Heterogeneity of Organisational Climate

Organisational climate, which depends on the perception of organisational members and significantly influences their motivation and behaviour, is a conceptual synthesis of characteristics that distinguish organisations from one another. The nature of organisational climate was investigated by measuring six climate motives on 453 executives in a large Indian public sector industry using motivational analysis of organisational climate. The sample was partitioned into groups representing lower, middle, and higher age; junior, middle, and senior management levels; low, middle, and high qualification levels; and R&D, quality, production, and miscellaneous functions. Rank ordering the means of climate motives (for the total sample and in each partitioned group) revealed that Dependency was the dominant climate motive for the company as a whole and across all the groups. The backup climate was Affiliation for the company as a whole, and for seven of the examined groups; and it was Control for the remaining six groups. Comparison with t-test on means were performed for each pair of groups under each type of grouping to reveal significant differences in the perception of climate across the groups formed within the organisation. Demonstrating the heterogeneous nature of organisational climate, the study helps provide a better appreciation of differences in employee behaviour across the company. The results can lead to formulating a contingency model to develop and manage employees for higher organisational effectiveness