The Role of Organizational Culture - Coursework Example

Organizational culture (Name) (University Affiliation) Organizational culture has a powerful impact on a firm’s performance. Culture holds an integral part in holding an organization together. Thus, it is a powerful strategic tool in the business world today. Moreover, culture can be used to tell an organization’s success story, attract employees, revere its history, intrigue customers as well as provide a tangible connection to an organization. As such, this paper aims at explicating the broader meaning of organizational cultural and the various ways within which culture could be expressed in an organization. The paper will as well explain the role of organizational culture elements or components in a company as a whole and its stakeholders. To start with, Oliver and Lowe (2010) define organizational culture as the values, behaviors and concepts that direct or rather dictate the employees to act in a unique social way within an organizational setting. The organizational culture of a firm controls the workers to behave in accordance with the organization’s principles and values. Moreover, the workers are expected to understand what is good or morally right, ugly and bad or beautiful for their organization. In the same light, Lynch (2001) argues that organizational culture is an organization’s own set of beliefs, ways and values of empirical management that are reflected in an organization’s structure and system. Accordingly, the set of beliefs and values are based on the cooperate strategy that has been developed and implemented. Lynch further asserted that organizational culture are those written and unwritten concepts, rules and ways of thinking that distinguishes an organization from others. This distinction is often reflected in the interactions that the organization encounters both in the internal and external environment. Lynch (2001), succinctly states that organizational culture is a set of rules, lifestyle, beliefs and traditions common to all members of an organization. He further adds that organizational culture includes a company’s expectations, philosophies, experiences and values that professionally hold it together. Before going into details, it would be important to look at the history of organizational culture thus exploring its origination as well as how it became one of the fashionable areas of management. Practically, the development of organizational structure started in the seventh century. The interest in organizational culture started because of the tremendous performances that were being exemplified by the Japanese companies. The performance was largely due to their specific culture. For instance, Japanese companies cultured their employees to believe in the notion that “priority is on the work life.” The notion aimed at making workers understand that “the given work is the centre of life.” As a newcomer in the organization, a worker would hold a place for Hanami thus enjoying with co-workers the cherry blossom in spring drinking. In addition, there was a common after-work event often referred to as Nomikai (drinking party). Accordingly, this event often played a very significant role in bringing workers together thus communicating with each other for work. Even though the concept of organizational culture is being met in both the international and local literature, there is indeed a big barrier to its practical implementation. Within an organization setting, it is imperative for any manager to know those elements that influence the behavior of human beings and efficiency. Each individual in an organization represents a unique human being thus any manager is bound to prove an infinite flexibility in regard to his behavior towards the employees. The manager needs to understand the workers needs as well as their aspirations (Adkins and Caldwell, 2004). In effect, the primary factors that characterize the human resource in any company include needs and desires, ability to innovate, creativity, group behavior, attitude towards work and the character traits. These human traits can be largely influenced by competent managers with the intent of exploiting maximum efficiency using human resource (Caldwell, 2004). In this regard, organizations can best use human resources through ensuring that certain conditions prevail in the working environment. Consequently, the conditions influence the human activity both directly and indirect. The primary factors that influence human activities in the working environment include the following: first, are factors related to the employee. Factors such as, practical and theoretical knowledge, work experience, professional training, creativity about the work and innovation are in a large extend related to a worker. Under this schema, the manager can intervene during employee selection and recruitment. Thus, selecting workers who can best fit the company based on a professional ground. Secondly, are factors related to the company (Deshpande and Webster, 1989). These include company reputation, motivation policy, organizational behavior, working conditions and employee facilities. For an organization to implement a positive organizational culture, the organization has to employ enculturation. Edgar (1992) defined enculturation as a socialization procedure through which new members to the organization adjust to, and become part of the company’s culture. As a culture, organizations find it positive to welcome new employees through an orientation event, where they are taken through the firm’s departments as they are introduced to other workmates. Furthermore, any new employee goes through a boarding session where he or she is taken through the company’s vision and mission among other Human Resource initiative. Enculturation is aimed at helping new employees embrace the new culture in the organization and making them part of that corporate culture (Bisel et al, 2010). Rottenly, the departments in which the new employees are to settle welcome them with a plan that would help them learn their job. The departments often achieve enculturation through sharing the company’s mission, guiding principles, vision and values with a new employee (Smircich, 1983). Secondly, is through making sure that the new worker meets with the organization’s president and other key workers for effective communication. Thirdly, is doing mini-updates at an interval of thirty days to evaluate the new worker’s performance. Finally yet importantly, is through assigning the new employee a well-informed, thoughtful friend or mentor who can teach the new entrant. However, it is often difficult for some employees to conform to an organization’s