Organizational Leadership and Performance - McDonalds - Case Study Example

Organizational Culture Name Class Unit Introduction Organisation culture is defined as the shared set of beliefs and norms which have an effect on the way in which the organisation members acts (Schein, 2011). In an organisation, culture is created through values, heroes, rites and rituals. Values consist of both terminal and instrumental aspects. For an organisation to maintain its culture, the employees are expected to learn it. Learning organisation culture involves use of socialisation. This is a process in which the employees in an organisation are to learn the values, behaviours and the social expertise that is needed in the firm. According to Zalami (2005), leaders in organisation are expected to fully understand the organisation culture in order to have improved results. In every organisation, there is a culture that has a great influence on the members. The competency of the members is influenced by the organisation culture that is present. In an organisation, culture is created, maintained and changed. Thus, organisation culture acts as an asset that can enhance the output hence the performance (Schermerhorn, Hunt & Osborn, 2008). This essay will define organisation culture, give an overview of an organisation, detail the nature of culture in the organisation and give both negative and positive aspects of culture. Organisation culture In 21st century, organisation culture has become an important asset in corporations (Du, 2006). Every organisation is expected to be able to understand its culture comprehensively. Managers are expected to capitalise on the culture to get greater control of their organisations. The concept of organisational culture was noted very early and became a topic on its own in 1980s (Schein, 2011). The main theme behind organisation culture is that each organisation has a personality. In some organisation, rigidity is accepted while other organisations are flexible. This also happens in some of the organisation which experiences distinct characteristics such as innovative, supportive and conservative. Organisation culture is the description the employees are able to give about their place of work (Kummerow, Kirby & Ying, 2014). This involves the work atmosphere, the facilities and the success. According to Du (2006), beliefs, behaviours and symbols are the characteristic in an organisation that makes up the culture. Organisation culture is the shared assumptions, norms and values in an organisation (Schermerhorn, Hunt & Osborn, 2008). Though there are many definitions on the organisation culture, there are certain characteristics that are common in all definitions. Organisation culture is the observed behavioural regularities. The organisation member interacts using a common language and terminologies. There are unique ceremonies in each of the organisation (Schein, 2011). In every organisation, there are norms. Norms are the accepted standards of behaviour that are accepted by a group of people. When there are norms in an organisation, the work group behaviours are modified to be according to a set standard. Every organisation expects the members to share certain values (Wang & Hsieh, 2012). When an organisation has policies, it is able to be guided on the way in which it treats the employees and its clients. In every organisation, there are set rules a newcomer must learn the rules in order to fit into it (Du, 2006). The organisation climate is another dimension of its culture (Du, 2006). This refers to the way in which the organisation physical layout is and the manner in which the members interact with those outside. Coffey (2010) asserts that all the characteristic of the organisation culture have to work together in order to fully define it. Highly diverse organisational cultures can be created through mixing several characteristics. There are four distinct culture phenotypes in an organisation. One of the distinct cultures is the family culture. The family culture involves a leader who is seen as the parent. The culture exhibits concern for each other and the leader puts concerns for the subordinate above all other things (Kummerow, Kirby, & Ying, 2014). The culture is nurturing, friendly and cooperative. The machine culture is another distinct culture. The driving force is the structure of the organisation. The administrators in the organisation are seen as the providers of the maintenance for the culture. The main mission of the machine culture is to provide protection. The culture works as a machine with every part having its own activity (Schein, 2011). The cabaret culture looks at the organisation leader as the master of ceremony (Everson, 2003). There are many social binding activities in such organisation with the cabaret culture. The culture highly values relationship above the performance and reactions. This is a culture that has a lot of group binding social activities. The little shop of horrors culture is unpredictable and filled with tension. This is a culture in the organisation that makes it look like a war zone. This is a culture where the leader can sacrifice the employees for their own benefit (Schermerhorn, Hunt & Osborn, 2008). The leaders strive to make things appear smooth. Leaders in this culture exercise dominance and control and promote isolating and there are no social activities. This is a hostile and cold culture where paranoid exist. According to Coffey (2010), the original notion of culture involved ritual, myths and legends. In an organisation, culture binds the members together and provides directions. Culture is learned and it is transmitted both formally and informally (Jones, 2010). For many, organisation culture is the climate and practices