Tierney, W. G. (1988). Organizational culture in higher education: Defining the essentials. The Journal of Higher Education, 59(1), 2-21. 

Tierney provides examples drawn from a case study "Family State College" by analyzing each element of organizational culture in the college community.  Family State College exemplifies a strong organizational culture that other institutions should be followed. 

(estimated 30 minutes)

Institutions are shaped by powerful, economic, and political conditions and internal factors which define the values, processes, and goals held by those most intimately involved in the organization's workings. An organization's culture is reflected in what is done, how it is done, and who is involved in doing it. It concerns decisions, actions, and communication both on an instrumental and a symbolic level. A lack of understanding about the role of organizational culture in improving management and institutional performance inhibits our ability to address the challenges that face higher education. As culture influences decision-making, understanding organizational culture minimizes the occurrence and consequences of cultural conflict and helps foster the development of shared goals. Studying the cultural dynamics of educational institutions and systems equips us to understand and reduce adversarial relationships. More important, it will enable us to recognize how those actions and shared goals are most likely to succeed and how they can best be implemented. By advocating a broad perspective, the organizational culture encourages practitioners to:

• Consider real or potential conflicts not in isolation but on the broad canvas of organizational life;

• Recognize structural or operational contradictions that suggest tensions in the organization; implement and evaluate everyday decisions with a keen awareness of their role in and influence upon organizational culture;

• Understand the symbolic dimensions of ostensibly instrumental decisions and actions; 

• Consider why different groups in the organization hold varying perceptions about institutional performance.

(Tierney, 1988, pp. 3-6)

A framework for organizational culture will provide administrators with the capability to better articulate and address this crucial foundation for improving performance. The understanding of culture will thus aid administrators in spotting and resolving potential conflicts and in managing change more effectively and efficiently. If administrators and policymakers implement effective strategies within their own cultures, then they must first understand a culture's structure and components. Tierney outlines essential elements of organizational culture by listing six domains associated with the significant questions in figure 4.1. 

Key takeaways from Tierney's framework on academic culture: It is noted that all effective and efficient institutions will not have similar cultures. For example, the role of mission at Family State would be inappropriate for different kinds of colleges and universities. The rationale for a cultural framework is not to presume that all organizations should function similarly, but rather to provide managers and researchers with a schema to diagnose their own organizations.

Quick tip for building a framework: 

• Start from the priorities that you think matter most to your organization; those that reflect its values, fit with what your community really cares about, or align to the activities that are already in progress.

• Make a list of assumptions to examine and understand the culture and your organization's structure. 

• Examine institutions, organizations, and sub-units of the organization as distinct and separate cultures with unique sets of ceremonies, rites, and tradition

Based on Tierney's framework and your knowledge about academic culture in your own university, draft a framework of organizational culture for managers and researchers by filling out a worksheet sample below: 

Tierney, W. G. (1988). Organizational culture in higher education: Defining the essentials. The Journal of Higher Education, 59(1), 2-21.

Explain why organizational culture is a useful concept for understanding management and performance in higher education and illustrate Tierney's framework through a case study "Family State College"