ACADEMIC STAFF DEVELOPMENT THROUGH ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE OF ENGINEERING SCHOOL

Dan-Maniu DU E1 Carmen Sonia DU E2

Universitatea "Lucian Blaga" din Sibiu, Romnia

Culture is not inherited but is learned. It does not appear from the genes, but from the individuals interaction with the environment. Culture differs from the human nature and from the individuals personality (Geert Hofstede)

1 2

University Professor, Ph.D. in Engineeering Sciences, Machine Manufacturing Department, Engineering School, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania University lecturer, Ph.D. in Management, Department for the Training of Teaching Personnel, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania

Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania

y Symbols and slogans

y Behavioural models

y Rituals and ceremonies - for passing - for strengthening - for integration - for renewal

Institutional characteristics

y Slang

Engineering School
y Myths and heroes

y Norms y Values y Beliefs y Meanings y Representations

y y y y

Development policies Curriculum Human resources management Community relationships Academic staff development !

Classical university

Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania

Main objective: identifying the specific traits of the Engineering Schools culture
y How does the organisational culture support the reform measures in higher education ? y Which of these values, representations, beliefs can allow the change in education ? y Which of the organisations values, representations, norms, beliefs etc. can be the base for the society of knowledge ? y Which elements of the facultys organisational culture are contrary to those dominant in the other national educational organisations ? y How can we change the organisational culture in order to facilitate both the development of the society of knowledge and the alignment to the current European educational demands ? Maintenance of the faculties and their cultures on anachronical coordinates: limits the educational offer blocks the changing, development and growth of the organisation generates negative consequences in the development of the students and of the faculty

Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania

(i)

The research made use of case studying

y Direct observation of the university environment and of the educational partners behaviour; y Questionnaire - two types of questionnaires were applied, to those within and to those outside the school; y Analysis of documents related to the education process and regarding the schools current activity.

(ii)

The research tried to comprise:

y the current cultural dimensions y the factors that can influence the maintaining and changing on various time horizons y the organisational cultures influence on the academic staff development Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania 4

The distance from power:

shows the measure to which academics expect and accept that power is distributed inequally. A great distance from power betrays the predominance and preference for authoritarian management styles, the managers opinions being listened to in a noncritical manner, by virtue of the formal authority with which these are invested. A tendency towards distancing from power resulted, with following interpretations: (1) the organisations members have the feeling that the usage of power can triumph over justice: anyone wielding the power is just and good! (2) the questioned employees consider that the management style used is one with emphasis on authority. Specific to this is the delegation of tasks, rather than that of competences and responsibilities. (3) in the communication process formal aspects are predominant, informal discussions between managers and subordinates being quite rare. A possible explanation for this is the small distance from the totalitarian communist society which Romania left behind in 1989 Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania 5

Individualism-collectivism:
refers to the predominance of individual interests over the group ones, or to that of group interests over the individual ones The score emphasises the orientation towards individualism having following possible explanations: 1) bonds between faculty members are relatively weak in intensity and occur in small groups, in the informal sphere. the activitys participative dimension is relatively small, considering that administrative decisions are of the managers competence, subordinates must execute them, they being involved in analyses and debates only if their direct leaders consider such intervention is necessary. in most cases the managers request information and take decisions on their own communication within the collective is reduced to social conversation, even communication with students tending towards a minimum.

2)

3) 4)

Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania

Masculinity-femininity:
dimension that refers to the higher social value granted to arrogance within masculine cultures, or, to the contrary, to sensibility and modesty within feminine cultures. The score emphasises a tendency towards masculinity with following confirmed value judgements: the engineering profession belongs predominantly to men. professors evaluation criteria differ in feminine and masculine cultures; in a masculine culture, the professors brightness and academic reputation are dominant factors. (e.g. Engineering School, Medicine School)

Dominant values in society, for masculine culture are material success and prosperity, money and things, order and rigor!

Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania

Avoidance of uncertainty
indicates the way in which members of a culture are threatened by uncertain/unknown situations. In the Engineering Schools culture, the avoidance of uncertainty is present, the need for rules is high, is emotional! The university Rector was a philologist: The management manner employed was always under doubt and criticised, because it did not satisfy the avoidance of uncertainty impetuously demanded by the engineers. This need for observing rules (which is part of every technocrates logic), was often unheeded, due to the principle that rules are made by people so they have to be changed in accordance with the people. Paradoxically, for the engineering collective there were many advantages, even if the engineers formal logics seemed to infirm them: early promotions (exceptional cases) comprising in national and international programmes greater openness towards using engineering experience at other schools of the university The top management reflected, more than it was expected, significantly, the classical university, with its socio-humane parts. Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania 8