culture. For one to understand how culture can be expressed within the organization, it would be consequential to understand the cultural elements that are found in an organization. Consequently, Schein’s organizational model identifies these elements. A new employee will always find it difficult to change from the culture that he is used to into a new one. To illustrate this concept, Schein (1998) developed an organizational model that illuminates culture from an observer’s standpoint. Under his model, he described three cognitive levels of culture in an organization. The model starts with the most cursory level where organizational attributes are easy to see, feel and hear. These attributes are often referred to as artifacts and the initiated observer can have a physical interaction with them (Schein, 1998). Artifacts include all the physical components of a company, which convey a cultural meaning. In fact, all the tangible elements of culture that are found in and out of the organization can be referred to as artifacts. Some of these artifacts include offices, furnishings, facilities, the way the members dress, visible awards and recognition, company slogans and printed or written mission statements. Members could be sharing these tangible aspects consciously or unknowingly. Some of the surface manifestations of a company’s culture include verbal, physical and behavioral artifacts. The fabric of a company’s culture comprise of the overall interpersonal behavior and values as orchestrated by that behavior and rituals. In an organization, the contents of sagas, stories and myths more often than not disclose the history of a company. As such, the content influences how people view and understand the organization’s beliefs and values. Some of the verbal artifacts include myths, languages and stories and are usually represented in ceremonies and rituals. Similarly, art and technology that members often exhibit are some examples of physical artifacts. The second level talks about the professed or rather agreed culture within the members. This primarily deals with the shared values amongst members. These shared values refer to personal preferences concerning certain aspect of the company’s culture and this may include customer service and loyalty. In this particular level, both the personal and local values are largely conveyed within the company. Accordingly, the basic beliefs and assumptions are usually ensconced within the company’s culture (Sackmann, 1992). The basic assumptions and believes often comprises of an individual’s impressions concerning the organization’s supportiveness and trustworthiness. At this point, the best way to study organizational behavior would be through carrying out an interview on the organization’s membership. This can be best achieved through using questionnaires to get attitudes concerning the organizational membership. At the final level lie the company’s tacit or unspoken assumptions (Deshpande and Webster, 1989). Often, these elements of culture are inferred, unspoken, assumed, unstated and never cognitively identified in the normal day interactions between the members. Talking about these elements in the workplace is often considered a taboo. It is evident that many of these tacit assumptions or rather unspoken norms exist devoid of the conscious knowledge of members. Although some members may seem to have a deeper understanding of this level of organizational culture, they often become vulnerable due to acclimatization with time. Such individuals often get comfortable and acclimatized to the attributes. Such attributes are difficult to gather through surveys and casual interviews. Therefore, a deeper understanding of the firm’s culture in this level is needed. Notably, many organizational behaviorists often miss some of the underlying and driving cultural elements at this level. With the use of Schein’s model, one gets to understand paradoxical organizational behaviors in a much easier way, which is apparent. For example, a company could boast of having a highly moral and aesthetic value at the second level of the Schein’s model whereas in the third level of culture, which is the deepest, displays simultaneously a curious opposing behavior (Deshpande and Webster, 1989). Seemingly, organizational rewards and appraisals could mean one organizational norm yet at the far end (deepest level) mean something else. Accordingly, this insight illustrates a deeper understanding of what newcomers go through. It illustrates the difficulty that new members or rather newcomers in the organization face during assimilation. They often take a very long time in assimilating culture they get in an organization and at times fail to assimilate some elements completely. Moreover, this model explains the reason why organizational change agents face difficulties in achieving the desired goals. Studies show that the change agents often fail to understand fully the underlying tacit norms and “blindly” proceed in implementing their actions (Schein, 2010). Failure to comprehend organizational culture in depth (at the deepest level), automatically barricades the route to institute cultural change. This is due to the dynamics involved in the interaction between interpersonal relationships and organizational culture while trying to institute desired change. Having understood the model, one can now understand how culture can be expressed within an organization. Various elements are used in expressing culture in organization. To begin with, is the use paradigm. An organization can use a paradigm to express what it stands for and what it does. The use of missions and organization’s core value best suits this schema (Peters and Waterman,1982). For example, McKinsey Company has a well developed and clearly stated set of values which are effectively and prominently communicated to all the workers. Consequently, these set of values involve the way the company vows to serve their clients, uphold professional standards and treat their colleagues (Messersmith et al, 2009). The second example is Google’s values that are articulated the phrase “Don’t be evil.” Similarly, their values are enshrined in the phrase “ten things we know to be true.” Whereas many organizational values revolve around topics concerning clients, professionalism and employees, the values’ originality is less important than their authenticity. Organizational vision is another form of paradigm. Any important culture should incorporate a vision statement. The phrase often guide an organization‘s value thus providing it with purpose (Martin and O'Neill, 2006). The purpose is then supposed to in turn orients every decision the workers make. In addition, the