Organisational Values in Higher Education: Perceptions and Preferences of Staff

Abstract

In this paper, staff members’ perceptions about the organisational culture are measured. The questions addressed are: what are their opinions about the current and preferred organisational culture? Are there differences between the current and preferred situation? Do the perceptions differ per department? The Organisational Culture Assessment Instrument was sent to staff involved in 18 different departments within Dutch universities of applied science. The results demonstrated that both a flexibility‐ and control‐oriented culture were moderately experienced in practice. In addition, significant differences were found between the current and preferred situation as well as a significant variation over departments for the current situation. Staff members in general, prefer a flexibility‐oriented culture to a control‐oriented culture. These findings imply that the organisational culture in many departments is not yet fully in line with the staff members’ preferences.

Keywords:

• organisational culture
• competing organisational values
• staff perceptions
• Organisational Culture Assessment Instrument