Dual Existence of Individuals within Formal and Informal Structures

The iMediaChannel workforce is organized into functional departments with a hierarchical ranking system of management. Individuals from a given department or management rank are relatively in closer proximity than those that are not in the same functional group. This is responsible for the development of identity groups that are based on departmental ranks and roles. Identities1 are a result of rigid company structure, and they seldom evolve into cultural groups. This is because even though identity group membership creates proximity among individuals, the membership to these groups is often mutually exclusive and not universally accessible. Identities determine how an individual is perceived within a larger group, but they are not instrumental in an individual’s understanding of the social space.

In his article: “Make mine a tossed salad”, Gus Friedrich illustrates this in his attempted application of The Dove Test on Bailey Baker with the assumption that the latter would necessarily understand the cultural structure of Watts, CA2 just because he has an Afro-American identity. Despite this difference between cultures and identity groups, and identity group can transform itself into a cultural group by making its membership accessible within an environment of secondary proximity3. This can be done by not emphasizing the details of what distinguishes members of one group from those of other groups. This is illustrated in the evolution of the ‘iMediaChannel Creative Services Group’ into the ‘iMediaChannel Friday Ice Cream Group4’: In May 2001, the director of the Creative Services group established the practice of buying ice cream for members of his group on Fridays. Because of the interaction that members of this group had with the other workers with whom they shared their office wing (physical proximity/ accessibility), other individuals who were not members of the division started participating in this ritual5. At present, the cultural group has developed, and its membership spans various departments and professional ranks.