50 Categories for Assessing Organizational Culture
Culture is the way things are done in an organization, and what things are considered to be important and taboo. Most organizations have codes of conduct, core values, and ethical standards which are widely communicated.
Culture encompasses both good and bad elements. If the culture of the organization includes primarily good elements, it can be described as a favorable culture. If it includes mostly bad attributes, it can be described as a detrimental culture. If the culture is a mixture of good and bad elements, it can be described as a neutral culture.
To help create a favorable culture, create a vision of how things should work in the organization. Specify those attributes from the list below that are important, and those that should be avoided. Have the senior executive and the leadership team communicate the vision widely and regularly. For example, get your senior executive to endorse, communicate, and exemplify the following credo:
Understanding how people interact with each other in the organization, typical styles of behavior, fundamental operating principles, and the code of conduct will reveal the organizational culture. Employee surveys can determine prevailing attitudes. Social networks can spread key messages and reinforce core values. Communities can be asked for advice on improving the culture, used for change management, and created to introduce new processes such as appreciative inquiry . Training is necessary to communicate values and standards. Documentation should spell out expectations for employees. Regular communications from leaders about vision, mission, and strategy should refer to relevant training and documentation. Goals and measurements should reflect the desired culture. Incentives and rewards should support the official values.
Pay close attention to new hire training and induction. The subjects that are covered, and the ones that aren’t, will play a key role in how new hires view the organizational culture. For example, if they receive lots of training on risk avoidance, but none on knowledge sharing, they may be reluctant to post in the enterprise social network, even if that is part of the overall strategy.
We frequently hear about the need to change the culture of an organization. How feasible that is depends on the size of the organization, how long it has been in existence, and how close or far the current culture is from the desired one.
Culture change is easier to achieve in smaller, newer organizations than in larger, more established ones. In a long-entrenched culture, it’s more likely that the culture will outlast any new leader, than that the new leader will be able to change the culture. Unless the leader is prepared to change most of the top leaders, and get them in turn to change the leaders who report to them, and so on, the culture will likely remain the same.
An example of this comes from a story I heard a long time ago. Let’s say that you are the newly-appointed Postmaster General of the United States, and you decide that you want to instill a more professional image in the workforce. So you issue a formal order stating that starting tomorrow, all employees must wear a tie when working at the counter in a local post office. What do you think the likelihood is that all employees will comply with this directive? Some people undoubtedly would don a tie the next day, but many others would think, “What are the changes that the Postmaster General will visit my post office to check up on me? Slim to none.” And thus, the order will be ignored by many, if not most, employees.
For smaller teams, it is easier to make a significant change. For example, when a sports team changes it owner, general manager, or coach, there are many examples of going from losing to winning. This usually doesn’t happen right away, but within a few seasons, major reversals have been made. In 2003, the Detroit Tigers had 119 losses, which came within one loss of tying the 1962 New York Mets for the most losses in a baseball season. In 2006, in Jim Leyland’s first year as manager, they won 95 games and made it to the World Series. There were other contributing factors, but Leyland instilled a different mindset in the team, and the losing culture was changed to a winning one.
The Tigers were owned by Mike Ilitch, who also owned the Detroit Red Wings hockey team. The Red Wings were a consistent winner, under multiple coaches, so the owner helped sustain a winning culture at both the Tigers and the Red Wings. Now that Mike Ilitch has passed on, neither the Tigers nor the Red Wings are winning.
Another Detroit sports team offers a sharp contrast. The Detroit Lions last won the National Football League championship in 1957. The Ford family purchased the team in 1963, and during their time as owners, the team has won only one playoff game, and endured a record-setting winless season in 2008. During the 50+ years that the Fords have owned the team, they have gone through many general managers, coaches, and players, but have not been successful. The one constant has been the ownership, the most likely reason the culture has not changed.
The fourth major Detroit sports team, the Detroit Pistons have had a pattern of alternating between winning and losing. Under owner Bill Davidson, general manager Jack McCloskey, and coach Chuck Daly, the Pistons won consecutive NBA championships in 1989 and 1990. Then they went into a swoon of many losing seasons, changing coaches numerous times, until winning again under general manager Joe Dumars and coach Larry Brown. After making it to the conference finals six straight times, another swoon ensued, followed by frequent coaching changes and the eventual departure of Dumars. Current owner Tom Gores is trying to restore the winning ways, but there are no likely NBA championships for the Pistons on the immediate horizon. In this case, the culture has swung between favorable and detrimental several times.
