When we think about the corporate cultures that influence IMT programs, there is a tendency to lean towards one of two extremes. Culture is viewed as a monolith, something that is uniform across the company and permeates every action and event. Or, alternatively, culture is viewed as a big, puffy cloud that you know exists but which resists definition (cf Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart's famous quote on a different topic).

If we know that corporate culture influences IMT programs, but these two frames of reference are not instructive in furthering our understanding, then how do we approach it? Perhaps more importantly, what is the value gained from a more refined analysis of the way corporate culture influences IMT?

Through approaching culture at a tribal level within an enterprise, we begin to see the complex exchange of beliefs, values, behaviors, and artifacts which can either support or frustrate IMT programs. How would you define the culture of your Sales tribe? Legal? And, bear in mind, tribes are not just defined on a functional level, but can also be influenced by geography. How many times have you heard the complaint that this is just another headquarters or home office initiative?

While this could be just another interesting exercise, you gain value from it when you compare the culture of a specific tribe to the culture of your IMT program. Your brand certainly plays a role here (see prior posting on this topic), but it is much larger that that. What is important to you as an IMT leader? What are the targeted behaviors for your group? What do you prize? And then, how do your responses to these questions mesh against your analysis of other tribes?

I have had several conversations over the last week where this approach crystallized challenges for IMT programs. In one example, there was a strong desire to not disrupt the culture of the Sales tribe, leading the IMT team to search for ways to minimize the impact of any system implementation on this group. In another, the IMT team was negotiating the scope and boundaries of their work in relation to other tribes such as IT, Legal, Asia Pacific Operations, to name just a few.

In both of these cases, the analysis went beyond a surface view of potential acceptance or resistance to acknowledge the fundamental differences that underpinned each tribe. The IMT programs were then able to craft tailored strategies which improved the likelihood they would be able to achieve their targeted objectives. Tribal IMT breaks the monolith, defines the cloud, and provides an approach to achieve even greater success with your program.