HOW ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND CHANGE ARE EMBEDDED IN AN ORGANIZATION’S INTRANET by ELISABETH ELEANOR BENNETT (Under the Direction of Bradley C. Courtenay) ABSTRACT The purpose of this qualitative case study was to understand how organizational culture and change are embedded into the intranet of an organization. To address this purpose, four research questions guided the study. These were: a) What is the organizational culture? b) How does the intranet provide an opportunity for learning about the organizational culture? c) How does the intranet promote organizational change? and d) How does organizational culture affect the development of intranet content? The exceptional case selected was a healthcare organization that had an established intranet strategic for fulfilling their organizational mission. Data in the forms of in-depth, semi-structured interviews, observations, and documents were collected over five months and analyzed using the constant comparative method. Twelve hospital employees participated in the study, representing a range of demographics such as different role types, gender, and race. This study found that organizational culture in this case was people-centered, highly congruent with the espoused values of the organization, strategically decentralized, data driven, and organic in nature. Participants demonstrated how the intranet promotes aspects of the organization’s culture and how the culture shapes the intranet. This interrelationship between the culture and the intranet guided the development of a model of the embedding process in this organization. There were three primary conclusions discussed in this study. First, cultural knowledge is conveyed and renewed through the intranet. Second, network readiness and continual change influence the embedding process. Third, a culturally relevant intranet enables Virtual HR. INDEX WORDS: organizational culture, intranet, knowledge management, change, hospital, intranet, human resource development, organizational learning HOW ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND CHANGE ARE EMBEDDED IN AN ORGANIZATION’S INTRANET by ELISABETH ELEANOR BENNETT M.Ed Adult Education, University of Georgia B.A. English, University of Massachusetts A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY ATHENS, GEORGIA 2006 © 2006 Elisabeth E. Bennett All Rights Reserved HOW ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE AND CHANGE ARE EMBEDDED IN AN ORGANIZATION’S INTRANET by ELISABETH ELEANOR BENNETT Major Professor: Bradley C. Courtenay Committee: Laura L. Bierema Janette R. Hill Sharan B. Merriam Electronic Version Approved: Maureen Grasso Dean of the Graduate School The University of Georgia August 2006 iv DEDICATION For the love of my children, Grayson William and Helen Sophia ~ For the steadfast spirit of my husband, Stephen Braswell Bennett ~ For my grandparents, Leonard and Delia Carmichael, Who sailed to the United States on the hope of opportunity. Your imagination launched a thousand stories, Granddad. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This dissertation represents four years of life investment. It has been an intensive time of family building, career building, and personal development. My family has weathered job changes, job losses, medical crises, high stress, and moments of pure joy as we climbed past what seemed insurmountable. I am awestruck at the idea of being “done.” My family is relieved to be starting a new phase of our life together. As C.S. Lewis might have phrased it, we are ready to take the adventure that comes to us. As I reflect on a time that is drawing to a close, I have many, many people to thank. More than can be named here. To start, I must extend appreciation to the faculty of Adult Education at the University of Georgia, who all had a hand in shaping my academic development over the years of study. To my committee members, Drs. Laura Bierema, Janette Hill, and Sharan Merriam, I owe special thanks for their dedication and expertise. It was a pleasure to work with you! My sincerest gratitude goes to my major professor, Dr. Bradley Courtenay. He has been both a tremendous resource and source of encouragement, always willing to give me the benefit of his wisdom and his editorial pen. I know this dissertation would have been so much less without his guidance. Thanks, Brad! This study would have been naught without an organization willing to open their doors to research. I thank the people at “Beacon Community Hospital” for letting me walk among them for five months and for granting me far more access to the intranet than I had thought possible when I first designed the study. And, for the folks in Information Services, I now understand about that red stapler that is labeled “in case of fire.” vi I am grateful to my parents and sisters for being a present help during difficult times. My parents, William and Margaret Walden, provided much-needed advice born of their struggles in life. I have four unique sisters who made their comfort and support very real to me despite geographical distance. I am thankful, too, for the kind words and love of my parents-in-law, Thomas and Nancy Bennett. My mother-in-law supplied me with industrial sized chocolate bars that were just enough to get me through numerous late nights. My own family has grown during this journey. My sweet son, Grayson, was ten months old when I began the first semester of graduate work. After the second night class, I remember arriving home tired and a little overwhelmed. When Grayson saw me, he burst out crying because he knew something had changed in our life. That moment imprinted on me the cost of school. We soon learned how to chart the new course, one that we navigated for several years. Grayson has faced his own trials of illness yet the twinkle in his eyes has never diminished. My precious Helen arrived along the way. We had a rocky, colicky beginning but she has blessed me with countless hugs and kisses. In her own irrepressible way, she reminds me that joy can be found in the little things of our lives. It is for their future that I stayed the course. I owe a deep and non repayable debt to my husband, Stephen Bennett, for his patience and understanding. He never once complained about taking care of the children when I was in night class or at conferences. He believed in what I was doing and encouraged me in so many ways. From handing me mugs of coffee first thing in the morning to sending me upbeat emails with lots of exclamation points (!!!!!!!!!) to ignoring the occasional self-doubt that had me questioning everything, he never wavered in his extraordinary support. Thank you, Sweetie! Finally, I must acknowledge the One who searched for me in the ashes of my life, led me to a new beginning, and made it possible for me to know the wonderful people mentioned here. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.............................................................................................................v LIST OF TABLES......................................................................................................................... ix LIST OF FIGURES .........................................................................................................................x CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .........................................................................................................1 Organizational Culture ..............................................................................................3 Knowledge Management...........................................................................................5 Intranets.....................................................................................................................8 Purpose of the Study................................................................................................13 Statement of the Problem ........................................................................................11 Statement of Significance........................................................................................13 Definition of Terms .................................................................................................15 2 REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE .............................................................................16 Part One: Organizational Culture............................................................................17 Part Two: Organizational Change ...........................................................................35 Part Three: Knowledge and Knowledge Management............................................52 Part Four: Intranets..................................................................................................60 Chapter Summary....................................................................................................66 3 RESEARCH METHODS............................................................................................68 viii Qualitative Research................................................................................................68 Qualitative Case Study ............................................................................................70 Sample Selection .....................................................................................................73 Data Collection........................................................................................................80 Data Analysis ..........................................................................................................84