filipino corporate culture

8/16/2019 Filipino Corporate Culture

1/106

LIBRARY

Cover Design by

Liz

JaOTffo,,. •

T o w a r d s D e v e l o p i n g

FILIPINO

CORPORATE CULTURE

(Uses of

F i l ip ino

Traditional Structures

and Values in Modern Management)

R E V I S E D E D I T I O N

F. L A N D A JOCAN O

PUNLAD Research House,

Inc.

Metro Manila/Philippines


2/106

y c . v m

*

m

T O W A R D S D E V E L O P I N G

A FILIPINO C O R P O R A T E C U L T U R E

: Revised Edition

Philippine Copyright © 1999 .

by F. LandaJo cano

and

P U N L A D Research House,

Inc.

First Edition © 1988

by F. Landa Jocano

and

P U N L A D Research House

Al l

rights reserved.

This

publication may n ot be reproduced,

stored

in a

retrieval system,

or

transmitted in whole

or in

part, in

any form

or

by any

means,

electronic,

mechanical,

photocopying, recording,

or

otherwise, without

the

prior written

permission

from

th e

author

and t he publisher.

ISBN

971-622-007-3

. Published by:

P U N L A D Research House,

Inc.

P. 0. Box 121 UP Post Office

Di l iman,

Quezon

Ci ty

1101

Philippines

Printed in the Philippines

Contents

Preface

to the

Second Editi on

Preface

to the

First Edition

Introduction

v i i

1

P A R T 1: B A S I C C O N C E P T S

1

Management and Culture

23

2

Overview of Human Resource

Management

37

3 Sources of Contradictions

i n Phi lippine Management System

53

P A R T 2: S O C IO C U L T U R A L E N V I R O N M E N T

4 Kinship and

Family:

Basic Structures

of Relations 73

5 The Family: The Inner Social World

of F i l i p i n o L i f e 95

6 Core Values: Heart and Soul

of

the

F i l i p i n o 107


3/106

P A R T 3: C O R P O R AT E C U L T U R E

7 Corporate Culture

8 Enhancing Strong Corporate Culture:

F i l i p i n o

Values in Management

9 Integrating

Traditional

Structures

into

Modern Corporate Organizations

Bibliography

Preface to the Second Edition

T

TT mis book is about culture and management.

Specifically.,

it deals

with

the uses of

traditional

structures and values

in developing a F i l ip in o corporate culture. Western

managerial

concepts and practices

s t i l l

heavily influence the

management system in the

Philippines.

The result has so far not

been very satisfactory.

It is suggested

that

for management to

;

be effective, i f

must have the support of the psychology of the people working

in the enterprise. This can be achieved by "fine-tuning" the

management style to the cultural values of the society wherein

the corporation operates.

Many

managers overlook the fact

that

management is an

activity

shaped by the interactions of people

within

the

organization

and affected by the cultural tradition of the larger

society outside it. The hard facts of capital, technology, and

market are not the only elements of corporate l ife. The human

resource component of the company is just as crucial and

deserving of management's attention.

Incorporating F i l ip in o cultural values in management

does not mean rejecting Western concepts and ideas. Instead, it

is

retrieving

from the dustbin of our

colonial

past the suppressed

and

almost forgotten dynamics of

F i l ip in o

culture and using

these

to strengthen as well as enrich the foundation of corporate

l ife.

In this era of

rising

national awareness, there is a need to

redesign our corporations,

modify

our management styles to suit

the temperament of its cultural environment.

This

means:

Western corporate structures, Filipino

management

style.

As

an

ideology of excellence and development:

Western science,

Filipino

values. These can merge successfully.


4/106

In

updating this work and reaffirming my advocacy for

the use of Filipino traditional culture in management, I was

assisted by a number of institutions and individuals. First, I

wish

to acknowledge the assistance of P U N L A D Research

House, Inc., for funding the publication of this revised edition,

and for M F C Printers , for accommodating our print ing needs.

Second,

I am also indebted to the following persons for

their invaluable assistance in preparing this book for

publication:

M s.

Mary

Juliet B . Jocano, for editing; and M r . C.

O. Ricafort JL,, for book design.

Last, but not the least, I wish to thank my wife, A d r i a , "

and my children, Bot and Liz , for their love, patience, and

understanding of my extended stay in the field and relative

isolation when I was writing as well as updating this book.

F . L A N D A

JOCANO

Quezon

C i t y

October

20

3

1

999

vi

Preface

to the

First

Edition

/

IT this volume contains the revised and expanded text of

I lectures delivered during management seminars, labor

- L .

and management workshops, and training programs on

human resource development at various Philippine corporations

from 1981 to 1988, The materials presented here are the results

of my field research on F i l i p i no , culture, values, and value

orientation

for almost two decades (1963 to 1983) and on a four-

year (1982-1985; 1987-1988) intermittent study of Filipino

corporate organizations and cultures. Additional materials have

been

culled

from the

works

of my colleagues and other scholars.

M y purpose in putting

these

lectures, in one volume is to

share

my research findings and ideas

with

as many people as

possible. Each

lecture is presented as a chapter and is

linked

with other chapters by a common theme: the positive use of

Filipino

traditional values and structures i n enhancing effective

management and sustaining industrial peace.

I hope corporate managers, management educators,

union

leaders, and students of business administration and

industrial

relations wil l find

these

materials useful in developing

ways . of increasing.. productivity and enhancing managerial

effectiveness.

In

preparing this work, I am tremendously indebted to

many people and institutions, especially to

those

companies that

initially involved me in their management seminars, and

consequently allowed me to study their organizations. For lack

of

space, I cannot personally thank each one of them, but I

gratefully acknowledge their valuable help and generosity. Their

ideas and insights immeasurably heightened my awareness of

managerial

difficulties

and also stimulated my interest in

organizational behavior.

vii


5/106

M y

special thanks go to the

following

institutions for

their support of the research and writing of this volume: the

Productivity Development Center for the Development

Academy of the Philippines, the Asian Productivity

Organization,

the Asian Center, Japan Foundation, and the

Salesman Center.

To the following persons who assisted me unselfishly and

so wel l , I extend my

deepest

gratitude: Art Tolentino, Roberto

Vasquez, and Nadine Teodoro of the Productivi ty Development

Center of

D A P ,

for

involving

me in many of their research and

workshop projects,

Rollie

Buencamino of San Miguel

Corporation, for'setting up the San Miguel lecture series, some

of which are included in this volume; Jun Garing of the

Salesman's Center, for organizing a series of seminars where

most of the ideas

here

were

tested;

Jose and M ay Gatchalian of

the University of the Philippines, for the many opportunities to

work

with them in workshops on industrial relations and in

seminars on standards and quality control management.

M y

special thanks go to

M s.

Carmen Aquino-Sarmiento,

M s.

G i l da Cordero-Fernando,

M s.

Noemi

A .

Medina,

M s.

M y r a

V .

Dizon,

and Ms.

Wilma

Reyes, for their assistance and

encouragement during the preparation of this book.

But,

most of

all,,I

thank my

family

who bore patiently

and stood by me faithfully through the rigors of research and

writing. This would not have been possible without them.

F .

L A N D A

JOCANO

Quezon

C i t y

August 8,1988

v i i i

Introduction

U n c r i t i c a l transfer of management theories and

techniques' based on Western ideologies and value

' systems has in many ways contributed to organi

zational

inefficiency

in the devel oping countr y con

text

' R. N. Kanung b & A . M . Jaeger,

in M a n a g e m e n t

i n

D e v e l o p i n g C o u n t r i e s ,

1990

After

one has discover ed where the buttons are

located, [one] begins to learn that many of them do

. , nof buzz at .the othe r end. Or , that the perceptions

, and conclusio ns of the immediate subordinates may

• be compl ete ly different

from

and even more meritor

ious than those of the boss. .

