Diagnosing and Changing Organizational Culture: Based on the Competing
Values Framework, Third Edition
by Kim S. Cameron and Robert E. Quinn
John Wiley & Sons (US). (c) 2011. Copying Prohibited.
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Diagnosing and Changing Organizational Culture: Based on the Competing Values Framework, Third Edition
Chapter 2: The Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument
Overview
The Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) is probably the most frequently used instrument for assessing
organizational culture in the world today. In the past twenty years, it has been used extensively in scholarly research and in
thousands of organizations of which we are aware. It has been found not only to be an accurate assessment of organizational
culture, but significant relationships have been found between culture as assessed by the OCAI and a variety of indicators of
organizational effectiveness.
A review of scholarly publications in just the past ten years, for example, reveals that more than sixty doctoral dissertations
have investigated the relationship between organizational culture and a variety of outcomes using the OCAI. In addition, more
than one hundred published studies have explored the relationships between organizational culture and factors including
management and leadership success, quality and total quality management (TQM), teamwork, organizational effectiveness,
educational and teacher success, athletic achievements, competitive strategy, information systems, physical health, innovation,
career selection, communication, work and life satisfaction, turnover, generational differences, gender preferences, religious
organization performance, and cross-national differences.
The instrument has been used in a variety of industry sectors, including health care, education, religious organizations,
national and local governments, community colleges and universities, libraries, data warehouses, military organizations,
recreational departments, airlines, ethnic tribes, hotels, athletic teams and national athletic organizations, energy, family
businesses, tobacco and alcohol firms, and M.B.A. programs. Countries represented in these studies include Abu Dhabi,
Argentina, Canada, China, Dubai, the European Union, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Kenya,
Latin America, Netherlands, Qatar, Russia, Senegal, Singapore, Slovenia, South Africa, South America, South Korea, Spain,
Taiwan, and the United States.
Because of its predictive power, the OCAI is deceptively parsimonious. One consultant complained to us that having only six
items is too simplistic to get an accurate reading of an organization’s culture. As it turns out, longer versions of the OCAI
containing more items have been developed (one is a twenty-four-item version), but the six items in the version provided in this
chapter have been found to be equally predictive of an organization’s culture as the longer versions. The six items merely
describe some of the fundamental manifestations of organizational culture. These dimensions are not comprehensive, of
course, but they address basic assumptions (dominant characteristics, organizational glue), interaction patterns (leadership,
management of employees), and organizational direction (strategic emphases, criteria of success) that typify the fundamentals
of culture (Cameron and Ettington, 1988).
The OCAI is designed to help identify an organization’s current culture or the culture that exists today. This is step 1 in the
process. The same instrument helps identify the culture that organization members believe should be developed to match
future demands of the environment and the opportunities to be faced by the organization in the coming five years. This is step
2 in the process.
Instructions for Diagnosing Organizational Culture
The purpose of the OCAI is to assess six key dimensions of organizational culture, which are explained in some detail in
Chapter Three. We encourage you to take time to complete the OCAI yourself as you move through the chapter. In completing
the instrument, you will be providing a picture of the fundamental assumptions on which your organization operates and the
values that characterize it. There are no right or wrong answers for these items, just as there is no right or wrong culture. Every
organization will most likely be described by a different set of responses. Therefore, be as accurate as you can in responding
to the items so that your resulting cultural diagnosis will be as precise as possible.
You are asked to rate your “organization” in the items. Of course, you may consider multiple organizations—your immediate
team, your subunit, or the overall organization. To determine which is the best organization to rate, consider the organization
that is managed by your boss, the strategic business unit to which you belong, or the organizational unit in which you are a
member that has clearly identifiable boundaries. Because the instrument is most helpful for determining ways to change the
culture, focus on the cultural unit that is the target for change. For example, it may make little sense to try to describe the
culture of the overall Ford Motor Company. It is simply too large and complex. The new product design unit is significantly
different from a stamping plant or from the customer assistance center. Therefore, as you answer the questions, keep in mind
the organization that can be affected by your change strategy.
The OCAI consists of six items (see Figure 2.1), each with four alternatives. Divide 100 points among these four alternatives,
depending on the extent to which each alternative is similar to your own organization. Give a higher number of points to the
alternative that is most similar to your organization. For example, on item 1, if you think alternative A is very similar to your
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Diagnosing and Changing Organizational Culture: Based on the Competing Values Framework, Third Edition
organization, alternatives B and C are somewhat similar, and alternative D is hardly similar at all, you might give 55 points to A,
20 points each to B and C, and 5 points to D. Just be sure that your total equals 100 for each item.
