The organizational culture of public sector organizations in Australia

This paper provides an empirical description of the organizational culture of public sector organizations in Australia. A comparison of the culture over time and in comparison to the culture of private sector organizations is provided. Data were collected through mail survey questionnaires. The findings show variations in culture and in cultural change across different types of public sector organizations. While some types, specifically local councils, have come to emulate the culture of private sector organizations, the results show little change having occurred in the culture of other types, specifically government departments and agencies, which continue to lag behind their private sector counterparts in the cultural factors of Outcome Orientation and Innovation.