Corporate culture has gained importance in the business world in the last two decades. The consideration of corporate culture, nevertheless, differs significantly in organisations. Some organisations have taken their corporate culture into account for strategic decisions (e.g. cultural fit during Mergers & Acquisitions) but other organisations have tended to neglect this issue at all.
Deal and Kenndy (1999) consider corporate culture as a hidden success factor of organisation which ensures commitment of the employees. According to them (1999), organisations with a ‘strong’ corporate culture outperform “run-of-the-mills companies by a massive margin”.
Corporate culture, nevertheless, has been a controversially discussed topic in the literature on which different general ‘best practices’ had been suggested by academics. However, it can be argued that the few empirical studies of corporate culture, notably Kotter and Heskett’s (1992) quantitative survey, have been methodologically limited (Alvesson, 2002), e.g. to few senior managers of the examined organisations. Therefore, this project employs, besides interviews with senior managers of the three examined German organisations, a survey which is focused on employees of different hierarchical and divisional levels in one organisation. The findings of the research clearly show that corporate culture is a far more heterogeneous phenomenon than many academics suggest.
In this research, corporate culture appears as a network of interrelating cultural patterns which is unique to different organisations due to different organisational and environmental challenges. The survey also identified that the perceptions of corporate culture differ between senior management and the employees. Therefore, the employees’ perception of the corporate culture must be taken into account in order to prevent cultural dichotomy. Furthermore, the senior management should implement a sustainable process of monitoring the development of corporate culture. Continuous monitoring enhances the understanding of the organisation and the consequences of managerial actions. Consequently, this can help to raise commitment and efficiency of the workforce.
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
1.1 Background of Corporate Culture Studies
1.2 Research Aims and Objectives
2 Literature Review
2.1 The Architecture of Corporate Culture
2.2 The Main Elements of Corporate Culture
2.2.1 Artefacts
2.2.2 Values, Beliefs and Attitudes
2.2.3 Basic Assumptions
2.3 Determination of Corporate Culture in its Wider Context
2.3.1 The Sources of Corporate Culture
2.3.2 The Harrison and Handy Model
2.4 Corporate Culture and Performance
2.4.1 Underlying Assumptions
2.4.2 Academically Suggested Relationships
2.5 Cultural Heterogeneity in Organisations
2.6 Summary
3 Methodology
3.1 The In-depth Interviews
3.1.1 Sampling
3.1.2 The Interview Design
3.1.3 Data Analysis of the Interviews
3.2 The Focus Group Interview
3.2.1 Sampling
3.2.2 Focus Group Interview Design
3.2.3 Data Analysis of the Focus Group Interview
3.3 The Questionnaire-based Survey
3.3.1 Sampling
3.3.2 The Questionnaire Design
3.3.3 Data Analysis of the Survey
4 Research Findings
4.1 In-depth Interviews
4.2 Focus Group Interview and Survey at Centrotherm
5 Conclusions
5.1 Diverge Perceptions of Cultural Artefacts in Organisations
5.2 Oversimplification and Generalisation of Corporate Values, Beliefs and Attitudes
5.3 The Interrelationship between Corporate Culture and Structure
5.4 Existence of Subcultures and Cultural Heterogeneity
5.5 Non-existence of Pragmatic Relationships between Corporate Culture and Performance
5.6 Summary
6 Recommendations
Research Objectives and Topics
This research aims to investigate how corporate culture evolves in German organisations and how it is perceived by various organisational groups. The study challenges the traditional academic assumption that corporate culture is a homogeneous, easily generalisable phenomenon. By examining the interplay between cultural patterns, organisational structure, and performance, the research seeks to develop a more nuanced framework for understanding corporate culture that accounts for subcultures and heterogeneous perspectives.
- Analysis of corporate culture theory and its limitations.
- Examination of cultural heterogeneity and the role of subcultures in German organisations.
- Evaluation of the relationship between corporate culture and performance.
- Identification of cultural drivers and their impact on employee commitment.
- Development of organization-specific recommendations for managing corporate culture.
