I have just written two articles called '7 Tips to Avoid
Organizational Culture Clashes Damaging Merger Success'. Also '7
Critical Questions to Ask Before Undertaking Culture Change'. These
can be downloaded on the link at the foot of this article.
The first article was inspired through talking to a CEO who was
explaining how surprised he had been by the cultural clashes
experienced while merging two businesses.
Culture is becoming my favourite topic as it greatly impacts
business performance. I am finding myself increasingly talking
about it and have developed a training programme to help leaders
understand it. This week I am sharing the programme with a group of
10 Chairman.
It is true to say that culture is probably the most stable
aspect of a business. Culture has been described as 'The way we do
things around here'. If you want to perform well a great culture is
highly beneficial.
A better definition is by Edgar H. Schein who defines it as 'a
pattern of shared tacit assumptions that was learned by a group as
it solved its problems of external adaptation and internal
integration, that has worked well enough to be considered valid,
and therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way to
perceive, think and feel in relation to problems.
Now sometimes culture works well. In some situations the thinking
of leaders in an organization can result in a culture that
negatively impacts the customer and brand.
An example today, is that I had dealings with a company that we
had bought an expensive door lock which intermittently locked us
out. Therefore, we had to send it back for the company to test it.
Their response was that it was fine and we hadn't fitted it
properly. Infact the fitting had been checked by an expert and it
was correct.
To cut a long story short, the only way in their eyes to proceed
was by us paying them £4.95 to post the same lock back to us
or they would destroy the lock within 7 days.
No empathy. It was our problem. Clearly we were unhappy with this
and won't be dealing with them again.
Now this also shows the complexity of culture. This issue may be a
result of the culture being to always apply business rules as being
right. It might be a training issue. It might be that the culture
is not to trust staff to use their own judgement. The only way to
fully understand it and change the thinking is to impartially
review the situation with internal management.
If you are interested in organizational culture, regularly check
out the Resources section of this site.
Here you will find the articles mentioned. This will increasingly
become a valuable resource for anyone interested in this area. If
you want to discuss any business Cultural issues please contact
Chris@cc1consulting.com.