Example
Western & Southern Financial Group prominently posts its culture principles throughout its facilities in Cincinnati:
Assessing Organizational Culture
To see what kind of culture your organization has, go through the list below, putting check marks next to the attributes that prevail. Then add up the ones that fall under the favorable categories (those with the letter “F” after the number) and those the fall under the detrimental categories (those with the letter “D” after the number). If most of the attributes are favorable, that’s a good sign. If most of the attributes are detrimental, that’s a bad sign. If the mix is roughly even, you can either view this as the glass being half-full (optimistic) or half-empty (pessimistic).
What can you do about a detrimental culture? If you are the leader, you will need to change some or all of the leaders under you, start communicating and demonstrating new ways of doing things, and continue communicating and leading by example until you start to see the rest of the organization follow suit. If you are a member of an organization with a detrimental culture and feel powerless to help change it for the better, you may wish to move to another organization that better matches the culture you prefer.
Culture Categories and Attributes
1F. Accountable
1D. Unaccountable
2F. Active
2D. Indolent
3F. Aesthetic
3D. Unaesthetic
4F. Brave
4D. Fearful
5F. Calm
5D. Agitated
6F. Civically responsible
6D. Civically neglectful
7F. Collaborative
7D. Isolated
8F. Communicative
8D. Inarticulate
9F. Decisive
9D. Indecisive
10F. Diverse
10D. Homogeneous
11F. Empowered
11D. Controlled
12F. Ethical
12D. Unprincipled
13F. Excellent
13D. Mediocre
14F. Independent
14D. Conformist
15F. Innovative
15D. Conventional
16F. Leading
16D. Supervisory
?17F. Learning
17D. Ignorant
18F. Loving
18D. Mean
19F. Mensch -centric
19D. Jerk-centric
20F. Optimistic
20D. Pessimistic
21F. Passionate
21D. Apathetic
22F. Reuse -oriented
22D. Reinventing or plagiarizing
23F. Sharing
23D. Secretive
24F. Timely
24D. Procrastinating
25F. Wise
25D. Obtuse
Insights
1. Barry Popik - “ ‘Culture eats strategy for breakfast/lunch’ is a saying that is frequently credited to management author?Peter Drucker ?(1909-2005), but it’s not known when he used the expression. ‘Culture eats strategy for breakfast’ and ‘culture eats strategy for lunch every time’ were both cited in print in 2002. Mark Shields of Ford Motor Company posted the saying ‘Culture eats strategy for breakfast’ on a wall in 2006. ‘Culture eats strategy for breakfast, technology for lunch, and products for dinner, and soon thereafter everything else, too’ is sometimes said to be the full saying.”
2. Bill Aulet - “I used to think corporate culture didn’t matter. Discussion of vision, mission and values was for people who couldn’t build product or sell it! We had work to do and this MBA BS was getting in the way! And then my first company failed.”
3. Nancy Dixon - "The third myth… is that the exchange of knowledge happens only in organizations that have a noncompetitive or a collaborative culture.?It follows that the first thing you have to do is to fix the culture and then get people to share.?But I have found that it's the other way around.?If people begin sharing ideas about issues they see as really important, the sharing itself creates a learning culture… It is a kind of chicken-or-egg issue: Which comes first, the learning culture or the exchange of knowledge? Given many organizations' rather abysmal success rate at changing their culture, I would put my money on having the exchange impact the culture rather than waiting for the culture to change.”
4. Jeffrey Sonnenfeld -
5. Carter McNamara - “There are four primary ways to influence the culture of an organization.
6. Tim Sanders - “The most powerful force in business isn't greed, fear, or even the raw energy of unbridled competition. The most powerful force in business is love. It's what will help your company grow and become stronger. It's what will propel your career forward. It's what will give you a sense of meaning and satisfaction in your work, which will help you do your best work.”
