Title: A cultural paradox in organisations in India

Authors: Richa Awasthy; Rajen K. Gupta

Addresses: Organizational Behaviour Area, International Management Institute, B-10, Qutab Institutional Area, Tara Crescent, New Delhi-110016, India ' Human Behaviour and Organizational Development Area, Management Development Institute, Mehrauli Road, Sukhrali, Sukhrali, Gurgaon, Haryana 122001, India

Abstract: Indians, at the modern workplace are facing a cultural paradox between their deep seated traditional values and the modern paradigm of western business values. In the current paper, we use multiple published case studies of various organisations in India to understand how these organisations are responding to this paradox, using Cameron and Quinn's (1999) competing values framework (CVF). In terms of CVF, organisations in India are facing a cultural paradox between clan and market type cultures. We are using conjecture to explain the paradox through dialectical theory. This paper then proposes adhocracy as the synthesis of the thesis of clan-type culture and anti-thesis of market type culture for the organisations in India. Drawing lessons from the organisations which have managed to deal with the paradox successfully we draw two propositions for further research. By working with and through the paradox, the paper also presents some modifications in CVF to apt to the Indian context.

Keywords: organisational culture; paradox; competing values framework; CVF; India.

DOI: 10.1504/IJICBM.2015.069642

International Journal of Indian Culture and Business Management, 2015 Vol.10 No.4, pp.391 - 408

Received: 28 Aug 2013
Accepted: 31 Jan 2014

Published online: 29 May 2015 *

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