Impact of Culture on the Achievement of Performance - Essay Example

Organizational Culture and Performance of client> taken> Management This paper is about how culture influences performance, its impact on productivity and maximum output in an organization. Impact of culture on achievement of performance Hellriegel and Slocum believe that organizational culture has the ability to boost organizational performance. It has the potential to build in the sense of handling issues in the right manner; it enhances satisfaction and confidence in an individual (432). Organizational culture can have a significant impact on employee behavior and performance. First of all, if an employee is well-aware about the culture of the organization he works in; he would have a complete understanding about how things work, what is the working style, the system, norms and beliefs residing in the minds of its people, it would be easy to work in the organization. Once he understands the environment well and is settled and comfortable, he can perform to his maximum. Organizational culture also generates commitment in an individual, which leads to shared goals to be achieved mutually (Hellriegel and Slocum 432). There is evidence that shows that corporate culture does affect performance. For instance, if we compare Japanese and American management methods, the success of Japanese is shown by their strong culture emphasizing on employee participation, open communication, security and equality (Cumming and Worley). A study of productivity was conducted in research departments of UK university which showed a strong relationship between productivity and organization cultures emphasizing team work and employee involvement (Cumming and Worley). Can the culture of an organization be changed to increase performance? Culture of an organization may not be perfect to current needs of the market. It might not be comfortable for the workforce to work in that culture. It might not lead to achieving best performance in terms of product quality and service for customers. In such a case, culture of the organization should be changed keeping your motives ahead of you (Hellriegel and Slocum 432). During 1980s, in US, many organizations started changing their cultures in order to meet the customer’s expectations in a better way. During late 1990s, organizations began to evaluate how well they fit into expectations of workforce (Hellriegel and Slocum 432). As a senior leader in an organization what can you do to change the culture and in turn increase performance of the business? (Wade and Recardo 62) As a senior manager, I can look into the following things in order to change the culture: -Change chain of command -Bring flexibility in the system. -Emphasize on teamwork -Involve employees at all levels. As an HR leader in an organization what can you do to change the culture and in turn increase performance of the business? Culture is a result of technology, process and organizational architecture. An HR manager should first identify where the problem lies. As an HR manager, I can change the architecture and communication in order to change the culture in an organization. If I feel the workforce wants more flexible style of working, I can bring into decentralization by: -Reducing layers of management. -Making sure information is available at the lower level personnel. A few other strategies may also be applied to change culture in order to increase employee behaviour and productivity: -Modify the reward system. -Aggressive use of technology to make the processes more efficient (Wade and Recardo) . What impact on performance can a coaching culture have on an organization? Accelerating or getting the maximum out of something, is a practice that managers should often observe. Coaching is a tool which makes a good thing even better (Gorrell and Hoover). In 2008, a study was conducted by American Management Association to see the impact of coaching on performance. It was found that nearly 60 percent of North Americans use coaching for high potentials frequently and 42 percent use coaching of executives to the same extent (Gorrell and Hoover). A good coaching manager should provide feedback on employee’s actions so that it is helpful for employees (Hunt and Weintraub). What will you do to drive a significant culture shift and in turn increase performance? Try reducing the autocratic nature in an organization. It is nearly impossible to bring any change in an autocratic environment where decision making authority remains with few top management people (Schein). A forum should be created in which workers act as a team, can discuss issues openly and resolve them mutually in a comfortable environment (Schein). Brown has suggested five stages though which change can be addressed. The first step is for the manager to anticipate any disorders in the organization that needs improvement. Once need is realized, next step is to develop the relationship with OD practitioner and client. In this case, relationship between senior manager and top management people needs to be developed. Third is the diagnostic phase, in which data is gathered about the system. Stage four is action stage in which strategies and techniques are designed to overcome the problem in the organizational culture. Programs such as team building, role analysis, job design, and intergroup development may be applied. Once a strategy is applied, a check is to be made at all steps to ensure the development is done properly (Brown). What evidence do you have that such a shift in culture will have any impact on performance? When you remove any disorder from the system, it automatically improves the current scenario which will in turn help in achieving greater performance. Bringing a cultural change in an organization is a long-term and difficult process. This may take several years. For instance, Alberto Culver’s performance in its business was suffering, and it was found out through a survey that the problem lies in the culture. It was not aligned with the business needs. Cultural change took place after several years by applying explicit values, new roles and responsibilities, restructuring management. The efforts are clearly seen with the new records of improved sales and profits (Cumming and Worley). How will you gain alignment across the organization to make such a change? I believe that collaboration and team consensus are the only way to succeed in an organization. However, strong leadership is also an important pillar in bringing a change and sustaining it in the organization (Dove). How will you measure the performance results of your change? A happy, satisfied workforce would be an answer to performance results of the change. If they would be settled by the change brought in the company, that means they have accepted the change well. If they are happy, they are going to perform better and show their maximum potential (Hellriegel and Slocum). As an Organizational Development program stabilizes, the need for an OD practitioner should decrease. That would measure the performance results of the change brought (Brown). References Brown, Donald R. An Experiential Approach to Organization Development. Pearson Education, Inc., 2006. Cumming, Thomas G. and Christopher G. Worley. Organization development & change. Cengage Learning, 2008. Dove, Rick. Response ability: the language, structure, and culture of the agile enterprise. John Wiley & Sons, 2001. Gorrell, Paul and John Hoover. The Coaching Connection: A Managers Guide to Developing Individual Potential in the context of the organization. Human Resources Intl, LLC, 2009. Hellriegel, Don and John W. Slocum. Organizational behavior. Thomas Learning, Inc, 2007. Hunt, James M. and Joseph R. Weintraub. The Coaching Manager: Developing Top Talent in Business. Sage Publications, Inc., 2011. Schein, Edgar H. Organization culture and leadership. John Wiley & Sons, 2010. Wade, David and Ronald J. Recardo. Corporate performance management: how to build a better organization through measurement-driven strategic alignment. Butterworth-Heinemann, 2001. Read More