ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE

To what extent do you think it is possible for leaders to manipulate organisational culture to achieve improved performance?

To what extent do you think it is possible for leaders to manipulate organisational culture to achieve improved performance?

1.Introduction

1.1.Many people do not realize that the difference between management and leadership is quite vast. This paper will examine the difference between leaders and managers, the roles and responsibilities of the Nexen management and its leaders, how these leaders and managers of Nexen's functions have created a healthy and productive culture for its employees and two strategies that will help Nexen maintain this culture.

The qualities and characteristics of a manager are quite different from those of a leader. A manager focuses more on the short term goals and on systems, relies primarily on control, asks the how and when and in the end, managers will do things right. Leaders will focus on the long-term goals, focus on the people, inspire loyalty and trust, ask the what, why and why not's and in the end leaders do the right thing. The best leaders have a strong sense of self and purpose along with hope, optimism and compassion. The leaders will strategically plan for the future with a vision and inspire others to help achieve that goal. Management helps with the day to day goals that will help the long-term vision be attained.

2.Organisational Culture

The leaders must also have a strong, tangible vision that the employees can grasp, learn and accomplish. Having strong leaders with a keen sense of integrity will help build the healthy culture and keep employees focused and content.

.Nexen had to have strategic planning for short term goals and long-term goals geared especially towards rebuilding a new, healthier culture.

Breen stepped into a weak, dysfunctional culture that encouraged and displayed inappropriate behavior. Breen had a vision and he shared it with all the employees. He encouraged employees to speak out against inappropriate and unethical activities and behaviors and let them know they would never be punished for telling the truth.

Breen made many committees to help address many of the unethical issues that had prevailed in the previous leadership. These committees not only helped with employees and the situation they were facing then but they also helped to look in the future and set the standards and policies so that it would reduce and eliminate any chance of those issues arising again.

After Nexen planned and developed the committees and the policies, they needed to be organized and implemented. This was a cumbersome task that needed attention from many different departments within Nexen. The committees that were created had to oversee the implementation of the guidelines, rules and policies.

1.2.Define organisational culture

Nexen was publicly humiliated with the scandal of the previous leadership which produced a low morale for the employees. They had not had a true leader for a long time, so trust and loyalty had to be built all over again by Breen and his ...