Marek Siemiński Uniwersytet Warmińsko-Mazurski w Olsztynie Social context of changes in organizational culture in industrial companies 1. Introduction Te present century is sometimes called the age of discontinuity and widespread changes. Te pace of those changes is getting faster, they are increasingly unpredictable and are afecting more and more areas of our life. Globalization is shortening life cycles of products, technologies and even whole branches of industry. Managers who want to be successful in such a volatile environment must learn to be able to implement changes on every level of the organization. Tey also have to understand the unique value systems, norms and relationships present in their organizations and create such an organizational culture in which the tolerance for uncertainty will be high. Back in the 16th century, Machiavelli [As quoted in: Stachowicz, Machulik 2001, p. 213] wrote that “It must be noted that there is nothing more difcult and dangerous to implement, and less likely to succeed, than leading the process of the creation of the new order. Because those who fared well under the old order will stand up against the reformer, and those who could beneft from the new order will prove to be very cautious friends. Such caution will stem partly from the fear of potential adversaries, who have the law on their side, and partly from the lack of trust among the people who will not fully trust the new order until they personally experience it”. Te purpose of this article is to present practical aspects of changing organizational culture. It is based on research conducted in large industrial companies in the province of Warmia and Mazury. For the purpose of the research, the researchers analyzed relevant literature and conducted questionnaires and in depth interviews. Te questionnaire prepared by the researchers served as the research tool. Journal of Intercultural Management Vol. 1, No. 1, April 2009, pp. 100–108