that are created within an organisation to help in handling people. The organisation culture directs the manner in which the employees are able to act in relation to the values and principles that an organisation has. The culture helps the employees to understand what it right and wrong and the benefit of acting in a certain way (Du, 2006). Overview of the organisation Macdonald is a fast food company that have a distinct organisation culture. The company started in 1937 by the McDonalds brothers and began franchising in 1955. The company presence is felt in more than 53 countries and has been well performing over the years. The company have a globalisation culture which many see as phenomenon (Gilbert, 2009). The company management are selected based on having the right attitude. The employees are also expected to be comfortable with the organisation culture. One of the known values for McDonalds is their adherence to quality. The company utilises an operating manual that is created from their headquarters. The company makes sure everything is made according to the right standards. There is nothing that is left to chances starting from the design to the staff and their behaviour. Their product is made based on the agreed uniformity and with great care. The company have a set dress code which is strict for all the employees. In the organisation, the employees are assigned several tasks which include cleaning, unloading, serving and arranging. This makes the employees to participate in several tasks making it ideal only for employees who can fit into this work environment. The unique culture of MacDonalds has made it possible for them to expand globally and have their unique character that differentiates them from the competitors (Gilbert, 2009). Nature of culture at McDonalds Culture at McDonalds is transmitted and expressed in several ways. The forms used at McDonalds are stories, rituals, symbols and, language (Du, 2006). Stories are an important part of culture. The culture at McDonalds is learned by the employees as they listen to stories on the origin of the company, founders and the success of the past leaders in the company. For example, McDonalds gives the story of their humble beginnings by the McDonalds brothers and how the company achieved success. The stories are transmitted all over the organisation the stories are told on the company website when relating to its history and helps allot in maintain the culture. McDonalds also use rituals to transmit their culture. This is through holding activities which are aimed at holding the key values in the organisation. This is seen through the company award ceremonies that recognise the outstanding employees. The ceremonies are held to recognise the best performing employee and acts as a motivator. Success in an employee at MacDonalds is celebrated (Gilbert, 2009). MacDonalds also utilise material symbols to express their culture. The company have a special layout for their hotels and the arch logo. There are also dress codes that have been assigned by the company which help in distinguishing the employees. Language is a means of identifying members in a culture. Each organisation has their own distinct method that they use to attest their acceptance to the culture (Du, 2006). Language used in an organisation helps in preserving it. For new employees, they have to learn the language jargon that is used until it becomes part of their language (Gilbert, 2009). Importance of Organisation culture to McDonalds McDonald’s organisation culture is detail oriented. The employees are very keen on details while undertaking their tasks. McDonald’s culture concept of being keen on the details gives them a competitive advantage. The employees are keen when making their menu preparation in order to maintain uniformity and differentiate the company. Every employee at MacDonalds is expected to follow the details outlined through the preparation up to end product. MacDonalds have been able to benefit from their culture by being result oriented (Gilbert, 2009). The organisation culture enables the employees to work flexibly until they achieve the desired results. The company culture also enables MacDonalds to work towards making sure that they are able to meet the people’s needs. This is a culture that is people oriented. During decision making, MacDonalds focus on its people. The employees are also paid well with health and travel infrastructure provided. Team work is another benefit that is accrued from the company culture. The company empathises on working as a team as opposed to individuals. This has helped the company to build a cooperative environment among the employees (Gilbert, 2009). Working environment at McDonalds is aggressive (Gilbert, 2009). The employees work hard to kill the competition that exists in the fast food industry. The organisation culture at McDonalds has helped the employee to be aggressive. The employees are committed to the mission of the company making them work aggressively to maintain it. The culture at McDonalds has enabled the employees to be flexible. The bureaucracy in the corporation is not very strict and the information flow is easy. The organisation is thus able to adapt easily to new environment. The globalisation efforts at McDonalds can be attributed to their culture which is more open and less bureaucratic. At McDonalds, there is high degree of innovativeness. The employees are supported to work in a flexible environment. The style of work is less bureaucratic and utilises a flat organisation hierarchy (Gilbert, 2009). When the company ventures into new location, innovation helps them to easily adapt to new culture (Schermerhorn, Hunt & Osborn, 2008). When employees are able to follow the culture as in the case