What is organizational culture and how to build it?

Organizational culture is one of the main pillars of the proper functioning of a company. It positively affects both elements inside the company, such as the loyalty of employees, their sense of appreciation by the employer, and its external image. It defines what the company's values are, shows its goals and driving principles. It also motivates employees to be involved in their work, giving them the feeling that they are part of a greater whole.

What is organizational culture?

The culture of an organization is a set of norms, ideas, customs prevailing in a given organization. This term also takes into account the ways in which employees communicate with each other, how feedback is given on employees’ performance or the relationships that prevail in the company.

However, it is worth noting that organizational culture is not only relevant to the company's inner circle, as it is reflected in relations with customers and business partners and can shape the company's image. So let's look at what the main functions of organizational culture are:

• Integration of employees
• Joint pursuit of a common goal
• Maintaining order and harmony
• Responding to change
• Developing employees and the company
• Maintaining motivation

Organizational culture - examples

When leaning into an organization's culture, it is important to remember that it is a long-term process, and guided in the right way, it can have an impact on reducing employee turnover, improving financial performance, or the satisfaction of customers who cooperate with the company. This is a factor that works positively on employee satisfaction and the desire to stay with the company.

But, how do you bring change to your company? We will give you some interesting examples of organizational culture in well-known corporations to inspire you:

• Nestlé
  Nestlé places great emphasis on inclusivity in their organization. Their goal is to create a gender-balanced workplace. They also provide employees with development opportunities that are not only job-related. They also offer training on stereotypes, or support programs for young parents. In addition, they create a work environment that is friendly to people with disabilities.
• Google
  Google offers its employees coaching meetings, integrating the team through a common idea. Employees have a clear goal to strive for and the opportunity for open communication. What's more, Google allows employees to take naps during work in special rooms, offers free meals and a gym in the office and work in themed, interactive spaces.
  
  Google's Amsterdam office. Relates in style to local culture and customs.
• Nike
  Nike builds its organizational culture on transparency. On their website, you can see how the recruitment process works, and goals and objectives at Nike are clearly defined. Training programs designed for the team uphold the idea that they are in line with the sports brand. An interesting initiative introduced by Nike included closing all offices for a week to give employees some rest.
• Coca-cola Polska
  Coca-cola provides comfort in the office, the office space has many couches, poufs, swings, bookcases and creative games. Focusing on team integration, all employees work in one open space, regardless of their position. To facilitate communication during flexible working hours, all meetings are held from 10 am to 3 pm.
  
  Photo of the Coca-cola Polska office.

Edgar Schein's model of organizational culture

Edgar Shein is an American organization researcher, a pioneer in the field of organization theory, consulting and bringing change to company structures. He described the "iceberg" scheme, focusing on artifacts, norms and values, and the invisible foundations of a company.

• Artifacts. It's all the things you can see at first glance. It can be interior design, phrases used towards each other in the company or dress code.
• Norms and values. They concern behavior accepted and unaccepted in the organization. This can refer to work methods, responsibility, loyalty or innovation. They are crucial to an employee's attitudes such as professionalism, punctuality and team work.
• The invisible foundations of the company. They refer to values and beliefs. It is important that the employee's ideas coincide with the company's core beliefs. They are hard to measure or verify, but are of great importance to the company. It can be attitude towards work and other employees, or a way of looking at the world.

Types of organizational culture

• Power culture
  It puts a leader at the center, who gives orders to further parts of the organization. This structure only makes sense in small enterprises, when the leader is able to oversee the work of more distant units.
  This type of organizational culture works well in fast-paced, volatile environments. Such a culture can prove risky, because when a leader is lost, the company may have trouble managing the chaos that follows. A second problem can also arise as the company grows, when micromanagement becomes a roadblock to the company's growth.
• Role culture.
  It focuses on the specialization of employees. Everyone has clear goals to strive for. Such a culture will not be suitable for an industry that is dynamically changing.
• Task culture.
  Emphasizes the execution of the intended goal. Defines goals, responsibilities, expectations. Each employee has defined tasks and responsibilities on the basis of which they are held accountable. It is important to regularly check the progress of their work.
• Culture of an individual.
  It refers to meeting the needs of an employee. The opposite of the power culture, it puts individuals in the center, and the company's task is to create favorable conditions for development. The main professions adopting this culture are lawyers, accountants and architects.

What are the spheres of organizational culture?

The organization's culture operates on several levels necessary to build a strong and engaged community within the company. This is critical to success, as satisfied employees strive to improve their professional performance.

• The sphere of social coexistence concerns relations between employees. It is important that members of the company show respect to each other, respect each other's boundaries.
• The information sphere refers to the flow of information within the company and communication.
• The sphere of material conditions is related to the equipment necessary for the operation of a company.
• The sphere of one's own personality includes acceptance of employees' distinctiveness.

How to build good organizational culture in a company?

Before starting to introduce organizational culture in the office, it is worth considering what kind of incentives members of the organization are interested in. For a working parent, extra time with the kids may be more attractive than a multisport card, while for an intern, the prospect of being a formal part of the company will be more attractive than a cash bonus.

Here are some suggestions for innovative work appreciation, influencing the improvement of the organizational culture in the company:

• Mentoring session with the CEO or president of the company
• The ability to bring your pet to the office
• Naming projects or processes after the employee who created them
• Sharing employee stories within the company through social media videos
• Extra days during business trips to visit the place
• Open communication
• Subsidies or paying for development training in areas helpful to the job
• Attractive office design and equipment
• Employee integrations, increasing the sense of belonging in the group

Training - either free or partially paid - can also be an important reward for an employee. It gives more tools and skills to use at work. For example, it is worth taking advantage of language training, developing confidence in speaking a foreign language. If you're looking to break the language barrier and improve communication in the company, bet on Berlitz. We are a language school that offers tailor-made language solutions. Our classes can be held online or onsite under the guidance of native speakers from around the world!

Advantages of a good organizational culture

Appreciating employees not only brings benefits to them but also to the company itself. Gaining a good reputation in the market and inside the company is a great advantage, because the way you treat your team positively affects their loyalty, commitment to work, as well as finding new people committed to work.

• Engaged teams: feeling recognition for their work, employees are inclined to be more committed to their tasks and goals.
• Reduced staff turnover: employees stay in their positions longer and are less likely to consider job offers from competitors.
• Increased productivity: the greater the effort, the better the results. One of the best ways to encourage people to complete tasks in less time and with better results is to recognize an employee who stands out for his or her productivity.
• Attracting talent: during recruitment, performance rewards, which are part of the organizational culture of the company, can be integrated as part of the candidate's benefits. This adds another attractive element to the job offer and increases the chances of filling the position with an exceptional employee.
• Increased customer satisfaction: the chances of an employee doing a better and more accurate job increase when he is satisfied with his current work situation. This automatically translates into higher sales and number of satisfied consumers.

Summary

Nowadays, major giants, startups, or small local companies try to operate on a well-developed organizational culture. They care about their employees' sense of security and comfort, and invest in their development through mentoring meetings or language courses, which translates into commitment to work and better results.

The guarantee of a prosperous company is a well-planned and carried out strategy of the organizational culture, based on a stable foundation, common ideas and goals pursued by the whole team, together. It is worth remembering that an important piece of the whole puzzle is to set boundaries and clear rules within the organization.