Introduction
Culture in an organization is not static but it changes over time to adapt to the changing situations or circumstances. Organizational culture can be changed, managed, and controlled within a short time to overcome the challenges facing a company. Each organization should adopt a good culture that will influence the behaviors and attitudes of its members (Kumar, 2000). A good organizational culture should differentiate an organization from others due to its shared meaning held by the organization members. It should also motivate the employees to take risks and innovate and also be precise and attentive in their work. A company should have a culture that encourages team orientation, outcome orientation and people orientation.
Managing change
The style of management in most the organization clash with the set culture in the company which prevents the company from attaining the set goals. The style of management does not harmonize with the culture of the organization but rather it rubs against it which results in ineffective management. The culture in most organizations involved command and the workers being harassed, overworked, and not appreciated for the work they do. The managers are very authoritative and don’t listen to complaints from the employees, especially those in the bottom line but rather they protect the fellow managers. Bad management is not healthy for an organization and it results in poor productivity, hence low profits or no profits are made by the company (Hooijberg & Petrock, 1993; Naylor, 1996). The organization should adopt a good organizational culture that will help the managers have good problem-solving skills. This will help them first analyze the problem facing the organization, determine how the problem has arisen, and develop strategies to solve the problem. After developing the strategies the manager should ensure that they are implemented and evaluation measures developed to prevent the occurrence of the problem in the future.
A good organizational culture when adopted will help the managers to have good negotiation skills. The managers should have negotiation skills that will favor the groups involved, they will be in a position to know the mistakes involved in negotiating and know how to do away with them. Managers should practice good communication skills to create understanding between the employees and the management (Sargent & McConnell, 2008). Through good communication, managers will help the company achieve its goals by giving guidelines to the employees on how to carry out their tasks to meet the set goals and also the desired culture. According to Schein (2004, p.394), when the managers adopt open communication, they will “enhance employee’s loyalty because they are able to comprehend how their hard work results in the company’s success”. Managers should always be positive because enthusiasm helps managers get committed to the organization’s goals.
Managers in an organization should be competent and thus should be selected depending on their ability to manage other employees in the company. A winning track record should be used to ensure the competence of the managers (Woods, 1975). Competent managers are able to lead other members of the organization with confidence. Good culture when adopted in an organization gives the managers the ability to delegate work to their juniors. A trustworthy manager is able to direct and control the employees in the organization. They will also help to implement a new culture in the organization. Managers should be in a position to create a good working relationship with the employees to achieve success.
A good culture should help the managers develop team-building skills which will help the employees work together towards achieving the company’s objectives. They must also be aware of the different team players that exist in an organization so that they can know the leadership style to use to achieve the company’s goals. Managers who set goals in their organizations help the employees to work hard to achieve them. The employees should be taught about the company culture and encouraged to make their own goals that are related to the company’s goals.
Innovation
Most companies have a poor innovative culture which results in their poor performance. The managers don’t encourage creative thinking by the employees and also technology advancement is not considered. Employees are not given chances to bring forward their new ideas which would help the company to improve performance, be successful and be competitive in the market.
Innovation in a company helps it to gain a competitive advantage and therefore the company should adopt an innovative culture (Whitely 1995). A strategy should be formulated to help in the development of the innovative process. A company can adopt the top-bottom innovative approach which will help in the development of innovative processes, products and services (Steward 1972). A hybrid approach can also be adopted which enhances innovation from the bottom up and helps to change ideas into viable business functions.
Innovation in a company will act as an ingredient to bring new ideas from the employees into discussion thus creating a refinement process (Steward 1972). When innovation chance is given to the employees, they can brainstorm and also come up with better ways of solving problems. An innovative company will adopt technology or advance the existing one to produce quality and good products and services which will be competitive in the market.
A good innovative culture should be adopted in a company to help it make products that will earn the company good returns and thus help it to invest in activities that will make it have a competitive edge in the market. Innovation opportunity motivates employees by considering their values and ideas when making the company’s goals. It also improves performance by shaping the behavior of the employees.
