Discussing corporate organizational culture in class this week made me realize that, while they are very different things, many parallels can be drawn between corporations and secondary schools. In particular, I realized how organizational culture plays an enormous role in both of these establishments.

For example, I would relate the fun, social, and team-oriented organizational culture of shoe company Zappos with the Ideal Mini School program offered by the Vancouver School Board. Like Zappos, the culture of Ideal Mini emphasizes cooperative interaction. The CEO of Zappos works at a cubicle like any of his employees, essentially eliminating hierarchical levels so as to better communicate with his employees. The teachers of Ideal Mini use a different approach with a similar affect – they are always on a first-name basis with their students and aim to be friends and mentors.

On the other end of the spectrum, I would associate a large 2,400 student school such as Burnaby North with a much larger company with a less prominent, interactive, and unique organizational culture. The mass of students and larger class sizes at a school like Burnaby North are much like the mass of employees and large department sizes.

Having attended a Mini School myself, I truly understand the benefits of having a close-knit group and a focused organizational culture. At the same time, however, I do realize it might not be feasible for such a model to be the standard secondary school system. What would you prefer from a school? What would you prefer from a workplace? Would your answer to these two questions be different?