Ex-President

Fidel

V . Ramos,

' ' M a n i l a B u l l e t i n , 16

July

1998

O

bviously, the quotations above are gentle reminders

to those Who

wish

to become managers or leaders

that there

are certain realities in the workplace—i.e.,

office or plant—that they need to recognize if they want to be

effective. '•

.

'.. Fir st , many theories, par ticularly the Western ones,-

learned in schools may not be applicable to actual Philippine

situations. Second, uncri tica l use of

these

theories contributes

not on ly to organizational inefficiency but also to miscommu-

nication between management and labor. Third, managers

must remember that, when workers join the company, they


6/106

2

FILIPINO

CORPORATE CULTURE

bring

with them, as part of their mindsets and emotional re

sources, their local cultural values. Fourth, these cultural va l

ues continue

to

influence their relationships with

one

another

even

within the

organization. And f i f th , unless understood,

these

values

can

cause

a lot of

unnecessary miscommunica-

tions,

frustrations,

and

conflicts.

Thus, it would be

helpful

if managers go out of their

way

to

learn

these

cultural values

and

incorporate them

as

part

of

their managerial style

so that

when

the

corporate but

tons

are

located, they know

which end

does

not

buzz

at

all.

A cursory review

of

companies

that did not

fare wel l

during.the'1998-99

Asia n

financial crisis reveals

that

manag

ers, in

these,

companies, particularly

the

multinationals,

had

not fine-tuned their managerial leaderships

to local

cultural

environments. Thus, they found it difficult to communicate

with their colleagues or relate with their subordinates. When

a crisis

finally,

happened, they

did not

receive

the

support

of

the workforce; instead, they

got

negative feelings

and

labor

problems.

, . . •

O n the

other hand,

there

were companies that

did not

only

survive

the

crises

but

even thrived

in the

face

of

adversi

ties. They bravedthe storms

of economic, social, and political

turbulence'

and

succeeded

in

attaining their goals: making

profits in the midst of crises-. How did they do it?

'..

Research

on

this amazing phenomenon

of

success

in

times

of

crises reveals

a

pattern: successful companies

are

guided

by

proper.business.att itudes..They also shift their cor

porate gears, early enough

from

purely technical to substan

t ia l ly , cultural management style. While they keep their tech

nological .-capabilities, at; par

with

the

latest developments^

in

the f ie ld , they

hold

their management styles close

to and in

tune with the

cultural psychology

of the

workers.

This knowl

edge

enables them

to

redesign their business strategies, gain

the committed support

of the

:

employees,

and

affirm

the pa

tronage of

the

customers, before any disaster takes place.

Threatened companies,,

on the

other hand,

are

those

with

conservative, textboofeorknted management styles.

The

techniques they,

utilize. to

manage corporate activities

are

INTRODUCTION 3

often

too

bureaucratic

as to

allow immediate response

to

sud

den environmental changes. Moreover, executives of these

companies see no need for cultural values being meshed with

"modern" management. They

are of the

opinion

that

"such

a

venture

w i l l only

lead

to

confusion

and

management prob

lems." To

them,

a

culture-bound perspective

is not

necessary

for

making current management techniques work.

Good

knowledge

of

business opportunit ies

and

better

discipline

of

workers' behavior

are

al l that aire needed

to

achieve corporate

goals. ,''/ ,

:

There

can be no

argument against this latter point

of

view. Functionally,

this is what business

is

for—taking advan

tage of

business opportunities.

But there are

other

aspects of

the business enterprise that managers ought

to

keep

in mind:

business is people. In spite of modern technology, l ike the use

of computers and robots in offices and plants, business con

tinues

to be

dependent

on

people.,

Automation has not re

placed

people.

The

corporation remains

to be an

organization

of human beings. Thus,

it can be as

good only

as the

people

who

run it. No

enterprise

can be better

than-

the men and

women who direct

i ts

activities. Management must, therefore,

also aim

at

enhancing productive relations

in the

company.

• ... It needs to be

stressed,

in

this connection,

.that

man

agement

is not only a

system

of

ordering activities

but is

also

a

sociocultural encounter. People with.diverse

social

back-,

grounds, cultural orientations,. and educational tra ining

are

recruited and brought to one place for accornplishing certain

specific

objectives.' .These backgrounds, orientations, and

training may

not be

supportive

of

corporate purposes

nor ade-,

qua'te

enough

to

meet effectively

the

adaptive: demands

of the

corporate environment., But

these

people

are

supposed

to

work

together

as a

team. They

are

expected

to

perform their tasks

with the

same

level of

competence,

efficiency,

and

productiv

ity.

, The

business managers

are

responsible

for

achieving

this end. It is their job to level these differences and mold

them into a commonly shared corporate sentiment that can

motivate

the

group

to

work toward

a

common

goal.

Thus,

to

treat..the employees

and

workers,with detached objectivity,

as


7/106

FID PINO CORPORATE CULTURE

scientific

management requires, is to lose managerial impact

and effectiveness, especially

in

times

of

economic crises. Even

labor unions are not exempted

from

criticisms

by

the workers

themselves when labor leaders neglect

the

human side

of the

enterprise

in

managing union affairs.

Managers have traditionally developed

th e

s k i l l s

in

finance,

planning, marketing, an d production tech

niques. Too often, th e relations

with

their people have

been assigned

a

secondary role.

This is too

important

a'

subject

not to

receive first-line a ttenti on.'.

Comparatively, scientific management deals with what

is

to be done on'the basis of

empirical

evidence,

cultural

man

agement, with

how best

things can be done productively and.

with

the

least

conflict. Scientific

management

has its

merits,

but

it

represents

only

one

aspect

of the

business reality. C u l

tural

management

is the

other aspect

of the

enterprise.

The

two approaches must

be

harmonized into

one

corporate orien

tation.

Scientific

techniques must

be

tempered

with a

" c u l

tural/humanist touch." Otherwise,'people

are

reduced

to

sta

tistical

figures

and

human behavior 'into

co ld ,

barren

me

chanical relations. Likewise, cultural techniques,

while

hu

manist in perspective, must be'derived

from

and supported by

empiricalreasoning. Otherwise, they are merely

superficial"

fads'. It is

only

when these two complementary techniques are

properly

utilized

that

management

can

mobilize

the en

trepreneurial spirit

of the

organization

to

greater productivity

or

motivate workers

to

strive

for

quality, professionalism,

and

excellence.

A

company's human resource is its most potent and

only

viable instrument for

survival

at al l times. Without dedi

cated

men

and women, technology is useless; science, mean

ingless.,That

is

why it

is sad

to note that many companies take

good

care of their machines

but not

their workers.

In

fact, ma

chines

are

treated

as assets, while

workers

are

counted

as

INTRODUCTION 5

wages and expenditures.

Although

machines can be used to

facilitate efforts and save valuable time, problems-are u l t i

mately solved

by

people. Everything depends

on

how success

f u l l y

the

company

harnesses and

transforms

the

ordinary

abilities of

managers into sterl ing qualities,

of

managerial

leadership

and the

detachedly complacent attitudes

of

work

ers into productive personal commitments.to

the

goals-of

the

company,.It

is

through

these

processes

that

the

company

can

sustain its successes;and -insure

its,survival:

in times of eco

nomic

difficulties.