7. Karen Otazo - “Executives had tried for years to 'fix' their organization’s culture, or at least unravel its mysteries, by tweaking the flow of decision rights and hierarchical structures, but they had been looking in the wrong place. The tipping point for change could be triggered only in social networks, and, more importantly, in the trust relationships that underlie those networks, because people connect in meaningful ways only with those whom they consider trustworthy… ‘networks, more than hierarchy and more than markets, make culture what it is and what it can be.’ ”
8. Tim Bryce - “Corporate culture pertains to the identity and personality of the company we work with, either in the private or public sectors. All companies have a culture; a way they behave and operate. They may be organized and disciplined or chaotic and unstructured. Either way, this is the culture the company has elected to adopt. In order for an employee to function and succeed, they must be able to recognize, accept and adapt to the culture… Culture doesn't appear suddenly, it evolves over time as people grow and learn. The older the heritage, the more ingrained the culture is in its members. There are essentially three parts to any culture: Customs, Religion and Society. Each influences the others… Custom dictates the expected manner of conduct for the culture. It prescribes the etiquette to be observed in dress, speech, courtesy and politics (gamesmanship)… Religion is the philosophy of life and the basis for our values. It influences our judgment in terms of what is ethical and what is not… Society defines our interpersonal relationships. This includes how we elect to govern and live our lives. Society defines the class structure in an organization, from Chairman of the Board to the hourly worker. It defines government, laws and institutions which must be observed by its members. More often than not, the society is dictated by management as opposed to democratically selected by the workers.”
9. Seth Godin - “Starts, demands, thrives and requires. Four words that are not in the vocabulary of most organizations. Starts, as in, "here's where we are, where few others are." Most politicians and corporate entities can't imagine standing with the poor. Apart from them, sure. But with them? Demands mean making hard choices about who your competition will be and what standards you're willing to set and be held to. Thrives, because your organization is only worth doing if it gets to the point where it will thrive, where you will be making a difference, not merely struggling or posturing. And requires, because none of this comes easy.”
10. Gordon Krater - “The key to Plante Moran’s culture is employing the right kind of people. We are relatively jerk-free. If you act like a jerk often, there is no room for you here.” “Our culture is built upon specific core purpose, values, and principles. Our intent is to create an atmosphere that maximizes individual freedom. While this freedom requires greater individual responsibility, it maximizes the opportunity for our staff to flourish and provide best-in-class client service.”
11. Arnold Kling - “Perhaps the main policy implication of the importance of cultural intelligence is ‘follow the prestige.’ Because prestige is such a key element in people's choice of cultural learning, much depends on how we assign prestige. In Henrich's words, ‘the differential success of societies and institutions will hinge, in part, on what domains are valued.’ If we choose well the domains that are valued, then prestige will accrue to people from whom we want others to learn. If we choose poorly, then the social norms that people live by and enforce on others will be harmful ones.”
12. Hazel Hall - “A quantitative analysis of survey data highlighted factors necessary to nurture an environment conducive to knowledge creation, creativity and innovation: the organization should:
It should be supported by leaders who promote these characteristics as shared values, while challenging and empowering their staff to generate new ideas in a drive to further innovation.”
14. Francois Gossieaux - “So, why do best practices not work? The answer is simple: culture.?Most likely, you don't know anything about the underlying culture of the group?where the best practice was developed. And if you are about to deploy a best practice in your organization, chances are that you are also not focused on the underlying culture of your organization, either. This is where the system breaks down. Think of culture as?the operating system of your organization - the foundation on which you build your business.”
15. MindTree Consulting - “Values: CLASS - Caring: Organizational caring and caring for customers, employees and shareholders. Learning: development and innovation. Achieving: accountability, action orientation and teamwork. Sharing: giving away knowledge and encouraging and appreciating others. Social responsibility: commitment and integrity.” “DNA: Imagination, Action and Joy.”
16. Rachel Happe - “Communities are the only effective way to change culture.”
17. Arthur Shelley - "The Organizational Zoo
18. What's your community's culture? - Community Archetypes
18.?How to Be a Better Leader - TRUST
19. How to Be a Better Leader - The Right Stuff
Why is this the prevalent condition? The reasons include:
Resources
What are your thoughts on organizational culture?
Entrepreneurial MINDSET way to help you to thrive online in achieving SMART Digital Marketing; Social Media, Blogging, and Business development goal
3 年When applying and subsequently got an interview invitation, I always prefer to look at company culture and working environment. Which is more than a paycheck to me. Your article covers and points out nicely with insights. Awesome!
Regenerative | Circular | Sustainable knowledge management
7 年Chews it up and spits it out disdainfully, I'd say
KM | CM | PM | CSM, COBIT5, ITIL, Lean & Six Sigma, GAIQ
7 年I admire the tenacity of Stan Garfield on KM & Organization Culture. Thank you. Fantastic!
Creating eAssessment of Learning EcoSystems - and championing RPL. (Award winning ed-tech visionary, TedTalker)
8 年Monica Cornetti (LION) look at the heading... Based on the comment that was made last week... Culture all the way!!!