Integrating Culture and Diversity in Decision Making: The CEO and Organizational Culture Profile - Essay Example

Integrating Culture and Diversity in Decision Making: The CEO and Organizational Culture Profile (OCP) Outline This paper is arranged into the six sections outlined below: i. Introduction This section describes HP briefly, the corporation researched on. ii. The Culture of HP This section states the culture of HP and established from the desktop research undertaken. iii. Evidence for OCP at HP This section demonstrates the existence of OCP at HP. iv. Why HP Embraced the OCP Culture This section justifies HP’s choice of the OCP model. v. The Ideal HP Leader This section describes the ideal HP leader in the light of the corporation’s values. vi. Conclusion: The Need for Culture Change This section assumes a decline in demand for HP products and recommends the necessary culture change to turn things around. Integrating Culture and Diversity in Decision Making: The CEO and Organizational Culture Profile (OCP) Introduction Hewlett-Packard Corporation, widely known as HP, is the world’s leading manufacturer of personal computers, even though in recent years the Chinese manufacturer Lenovo has threatened to dislodge HP from that position (Kobie, 2013). The corporation has its headquarters in Palo Alto in the state of California in the United States and operates in several countries around the world. Besides individuals and households, the corporation’s customers include small, medium, and large enterprises as well as government institutions, departments and agencies. In addition to PCs, the company manufactures hardware for data storage and networking, designs software, and provides related services. HP subscribes to the Organizational Cultural Profile (OCP) model of organizational culture. The Culture of HP Organizational culture researchers have employed several methods to classify organizational culture (Denison, Nieminen, & Kotrba, 2014). There is not a universal “type” of organizational culture. In addition, organizational culture varies greatly from one organization to the other. However, certain aspects of organizational culture cut across organizations and based on these common aspects, researchers have developed several models to describe organizational culture. From the desktop research that was undertaken, the author of this paper concludes that the Organizational Cultural Profile (OCP) model applies to HP. The OCP model was developed by OReilly, Chatman and Caldwell in 1991 and assumes that one can deduce the culture of an organization by studying the organizations stated values (Agbényiga, 2011). The values that O’Reilly and his colleagues identified include innovation, respect for people, stability, result-orientation, attention to detail, teamwork and aggressiveness. Besides helping in predicting the prevailing culture in an organization, the OCP model measures how organizational culture affects the performance of the organization (Machado & Carvalho, 2008). The model also helps in identifying the person best suited to lead the organization given its values, hence culture. Overall, the candidate most suited to lead the organization is the one whose personal values coincide the closest with those of the organization. The model is also used to predict employee intention to stay and turnover by measuring employee values against the value of the organization. The model assumes that the employee whose values coincide with those of the organization is likely to stay longer in the organization than the employee is whose values contradict those of the organization. Evidence for OCP at HP While HP does not subscribe to all the seven values identified by O’Reilly and his colleagues, a good number of them obtain. The founders of HP branded the corporation’s OCP model “The HP Way” that is supported by five pillars (HP Alumni, n.d.). First, the model recognizes the need to trust and respect individuals (HP Alumni, n.d.). The founders believed that all the employees of the company want to give their best to the company. They further believed that they attract the best and most talented manpower the industry has to offer. It is the business of the company’s management to provide employees with the tools and conducive environment they need to steer to company to greater profitability. The second pillar of the HP model requires that every member of the organization strives for the highest levels of achievement and contribution (HP Alumni, n.d.). HP customers expect from the corporation products of the highest quality that will provide value long after they have been bought. To meet this demand, every member of HP, especially managers, must be people who can stir enthusiasm in their teams and go the extra mile to meet customer needs. At the same time, every member of the organization is required to innovate new, better ways of doing their work. Third, HP conducts business with their clients and partners with what they call “uncompromising integrity”(HP Alumni, n.d.). The company requires that its employees be honest in their dealings with one another and customers in order for them to earn the trust of others. Employees at all levels of the organization are expected to observe the highest standard of