Ravalier PhD Theis.pdf - Anglia Ruskin Research Online

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Charles Handy (1985), who adapted earlier work by Harrison (1972).
While the main purpose of Handy’s work was to illustrate different types
of organisational culture, it is also very adept when discussing
organisational structure (Salaman, 2000). This typology of organisational
structure, more so than organisational culture, is important within the
context of the current project as it allows the participating organisation to
be depicted adequately, putting it into the context of the thesis.
In 1972 Harrison suggested that there are four main types of
organisational culture, and termed them ‘power’, ‘role’, ‘task’ and
‘person’. Charles Handy’s re-classification describes four similar
organisational structures/cultures, each with its own characteristics and
the ability to exist along with others (Kane-Urrabazo, 2006). In Charles
Handy’s re-working of Harrison’s original ideas, he made reference to
Greek mythology while also describing the four types using simple
pictograms (Brown, 1998). This simple method of conceptualising
organisational typology has influenced the way in which researchers and
practitioners understand the internal workings of organisations (Brown,
1998).
1a.1) The Power Culture
An organisation operating with a Power Culture has a single source of
power from which ‘rays’ of influence spread throughout the organisation.
These ‘rays’ are all interconnected by strands which represent specialist
strings. The interconnectivity of these strings allows the culture type to
be represented as a spider’s web (see Figure 2). Handy likens the power
culture to the Greek God Zeus, with Zeus being an omnipotent leader of
the Gods on Mount Olympus (Brown, 1998).
Figure 2: The Power Culture A spider’s web, with the majority of decision and power disseminated from the
‘leader’ of the organisation outwards
The central power source is usually the owner or president of an
entrepreneurial organisation where trust and personal communication are
both important characteristics, and there is usually an absence of