• ,

A t it s best, human resource management is the

brain an d nerve system for the brains, hearts, an d bodies

of people

w h o

make

an

organization. Without human

resource management,

an

organiza tion cannot exist,

as

.there w i l l be no people, no unity o f minds," no

division

of:

labor:, or more's imply stated, nobody to take care of any

thing.

Human resource management, therefore, mus t

be

the basis

of

management

of any

human organi zation,

if

it

needs .collaborative efforts of. two .or more .per sons .

2

-

Corporate analysts often overlook

the'

fact

that

man

agement is an activity, shaped by the interactions of people

within the organization and affected

by

the cultural tra'dition

of the

larger society outside

it.

The hard facts

of capital,

tech

nology, and market are not the

only

elements of corporate l ife.

The human resource component

of

the-company is-just

as cru

c ial and deserving of management's attention. • ..•••-.. • >

Corporate managers must, therefore, be sensitive to

the psychological

and

cultural demands

of

the' environment.

These factors affect the

nature

of corporate l ife. But they do

not easily

y ie ld to

numbers

and

accurate statistical predic

tions. They

involve

deeper human predispositions—processes

that

even high-tech instruments often

fail to

uncover.

In

this

context,

it is the

"intuitive" ability-of-managers

to assess the

unquahtifiable workings and the dynamics of the various en-,

vironmental

factors

that

enables them

to

chart

the

course

of


8/106

6

FILIPINO

CORPORATE CULTURE

the corporate ship through often dangerous and treacherous

business waters.

Methodically, there

is no question that

... qualitative information—anecdotes, feelings, values,

hunches, opini ons, and the like—complicates decision

making.

It does not y i e l d easily to rational analysis, and

its usefulnes s is not alwa ys immedi ate ly appare nt. But •'

. even when this k i n d of infor mation cannot be precisely

understood, it can be absorbed. It can be especially

valu-

- \ able in spo tt ing problems before the y get bad enough t o

show up the numbers (in coping

with

workers' discon

tent before it escalates int o a cost ly strike, for exam-

pie).

3

- ' • ' '

:

The intuitive manager is not an anachronism in this

computer age.

Although

market trends and technological

needs

of business enterprises cannot be analyzed, by sheer in

tuition,

fitting

the technology of production to market de

mands requires "intuitive insights," otherwise known as

busi

ness acumen. By whatever name, .this /undefinable and un-

quantifiable something lies behind the

sk i l l

to exploit new

ideas, to take advantage of situations, and to turn crises into

opportunities.

This

is the hidden dimension of corporate lead

ership whose dynamism and effectiveness

rest

on a deeper un

derstanding of human psychology in its cultural context.

Intellectual

strategies alone

w i l l

not motivate peo

ple. O n l y a company

with

a real mission or sense of pur

pose that comes out of an intuit ive or spiritual dimen

sion w i l l capture p eople's hearts, And you must have

people's hearts to inspire the hard work required to real

ize a v i s i o n .

4

It is often those intangible factors in human psychol

ogy,

l y i n g

underneath the observable corporate structures,

that

determine the success or failure of the enterprise. These

INTRODUCTION 7

factors are not' easily noticed because they are

difficult

to

quantify. For example, business performance can- be statisti

cally analyzed but not the strong drive to perform, market

trends can be quantitavely plotted and even predicted but not

the vision that underlies and influences their course; stand

ards and qualities of products can be technical ly control led

but not the creativity to design and to achieve them.

Dr iv e , v i s ion ,

and creativity belong to the realm of c u l

ture. These are abstract categories but powerful sources of en

ergy that make the corporation move forward. They

form

the

bases of actions, of insights that enable successful managers to

transform potentials into real ities.in an organization. Thei r

presence' or absence in a corporation is what makes the

"v ita l

difference" between achievers and honachievers.

Bel i e f in vis ion is a radically new precept in business

philosophy.

It comes out of intuiti ve knowing—lo gic is

not e yerything; it is not all in the numbers. By env is ion

ing

the future one wants, one can more easily achieve

his goal.

V i s i o n

is the l i nk between dream and action.

5

The factors mentioned above, When reinforced by the

commonly

shared cultural values in the environment where

the company operates, make an enterprise a l i v in g organiza

tion. This

is so because cul tural values are more attuned to

the way/people actually think, believe, feel,'and act than sc i

entific

theories of scholars.

In the Philippines, traditional values are so deeply

rooted in the hearts and minds of F i l i p i n o s that they remain

the "given constant" i n an otherwise rapidly changing world.

These'values are the foundation of F i l i p i n o character. They

have been and may

s t i l l

be tapped to attain corporate

ends

and'gdals. Managerial

sk i l l

can be greatly improved by enrich

ing

it with'a "cultural/humanist" approach through the

posi

tive'and

the

best

use of F i l i p i n o values and.practices. The case

of

United Drug

illustrates this observation.


9/106

8 FILIPINO CORPORATE CULTURE

,

:

•}•

Unite d Drug

was founde d;by Jose Campos. It

.

:

i ; start ed as.a

small

street-corner drUgstbrei n Sta.

Mesa.

It

• •• •. has s ince expanded to in clude other operati ons,-

l i k e

;• -. ;drug;manufacturi ng. It no wh as some 2,000 people in its ,

, employ..;

( :

. ; . . . . ; .

. - . - " - . '

; ,• ., ,

' Its founder was said to be the .'one who ini tia ted the

;

-"

b a y a n i h a n

concept of employee-employer"relatipnshi ps,

•\

which

in a .way, reflected t he cha racter of the man hi m-

, : , self, Camp os, accordi ng to sources , came

from

a

well-to-

;

f

, : .do

family,

but his father saw to it,that he

would

experi-

. ence how it is to be a worker. That experience, it is said, '. .;

showed him the import ance of a worker to an ente rprise.

H e believed that the human asset is "the

greatest

asset

o f a business", and

that,

for the busines s to thri ve,' a

spirit

of brotherhood must

prevail

between e mployer

and employee.

Thus was born the b a y a n i h a n as a way of li fe in

U'nilab. B a y a n i h a n ...

means

" t u l u n g - t u l o n g . t a y o "

(we

• help one another) s ystem or a syste m of

working

to

gether l i k e brothers ari iJ sister" for the achievement of

the'goals of the company.'It means that all people,

from

the president to the'la st man in the compa ny, wil l ' , work

together with everything they got until the job is accom

plished.

It is accepted to mean the shar ing of one's bur

den. Thus, the saying

" b a y a n i h a n t a y o "

is often invoked

•When

.there is work to be.done and the cooperation of

other units is needed,

This

way of li fe has been transmit- .

ted

from

genera tion to genera tion .of workers at the, ;.

. . .

Unilab.

(Note: The system has been

working

effectively

fo r 20 .years

with only

one attempt to organize a un

ion . )

6

• . L i k e the

mythical

ghost in the machine, culture is the

.most elusive part of the corporate environment. But it is the

most'powerful, instigator, of' action L o n g hours are often

wasted in corporate'skills training programs because the ap

proaches to attitude changes a.nd work values militate against

'the "cultural psychology of. the workers.

Even

the concepts

used as frameworks to learning are "beyond" the workers ' im-

I N T R 0 D U C T I 0 N 9

mediate grasp.

Most

training techniques, developed as

these

are in other cultures, do not stimulate their intellects or touch

their sentiments. That is why it takes a

long

time before the

desired ideas' and'skil ls become an integra l part of their habits

and personalities. , ' T h e company cannot afford the

luxury

of

time if it has to . survive in the competitive

world

of business.

