: If NUL manages to remam true to its VISIon, it will be able to accomplish its mission of being a leading higher learning institute. A system of open dialogue is hoped to create a sense of belonging for staff members as well as to increase loyalty and commitment to the success of the organization and its plans.
It is important for NUL to realize that the future organizational web and the identification of levers and mechanisms for change as well as the choices made should be based on targets (outputs, behaviours and values) selected and the change levers selected to achieve the targets.
Even though NUL has chosen a top-down approach to change, a change approach that is bottom-up and collaborative is the best as it involves a wider range of employees in the process of developing the vision and in making cultural development and changes a success.