Organizational Culture Change - Essay Example

?Organizational culture has over the years, developed many definitions and one of these is that it is the collective behaviour that is practiced by the people who work within or work together with certain organizations. The above-mentioned collective behaviour is that which is taught to those people who have recently joined the organization and it is these behaviour, which enshrine the ideals and objectives of the organization within which it is put into practice (Erickson 2008). Organizational culture has an influence on how the members of an organization conduct themselves in almost every aspect of their lives, especially when related to their work, to create a good image. This behaviour affect how employees interact with their fellow employees, all their clients, and those people who have an interest in the organization like the shareholders and stakeholders. The culture of an organization has also come to be defined as the values that contribute to the creation of an environment that is conducive both psychologically and socially and enable employees to work effectively without worrying about any conflict related to their work procedure (Kilcullen & Judith 1999). Because of its great importance to the organization, it is a fact that it is subject to change and this change has to be well managed by the organization’s administration for it to become effective. Plenty of literature has been written concerning the various aspects of change that take place in an organization’s culture and most of this literature has spanned decades. Changes can be made to the organizational culture through strict management of all the new behaviours that are introduced within the organization. The implementation of change to the culture of an organization is the process through which changes are made in an organization with the intention of achieving a certain result in the future. In addition, it can be said to be a process which comes to affect the daily activities of an organization, such as how it is managed and how teams and individuals work together in order to achieve the goals which have been set (Arce 2006). While there has been some dispute concerning whether change to the culture of an organization can be changed, it is a fact that change is necessary for the continued thriving of the said organization. This is the reason why, despite the resistance that may be encountered from those individuals within the organizations who have become too comfortable in the current culture, changes have to be implemented. This is the reason why there has to be a procedure which is followed in getting changes in an organization to be introduced and after the introduction, to achieve approval from all those involved (Shook 2010). The implementation of changes to the organizational culture has come to be recognized as one of the most important aspects of the running of organizations and as such, plenty of literature concerning it has been written, as the different ways of conducting such changes have been analyzed (Lakos & Phipps 2004). While most of the said literature often adopts a negative attitude concerning the implementation of changes within organizations, it is a fact that most of the organizations that have attempted these changes have witnessed a measure of success. This is because as stated by Sims (2000) change is inevitable within the culture of an organization if it is to remain relevant in the performance of its duties. One of the most important aspects of the organizational culture is that the values embodied within it are based on the knowledge that has been gained in the history of the organization from its founding as well as the existing knowledge of the organization, which forms the philosophies that hold the organization together. It is these philosophies which have to be changed over a certain period of time in order for the management of an organization to be able to achieve a complete change to its culture (Nastase, Giuclea & Bold 2012; Wines & Hamilton 2009). However, there are certain instances where there may be many different and conflicting cultures within an organization, and this usually occurs especially in the large organizations, because of the different paths that are pursued by the various management teams in achieving the goals that have been set for the organization. This creates a situation where many organizations are not confident enough to institute changes because they believe that to do so would be to encourage a disruption to the organization’s different cultures from which it would be difficult to recover. It is a fact that the organizational culture is an extremely complex phenomenon within any organization, and it affects those who are employed by it in their work lives in various ways. When one considers the organizational culture, it will be realized that it may have both positive and negative effects on the individuals involved (Davison & Martinsons 2002). It is these effects, especially the latter, which may discourage the management of any organization to become hesitant in the implementation of the necessary changes to it. This is perhaps the reason why it is necessary for the management of an organization to implement changes to its culture gradually, so that those affected, especially the employees, have a chance to get used to the changes made. According to Faulkner, Carlisle and Viney (2005) changes in the culture of an organization focuses on the people within the said organization and how they resist changes that are imposed on them and afterwards, how they come to accept these changes as being part of their work environment. In addition, leaders of organizations have to have a goal or objective of creating an environment that is highly receptive of change because without such an environment being available then it is quite possible that the acceptance of change by the members of such an organization would be most difficult. The acceptance of change by all the parties that is directly affects, is the key that determines whether the organization becomes either a success or a failure. Ronnenberg, Graham and Mahmoodi (2011) states that the strategy which is used in changing the organizational culture is what makes the difference on how well these changes are received by the people involved, and as such, it is what determines the level of success that newly implemented culture has within the organization. It is stated that one of the best ways for the successful implementation of change in an organization is for the managers to recognize the fact that it is normal human behaviour to resist change. The fact that the management realizes this should ensure that they find strategies that are useful in the implementation of the proposed change and the most important of these is to make sure that they do not just implement the changes with the expectation that their