10.2 Organisational Culture (AQA A Level Business): Flashcards
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Define organisational culture.
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Define organisational culture.
Organisational culture is the shared values, beliefs, attitudes and practices that shape how people work together — an organisation's 'personality'.
Give two signs of a strong culture.
Employees are united and support the mission and have a 'can do' attitude (also believing the business is a force for good).
Give two signs of a weak culture.
A 'them and us' attitude and high staff turnover/low commitment (also doubting the corporate mission).
Give one consequence of a cultural clash.
Communication breakdown (also demotivation, resistance to change, less team spirit and less innovation).
What did Charles Handy argue about organisational culture?
That different cultures suit different businesses and situations.
Name Handy's four organisational cultures.
Power, role, task and person cultures.
Define power culture.
In a power culture, decisions are made by one or a few powerful individuals at the top, with few rules.
Give an example of a power culture.
Alan Sugar's Amstrad, with Sugar as the powerful decision-maker.
Define role culture.
In a role culture, decisions are made by those with specific job titles in a clear hierarchy, with staff following rules.
Give an example of a role culture.
The NHS — a large public-sector body with a highly structured hierarchy.
Define task culture.
In a task culture, decisions are made by teams with the relevant skills; teams form and dissolve around projects.
Define person culture.
In a person culture, skilled, experienced individuals are loosely brought together and work autonomously with their own decision-making.
Where are person cultures common?
In professional services such as accounting and law.
Give two influences on organisational culture.
Leadership and business performance (also the firm's history, ownership form and societal influences).
How does leadership influence culture?
Leaders shape values through their behaviour — e.g. Richard Branson's relaxed style created a person culture at Virgin.
Give one advantage of a task culture.
It encourages teamwork and morale (also adaptability/innovation and quick responses to change).
Organisational culture is often described as the of an organisation.
Organisational culture is often described as the personality of an organisation.
True or False?
In a power culture, decisions are made by teams with task-related skills.
False.
That describes a task culture; a power culture concentrates decisions in one or a few individuals.
True or False?
A role culture usually has a clear hierarchical structure with staff following rules.
True.
Power lies with job titles in a clear hierarchy — common in large organisations like the NHS.
Give two reasons a business might change its culture.
Poor performance and new leadership (also mergers/takeovers, changing market conditions and societal/ethical pressures).
How can poor business performance prompt a culture change?
If current practices aren't delivering results, changing culture can improve motivation and regain competitiveness.
Why do mergers and takeovers often require culture change?
Combining businesses with separate or conflicting cultures needs blending to unite employees and avoid conflict.
How can societal and ethical pressures drive culture change?
Businesses adjust culture to meet changing expectations (e.g. sustainability), protecting reputation and customer loyalty.
Give two problems caused by changing organisational culture.
Employee resistance and high costs/disruption (also being time-consuming, culture incompatibility and loss of key staff).
Why is changing culture time-consuming?
It involves altering deep-seated behaviours and mindsets, which delays the anticipated benefits.
Why can changing culture cause a loss of key staff?
Employees dissatisfied with the new culture may leave, taking valuable experience with them.
Cultural change is often slow because it involves altering deep-seated behaviours and .
Cultural change is often slow because it involves altering deep-seated behaviours and mindsets.
True or False?
Changing organisational culture is usually quick and cheap to achieve.
False.
It is time-consuming and often needs significant investment in training, restructuring and communication.
True or False?
Merging two businesses with very different cultures can lead to conflict and lost staff.
True.
Incompatible cultures can cause misunderstandings, resistance and the departure of key employees.
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