of McDonalds, it leads to efficiency levels being high. Having a common culture in an organisation makes it easy to come up with decisions and implement them. The decisions that the organisation comes with makes it easy to work since they are same as the employees’ goals. Culture in an organisation reduces the regulatory mechanism that slows it down. This leads to organisational efficiency. At the moment, McDonalds is one of the most efficient organisations being able to serve customers in different parts of the globe. MacDonalds have been able to adapt to different cultures which have led to high levels of efficiency. There are few cases of chaos due to change in the environment (Gilbert, 2009). Culture at McDonalds also acts to reduce the conflict in workplace. The culture is able to promote consistency in values, opinions and perception. It also becomes easier to coordinate the employees who are having a similar organisation culture. There is reduced anxiety which makes it easy to make choices and makes work simpler. Having a strong culture is a device that is capable of making the members has less anxiety (Gilbert, 2009). Organisations cannot operate without a distinct culture as it helps them in achieving their goal. This due to the fact that organisational culture helps in guiding to achieve the goals (Schein, 2011). Organisation culture can also act as a means of limitation to the company (Kummerow, Kirby & Ying, 2014). When MacDonalds recruits employees from different cultures, they are required to learn the new culture. The employees may take long time to adapt to the new culture and ideas. When McDonalds move to a new location, it takes time for the new employees to learn and adopt the new culture. Having a strong company culture by McDonalds thus works against them at times (Gilbert, 2009). Leadership is tasked with guiding the organisation. They can only achieve this through use of organisation culture. The staffs follow the organisation culture to reach the desired outcomes. The management have to make sure that while they implement organisation culture, they take care of all the disturbances that may lead to negative influences. For example, most of the employees are frustrated due to poor working environments (Treviño, Weaver & Reynolds, 2006). The organisation culture should ensure that there is a collaborative working environment which is conducive for the employees. The main elements that the management should control are the change, competition, cooperation and control. When the organisation is undergoing change, the possibility of conflict is high. There is a struggle as employees tries to cope with change. When there is competition, quarrel is high likely (Treviño, Weaver & Reynolds, 2006). The organisation culture should be able to make competition to be positive through creativity and cooperation. The organisation culture is supposed to enhance cooperation among the employees. When the employees are cooperative, they are able to achieve higher success as compared to when working alone. The culture is supposed to encourage teamwork among the employees. The power that is responsible for uniting or dividing the employees lies on the control. The organisation culture is supposed to have a well defined level of authority in every situation. The culture should allow the employees to think for themselves in some instances. Conclusion Organisation culture is the shared set of norm, beliefs and behaviours in an organisation that determines the way members act. Organisation culture is created through vales, heroes, rites and rituals. Values are both instrumental and terminal. The employees’ have to learn the organisation culture in order to adapt it. The process of learning the culture is done through socialisation. The concept of organisation culture started in 1980s based on the theme that every organisation has a distinct personality. Organisation culture guides the employees to work according to values and principles of the organisation. It refers to both written and unwritten rules and methods of doing things in organisation. MacDonalds is one of the most successful organisations in the fast food industry. The corporation have presence in many countries globally. The success of the corporation is based on its organisation culture which is strong and well defined. The organisation have benefited from their culture through increased efficiency, globalisation, aggressiveness, teamwork, detail orientation and innovation. Despite this, organisation culture can lead to loss of time as new employees adjust to it. It’s through the organisation culture that McDonalds have been able to easily adapt to different locations globally. Organisation culture is able to give the organisation a competitive advantage and identity that differentiate it from the competitors. References Coffey, V. (2010). Understanding organisational culture in the construction industry. London: Spon. Du, P. M. (2006). The impact of organisational culture on knowledge management. Oxford: Chandos. Everson, C. (2003). Organisational Culture and Context. Oxford: Elsevier Science & Technology. Gilbert, S. (2009). The story of McDonald's. Mankato, MN: Creative Education. Jones, G. R. (2010). Organizational theory, design, and change .Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Kummerow, E., Kirby, N. & Ying, L. X. (2014). Organisational culture: Concept, context, and measurement. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Schein, E. H. (2011). Leadership and organizational culture. Newyork, NY: Wiley Schermerhorn, J. R., Hunt, J. G., & Osborn, R. N. (2008). Organizational behavior. Newyork, NY: Wiley Treviño, L. K., Weaver, G. R., & Reynolds, S. J. 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