business ethics and understand that nothing less is acceptable. The corporation recognizes that ethical conduct may not be realized through written policies and codes of conduct; it must be an integral part of the living culture of the organization that is passed from one generation to the next. HP’s corporate objectives revolve around profit, customers, employees and growth among other areas (HP Alumni, n.d.). The corporation recognizes that these objectives can only be realized through teamwork (HP Alumni, n.d.). As such, the Corporation is committed to working as a worldwide team to meet the needs of their customers, shareholders and other stakeholders to whom they have obligations. All HP people share in the obligations and benefits of conducting business. Finally, HP encourages flexibility and innovation among its employees by creating an inclusive work environment that stimulates innovation (HP Alumni, n.d.). However, rather than prescribe to people how they should innovate, HP adopts a different approach. The company has defined very clear objectives that all employees understand. Then, the corporation allows employees a free hand in determining how best they can contribute towards the realization of those goals. The Corporation also recognizes the role of continued skills training in enhancing the capacity of its employees to innovate. Why HP Embraced the OCP Culture The founders of HP wanted a unique management style that would not only steer the company to greater profitability but also make it a major contributor to the technical advancement of the PC industry, hence “The HP Way”(HP Alumni, n.d.). It is worth noting that HP’s OCP models as is known today was developed, or possibly, revised in 1992, a year after O’Reilly and his colleagues developed the OCP model. The values that govern HP operations largely correspond with those identified in the 1991 OCP model. It is not clear whether the OCP model influenced HP’s model in any way. Nonetheless, HP’s values are quite simple and practical. They are likely to have played a significant role in steering the company to its coveted position of leading the global PC market. The Ideal HP Leader As pointed out earlier, besides predicting the culture of an organization, the OCP model helps in identifying the leader most suited to lead the organization, bearing in mind the organization’s values(Armenakis, Brown , & Mehta, 2011). As a general rule, the corporate leader whose personal values are closest to those of the organization is the one best suited to lead the organization (Moon, Livne, & Marinova, 2013). Such a leader, it is assumed, will better identify with the goals of the organization and mobilize the organization’s resources towards achieving those goals. Today several psychological tests can be used to determine even the hidden values of a corporate leader. The types and methods of these tests are beyond the scope of this paper. Meg Whitman is HP’s current CEO (HP, n.d.). Her suitability for the position considering HP’s values is beyond the scope of this paper. Conclusion: The Need for Culture Change In recent years, HP has had to contend with fierce competition from its leading competitor, China’s Lenovo. In the third quarter of 2012, for instance, Lenovo shipped more PCs than HP, although the latter was able to regain its position in the last quarter of that year (Kobie, 2013). HPs other major competitors are Dell, Acer and Asus. The competition posed by the four manufacturers is formidable. HP must take some drastic measures, and possibly a culture change if it is to maintain the lead and sustain demand for its products. Indeed, HPs CEO seems to have the solution. Whitman says that they are on a journey to turn HP around. According to her, the solution lies in up-scaling innovation in the companys core markets while diversifying from over-reliance on PC sales into cloud storage, data security and big data (HP, n.d.). References Agbényiga, D. (2011). Organizational Culture-Performance Link in the Human Services Setting. Administration in Social Work, 35(5),532-547. Armenakis, A., Brown, S., & Mehta, A. (2011). Organizational Culture: Assessment and Transformation. Journal of Change Management, 11(3),305-328. Denison, D., Nieminen, L., & Kotrba, L. (2014). Diagnosing organizational cultures: A conceptual and empirical review of culture effectiveness surveys. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 23(1), 145-161. HP. (n.d.). About HP. Retrieved from HP Official Site: http://www8.hp.com/us/en/hp-information/index.html HP Alumni. (n.d.). The HP Way. Retrieved from HP Alumni: http://www.hpalumni.org/hp_way.htm Kobie, N. (2013, January 14). HP regains PC lead over Lenovo. Retrieved from PC Pro: http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/379297/hp-regains-pc-lead-over-lenovo Machado, D., & Carvalho, C. (2008). Cultural Typologies and Organizational Environment: A Conceptual Analysis. Latin American Business Review, 9(1),1-32. Moon, H., Livne, E., & Marinova, S. (2013). Understanding the Independent Influence of Duty and Achievement Striving When Predicting the Relationship Between Conscientiousness and Organizational Cultural Profiles and Helping Behaviors. Journal of Personality Assessment, 95(2),225-232. Read More