Effective,

innovation and creative: adaptation must,

therefore, begin

with what

people know and

how

they learned

what they know before they are

taught

to know what they are

supposed to know as part of. their corporate skills.-The value

sentiments of the what and the how in tradi tional learning

c a n be incorporated in the training process in-order to effect

positive responses to new ideas and ski l l s .

This

is imperative

not

only

in training but also in management. '.

A n y organization that does not fit into its cultural en

vironment: is doomed to extinction. The survivalof the "fit

test"

is as much a law of the corporate jungle as it is of the

natura l world'. 'Hence, to meet the challenge of

survival

and

growth, especially'during

difficult

times, corporations must

include

in their respective managerial styles the cultural psy

chology o f

the people who compose their organizations;

• •••

'. There has to be continuity, congruence, and'reinforce

ment'between corporate'management and corporate e n v i r o n

ment: We have'pointed this out in the preceding discussion in

order to stress the role of cultural values in management. In

fact, this study proceeds

from

two complementary'assump

tions:

First,

effective management is the functions of the

congruence between the principles of management used in

the corporation and the elements of culture prevailing in

the

environment

where

the

corporation

operates. Second,

within

the corporation,

effective

management is the func

tion

of the

f i t

or

m a t c h

of the perceptions and

expectations

managers, employees,

and

workers have

of each

other.

In,other words, it is'the perfect (or near-perfect) fit of

culture and.management that leads to excellence, productiv

i t y , and growth. In speaking of Japanese management style,

Prof. Ryushi

Iwata said:


10/106

1

FILIPINO CORPORATE CULTURE

The so-calle d "Japanese-style man agement"

Is one adap-

tive form of the management system

that could only

have developed in the

Japanese

cultural and social envi

ronment and

that

has shown efficiency, in its own way,

in

the

Japanese

social context . Wh en we are reminded of

this fact that a management system consider ably differ

ent from the Western system has functioned effectively,

we canno t help entertain ing the misgivings about rush

in g

headlong into a

quest

for univers ality in man age menti

theor y wit hout st oppi ng to look at the "indigen ous,

qualities"

of the manage ment system in each socie ty.

Barriers

to

Change

I n

the Phi lippines, ,many business schools do not em

phasize the significance of F i l i p i n o culture in management

training. Cultural factors—i.e., values and norms—are totally

ignored (or else listed in school catalogues as cognate sub

jects), if at all recognized, they are merely treated as residual

categories to quantitatively oriented courses. The

same

ne

glect is found in actual management practices. .This- indiffer

ence to or lack of appreciation of the importance of F i l i p i n o

culture to corporate management may be traced to the prevai l

i n g

biases many business executives and business educators

have against existing

F i l i p i n o

traditional values. As one for

mer of f ic ial of the Bureau of Employment of the Department

o f Labor said:

r

It's about time

that

we demystify the belief

that there

is

such an indigenous F i l i p i n o culture or traditional way to

.resol ve conflicts. Labor management relations is a fact of -

modern, urban, industrial societies. In traditional rural

o r

upland communities,

there

are no labor-management

relations—only father-son, landowner-tenant, or male-

female 'rela tions. These' are the different yet relevant

status

relation s imping ing upon, yet not wholly related

to, production, unlike in the more specialized labor-

INTR0DUCTI0N 11

management relations

that ariso In

modern, urban, in

dustrial societies

purely for

p r o d u c t i o n .

8

B y the

same

token, many executives attribute lack of

initiative or responsibility among their employees to such c u l

tural

norms as b a h a l a n a , p a k i k i s a m a , h i y a , and so forth.

Public administrators also fault these norms for the peoples

3

seemingly lack of discipline, ethics, and morality in public

service.

•Unfortunately, these derogatory perceptions of F i l i

pino traditional ways have become sel f - ful f i l l ing prophecies.

They are used as excuses or alibis for personal wrongdoings

and inadequacies. Even

mass

media have tended to bloat this

negative

view

of

F i l i p i n o

cultural norms and practices .and

have labeled many aspects of the culture as

scapegoats

for in

dividual aberrations.

A newspaper report, such as the one below, exemplifies

the lack of appreciation of F i l i p i n o values in management.

The secretary of transportation and communications

wishes to run his department

l i k e

he used to

manage-the

IB M

Phili ppine s and in the

same

way the Zobels, Ayalas,

Sorianos, whose concern is E F F I C I E N C Y , run the ir cor po- '•

ration.

' : - - . . ' • .

V

Unfortunately, he said, the main obstacles to this

objective are the two age-old

F i l i p i n o

virtues of u t a n g -

n a - l o o b an d p a k i k i s a m a . '.

H e

said,

there

is no reason why the govern ment

cannot be run

l i k e

an efficient and profitable corporation .

if

those

who run its

departments

and agencies

would.

, -

prevent

these

two virtues—invaluable as they are for

family and personal relationships—from

S p i l l i n g

into

thfeir professional lives...,

They (i.e., p a k i k i s a m a an d u t a n g - n a - l o o b )

create

a ,

class of incompet ent privileged few who flourish at the

expense of hardworkin g employees and hurt the citiz ens

o f

the country

because

they are incapable of delive ring '

•

the service for which they are paid....


11/106


[He

further] said

that

for the country to

progress

leaders in government and privat e sectors must do away

with these two virtues.

9

This

is a very strong indictment indeed. But many ex

ecutives

share

this view. When cultural factors do come intd.

the corporate picture; managers generally consider them "bar

riers' to good management or public administration ." The

1

idea

of incorporating tradit ional values in management training dr

imoperational techniques of actual job supervision is consid

ered not necessary or Unorthodox at best. The sentiments' ex

pressed

by-

one executive probably echo

those

of the majority

of his colleagues. *• .•':.•': -.• « -•:.:/, :• ..-.-:•.;

''

1 1

What the

h e l l

do I need t o kn ow about

these

values ' '

for? I have been pra ctici ng them n ot only- in my comp an y

. >:;. but also in my home . More ove r, these people are paid to

,

. dp a. job. Tha t is all

there

is ]fco man age men t; yo u wor k, , .. .

you

get paid; you perform

w e l l ,

you get pr omot ed.

10

The use of cul tural .-values-in management

does

not

mean an abrogation of the inviolable business maxim: NO

W O R K , - N O

P A Y Nor

does

it mean doing away

with

tested

managerial techniques. Contrary to common managerial fears

and misconceptions, understanding F i l i p i n o values and using

them to inspire and motivate workers towards

better

perform

ance do not result in anarchy or breakdown in discipline. In

stead, it encourages mutual respect and camaraderie that lead

to professionalism and excellence. Because of too much expo

sure

to external cultures, the use of traditional values has to

be managed/supervised, and monitored

wel l :

A t

pxesentj few managers and management educators

are wi l l i n g to learn or are open to suggestions regarding the

positive uses of F i l i p i n o cul tural values in corporate manage

ment. These'rare few are the executives and educators who

have realized that the essence of business is found in the

ab i l

ity

of corporate leadership to direct and motivate workers to

peak performance. Technical competence is one thing, insp ir

ing excellence is another. Lee Iacocca, the President of

Chrys-

INTRODUCTION 13

ler

Corporation, once declared: "Management

is

nothing

more than motivating people."

11

People involvement is nec

essary to achieve corporate goals. And as Andres Soriano III,

former chairman of San M i gu e l Corporation, pointed out:

A n ente rprise must invol ve its people, from top to bot

tom and bottom to top, in the tota l

li fe

of an organiza

tion.

