Organizational Analysis Paper on Railroads of Pittsburgh Term

Organizational Analysis on Railroads of Pittsburgh - Term Paper Example Corporate culture, in theory, is one of the most critical treadles that could boost or bust the progress of a business. Unfortunately, its real value is almost impossible to quantify. The Railroad of Pittsburgh is one of the many businesses whose success is largely measured by its net revenue and measuring the financial contribution of cultural values and beliefs is and was never an exact science. This difficulty is compounded as culture changes, influences come in, and new communication technology is demonstrating new forms and intensity of power to the point of forcing changes to the internal organizational communication processes. The challenge for Railroads, as in any organization, is to develop an organizational communication process that is stable and strong enough to protect the company’s internal and external cultural identity. All the while being adaptable enough to adjust with the evolving customer and employee needs that dictate the level of cultural diversity withi n and outside of the business. Railroad’s organizational communication set up largely follows Henry Fayol’s Theory of Classical Management. The communication culture is highly structured with each employee expected to produce outputs that are measured and defined and fuelled by nothing else but salaries and quantifiable benefits (Miller 20). There have been many studies that mention how difficult it is for traditional or old companies like Railroads to adjust and adapt to new communication trends or accept the changes that are slowly reshaping their employees. One of the fundamental reasons companies like Railroads is often struggling to keep traditional communication process is the threat new technologies and its corresponding constructs post to changing the corporate identity altogether. Miller mentioned this concept in the Pervasiveness of Power (p. 101). Miller showed 14 sources of power as identified by Morgan (p. 103) and on top position is formal authority follo wed by other factors present in Railroads such as control of resources, boundaries and control of technology. Railroads believe that traditional organizational set-up secure the company’s cultural identity. This organizational barrier was also explored by Ronald Arnett in Communication and Community: Implication of Martin Buber’s Dialogue. Arnett summarized this situation in the concept of Polarized Communication or the process of someone’s inability to bend or adjust their belief including their own concept of power and authority (p. 15). Perhaps Railroad’s apprehension to change comes from the nature of its business. It provides a basic need, one that does not, at least to the management’s opinion, require any stimulant to be purchased. Unlike other companies whose products are forced to evolve in order to keep up with competition, Railroad’s winning selling point is as natural as the geography of Pittsburgh. It feels no need to change or progress. That framework is carried within the organization. Managers feel no need to adapt any new form of internal communication. It is also a part of a bigger organization which is the government and it is assumed that any changes in identity and process is bound by a larger ideology. The result is a classic example of the Max Webber’s Bureaucratic Theory of Management as discussed by Miller (p. 23). It has exhaustive spheres of obligation and ultimate power is bestowed upon authorities. Statement of the Problem Arnett (p. 94) believes that companies who are able to adapt to the changes and still maintain their strong cultural identity often result to company growth in branding and revenue which makes studying the company’s strategy critical and government is not an exception. In fact, the fact that it is owned and backed by the government that makes it even more critical for Railroad to examine how its organizational communication is affecting productivity and inte rnal and external identity. It is largely financed by government