The Construction of Kekeluargaan as an Indonesia’s Organizational Culture

Marko S Hermawan; Mark K Loo

doi:10.22146/jh.42851

The Construction of Kekeluargaan as an Indonesia’s Organizational Culture

https://doi.org/10.22146/jh.42851

Marko S Hermawan^(1*), Mark K Loo⁽²⁾

(1) International Business Program, BINUS Business School, Indonesia Jl. Hang Lekir I no.6 Senayan, Jakarta, Indonesia | 10270 Office: 62 720 2222 | Fax: 62 720 5555 |
(2) Mihalcheon School of Management, Faculty of Management, Concordia University of Edmonton, Canada Address: 7128 Ada Blvd NW, Edmonton, AB T5B 4E4, Canada Direct: +1 780 491 6878 Toll-Free: +1 866 479 5200
(*) Corresponding Author

Abstract

Indonesia has the largest economy in Southeast Asia and the seventh largest GDP in the world, yet little is known about Indonesia’s organizational culture. This paper develops a deep understanding of kekeluargaan (kinship), which derives from an anthropological and sociological epistemologies. The paper explores Javanese culture as the foundation of Indonesia’s business context. A qualitative and indigenous approach was designed to determine if the kekeluargaan norm exists in the Indonesian workplace today. Document analysis and semi-structured interviews were used to collect data. The findings show that the kekeluargaan norm acts as the foundation of Indonesia’s organisational culture; with, hormat (respect) and rukun (harmony). Three proposition are given to consider the importance of understanding kekeluargaan as a salient Indonesian organizational culture. The paper concludes managerial and theoretical implications to Indonesian business context.

Keywords

organizational culture; kekeluargaan; respect; harmony; Javanese culture

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.22146/jh.42851