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Institutional ethos*

You have seen the word “efficiency” in many of our resources but wonder what it really means? You need the definition of a word for a reference? Please find below a complete glossary of organizational assessment.  With over 100 definitions available, this glossary should help you clarify the terms you need to understand organizational assessment in a comprehensive manner. You can find the words either by searching alphabetically or by selecting the exact word you are looking for in the list.


Institutional ethos*

Implicit or unwritten codes that include cultural values, norms, religious precepts and taboos. Also known as “informal rules of the game.”

All definitions are taken from the following source: 
OECD - Development Assistance Committee Network on Development Evaluation. (2002). Glossary of Key Terms in Evaluation and Results-Based Management. 40 pp.

This glossary is also available in French, Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Dutch, Italian, Japanese, Kiswahili, Russian, Swedish, and Turkish at the following website: http://www.oecd.org/.

The definition of terms followed by an asterisk symbol (*) was either slightly modified for simplicity reasons or was taken from:
Lusthaus, C., Adrien, M.-H., Anderson, G., Carden, F. & Montalván, G. P. (2002). 
Organizational Assessment: A Framework for Improving Performance. 210 pp.

The book can be read, downloaded or even ordered at the following website http://www.idrc.ca/.

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