Unit 4 Corporate Culture 1. What is Corporate Culture? Corporate culture can be summed up as a complex set of assumptions, beliefs, perceptions, symbols and values that define how a company goes about doing business. Every organisation has its own unique culture or value set. Most organisations do not consciously try to create a certain culture. The culture of the organisation is typically created unconsciously, based on the values of the top management or the founders of an organisation. e-Learning Task 1 1. Before joining any company, what are the four things you need to know? a) _________________________________________________________________ b) _________________________________________________________________ c) _________________________________________________________________ d) _________________________________________________________________ 2. What kind of research should you do before accepting a job? a) _________________________________________________________________ b) _________________________________________________________________ c) _________________________________________________________________ 1.1 Identifying a Company’s Corporate Culture How things are said and done in a company reflect and shape its corporate culture. If you share the beliefs of a company, you have a higher chance of being satisfied with your job and a greater possibility of being committed to the organisation. A company’s corporate culture can be seen in the following ways: · Norms · Critical Incidents · Rituals · Significant Symbols NORMS · They are a set of unwritten rules and guidelines that are standards for appropriate behaviour. · To be accepted as a member of an organisation, each employee is expected to comply with these norms. This is called “fitting in.” · Example: It is Alan’s first day at Soapstone Electronics. He wants to make a good impression on his new colleagues so he dresses formally – long-sleeved shirt, tie and dress pants. However, he has a shock when he sees his colleagues wearing jeans, T-shirts and sneakers. The next day, he dresses like them. CRITICAL INCIDENTS · They are the events that occur in a company and the consequences which follow. · Examples: - John points out a mistake his boss has made and loses out on a pay increase. Conclusion: The company does not tolerate criticism. - Siew Eng tells her supervisor that she cannot work long hours as she needs to pick up her son from the childcare centre after work. Later, she is passed over during a promotion exercise. Conclusion: The company does not view family life as important. · Savvy employees will take note of these incidents so that they can learn how the company works, what the management wants, and what really counts to get along with others, to stay out of trouble and to get ahead. RITUALS · They are the company’s traditions and customs. e-Learning Task 2 What do the following rituals mean? 1. Celebrations: _____________________________________________________ 2. Time: ____________________________________________________________ 3. Breaks: __________________________________________________________ 4. Talk: ____________________________________________________________ 5. Meetings: ________________________________________________________ 6. Dress: ___________________________________________________________ 7. Artefacts: ________________________________________________________ 8. Touching: ________________________________________________________ 9. Recognition: ______________________________________________________ SIGNIFICANT SYMBOLS · How employees and customers describe the organisation. This means the language used reflects the beliefs that are an everyday part of life for the organisation. · They are an indication of what values the company holds important. · Examples: Staff at Walt Disney call themselves “cast members.” This gives the impression that everyone is on the same team and working toward a common goal. IBM used to be described by some people as a “dinosaur.” This gave the impression that it did not respond quickly to change. 2. When Change Happens Corporate culture is dynamic. Changes usually happen when the head of the organisation leaves and is replaced by someone else. More often than not, the new boss’ background, values and attitude will be different from the ex-boss and these influence how the company would be run. e-Learning Task 3 1. What can happen when CEOs change? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. Why is change important? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 3. What can companies do to help their staff cope with change? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2.1 Tolerating Change As change is an ongoing element of every successful organisation, it is critical that people learn to tolerate it. Companies need to structure the change process and help the staff get through it. e-Learning Task 4 1. How can companies help their staff go through change? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2. What should you consider before joining a company that has a fluid environment? ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2.2 Surviving Change While change can be uncertain, you do not have to be stressed out by it. Here are some suggestions on how to cope, and eventually, survive the upheavals in any organisation. e-Learning Task 5 Six ways have been given to survive changes in an organisation. Provide a short explanation for each. 1. Find out more: _____________________________________________________ 2. Prepare yourself: ___________________________________________________ 3. Get into the act: ____________________________________________________ 4. Think out of the box: ________________________________________________ 5. Continually assess yourself: __________________________________________ 6. Be positive: ________________________________________________________ CORPORATE CULTURE EXERCISE At your e-learning session, you were asked to visit the web sites of the following companies which have been listed in Fortune Magazine as some of the “100 Best Companies To Work For.” Fill in the following table based on your research. To help you further, visit the companies’ Career pages to get a feel of what it is like to work there. You may also get to read interviews with the staff. News Web sites like www.cnet.com, www.cnn.com, business-times.asia1.com.sg and straitstimes.asia1.com.sg are good places to see what others say about these companies. Make sure you take notes as your findings will be discussed in your tutorial session. Company Values Evidence on Web page Agilent Technologies Microsoft Pfizer Four Seasons Hotel Corporate Culture Activity Worksheet In groups of three or four, answer the following questions.Based on the following excerpt, what can you say about the culture of the armed forces? Attention! The Culture of the Armed Forces The scene Captain Choo is seated at his office desk. Sergeant Peh seeks permission to enter. He enters and immediately stands to attention and salutes. Captain Choo gives permission to stand at ease. Both are in uniform. The conversation Cpt Choo: As you know, Sergeant Peh, the company will be travelling to Camp Bukom for a company exercise this weekend. Tell me what your platoon’s mission is and how you’ll accomplish it. Sgt Peh: Sir, my platoon will leave at 2130 hrs to conduct a mission near the south end of the island. The platoon will give several personnel a chance to perform in leadership positions, as well. Cpt Choo: Very good, Sergeant Peh. Did you shave this morning, Sergeant? Sgt Peh: Yes, sir. Cpt Choo: Then you must have missed a few spots. Why don’t you do some push-ups while I go over my notes. Sergeant Peh then completes 10 push-ups and returns to the position of attention in front of the desk. Cpt Choo: You’re doing a good job, Sergeant. Report back here tomorrow at 0900 hrs. Dismissed. Sergeant Peh then salutes, and Captain Choo returns a salute. Sergeant does an about-face and leaves. Questions for Discussion From the brief scenario above, what elements of culture were evident? Language ____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ Dress _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ Power _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ Time _____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ Rituals ____________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________