prominently displayed, good vision statements can lure suppliers, customers and other stakeholders. Nonprofit organizations use simple and compelling vision statements that explain why they have exemplary organizational cultures. For instance, the Alzheimer’s Association bases its values on the phrase a word without “a world without Alzheimer’s.” Ultimately, a vision statement is a fundamental and foundational element of culture however simple it may look. Another important cultural component includes rituals and routines. This refers to the regular board reports, management meetings and briefings that occur in the organization (Dinev and Cooke, 2012). Moreover, the routines and rituals often determine what is to be expected in different situations in accordance with the values of the organization. For Example, a company can have a situation where it holds an end year event where those employees who performed well are rewarded. However, appreciation should also be spread across board for each member to feel included. Another way through which routine and rituals can be expressed is through the regular teambuilding events that an organization organizes. The use of heroes in the organization can also help reinforce the organization’s culture. Here, heroes who have always stood for the organizations values are celebrated thus giving an inspiration to the current organizational members (Hofstede, 2001). For instance, the organization can pin up portraits and names of the company’s heroes as well as their achievements. Organizations acknowledge the contributions and the legacy former employees left behind and encourage their staff to follow these role models ( Hofstede and McCrae, 2004). Consequently, a new comer in the organization would want to know about these heroes and without doubt want to be like them. Most importantly, the heroes should be invited during functions and be given the platform to give an inspirational speech, which will in turn move the workers. Organizational structures are also used to express organizational culture. It refers to the reporting lines, the work flow and hierarchies that have been put in place to enable a smooth running of the organization. For instance, new comers should be in a position to know who to report to in any scenario thus encouraging a systematic working culture. This kind of culture helps in avoiding blame games and time wastage. Tentatively, narratives or rather stories can be used to expressed culture. These are the past events of the organizations starting from when the company started to how it has dominated the market. The stories could how the organization has been able to overcome economical crises (Fang T, 2003). These stories are told and retold and when people talk about these past events, they relate with the organization in a positive way and feel as if they are part of a great company that has made strides as far as success is concerned. Similarly, who and what the organization would like to immortalize will always speak volumes about what he company values (Grindle, 1997). Another major component of organizational culture is symbol. The use of symbols in an organization provides a common meaning to all the members including potential patrons in relation to some organizational elements. This therefore gives them an opportunity to communicate amongst themselves and harmonize the organizational way of doing things (Peters and Waterman, 1982). The cultural symbols more often than not convey meanings which reflects the company’s set of beliefs, philosophy, values, ideals and expectations shared by its members more so, the employees. For instance, a symbol can be a name of the company or institution when representing an essential element of its activity (Adkins and Caldwell, 2004). Tentatively, many companies that are very competitive in the market today have made their names to be symbols of what they represent in the economy. Accordingly, Mercedes in Germany and Philips in Netherlands are often considered symbols of high quality in cars and, respectively televisions. The logo of any company is often a major symbol for its patron and employees as well. For example, the Exon Company’s logo which is in form of a ‘tiger,’ shows the power which the company’s fuel often generates. The symbol also stands for strength among its employees. Thus, the ‘tiger’ logo is aimed at showing Exon Company as one of the most powerful oil companies across the globe. As such, this symbol is intended to show power that symbolically stands for the good quality of fuel the company produces, this symbol is aimed at customers, employees and competitors at large (Burman, and Evans, 2008). Equally, the lion symbol for the Peugeot Company indicates the powerfulness of the vehicles manufactured by the respective company. In many competitive firms, mostly from developing companies, the practice of developing commands that summarize the company’s work concept is on the rise. In effect, these commands or rather sayings are often engraved in the walls at the entrance of any company. To add, a special symbolic value are often seen in the fittings, furniture and paintings as well. Ultimately, cultural symbols are used to express unique views thus promoting certain values and behaviors within the organization. Moreover, they help focus the behavior, actions and thinking of the workers towards the crystallization of certain prevailing organizational behaviors that are typical (Dygert and Jacobs, 2006). However, organizational culture does not only stand for values and principles but also the company’s openness and acceptance of good communication between the employees. In conclusion, organizational culture’s main objective is to bring a common ground from which the members can relate at all times. It ought to bring managers down to the level of each worker thus cultivating a conducive environment that support positive relations and creativity between the members. It also means establishing a place where workers and clients love coming each day (Burman, and Evans, 2008). . References Adkins, B., & Caldwell, D. (2004). Firm or subgroup culture: where does fitting in matter most?. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 25(8), 969-978. Bisel, R. S., Messersmith, A. S., & Keyton, J. (2010). Understanding organizational culture and communication through a gyroscope metaphor. Journal of Management Education, 34(3), 342-366. Deshpande, R., & Webster Jr, F. E. (1989). Organizational culture and marketing: defining the research agenda. The Journal of Marketing, 3-15. Dygert, C., & Jacobs, R. A. (2006). Managementul culturii organizaţionale. 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