Its people must take

part

in the selection of goals',

in

the develo pment of purposes, in the analysis of obsta

cles,

in-t he gener ation of solut ions , .in the design and

"

implementation of

strategies

and-programs, and must be

'--•<

••

rewarded

with

the fruits of succes s.

12

• '••'.';'

' No matter how scientif ic management techniques'-are

sedulously applied and how technical ly competent the work

ers are, 'if they, are not motivated to give their best perform

ance, the quality and productivi ty are l i ke l y to suffer. Scien

t i f ic

know-how is one ..business -operation,,

delivering, better

performance is another, Unless managers realize this, .man

agement

becomes a source of conflicts and divisiveness rather

than of direct ion and unity.

.-.-

The current failure of.the managerial system to

create

a

culture of excellence (in either private.or public enterprise)

is

not due to the

F i l i p i n o s '

lack of

abilities.

Rather, it springs

from

the unconscious-psychological resistance, of many man

agers toward- making a positive, if not the best, use of indige

nous knowledge, values, norhiS, and practices.'There is an im

pl ic i t

rejection of F i l i p i n o traditional'ways and an

explicit

as

we l l as straightforward application of exogenous'Ideas, mod

els, and'methods, ' even, if these do not quite'"fit" the native

thought processes and sentiments. Traditional F i l i p i n o ways

of managing group activities or

solving

conflicts are, consid

ered "backward" and contrary to what are accepted a,s sound

principles

of modern management or public administration .

Total

adoption of exogenous principles is deemed necessary to

advance corporate management. But as former University of

'dm-Philippines President Edgardo J. Angara noted: ,


12/106

14 FILIPINO

CORPORATE CULTURE

This

experiment

does

not appear to have resulted in the

expected outcome, in view of the continuing tensions in

.; • the Philippine industrial relations. I suggest

that

com

pulsory arbitration and free collective bargaini ng did not

work, and their hybrid is not working because all are

based on an assumption which not on ly glosses over but

actually runs counter to the way

F i l i p i n o s

traditionally ,

resolve disputes.'

3

Colonialism is pointed out as the underlying historical

reason behind our people's rejection of .their indigenous c u l

ture. As wags put it, " F i l i p i n o history is 400 years i n a con

vent, then 50 years in

Hol lywood . "

That was enough, they say,

to undermine the. cultural foundations

of Filipino

society.

Other critics say that we are

-a

people uprooted from our tradi

tional roots. This is not quite accurate. Underneath the veneer

of

alienation is a truly and uniquely F i l i p i n o tradition. We

have our roots

deep

in the native grounds. Although F i l i p i n o

political unity is a relatively recent and shaky achievement,

our cultural unity had long been achieved, hundreds of years

before the colonizers came. Whatever was borrowed from out

side was modified to suit

local

needs. As anthropologist

Robert Fox pointed out: '<

:

'

Throughout the thousands of years of contact, direct . m

and indirect, with A s i a and Southeast A s i a , the

F i l i p i n o

•

| people selected and. elaborated trait-complexe s, which

... . were part of the f l o w ("trickle" would perhaps be a

bet

ter term) of tradit ions int o the Islands. Cultural and so

c ial patterns

were hot'borrowed in toto; then, as now,

specific external influences were borrowed and reshaped

to conform with existing^ inst ituti ons , values, and be- '

U l

liefs, and in response to l o c a l needs. Thus, unique, lo

cally elaborated, and

l o c a l l y

developed ways of doing, '

1

.

• . i believing, and thinking emerged .

14

*For detaile d descri ption , see F. Landa Jocano,

F i l i p i n o P r e h i s t o r y : R e d i s

c o v e r i n g P r e c o l o n i a l H e r i t a g e (Quezon

C i t y :

P U N L A D Research House, Inc.,

1998).

INTRODUCTION

15

The

F i l i p i n o ' s

experience

with

history and encounter

with modernization has him existing simultaneously with two

competing value systems: the native or indigenous and the ex

ogenous, mostly Anglo-American. The former demands na

tionalist concerns, the latter modernization. This bipolar situ

ation has resulted in a so-called "split-level" national bureau

cratic management. Indigenous sentiments are openly derided

as counterproductive but are retained in

individual

interac

tions. F i l i p i n o s accept the Americans' objectivity as an ideal

model for interactions but reject their business'as an affront,

to F i l i p i n o sensitivity.

1

' -,•• • • ;

This

somewhat schizophrenic

state

of affairs is gener

ally

recognized and accepted. However,

there

has been no con

certed and systematic effort to unify the two systems into a

single orientation. The tendency has been to discard or disre

gard indigenous F i l i p i n o cultural values if these-aire perceived

as contrary to modern (i.e., Anglo-American) management'

ideas and practices: The reverence for things-modern has of

tentimes resulted in the unquestioning acceptance of naive

and outlandish management theories so, long as these are

couched i n Western academic jargon. It is seldom realized by

many'Filipinos that

modern values-considered universal have,

in fact, a strong Western bias. --

;

-' '•>- -

Managers have to "listen to'those bells" from

With in

their storehouse of practica l knowledge of the prevai ling c u l

ture found in the environment Where the corporation oper

ates.

Insights into human behavior do not always appear in

statistical tables, People are different from each other not on

account of their being human but because of their cultural

orientation. Each culture has its own way of defining how

things Ought to' be done and why. Foreign managers working

in Asia w i l l

be happier i f they take time to understand the

culture of the workers they are managing. As Paddy

Bowie

of

the E u r o - A s i a

B u s i n e s s R e v i e w

states:

Ways

of doi ng business are inextr icably bound-up with

cultures. In the East, business is built on reciprocal as

sociations between individuals....


13/106

1 6

FILIPINO CORPORATE CULTURE

•

: The central value js har mony— the Chin ese

w a ,

the

:.

ability to get along, with .others. The

F i l i p i n o

has a word

for i t -^pqkUdsqma—-which

is high ly priz ed. To.be iris en-, . •,

..•

, sitive to the feelings of

others

is to, be a social deli n-

:

, ,

li

,

•, quen.t. '

5

; . .

•

, • ; ,,

.,;..,

{

.;.

i . / T h e contradictions and confusions in.

the,

Filipino.'per

ceptions of work

and

work habit

are

the result of ambivalence

as to which model to

use

in managing:

men

in . corporate or

ganizations,-Managers reject, tradit ional.va lues as backward,

whereas workers hold

these

in high esteem. In almost a ll occa

sions, managers and supervisors operate on one set of assump

tion; workers, on another. To the former, to be bossy is part of

their.managerial role. To the latter, i t. is ^managerial arro

gance. . '• . ' . , ' . .

>....; . Further, to correct mistakes publicly is constructive.

Qrri-sifiismto the supervisors; to the workers, it is,an affront to

t ^ U ^ p i p r p j f Q ^ i O '

(self-egteem). For workers, to be ordered all

t]iQ ftiimje

is, in

the view

of

many

managers

and supervisors, a-

m̂ s

-UiFQIto

make up for lack

of

initiative; but

to the

workers,

ifisj^utACratioand unnecessary. In the process, the managers

a©d,

Supervisors become impatient and the workers frustrated

or resentful. They are talking but not listening.to, each.other.

It.js.

(

as though they

are

transmitting

on two

wavelengths

or

tfieir signals

are

crossed. The inevitable results: conflicts. , ,

r

But the same bossism, correction, and ordering be-,

come astute parts, of motivation when- communicated,,in

proper cultural context. A, manager

can

be bossy without rais

ing his,

voicep n a worker,, especially

in

frqnt

of

other workers.'

