Discussion Questions

1. In their article, Goffee and Jones discuss different kinds of corporate culture and give examples of each one.

   1. What are the four kinds of culture outlined by Goffee and Jones, and how to they differ??

   2. Into which of these would you say that Disneyland falls, and why?

   3. Into which of these would say the culture of IU undergrads falls, and why?

   4. Many companies strive for a communal culture, but the authors point out that it may not be suitable for all firms. Why is this?

2. What is "IT-Business alignment" and how can it be achieved?

3. The Disneyland reading does a great job of getting inside the culture of employees there and showing how this culture is created and sustained. For each of the following, identify the formal and informal mechanisms used at Disney.

1. Socialization into the culture

2. Development of status differences

3. Enforcement of culture and procedures by management

4. Rituals (such as getting fired)

4. Think about an organization of which you have been a part (as student, worker or volunteer). For each of the above items, identify something from your own experience there.

    

Page copyright Thomas Haigh -- email thaigh@acm.org.    Home: www.tomandmaria.com/tom. Updated 08/31/2003.