Excerpt from the Book
1 Introduction
It is estimated by the renowned market research institute Gallup that approximately € 260 billion a year (about 12 percent of the German gross domestic product of about € 2,100 billion according to Deutsches Statistisches Bundesamt (2004); hereafter abbreviated as GDP) get lost within the German economy due to missing commitment (Kröger, 2004). Gallup refers to unnecessary high absenteeism rates of employees, their unwillingness to perform beyond the minimum requirements, and risk avoidance (i.e. better to do nothing than something wrong) in order to preserve their work places (Kröger, 2004). Consequently, each employee in Germany could, statistically, contribute additional € 6190 to the profits of the organisation every year (where about 42 million people are in work relations in Germany according to the Deutsches Statistisches Bundesamt, 2004) if s/he was fully committed and motivated.
However, it can be observed that some organisations generate more commitment and motivation of their employees than others which goes beyond the notion of strategic, environmental and structural issues (Deal and Kennedy, 1999). Academics (e.g. Brown, 1998; Kotter and Heskett, 1992; Peters and Waterman, 1982) refer in this regard to the corporate culture – the soul of an organisation – as noted below.
Summary of Chapters
1 Introduction: Discusses the economic impact of low employee commitment in German organisations and introduces the research context of corporate culture studies.
2 Literature Review: Provides a theoretical foundation by examining the architecture of corporate culture, key cultural elements (artefacts, values, assumptions), and current academic debates regarding cultural heterogeneity.
3 Methodology: Details the primary and secondary research methods used, including semi-structured interviews and a quantitative survey to capture different perspectives within organisations.
4 Research Findings: Presents the empirical results from the interviews and survey, highlighting the interrelationships between cultural patterns, structure, and organizational performance.
5 Conclusions: Synthesises the research findings, emphasizing that corporate culture is a heterogeneous construct and questioning the generalisability of traditional "best practice" models.
6 Recommendations: Suggests organization-specific approaches to monitoring and managing corporate culture to foster employee commitment and organizational efficiency.
Keywords
Corporate Culture, Organizational Behaviour, Employee Commitment, Subcultures, Cultural Heterogeneity, Artefacts, Values, Beliefs, Organizational Performance, Management, Qualitative Research, Quantitative Survey, Cultural Change, German Organisations, Structural Attributes.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is this research primarily about?
The research explores the management of corporate culture in German organisations, challenging the view that culture is a monolithic entity and demonstrating its inherent heterogeneity.
What are the central themes of the work?
The core themes include the architecture of corporate culture, the existence of subcultures, the perception of values by different hierarchical levels, and the influence of culture on organizational performance.
What is the primary research question?
The study asks how corporate culture has evolved in German firms and how it is perceived across diverse organisational groups to prevent misinterpretation and cultural dichotomy.
Which scientific method is applied?
The research employs a multi-methods approach: in-depth interviews with senior management for qualitative insights and a questionnaire-based survey of employees for quantitative triangulation.
What topics does the main body address?
The main body covers the theoretical definition of corporate culture, an analysis of its elements (artefacts, values, assumptions), its relationship with organizational structure, and empirical findings from three case organizations.
How would you describe the main keywords?
Key terms include Corporate Culture, Cultural Heterogeneity, Organizational Performance, Employee Commitment, and Subcultures.
What is the "two-faced" organisation mentioned in the study?
This refers to organizations where there is a significant disconnect between what the management claims to be the corporate culture (often through mission statements) and the actual lived experiences and practices of the employees.
Why are subcultures significant according to the author?
Subcultures arise from organizational diversification and divisional structures. The author argues that they are natural consequences of different working environments and that attempting to suppress them can be harmful to overall organizational identity.
Does the author find a direct link between corporate culture and financial performance?
The research finds no clear, linear evidence for a direct correlation between "strong" culture and financial performance, suggesting that the relationship is highly context-dependent and complex.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Sven Röhm (Autor:in), 2004, Corporate Culture - How Corporate Culture is managed in organisations and what could be done better, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/52907