Note in Figure 2.1 that the left-hand response column for the instrument is labeled “Now.” These responses mean that you are
rating your organization as it is currently, not as you would like it to be or as you hope it could be. Complete that rating first.
The right-hand column refers to your organization as you think it should be in five years in order to be spectacularly successful,
achieve its highest aspirations, become an outstanding example of high performance, outstrip the currently stated goals, or
become the benchmark for your industry.
1. Dominant Characteristics
A
Now Preferred
The organization is a very personal place. It is like an extended family. People seem to share a lot of themselves.
B The organization is a dynamic and entrepreneurial place. People are willing to stick their necks out and take
risks.
C The organization is very results oriented. A major concern is with getting the job done. People are very
competitive and achievement oriented.
D
The organization is a very controlled and structured place. Formal procedures generally govern what people do.
Total 100 100
2.
Organizational Leadership
A
The leadership in the organization is generally considered to exemplify mentoring, facilitating, or nurturing.
Now Preferred
B The leadership in the organization is generally considered to exemplify entrepreneurship, innovation, or risk
taking.
C The leadership in the organization is generally considered to exemplify a no-nonsense, aggressive, resultsoriented focus.
D The leadership in the organization is generally considered to exemplify coordinating, organizing, or smoothrunning efficiency.
Total 100
3.
Management of Employees
A
The management style in the organization is characterized by teamwork, consensus, and participation.
100
Now Preferred
B The management style in the organization is characterized by individual risk taking, innovation, freedom, and
uniqueness.
C The management style in the organization is characterized by hard-driving competitiveness, high demands, and
achievement.
D The management style in the organization is characterized by security of employment, conformity, predictability,
and stability in relationships.
Total 100
4.
Organization Glue
100
Now Preferred
A The glue that holds the organization together is loyalty and mutual trust. Commitment to this organization runs
high.
B The glue that holds the organization together is commitment to innovation and development. There is an
emphasis on being on the cutting edge.
C
The glue that holds the organization together is the emphasis on achievement and goal accomplishment.
D The glue that holds the organization together is formal rules and policies. Maintaining a smoothly running
organization is important.
Total 100
5.
Strategic Emphases
A
The organization emphasizes human development. High trust, openness, and participation persist.
100
Now Preferred
B The organization emphasizes acquiring new resources and creating new challenges. Trying new things and
prospecting for opportunities are valued.
C The organization emphasizes competitive actions and achievement. Hitting stretch targets and winning in the
marketplace are dominant.
D The organization emphasizes permanence and stability. Efficiency, control, and smooth operations are
important.
Total 100
6.
Criteria of Success
100
Now Preferred
A The organization defines success on the basis of the development of human resources, teamwork, employee
commitment, and concern for people.
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6.
Criteria of Success
Now Preferred
B The organization defines success on the basis of having unique or the newest products. It is a product leader and
innovator.
C The organization defines success on the basis of winning in the marketplace and outpacing the competition.
Competitive market leadership is key.
D The organization defines success on the basis of efficiency. Dependable delivery, smooth scheduling, and lowcost production are critical.
Total 100
100
Figure 2.1: The Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument — Current Profile
We invite you to take time now to complete the six items for your own organization. Rate the organization in its current state
using the “Now” column. Then complete the instrument the second time using the “Preferred” column. In this chapter, we
provide instructions for scoring the instrument and in Chapter Four for creating an organizational culture profile for your
company. In Chapter Five, we give instructions for involving your entire organization in developing a more broad-based culture
assessment as well as creating a strategy for cultural change.
Scoring the OCAI
Scoring the OCAI is easy. It requires simple arithmetic calculations. The first step is to add together all A responses in the
“Now” column and divide by 6. That is, compute an average score for the A alternatives in the “Now” column. You may use the
worksheet in Figure 2.2 if you’d like. Next, add together all B responses and divide by 6. Repeat this computation for the C and
D alternatives.
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Figure 2.2: Worksheet for Scoring the OCAI
The second step is to add all A responses in the “Preferred” column and divide by 6. In other words, compute an average score
for the A alternatives in the “Preferred” column. Again, use the worksheet in Figure 2.2 if you’d like. Next, add together all B
responses and divide by 6. Repeat this computation for the C and D alternatives.
Following an explanation in Chapter Three of the framework on which the OCAI is based, we explain in Chapter Four the
meaning of your average A, B, C, and D scores. Each of these scores relates to a type of organizational culture. In Chapter
Four, we also provide a worksheet for plotting these scores or to draw a picture of your organization’s culture. This plot serves
as an organizational culture profile and is an important step in initiating a culture change strategy.
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