ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE

Is It Possible For A Company To Manage/Alter Its Organisational Culture? What Benefits And Difficulties Can This Create?

Is it possible for a company to manage/alter its organisational culture? What benefits and difficulties can this create?

With the passage of the time and under the influence of the circumstances of a culture can change. It is therefore important to know how to make changes of this kind. Methods of changing the culture of the organization are in tune with the methods of maintaining culture. They are:

change objects and objects of attention from the manager;

Changing the style of crisis management or conflict;

redesigning roles and changing the focus in training programs;

modified criterion incentive

change of emphasis in the personnel policy;

Change of corporate symbols and rituals.

It should be noted that changes in behaviour can lead to changes in culture, and vice versa. However, this is not inevitable or automatic. This is due to the role played in this process of "transfer" of the culture and study of behaviour. Depending on the situation, the relationship between changes in behaviour and culture in one way or another may show up during the period, measured from several months to several years. 

There are three possible combinations of changes in behaviour and culture in the organization. In the case of the first combination of changes occur in the culture without any changes in behaviour. In this case, workers can change one or more of the beliefs or values, but they are not able to change their appropriate behaviour. Some believe that smoking is harmful, but cannot quit. In commercial organizations, people are changing their basic assumption about the impact of the environment, but to change the behaviour they do not have the appropriate knowledge, skills and abilities (Johnson, 2008, 75-91).

In all of these and similar cases, the main problem is that people in the organization do not have the skills and training required for behaviour change in these conditions. Practice shows that to solve this problem soon as possible by learning in the organization (to learn from their mistakes) rather than learning out of it (McGuire, 2003, 189-204).

The second combination- a change in behaviour without a change in culture. In this case, one or more members of the organization, and maybe even a group or groups of employees can be convinced that the organizational changes are needed, although some workers may not want it. Depending on the status and influence of the supporters of the changes in the organization of the transformation can occur more or less successfully. Opponents of the changes will formally have to follow the cusp of the change and even accept the new characters, but the internal opposition will hamper the translation of new basic terms of corporate culture (the assumptions, beliefs and values). So, now, in many commercial organizations is working people "old school" in good faith carrying out their work at the professional level in the new environment, but at the same time maintaining the old worldview (Barney, 2006, 656-665).

The main problem in this situation - it is a lack of commitment and consistency in the translation of his formal behaviour ...