Organizational culture is defined as the values and assumptions shared by members of an organization1. When we assess organizational culture, we are primarily looking to see if it contributes to a positive work environment that promotes our end goals or not. But perhaps the easiest way to define organizational culture is to take a look at some examples, learn what it is and what it isn’t, establish some rules and characteristics about it, and then look within our own units, teams, and squads to determine if we have a healthy and productive culture or not.
In the US Marine Corps, recruits show up to boot camp and are greeted by hate. The drill instructors get in their face and for 3 months deride them, ridicule them, punish them, and abuse them. The recruits are stripped of their personal identity, unable to refer to themselves in the first person but instead as “Recruit Vandekar.” The culture in the USMC could be seen as negative or harsh but it serves a distinct purpose. And because recruits are expecting to be given a trial by fire, they tolerate it, even welcome it.
At Google, Meta, and other companies tailoring towards a younger workforce, there is a starkly different culture. Bright colors, unique decor, and big, soft, group meeting places are common. This environment is specifically engineered for creativity, positive morale, and encouraging perks. The culture of dressed-down and Nespresso machines flows along with that workspace.
We can learn from these two examples that culture is not, as stated by Christine Kava and her co-authors, defined by the values or assumptions of the organization. No one in USMC boot camp values their degradation. They expect it, but they do not enjoy it. And companies that relax business standards to employ a more comfortable and creative work environment are doing so to encourage a certain culture. They are fostering it.
Culture can have a positive impact on an organization’s goals despite having a negative environment. Just as culture can have a positive environment but have a negative impact on the goals. And here we find our first major definitions of culture.
Culture is partly cultivated and established by leadership direction. If culture was simply a byproduct of our employees, then we would watch in horror as we hired new staff and the culture shifted from under our feet. But more realistically, the staff and employees certainly make up part of the culture, they are more impacted by it than create it. It is the leaders of an organization who drive the cultural direction and that direction can be shifted if it is not working.
Remote work is also a culture. Teams meetings, pajamas below the waist, and conversations via Skype for Business are all part of this culture. Given a big project, I would thrive in this environment. When I begin work on something new, I dive deep and rarely come up for air. But when I need a break, this culture would not be sufficient to recharge me. I am an extrovert at heart, and I need to connect in real space with people in order to get reset.
Therefore, culture is important for our productivity, which is normally the organization’s primary direction. But it is equally important for our employees which is a tangent of an organization’s productivity. I have alluded to this topic a few times already but it is another critical definition of culture.
The purpose of culture is to drive an organization. In another article, I will write about a leader’s core principle to drive an organization towards a common goal. One key way to do this is via culture definition. We already stated that culture is partly established by leadership, but now we know why. It is to encourage the organization to meet the leader’s goals.
When I was in the USMC, I was a part of 2nd Reconnaissance Battalion, a special operations unit. We were the top 1% of the Marine Corps and we enjoyed relaxed standards in a variety of ways. Our culture with Recon was markedly different than it was with other units and when we trained alongside them, it was noticed on both sides. In one instance, while waiting to be dismissed after a day at the range, Recon relaxed on the grass in the shade while other units stood at attention in the sun. Another Marine from one of the units asked us why we felt we could sit around while they stood. The answer was simple: we had proven ourselves trustworthy and disciplined through rigorous trials that we could relax when others could not.
Can you have multiple cultures within an organization? Yes and no. Certainly having other cultures is manageable. Cultures can be set for staff personalities, leadership styles, or for a specific project. But when contrasting cultures come into contact with each other, there is bound to be some friction as in the example above. And, of course, if a unit’s subculture is a departure from the overarching organization’s culture, it will need both buy-in from the large organizational leadership, or at least be complimentary.
So leadership sets culture, and it is reflected in an organization’s policy and the workplace environment. Its purpose is to drive an organization towards their goals. But what role do employees play within cultural definement? The original definition I used came from a study of how anti-smoking initiatives and policies were adopted in small workplaces. It identified a variety of culture types and the authors suggested that clan culture (which emphasizes participation in decision-making and human resources development) would adopt anti-smoking initiatives more readily because the employees had more buy-in to the overall policy. Such was not the case. Regardless of the results of why the anti-smoking initiatives were not adopted, this example shows that policy can be written and driven by leadership but still has to be adopted by the employees. Which brings us to our final point on culture.
Organizational culture is partly defined by the employee’s values and assumptions. The study about workplace anti-smoking initiatives showed that clan culture, the culture that leans heavily on promoting employee participation, made managers less likely to adopt policy if the policy was irrelevant or if it impacted the employees too strictly. For example, if no staff smoked, there isn’t a need for a new anti-smoking policy. And if 90% of them smoked, the managers are not going to inhibit the culture by enforcing a policy affecting the employees’ values.
Are you and your organization well established in culture? Do you know what your culture is? Does it promote the leader’s or unit’s goals? If you need to change your culture, do you know how? Does your policy align with your culture?
This is one article in a series I am writing on Cultural Definement, Leadership Development, and Policy Establishment. All three are closely interwoven and I hope I can help drive your organization towards a Common Goal.
- Kava, Christine M et al. “Organizational culture and the adoption of anti-smoking initiatives at small to very small workplaces: An organizational level analysis.” Tobacco prevention & cessation vol. 4 39. 19 Dec. 2018, doi:10.18332/tpc/100403
Common Goal Leadership 