An innovative culture in a company will help in improving the financial performance because advancement in technology leads to production efficiency, thus lowering the production cost. It also helps in the provision of good customer service thus helping the organization to attract more customers and thus have an edge in the market. When a company adopts the innovation culture, the employees will be able to face problems with flexible minds and imagination and they will also be ready to go through the discovery process and have technical, intellectual and procedural knowledge.
Learning
If a company doesn’t consider employee development as a priority, the employees don’t feel motivated because they are not allowed to grow and achieve their personal goals. The lack of a learning culture in a company could result in employees resisting change because they are not competent enough to try new techniques.
A company should adopt a learning culture to help it remain competitive and flexible in today’s market (Kenney & Mujtaba, 2007). Learning should be encouraged at all levels in an organization because it helps in increasing the performance of the employees since it makes them more competent in their work thus ensuring efficiency. When the employees are trained, they feel motivated and will produce high-quality services and products for the company, which will result in profit-making and lead to competitiveness in the market (Cole, 2002). Employees will be in a position to attend to the customers’ needs satisfactorily which will result in attracting more customers and also retaining them. Cole (2002) states that training and development help the employees to be committed to their work and at the same time become result-oriented people. It also helps to accept change in the company because with a learning culture they can be taught new techniques.
Extending knowledge to the employees helps them grow towards achieving their personal goals and at the same time meet the company’s objectives. It also helps them to be loyal to the company, be goal-oriented, and also to remain focused. Learned employees will be easy to manage, will accept new changes and materials in the company (Awal et al. 2006). Learning enhances the creation of new skills and competencies and also leads to personal satisfaction since employees who are trained feel motivated and their work morale is improved. Employees who are trained can easily rise to another level of pay scale because they have the skills and are more competent.
Development of a good culture
Changing a culture in an organization requires a commitment of managers to properly implement the new culture (Mcniff & Whitehead, 2000). A company must first understand the existing culture to identify its weaknesses (Steward, 1972). An organization structure supporting the achievement of the company’s success should thus be developed. Employees in the organization must also be very willing to change their behavior to build a good organizational culture.
The full support of management is very important for a successful culture change in the organization. Executives should show behavioral support but should first change their own behaviors so that they can be in a position to influence others to change theirs (Sargent & McConnell, 2008). Training of employees is very important to help them adopt the new culture and also know what is expected from them. Training helps in guiding employees on how to change their behaviors in order to achieve the new set culture.
Creating value statements is very important in the implementation of a new culture. When a company comes up with a mission statement it helps the employees work towards achieving the organization’s mission. This helps employees to clearly understand the culture desired and which can only be achieved through their own actions. For a successful culture-changing process, communication between all organizational members is crucial. This will keep members informed and up-to-date with the changes so that they can understand what is required of them, to achieve success (Sargent & McConnell, 2008).
The company’s organizational structure should also be changed, to necessitate culture change. The updated organizational structure should show how communication will flow and also display the authority lines which will help in meeting the desired culture. Reward systems should also be redesigned in order to encourage employees to change their behaviors and get committed to achieving the expected culture in the organization. Work systems like “employee selection, promotion and performance management should be reviewed to make them match the expected culture in the organization” (Cole, 2002, p.4).
Top-Down strategy can be used in implementing a new culture in an organization where the top manager establishes a problem in the organization’s culture and suggests a change. In this strategy, change is driven from the top downwards to the lowest level (Cole, 2002). Top managers should first change their behavior and act as role models to influence the other employees to also change their behavior. Grassroots-Driven strategy can also be adapted to change an organization’s culture. In this strategy, culture change starts with the employees with the support of the management and it spreads to the whole organization (Cole, 2002). Culture change implementation can also be driven by champions where a professional can be hired to help in changing the behavior of the organization members to achieve the desired culture.
Conclusion
Culture change is a complicated process that requires commitment and support to get the desired culture. This article explains how a good culture in an organization can be achieved to help the company attain success and be competitive in the market. In order to have a good culture, the article explains how the managers should adopt good behavior which will help to achieve the desired results. The article also explains how innovation and learning can help the company achieve the desired culture. Finally, the article explains how a new culture can be developed and implemented in an organization.
Reference List
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