Framework

Schein's three levels of culture

The question it answers

When a CEO sets out to change company culture, which level must they reach (artefacts, espoused values or basic assumptions) for staff behaviour to really change?

Origin
Schein, 2010; Schein, 2009
Diagram type
Process by phase
Level of analysis
Firm
Topics
Change managementStrategy & leadership
Clay steps with a looping glass arrow, icon for change management

Diagram

Schein's three levels of culture

  1. Outer to inner
  2. ArtefactsSymbols, language, rituals, spaces.
  3. Espoused valuesWhat the organisation says it values.
  4. Basic assumptionsWhat is taken for granted; hardest to see and change.

Sources

References

Listed A–Z by author surname, Harvard style. A source with a DOI links to https://doi.org/…; one without links to its page or says plainly that it has no DOI.

  1. Schein, E.H. (2009) The Corporate Culture Survival Guide. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.No DOISource page
  2. Schein, E.H. (2010) Organizational Culture and Leadership. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.No DOISource page