C r i t i c i s m or even reprimand is well-receiyed if communicated,

as a concern over efficiency and-skill development. There are

many other examples on.how to manage

and

supervise..Fili

pino'workers .'without offending their

sensitivity.'As one,

s-trikf..

ing

labor

leader said: , . . . , . ... . /

H i n d i sa h i n d i n a m l n a l a m a n g t r a b a h o . ' A t h i n d i r.ln sa-

;

h i n d i s a p a t

a n g

s a h o d .

A n g

t o t o o n g d a h i l q n

n g

p a g - a l s a

n g

m g a t a o ay a n g

k a y a b a n g a n

a t

k a l u p l t a n ,

n i t o r i g

d a y u h a n

a t n g

k a n i l a n g P i l l p i n o n g g a l a m a y . K a h i t

sa

INTRODUCTION

17

h a r a p

n g

m a r a m l n g

t a o ay

s l n l s l g a w a n k a n g p a r a n g

a l i l a .

. W a l a n g p a k l k i p a g k a p w a

a n g m g a

i y a n . K a y a n a p u n o

n a

a n g

m g a

t a o — n a g k a s u n d o

a t

l u m a b a n . (It is no t

that

we

.do not know our w.ork, It is not

that

we are not receiving

a

good salary. The real

cause

of the st rike is the rudeness,

and cruel ty of th e foreigners, apd their

F i l i p i n o ,

under;

lings.

Even in front of many people, they shout at you as

if you are a servant. They do not strive for good rela-.

tion s. That is why people agreed to fight bac k.)

16

Reconciliation ., - . , ,,. • '

;

: \ ., •• .]]:.

i : ; i , • ,

The contradictory value system has exacted from the

national society a high price in terms of economic stagnation,

social corruption, moral decadence, and

political

dry rot. The

time has come for us to stop laying the blame for what, we

have become at the colonizer's door and to give up making ex

cuses,for our shortcomings as a people.; The negative psychol

ogy of historical alienation that has estranged us from our.tra

ditional culture for so long can be transformed. A positive;

psychology can turn around, perceived sociocultural inadequa

cies and capabilities. It .can regenerate our weakening moral

fiber and turn it into inner

strengths

that .can bear us through

the next millennium.

..

This does not mean that we F i l ip in o s , should beqome

xenophobic and singularly insular and parochial on.the,other

extreme. We must be selective in borrowing, modifying, and

discarding cultural traits. Only the best in Western traditions,

as our perceptions guide us; must be borrowed and used; only

the'be'st'-in F i l i p i n o culture must be retained and emphasized.

What is best is.determined by the positive contribution a bor

rowed'idea or technique or an existing cultura l trait has .given

to the growth and'well-being of an organization or of the

greater society. For example, Western science, technology,

and principles of management can -be borrowed

• selectively^

but these borrowed

elements

have to be modified to

1

suit the

cultural characteristic of the

F i l i p i n o

people. . ,

http://to.be/http://to.be/


14/106

18

FILIPINO

CORPORATE CULTURE

Doing- this does not mean reinventing the wheel, so to

speak, or totally discarding cultural elements with those intro

duced by foreign sources, which may already be part of our

cultural heritage. Instead, it'i s retrieving from-the dustbin of

our colonial past the suppressed and almost forgotten dynam

ic s

of

F i l ip in o '

culture

1

and using

these

to

strengthen

as

we l l

as

enrich the foundatioh'of our 'modern

corporate l ife.

In this era

o f

rising nationalism, we need to "redesign" our corporations,

modify our

management

style's to suit the

temperament

of

their cultural environment—the

F i l i p i n o

cultural environ

ment. This means: Western corporate

structures,

Filipino

management styles. As an ideology of excellence and, devel

opment: Western science,

Filipino

values. Tne'se cah'mef^ge

successfully.

Notes

'

'

W i l l i a m .

Hawlett, "The Human 'Sid e of Management ," quoted f rom

P r a i i Tarkenton, H o w

t o

M o t i v a t e P e o p l e (New

Y o r k :

Harp er & Row Pub

lish ers, 1986), 65: '. .- •• • -

;

- •' - • U .

-''

2

Shm- ich i Takezawa, ed.

I n

Q u e s t

of

H u m a n . D y n a m i s m ' (Tokyo:

A s i a n

Pro duct ivi ty'O rga niz at ion , 1986), 3. '' ••' • -

3

Patricia O'Toole,

C o r p o r a t e M e s s i a h

(New Amer ica n Li bra ry, 1984),

269. .».-..•

• '

4

Joh n' Naisbitt and Pa tricia Aburdehe, R e i n v e n t i n g

t h e

C o r p o r a t i o n

( N e w Y o r k : Warner Boolcs

3

'lncr.,

;

1'985), 27. '; ' ' ' ' ' " '

5

Ibld.,

25-26. "

1

' ^ ' .

;. ,

6

Ma ri e Edr ali n-Aga non , "The Ba yanihan .System at Unila b: A Case

Study of Wor kers ' Partici pati on in Management,".

P h i l i p p i n e J o u r n a l

of

I n d u s t r i a l R e l a t i o n s 1 no. 1 (1st Semester, 1978):8. . . . , , . '

7

Ryushi I v / q t S i , J f l p q n p s e S t y l e M a n a g e m e n t : I t s F o u n d a t i o n s a n d P r o s ' -

p e a t s (Tokyo:

A s i a n

Pr oduc ti vit y Org ani zat ion , f98;2), 8. , , . ,

•

8

Ma ry An n Fernande z, "D emystify the

B e l i e f

That There 'Is a F i l i

pino Way to

R e s . o i v ^ Q p f l M G t S i " P h i l i p p i n e J o u n i u l

of I n d u s t r i a l

R e l a t i o n s '

6,

i i o s .

1-2 (1984)::125,.-

:;

.. . -.

.•

--, •

^ M a n i l a

B u l l e t i n ,

2 l ' M a f f c h 1988, 43. ' '.-'.'

> V , < x > ; - , -

'',;' ',

INTRODUCTION 19

10

Personal interview, 1987.

u

Le e Iacocca (with

W i l l i a m

Novak), I a c o c c a : A n A u t o b i o g r a p h y (New

Y o r k :

Bantam Books, 1984), 53.

•

12

Benj amin Mar tine z, "A Corporate Colossus on the Thresh old of Its

Centennial ," S u n d a y

T im es M a g a z i n e ,

8 M a y 1988, 9.

13

Edga rdo J. Angara , "New Dimen sion s in Industrial Relations, "

P h i l i p p i n e J o u r n a l o f I n d u s t r i a l R e l a t i o n s 5, no s. T- 2 (1983):27.

14

Robert Fox, The

P h i l i p p i n e s

i n

P r e - H i s p a n i c T i m es

(Manila:

U N E S C O , 1959), 1

15

Pad dy Bowie , "Wh en Silence Doesn't M ea n Consent,"

E u r o - A s i a

B u s i n e s s

R e v i e w

1 no . 1 (1988):34.

lf i

Per son al inte rvi ew, Februa ry 1988.


