The secret of successful companies is in their strategies. The organizational culture It is one of the most important and understanding it is essential to boost the success of any business.
Having a motivated and committed team is a must for all companies, since it directly influences the performance of their collaborators and, therefore, the quality of their products and services.
The concept of culture in organizations began to be formed in the school of human relations, when through experiments the subjective aspects of organizational reality began to be recognized.
Social theorist Elton Mayo concluded that the environment has a significant impact on how individuals perceive objective aspects of an organization and, from that moment, the elements that affect it began to be the focus of study.
Over time it was shown that teams that identify with the objectives of their companies are the ones that make the difference. That is why in this article I will tell you what organizational culture is, what its importance is and how you can improve it in your business.
What is the organizational culture?
The definition of organizational culture has varied over time. It has been the center of numerous investigations and its different approaches range from the different cultural manifestations (such as values and rituals), to the role of the leader as a transmitter of culture.
However, experts tend to agree that it is an operating system to strengthen corporate identity ties.
Organizational culture is set of beliefs, habits, practices and traditions shared by the members of an organization.
It exists in all companies, but it is not a controlled factor in all of them. Only the successful ones are those who care about creating a culture that identifies them and helps them pursue their goals.
All businesses can benefit from having a better culturesince uncommitted workers tend to be inefficient, which results in economic losses.
What is the importance of organizational culture?
through the organizational culture of a company the principles that form the personality of the company are erected. Also, establishes the basis of all its processes, motivations, norms and values.
Culture is related to three fundamental aspects in an organization: its structure, its methods and the way in which its members are linked. The three points must be taken into account, since their failures lead to an unmotivated team with no sense of belonging.
Externally, culture is related to the image projected by the organization. Which is linked to terms such as social responsibility, ecological philosophy, among others.
In the internal sphere, it is related to the concept of organizational climate (climate generated by the workers and which is then reflected in their attitudes when interacting). Also with the measures implemented to improve the relationship of the company with its workers, as well as its welfare policies.
In both areas, coherence is relevant, so that the worker can identify with what the company transmits socially.
What are the types of organizational culture?
The organizational culture varies according to the characteristics of each organization. This is the classification of social psychologist Roger Harrison, who divides it into four types:
- standards oriented
- power oriented
- results oriented
- people oriented
Let’s take a look at each of these below. types of organizational culture:
1. Norms-oriented
These types of companies seek security and stability above all else, which is why their policies are based on sanctions that achieve strict compliance with the regulations.
2. Power oriented
The objective of these organizations is competitiveness, so all their decisions are aimed at maintaining and surpassing their position in the market. They are characterized by having an individual work dynamic and little communication between the different areas.
3. Results-oriented
Their only priority is efficiency and optimization of resources, they set short-term goals and, furthermore, they are characterized by saving resources.
4. People-oriented
In this type of organization, the priority is the personal and professional development of the team. Its leaders encourage and reward motivation and creativity.
What are the elements of organizational culture?
- : is the reason for being of a company. Why it exists and how its work contributes to the world.
- Philosophy: it is the axis that guides its decisions.
- The vision: it is the final objective that the company aspires to achieve.
- : are the principles that guide its social dynamics.
- Symbols: are all the designs that make up the company’s identity, including visual and auditory support.
- The rules: they are related to the salary (bonuses, incentives), the code of conduct (behavior and formalities) and the operating procedures (type of methodology used: lean, agile).
- Control systems: especially in the case of organizations with a rules-oriented type of culture, these will be the processes that monitor what happens in the company with human capital at all levels.
- The sense of identity: the way in which workers perceive themselves.
- Rituals and routines: customs and traditions of a formal or informal nature (meetings, performance evaluations, among others).
- Stories and anecdotes: narrations that tell the emergence and growth of organizations and that are told to new employees.
- The structure of power and the dynamics between the employees: related to the types of leadership (and the understanding of these through the business organization chart) and relationships (vertical and horizontal). It is also linked to internal communication issues.
What are the benefits of having an organizational culture?
Below I will present the positive aspects of having an organizational culture and I will share some recommendations so that you can take advantage of each of its benefits:
- Helps define company identity. Specify the image you want to convey and what differentiates you from the competition.
- Provides motivation. Drive performance with engaged employees who achieve the best results.
- Promotes values. It will be the factor that leads the members of the organization to act more efficiently and strategically.
- Attract the best talent. Organizations with a culture that makes their workers happy attract the most qualified staff.
How to establish an organizational culture?
To start developing the culture of your organization, you have to:
- Define values, mission and vision: these are the principles that will guide the strategy. Therefore, the most important thing will be that they are well defined and that they reflect the spirit of the company.
- Evaluate possible changes: These processes require several revisions until a model that suits the organization is found. For this you can form discussion groups.
- Hire people who go with the culture of the company: During the selection process it is essential that the candidates demonstrate that they share the same values of the organization.
- invest in the brand: allocates a budget for actions dedicated to strengthening the company’s identity.
- Think of ways to reinforce the culture: keep the team motivated with incentives and benefits in line with the company’s philosophy.
- measure results: develop surveys, promote a culture of feedback and re-evaluate what is necessary.
How to improve the organizational culture of your company?
Even the smallest brands must have a mission and values that identify workers and make them feel part of it.
If you are looking for a motivated and committed team, you can implement some improvements in the culture of your organization. Here are some keys:
- encourage feedback. A worker who feels heard will have a greater sense of belonging.
- Promotes interaction between members. Socialization improves the closeness between team members and, therefore, communication.
- generate dynamics. Workshops or activities to promote the values of the organization.
- look for transparency. Maintaining open communication about future plans and goals is one way to engage workers.
- Reward good work and offer tools when mistakes occur. Recognizing achievements is a way to motivate the team and generate commitment. Also, see mistakes as part of the job and work on possibilities for improvement.
- Promotes autonomy. Demonstrating trust in workers will increase their personal satisfaction, as well as their commitment to the organization.
- Convey the purpose. Passionately communicate the company culture so that employees can find motivation for their work.
Organizational Culture Examples
The most successful companies are known for their excellent strategies. Here are some of the best examples:
storecloud
We seek that each Latin American entrepreneur achieve their dreams and turn their brand into a story that transcends.
Faced with such a challenging mission, we work on the development of a high-performance team guided by four fundamental values: be fully committed, speak your mind, execute with excellence and think big. In addition, we believe in feedback and seek continuous growth.
Coke
Its culture is aligned with the optimistic image of its brand. Their mission is to refresh the world, inspire moments of happiness and make a difference.
Their values: leadership (to shape a better future), integrity (transparency), collaboration (they believe in collective talent), passion (commitment in mind and heart), accountability (responsibility), diversity (betting on inclusion) and quality (seeking excellence).
Through their Manifesto for Growth, they committed to being a more transparent and direct company and articulated their vision around five aspects: planet, employees, partners, products and profit.
Spotify
Its principles are the same as those established in the Agile Manifesto (a document written in 2001 by programming experts and which proposed the values that inspired the different agile methodologies): valuing people more than processes.
Its particularity is in the structure. In its organizational chart there are no hierarchical pyramids, but it is made up of Squads (squads), Tribes (tribes), Chapters (chapters) and Guilds (guilds).
Their trial and error system, the organization of their teams (they managed to create their own Agile model) and the feeling of “collective responsibility” that they managed to promote in their workers, makes them one of the best examples of organizational culture.
Cisco
Leads a model of organizational culture with meaning…
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