Research survey
In order to understand the relationship between organizational culture and performance at company X, a research survey consisting of twelve questions was conducted. The survey was carried via the open ended and closed ended questionnaire. The survey targeted two employees of company X since they have an insight on how the company’s organization culture functions. The questions were admitted through direct interviews and each interview was about 20 minutes. The respondents were reminded to be very sincere in their responses to minimize the degree of error or assumptions. The questionnaire is presented below.
Research questionnaire
- Does company X have a steady work specialization framework within its human resource department?
- Is there a clear chain of command at company X?
- How can you describe the current span of control of the organization, is it effective or ineffective?
- Does the organization structure of company X promote centralization in leadership management?
- How is the chain of command formulated at company X?
- How do you propose company X should be restructured to guarantee an effective organization culture?
- How can you describe the current organizational culture at company X in general?
- How do you define the current physical structures of the organization culture at company X?
- Can you pinpoint specific symbols at company X that can be associated with its organizational culture?
- Are there unique ceremonies, language and rituals at company X?
- How effective are the different elements of organizational culture at company X in promoting proactive organization behavior?
- Would you make any suggestions on the current organizational culture to ensure that company X is more proactive and performance oriented?
Analysis: Company X Organization Culture
According to Appleyard and Field (2014), “organization culture refers to systems and channels that control the scope of operations in an organization” (Appleyard & Field, 2014, p. 45). The primary structure of a stable organization culture consists of elements such as work specialization, formalization, centralization, chain of command, and work specialization. In answering question 1, the respondents agreed that company X has a work specialization culture. Specifically, the respondents noted that the company has a steady human resource management strategy that ensures that the best employees are hired and retained. Through this, company X has managed to optimize labor as a factor of production towards efficiency. Work specialization is achieved through “quality planning of the use of labor hours in departments that relate to staff specialization, rather than just keeping the personnel on standby” (Griffin & Moorhead, 2013, p. 15). The respondents also noted that the human resource team at company X offers a series of training programs on efficiency in performance to promote optimal resource allocation and use.
In answering question two and three, the respondents share similar views on chain of command and span of control at company X. The respondents noted that there is a stable network within the current formal organization chart. This chart defines the hierarchy of service delivery and a command structure that is proactive in problem identification and solution. The chain of command streamlines chain of bureaucracy through the board of directors who are subordinated by department heads. The supervisors are the third in command followed by the employees. For the self-motivated people, “this approach allows them to do much more spectacular things as a team and not as human machines” (Bennett, Briggs, & Triola, 2014, p. 35). Despite the fact that company X emphasizes on meeting targets, the system for creating an active culture promotes learning and flexibility in entrenching positive attitude and job satisfaction. In fact, the respondents noted that every employee at company X has his or her space to experience continuity and equitable employee growth that is based on performance. According to Certo (2010), this is possible in organizations that “exhibits flexibility in its culture to enable jobs to be redesigned thus, facilitating work based innovations” (Certo, 2010, p. 31).
In answering question 4 and 5, the respondents had diverse opinions on the centralization and formalization strategies within the organization culture of company X. Respondent 1 noted that the current healthy work culture was a result of a centralized management system while respondent 2 noted that the healthy work culture was as a result of a mix between personal growth perspectives and healthy work environment. The respondents agreed that talent promotion, continuous training, and motivation strategies have been centralized in the current organizational culture at company X. Besides, the culture of efficiency and optimal performance has been formalized through the company’s formal internal systems that monitor operations, performance, and employee motivation. These elements are controlled by the mutual interest between the company and the employees (Cooper & Schindler, 2011).
In answering question six and seven, the respondents noted that company X should reorganize its negotiation strategies and create a more flexible work environment in order to transform the current stable organizational culture into a sustainable work environment. According to Cooper and Schindler (2011), “in reviewing performance based on feedback received, the human resource management team handles the voluntary information with care to boost trust and confidentiality which form the pinnacle of organizational behavior” (Cooper & Schindler, 2011, p. 34). Therefore, company X should create a clear 360 degree feedback process to guarantee a sustainable organization culture and subcultures in order to boost the confidence levels and morale among the employees. As a result, the “job performance will greatly improve since the attractive rewards for innovation will become a motivational engine among the employees” (Certo, 2010, p. 35).
In answering question eight and nine, the respondents identified the physical structures of company X’s organization culture as proactive in promoting interaction between optimal job performance and work environment since the current congenial conditions are ideal. Specifically, the respondents noted that the current physical structures as part of the organization subculture are instrumental in promoting comfort, convenience, and safety among the employees. Besides, the subcultures have been instrumental in interpersonal relations, welfare provisions, work conditions, and work environment in a proactive manner to improve the organizational effectiveness. These factors have been embedded in the company’s unity of purpose symbol that was designed to continuously create a culture of efficiency and support to the employees (Griffin & Moorhead, 2013).
In answering question ten, eleven and twelve, the respondents shared similar sentiments in the need to establish a proactive organization culture through exploring the shared and coordinated actions to create a steady organization framework for company X. The framework should be flexible to accommodate the views of the employees as an effective tool for the creation of a proactive work environment. When this approach is adopted, it is easy for company X to micromanage the collective perspective between different departments and productive performance behavior among the employees (Flamholtz & Randle, 2011).
In order for the organization culture quotient of company X to become an effective tool for performance maximization, it is necessary to create an environment of mutual trust between the employees and management team. This is achievable when the three building blocks of organizational learning such “as a supportive learning environment, concrete learning processes, and practice leadership are balanced to reinforce innovation” (Griffin & Moorhead, 2013, p. 25).
Summary
From the above analysis, it is apparent that company X has a stable organizational culture. The organization culture consists of proactive leadership, job satisfaction, and employee motivation strategies. However, the respondents noted that there is a need to improve the current negotiation strategies to guarantee full stakeholders’ support in accomplishing different goals on behalf of the company.
References
Appleyard, D., & Field, A. (2014). International economics (8th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
Bennett, B., Briggs, W., & Triola, M. (2014). Statistics reasons: For everyday life (4th ed.). New York, NY: Pearson.
Certo, S. (2010). Supervision: Concepts and skill-building (7th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
Cooper, D., & Schindler, P. (2011). Business research methods (11th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.
Flamholtz, E., & Randle, Y. (2011). Corporate culture: the ultimate strategic asset. Stanford, UK: Stanford business Books.
Griffin, R., & Moorhead, G. (2013). Organizational behavior: Managing people and organizations. New York, NY: Cengage Learning.