15/106

Parti

BASIC CONCEPTS

Management and Culture

Overview of Human Resource Management

Contradictions in Philippine Management System


16/106

Management

and

Culture

Every managerial act r.ests on assumption s, gen

eralizations,

and hypotheses —that is to say, on

theory. Our assumptions are frequently

i m p l i c i t ,

sometimes quite unconscious, often conflicting;

• neverthe less, they determine our predictio ns that if

we do a,,b

wil l ,

occur, Theory and practice are in

separable.

t r . -.-I •

;

Douglas McGregor,

' . Autho r, I960

Without

exception, the dominance and coher

en ce of culture-p rove d to be an essent ial qual ity of

excellent companies.

Thomas J, Peters

& Robert H. Wa ter man Jr.,

Authors,

1982

hroughout this study, we sh al l continually use the

terms

management and culture. For purposes of clar-

.

ity, we shall define, and explain our use of

these

con

cepts.

Management

Management is a given in all

social

groupings, from

the most primitive societies to the most sophisticated organi

zations. Management directs organization activities and pre-


17/106

24 FILIPINO

CORPORATE CULTURE

vents the

wastage

of materials and human resources. It is an

essential

feature

of human behavior at work, and it is neces

sary in order to achieve maximum cooperation and minimum

conflict

among the members of a group.

Business management, both in big corporations and in

small

enterprises, may be viewed as a special type of relat ion

ship

that

involves not only directing the behavior of people

but also

u t i l i z i n g

capital and technology for the ultimate ob

jective of making profits. Over the

greater

society, it

shapes

attitudes, habits, and values through advertising and asserts

influence over the lives of people through the systematic con

trol

of their economic resources.

1

By managing technology

through.research and development, management further de

termines" the

level

of sophistication science can reach and u l t i

mately .the complexi ty and progressiyeness. of society.

Managing

technology through science alone is short

sighted. Managing technology through people has more far-

reaching effects on corporate growth in

terms

of productivity

and profit than through any other method 'so far devised. This

way, management opens

avenues

for better understanding and

provides proper direction of activities intended for the reali

zation of human potential in the'community or in the organi

zation. •

Technology is more than work, more than material

. objects, .more, than, mere .applicat ions of science,, more

than machines,, more than inve ntio n. It is also a set of

.attitudes

and val ues-t hat bears, qualitati ve and emo

tional consequences. Te chnology provides importan t

cultural determinants

t hat shape

the primary institu

tions of Wes tern society, and potentially of non-W est

ern society. A genuine te chnolo gical revoluti on has oc

curred and is moving relent lessly on. It has brought the

emancipation of women, changes in the organization of

work

and leisure, and a higher quality of

l i f e .

2

MANAGEMENT

AND

CULTURE

25

A s

used in this study, the term

management

refers to

the ability of

managers

to motivate people to participate crea

tively ând productively in group activities so

that

the organi

zation can achieve its goals. To motivate people is actually to

develop in them a collective sentiment, a moral consensus

that

allows them to realize their potentials as individua ls and

as members of a corporate group. If a manager cannot moti

vate, he is a failure in his role.

Management may also be viewed as the ability to

influence people to think, believe, feel, and act the way

one want s-th em to think, believe, feel, and act for the

purpose of accomplishing or achieving certain

ends

or

goals.

3

Structural relationships in the organization have con

tributed to

perpetuate

the

:

popular

view

that management is

purely the

of f ic ial

prerogative of managers. Managers are

hired

to manage; that is their sole job. They have to discharge

their duties efficiently and objectively if they are to stay at the

helm of the enterprise. In this context, the rank-and-file work

ers are viewed as people who simply do their jobs as defined,

directed, and managed, and are tota lly removed from the deci

sion-making process.

This

view

is changing. Management is no longer con

sidered "primarily a

matter

of technique but of

finding

out

ways to reach objectives

within

an exist ing sociocultural sys

tem."

4

Such development proceeds from the realization that

no business enterprise is an isolated entity but instead is

shaped by its

social

and economic environment. Thus, man

agement

is no longer guided solely by its impersonal organiza

tional

structures, but

principally

by the motivations of people.

It has become a humanist art. As such, it consists of work atti

tudes, drives, values, creativity, and innovation. It is a k i n d of

counterculture aimed pri mari ly at developing a

collectively


18/106

26

FILIPINO

CORPORATE CULTURE

shared knowledge and sentiments at the corporate

level

of in

teractions.

Thus, when managers manage we l l , corporations real

ize

more profits. "When workers are we l l managed, they per

form

optimally and professionally.

Work

is approached

with

responsibility

and digni ty. For both workers and managers,

indifference

is changed into creative interest, perfunctoriness

into eagerness, doubt into confidence, and mediocrity into ex

cellence. The ultimate

test

of the successful manager is how

we l l he inspires performance and eliminates barriers to pro

ductivity. C r u c i a l

to this is the managerial ability to act ac

cordingly

and to recognize all the nuances and manifestations

of management as a cultural and behavioral process.

How W e l l managers manage and are managed

deter

mines whether business goals

w i l l

be reached. It also

largely

determines how w e l l -the enterpr ise manages

worker

and work. For the worker's attitude reflects,

above all, the at titude of his management. It directly

mirrors

management's competence and structure. The

worker 's effectiveness is determined largely by the wa y

he is being managed.

5

Elements of Management

Management as a cultural and behavioral process

means developing shared feelings and beliefs in the organiza

tion. This

includes planning, organizing, implementing, and

controlling

(evaluating) activities in order to provide a favor

able climate for operation.

6

Planning

is the first element of management. Plan

ning,

whether

explicit

or

im pl ic i t ,

is necessary in order to at

tain organizational or corporate goals.

This

necessitates

set

ting

up objectives, clearing them, and developing

strategems

MANAGEMENT AND

CULTURE

27

in

anticipat ion of future actions. It is at this point that con

ventional wisdom merges with scientific knowledge, insight

with rational thinking, vision with realistic decision making.

To

plan is also to extrapolate

from

factual information ideas

for

envisioning a course of action.

This

way, one may reason

ably

predict

that,

i f nothing disturbs existing conditions dras

tically,

the desired goal of the company can be achieved, per

haps

even easily.

The second element of management is organization.

This

involves the

definition

of tasks, the allocation of work to

people, and the integration of activities into a work system.

Beyond

the tedious process of job recruitment is the challenge

of providing

workers

with

a sense, of identity or belongingness

that w i l l promote corporate unity and productivity.

The th ird element of management is direction or the

implementation of plans as envisioned and of work activities

as organized.

Direction

or implementation (labels are a mat

ter of personal preference) includes leadership, motivation,

delegation, discipline, and cooperation. Managers must en

sure

that

the proper environment for productive work exists

and must decide

which

tasks ought to be closely supervised

and

which

responsibilities may be delegated. In

these

con

texts, they must not

only

implement policies Or direct act iv i

ties; they must also create, innovate, motivate, and inspire.

The fourth and last element of management is control

or evaluation. Without any

form

of

control, discipline

is

d i f f i

cult

to attain; without regular evaluation, group work loses its

direction.

In production, standards and quality control must

be top priorities to

avoid

losses. Furthermore, costs, machine

cap-abilities, inventories,

liquidity,

and cash flows have to be

controlled

in order to provide direction to the volumes of pro

duction and to further development.

Work

performance must

be continually evaluated to improve personal and group out

put.

Activities

related to the work

cycle

must

likewise

be

evaluated in terms of their contribution to the total effort in

achieving

corporate goals. The

overall

purpose of• evaluation

or control is to improve performance, thereby enhancing pro

fessionalism

and maintaining excellence.

< b \r

J


19/106

28

FILIPINO

CORPORATE CULTURE

Management, as herein defined, has been criticized as

traditional.

7

Lately, a preference has been expressed to define

management as the reactive organ of the business enterprise.

