The Unpacking of Culture Within the Framework of Cultural Due Diligence

The aim of this chapter is to broaden our understanding of the concepts of culture and organisational culture and their respective characteristics and functions. My intention is not to provide a comprehensive list of definitions but to focus on concepts of culture that address the development of COCA based primarily on theoretical approaches of ‘cultural anthropology’ and ‘organisational (change) management’. This chapter begins with a definition of the term ‘culture’ and then proceeds with a brief discussion of the related terms of ‘national culture’, ‘ethnic culture’ and ‘organisational culture’ and ‘community’. As this thesis focuses on the analysis of ‘organisational culture’, the other terms will be discussed only briefly. As a way to unpack the concepts of culture, Sect. 2.3 defines the five aforementioned terms within the context of cross-national or cross-ethnic ventures undertaken by two parties. Section 2.4 discusses the common aspects of ethnic and organisational cultures, while Sect. 2.5 debates one of the core questions addressed in this thesis: What are the most important dimensions for investigating organisational culture in a hospitality joint venture? By identifying dimensions and variables of organisational and ethnic culture one can explore the organisational culture of joint ventures within the framework of COCA. The Conclusion section summarises the arguments presented. Thus, this chapter provides the basis for Chap. 3, which reviews the existing literature in this area to examine the role of organisational culture in the hospitality sector, with a special focus on the different approaches of integrating (economically poor) communities into the tourism sector.