The relationship between organizational culture and adherence to regulatory requirements for online programs

“Culture is an abstraction, yet the forces that are created in social and organizational situations derived from culture are powerful. If we don’t understand the operation of these forces we become victims to them” (Schein, 2010, p. 7). Higher education administrators are faced with unique combinations of organizational cultures that all coexist within the overall institution. Different sub-groups have developed different cultural norms to align with the tasks that need to be accomplished and the mission and values of the institution. Specifically, online learning is increasingly drawing attention due to continued enrollment growth and the activities of for-profit providers. This is illustrated by a recent article by EDUCAUSE Review (Grajek, 2013, p. 34) that lists this topic as one of higher education’s top 10 IT concerns. Number seven on this list of 10 is the goal of “determining the role of online learning and developing a sustainable strategy for that role. ” The matter is complicated by the fact that federal regulators are seeking to enact additional controls and accrediting bodies are reviewing online programs with increasing levels of rigor. Clearly, the management of online programs is becoming an increasingly complex task. It is with these environmental factors in mind that this work was undertaken. Given the increasingly regulated environment for online program delivery, the goal of this study is to determine if organizational culture has an influence on likelihood to comply with regulatory requirements for online programs. A review of literature related to organizational culture revealed that structured organizational processes are often supported by structured organizational cultures (Burns & Stalker, 1961; Fayol, 1949). This finding was confirmed by both management and higher education scholars (Birnbaum, 1988; Cameron & Freeman, 1991; Campbell, 1977; Denison & Spreitzer, 1991; Fjortoft & Smart, 1994; Quinn & Rohrbaugh, 1981; Schein, 2010; Smart & St. John, 1996) who suggest that organizational culture and effectiveness are often linked. As the regulatory environment related to online programs may require structured processes to ensure compliance, this study is framed around the idea that regulation adherence may be linked to more structured organizational culture preferences within online program groups. Online education organizations may have adopted structured organizational cultures in order to be effective in an environment faced with complex regulatory challenges. The first of two studies, Quantitative Study 1 found that the Collaborate and Compete cultures, are statistically significant related to regulation compliance, when compared to the Control culture. Organizational culture preferences are based on the culture classifications outlined in the competing values framework (Cameron & Quinn, 2011a). Additionally, this research found that institutional characteristics of experience with online education, regional location, and institutional size are also statistically significant, depending on the empirical model that is applied. An interesting finding emerged in comparing the results of the two quantitative studies. When using primary organizational preferences alone as a predictor organizational culture is not statistically significant (Quantitative Study 2); but, when secondary, tertiary and quaternary organizational culture traits are included in the analysis, statistically significant relationships are revealed (Quantitative Study 1). This study supports the work of previous scholars related to organizational culture preferences and behaviors but also reveals new relationships. Findings here suggest that a variety of different organizational cultures within higher education, both structured and flexible, can be effective. Cameron (1978) suggests that “no single profile is necessarily better than any other, since strategic constituencies, environmental domain, contextual factors, etc., help determine what combination is most appropriate for the institution” (p. 625). Additionally, informal phone interviews and electronic mail exchanges with research subjects suggest that future online program groups may have very different organizational culture preferences than those that were presently revealed. Higher education and organizational culture scholars suggest that knowledge of organizational culture is essential for effective leadership and this information will be valuable to future leaders of distance education programs as it provides not only insights into the current cultural preferences but also a benchmark for future organizational culture research related to online programs.