Can Organisational Culture Be Changed?
Question: Can Organisational Culture be changed?
Management within an organisation has the ability to re-shape, re-engineer, re-organise and change their organisation and organisational culture, the majority of organisation’s today, have the ability to change their culture, however, at the same time, it is a very difficult and demanding task. This is where the four main functions of managing come into play; planning, controlling, leading and organising. Robbins at al (2009, p.94) defines organisational culture as “a system of shared values, principles, traditions and ways of doing things that influence the way organisational members act.” This essay will further look into how and if an organisation’s culture can be changed, weighed up against organisation’s resisting change, how this resistance can be managed and strategies to maintain change within an organisation.
Organisational culture change may occur when there is a shift in success strategy of the company or as the organisation goes through various lifecycles. Change within an organisational culture can fundamentally fall into three categories; changing structure, changing technology and changing people. If each of these categories is thought about and implemented correctly it can have an array of advantages on the organisation. Changing an organisation’s structure is a long term and thought about process. It needs commitment from the leadership team to provide the necessary resources for successful implementation.
Sims. (2000, p.65-78) explores the effects of changing an organisation’s culture under new leadership. The journal article explores “The recent bond trading scandal at Salomon Brothers and demonstrates that a successful turnaround does not just happen spontaneously. In particular, it argues that new leadership, altering policies, structure, behaviour and beliefs are paramount to successfully change an organisational culture that supports ethical behaviour.” Changing the structure,
Management within an organisation has the ability to re-shape, re-engineer, re-organise and change their organisation and organisational culture, the majority of organisation’s today, have the ability to change their culture, however, at the same time, it is a very difficult and demanding task. This is where the four main functions of managing come into play; planning, controlling, leading and organising. Robbins at al (2009, p.94) defines organisational culture as “a system of shared values, principles, traditions and ways of doing things that influence the way organisational members act.” This essay will further look into how and if an organisation’s culture can be changed, weighed up against organisation’s resisting change, how this resistance can be managed and strategies to maintain change within an organisation.
Organisational culture change may occur when there is a shift in success strategy of the company or as the organisation goes through various lifecycles. Change within an organisational culture can fundamentally fall into three categories; changing structure, changing technology and changing people. If each of these categories is thought about and implemented correctly it can have an array of advantages on the organisation. Changing an organisation’s structure is a long term and thought about process. It needs commitment from the leadership team to provide the necessary resources for successful implementation.
Sims. (2000, p.65-78) explores the effects of changing an organisation’s culture under new leadership. The journal article explores “The recent bond trading scandal at Salomon Brothers and demonstrates that a successful turnaround does not just happen spontaneously. In particular, it argues that new leadership, altering policies, structure, behaviour and beliefs are paramount to successfully change an organisational culture that supports ethical behaviour.” Changing the structure,
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