Episode 10: Corporate Culture; the Modern-day Witchcraft

In this episode we'll draw a parallel between the historical belief in witchcraft and the modern-day concept of corporate culture. The notion of witches arose in medieval times as an explanation for inexplicable events, gaining widespread acceptance and even legal ramifications. The text then argues that "corporate culture" similarly emerged in the mid-20th century and became a widely accepted yet ill-defined explanation for organisational problems. Despite a lack of clear definition or strong evidence linking it to performance, corporate culture is frequently blamed for failures, much like witchcraft was in the past. The author concludes by questioning the validity and utility of the concept of corporate culture, suggesting a need to look beyond it for the root causes of organisational issues.Excerpts from ⁠Magnetic Nonsense⁠⁠: ⁠⁠A Short History of Bullshit at Work and How to Make it Go Away⁠Note: podcast generated by Google LM Notebook from the original book text.