This

latter

view

calks upon the manager to react to a variety of

problems with minimal attention to planning, organizing, and

controlling.

8

Regardless of the merits of one- definition over

the other, the main duties of the manager are

s t i l l

to plan, or

ganize, implement,-and control the activi ties Of the corpora

tion.

Our

ability

to compete rests on our

ability

to organ- '

ize human beings in such a way as to

geneca-te

opportu

nity

and results,

rather

than impasses, stagn ation , bu-

reacracy, and wasteful friction.

9

.. . . •;

Managerial

Leadership

The success,or failure of a. company is largely attribut

able to its managerial leadership. Some

managers

are merely

administrators who l i m i t their activities to routine and for

mally prescribed tasks. Others are leaders who do not only

manage the daily affairs of the company but also

harness

the

potentials of employees so as to achieve company goals.'

There are four types of managerial leadership: auto

cratic,

custodial, supportive, and

collegial.

10

Autocratic

lead

ership is formal and founded on the delegated authority to

command and be obeyed by the people over whom leadership

is

applied. It is based on the premise that management knows

best

and

that

it is the obligation of the employees to

follow

ac

cordingly.

Custodial

leadership is based on the assumption that

by

redirecting the employees' loyalties from the boss, as in

autocratic leadership, to the company (through rewards and

fringe benefits), the workers

would

be motivated to work

MANAGEMENT

AND CULTURE 29

harder in order to further satisfy their wants.

A l l

that manage

ment has to do is to provide benefits and strengthen the em

ployees' dependence on the organizat ion for their security and

satisfaction.

Supportive leadership,- on the other hand, is manage

ment that provides the proper climate for human resource der

velopment

while

achieving the ends and purposes of the enter

prise, Collegial leadership is premised on' teamwork as the

key to responsibility and productivity. It is the task of man

agement

to b u i l d a better team if it aims for corporate excel-

, 11 - . . . . .

lence.

Leadership is fast becoming a critical dimension of

interpersonal influence

that

must cpme to

permeate

the

manag ement of any company,

that

intends to remain

successful in the new business env ironme nt. Con se

quently, managers must grow to embrace leadership as a

central componen t of their self-concepts and roles. ...

12

[Managers] must grow to become Lea ders-Mana gers.

Culture

• In defining culture, the layman is most l i ke l y to turn

to the dictionary for help.. Dict ionary definitions emphasize

the applied meanings of culture: moral and aesthetic values,

development, training, and transmission ..of knowledge. C u l

ture is thus a means of learning as

we l l

as of teaching ways to

becorpe an acceptable member of the group. M u c h of what an

individual

is and the way he behaves are largely due to his

cultural

upbringing. ,

.From a holistic point of view, .the

classic, defin ition

of

culture is

that

of Edward

T y l o r

wherein culture is "the com

plex whole that includes knowledge, beliefs, art, morals, laws,


20/106


customs,

and any

other capabilities acquired

by man as a

member of society."

13

A

close analysis

of the

above

definition

further tells

us

that: firstly,

culture,

as a

complex whole,

is

composed

of

dif

ferent elements

that are

ideational

and

behavioral

i n

nature;

secondly,

central

to

this composition

is the

interrelatedness

and interdependence among the elements that constitute the

whole;

and

thi rdly, culture

is

acquired through membership

i n

a group or in a society. - •

Tylor's holistic definition of the

dynamics

of

culture

is

of special significance to corporate management. A

holistic

view of

organizational behavior allows

for the

integration

of

the different

divisional

"subcultures" into

one

functioning

whole.

Structurally, a corporation is

divided

into

parts

or

d i v i

sions,

each one

with a

specialized

set

of

knowledge,

rules,

and

practices (e.g., accounting, engineering, sales).

Each

d iv i s ion ,

however, must relate

its

activities

to the

other divisions and

to

the total objectives of the corporation.

In this way,

the

workers

are

able

to see

each other

not

only

as specialists in their respective fields but also as mem

bers of the

total organization.

It is the

interrelatedness

of the

different units that is

crucial

to management. The

holistic

perspective

is

necessary

for

decisive plann ing

and

innovation

because it

allows

for a

common interpretation

of

situations,

for f l ex ib i l i t y

in

solving

common problems, and for the devel

opment and maintenance of corporate identity.

From

a

more specific point

of

view,

culture

is the

sys

tem

of

symbols

and

meanings people

use to (1)

organize their

ideas,

(2)

interpret their experiences,

(3)

make decisions

or

pass

judgments,

and (4)

guide their actions. These ideational

aspects are

manifested through each culture's

use of

symbols.

A

symbol refers

to any

object, idea, sound,

or act to which the

observer's attributed meanings specify what

is

intended,

s ig

nified,

indicated,

and

understood when using

the

object,

sound,

or

act.

In

this context, symbols

differ from

signs.

The

meaning associated with sign

is

intrinsic

to the

object, sound,

and

act; in

symbols,

the

meaning

is

inferred.

The

inferred

at

tributes

and

meanings

of

universal ly shared objects, ideas,

MANAGEMENT AND CULTURE 31

acts,

and

sounds account

for the

variations

and

differences

in

cultures.

14

It

is

also

the

meaning

or

significance human beings

at

tach

to

things

or

events

that

accounts

for

their

ability to

rea

son and to

draw

"v a l id

conclusion

from

formulated premises."

A s one

anthropologist argued:

M en

c o u l d

not act and feel as

they

do if

they

c o u l d

not

form

concepts

an d

make judgments,

but

neither

c o u l d

they make

use of

concepts

an d

engage

in the ideal activ

it y

of

thinking

if they had not developed their innate ca

pacity

for the "idealized"

modes

of

behavior

an d feeling

characteristic of human beings.

1

"

5

In

other words, it is

from

the symbolic perspective of

culture that we

can

grasp clearly

the

nuances

or

subtleties

of

human behavior

in the

community

or m the

corporation.

It is

from these

intangibles

that we can f ind

clues

to why

people

behave

in a

particular way

and not in

another, why they

are

what they

are

Culture is

both

explicit and im pl ic i t . The explicit as

pects are those

that

are

observable,

l ike

behavior

and

material

objects;

the im pl ic i t ones are those that are

nonobservable,

l ike values and norms. It is the im pl ic i t

part

of culture that

deals

with themes and patterns of

everyday l i fe . That

is why

culture is often elusive.

Even if culture is

abstract,

it is real. 'It is also the

dominant instigator

of

behavior. Governments,

for

example,

are not concrete entities, but they have tremendous powers of

coercion

and

control.

Re l ig ion

is

another

abstract

but a

power

fu l

shaper of ideas

and

actions.

S im i la r l y ,

physical movements

become actions as soon as they are used to symbolize certain

predispositions,

l ik e

greetings, partings, friendships,

hostili

ties,

love.

Sometimes, we are not even aware why we think, be

lieve, and act the way we do. This is because we

have been

trained

to do

things

(and

think them

out

too )

in

standardized

and acceptable ways during childhood.


21/106

32

FILIPINO

CORPORATE CULTURE

Fr om

birth, th e c h i l d is surrounded

w i t h

a

w o r l d

of

conventionalized objects. He is handled and fed, clothed

and cared for in culturally approved ways. No matter to

what k i n d of a group he may belong, he learns to eat

standardized food of traditional kinds, procured an d pre

pared in standardized ways. If he is brought up in one

culture,

he acquires a taste a nd a physiological tolerance

for foods

that an

i n d i v i d u a l

of

another culture might

filipino corporate culture

Documents