Set of fundamental values (i) Order

Avoidance of uncertainty and great distance from power are factors that demand a great need for order; the engineering training is one that imposes an algorithmisation and a logical succesion of unfolded activities; the type of society in which current faculty members were trained (responsibilities assumed by the state, no visible social problems, the image of a beneficial order)

(ii) Learning (iii) Personal success The Engineering Schools organisational culture is characterised by:
- large distance from power; - mostly individualistic culture; - tendency towards masculinity; - high degree of incertitude avoidance. Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania 9

Faculty development policy

(1) Is at the disposal of elected leaders! (training and election of leaders with managerial education). The Engineering Schools development policy tends to be a personal one, different from the universitys, (the leaders personality, heterogenity of faculties, specific for a classical university) (2) Need for strict rules in the educational activity, accompanied by correct answers and slogans such as professors must have answers to any question (symptoms of the culture of routine) (3) Insufficient attitude and involvement in the building of the students career, in guiding the youngster towards professionalisation, (effect: abandon and delay in finalising the studies); (4) lack of communication (resulted from the cultures individualistic dimension) in a world of integration and globalisation (handicap for the policy and strategies of curricular changes). (5) the collectivism of a classical university brings into difficulty the communication and relationing with a faculty characterised by individualism, such as is currently the Engineering School.

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Curriculum (design/development/evaluation)
(1) Influence factors: CNEAA criteria and standards (80%), interest group within the Faculty Council, university influences; Syllabusses, true curricular genes, become undying, eternal in the absence of a dynamic and participative management. They get renewed only very uneasily, especially since this is specific to a collectivistic culture, contrary to the one currently existing in the faculty. Need for refreshing the pedagogical and methodical knowledge, because the teaching process success is to a great extent conditioned by the manner of transmitting knowledge and by the alternance of teaching methods employed. Finland is on first places at the competences-based evaluation realised at Pisa The evaluation of students knowledge within the Engineering School is, to a great extent, standardised, based, in most cases, on reproducing and less on combining, applying: written exams, test bateries, lack of evaluating professional training. Modern society demands creative, imaginative professionals, with abilities for communication and team work, traditional evaluation digs at the foundations of real performance Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania 11

(2)

(3)

(4)

Community relationships
The local community supports the faculty, assuring support for contacts with various transnational companies, which can create a market of workforce demand

(1)

The Engineering School contributes decisively to bringing transnational companies to Sibiu (licentiates nursery, curriculum, posibilities of specialising according to needs) The faculty develops educational laboratories in companies There still exists an unconvincing, frail, relationship with high schools from Sibiu, which are not yet convinced and show disinterest for the revigoration of the technical education; There exists a weak relationship with the Local Development Council, materialised in a weak promotion of the idea of technical speciality training in secondary education.

(2) (3)

(4)

Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania

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Human resources management

Promotion of human resources is under the sign of masculinity and of certainty 1) A high degree of occupation of the academic staff positions, even an inflation which leads also to cultural-organisational distorsions, through the canceling and dismissing heroes through early pensionnings. Positive but individual attitude towards contractual competition (contracts, grants etc.), bringer of wins, of professional recognition, of outstanding results. Applying of the systems for evaluating individual professional performances. However, often they analysed the evaluation when the quantitative aspects of evaluation have been predominant.

2)

3)

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Conclusions:
(i) The Engineering School has a temple-type culture, characterised by: - large organisational dimensions, over 150 members; - comprises several (eight) departments that form the temples columns and within which own subcultures appear; - the values and perspectives (the temples roof) are clear and accessible; - discipline, respect for procedures, the inner order regulation are the guidelines; - the individuals perspective is restrained and related to the fulfilment of a specific role; - the cultures atmosphere is unsatisfactory for ambitious persons who will aspire to power or will leave the organisation
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(ii) By the accepted risk level, the schools organisational culture is a process-type one, characterised by slow reactions and reduced risk, having as base the algorithmisation based on strict rules and procedures; (iii) The Engineering School combines the elements of a bureaucratic culture with those of a hierarchical culture: - conservative, cautious leaders - the employees agreement is obtained by control - the dominant values are order and formalism (iv) The Engineering School cultures influence on the academic staff development can refer to following aspect: employees will assimilate the practices indicated by the organisation, but will keep the values of the culture from which they come and which characterises them

Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania

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(v) Expected evolutions of the Engineering Schools organisational culture: a reduction of the distance towards power, translated in the plane of changes by means of the transition from an autocratic leadership to a predominantly consultative one, with an increase in the confidence in subordinates; the deviation of the orientation towards the process towards the orientation towards people, with an increase in the individuals motivation for the organisation they belong to; decrease of the uncertainty avoidance degree, by assuming responsibilities and stimulating individual initiatives, encouraging the decision-making and the risktaking; slow decrease of the masculinity (in countries with a feminine national culture, tendencies towards masculinity diminish in time).

Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Romania

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