employees will automatically accept and adapt to them (Nongo & Ikyanyon 2012). Instead, the management of the organization should ensure that the employees, who are the ones who tend to be most affected by the changes, have a complete understanding of the reasons behind the changes within the organization, because this play a significant role in the evolution of the organization culture. It is a fact that if the said employees understand the various changes to their organization that are being made by its management, there might be a realization that they are working not only in their own best interests but also for those of the organization. While in most cases, it is the management of an organization or corporation which plays a crucial role in the creation and changing of its culture it is also a fact that those who are employed in such an organization also have a crucial role to play in the formulation of the said culture. Stewart and Kringas (2003) hold that organizational culture involves the social expectations and standards that determines the values and beliefs that hold the people working for or with an organization together. Furthermore, this culture is determined by those signs and symbols, which make an organization recognized by those who deal with it as well as its customers, and it is this which determines the way the people who work within this organization behave. In this way, the employees of an organization can be considered the embodiment of the organization’s culture and they can therefore not be left out whenever there are changes being made to the culture (Goldring, 2010; Shieh & Wang 2010). The power of the employees is such that any changes have to be approved, or at the very least accepted, by them in order for them to work. For any changes to be made to the organizational culture, it is necessary for the management to directly involve its employees because that is the only way through which the changes that are implemented can have the chance for the most success. It is a fact that many organizations tend to make changes without first getting any feedback from their employees and other stakeholders concerning the proposed changes and this may account for the failure of the various changes instituted because of the internal rebellion that the lack of consultation causes (Ionescu 2008). It is important for the organization to ensure that all changes that are made are acceptable to all the parties involved and that the latter are fully involved in the implementation. It can be stated that in order to ensure that the operations within an organization are successful, the management has to have firm control over all the changes to the culture that are practiced within it. The management should create an environment where all changes to the culture that are not authorized by it have no place within the organization because these changes might harm the organizational culture that is already in place. As stated by Yang (2010), management has the responsibility of being the initiator of all culture changes to the organization and that, once these changes are introduced, then it has to have a not only have tight control on them, but should also ensure that these changes are well managed so that they do not go out of control. Just as the employees are an important part in the institution of changes, any changes that are put in place within an organization cannot be successful without the support of the management. The main means through which the most effective implementation of changes to the organizational culture can be made is for the management to be actively involved in the process by leading by example (Maher 2000). One the employees see the management practicing the changes that they have implemented, then they will be more receptive. While this is not often taken seriously by many organizations, the management has the responsibility of ensuring that all the changes to the culture are carefully managed through initial planning and having an accurate forecast of the results of the implementation of these changes. By ensuring that the changes of culture are done carefully and managed properly, the management will be able to lead the organization into the attainment of its goals without any need for taking too many corrective measures. It is therefore proposed that it is up to the management to ensure that it is the source of all changes and that these changes are put in place effectively for the best results of the new culture to be achieved. Ahmad, Veerapandian and Ghee (2011) states that organizational culture is one of the most noteworthy factor that determine whether an organization becomes successful and achieves the goals which have been set for it by its management. It is therefore important for the management of an organization to ensure that all the changes to the mentioned culture that it institutes is done carefully and with plenty of consideration so that there are no significant disruptions to the way that the organization is run. When the changing of the organizational culture is considered, there are certain key elements that have to be determined to ensure the success of the organization within which the culture is practiced (Reed & Vakola 2006). The first of these are the organizational cultural values that define the standards that are at the core of the organization (Westwood & Kirkbride 1998). The second constituent to be considered are the employees within the organization because it is they who embody its cultural values and that without them, then the culture of the organization would be non-existent. The third component that has to be considered is the routine contacts that are made between the individuals working for the organization because these contacts are full of strong symbolic qualities to make these individuals feel like an integral part of the organization. The last to be considered is the informal communication system within the organization which not only determines how well the individuals within it work but also how they get to define the organizational culture through the attainment of its goals (Reissner 2011). When all of these have been considered, it should also be noted that while for the most part the cultures of many organizations remain the same, there are instances where a time when the organizational culture of a particular organization can become subject to change and this should be carefully handled by the management. As stated by Muchlinski (2011) in the current world of business, the need for constant change has become a necessity for the various organizations that compete within it to survive, and this change can also be related to organizational culture. The need for the application of constant change to the organizational culture has created a situation where the management of this change has become an essential element of the procedure of running organizations (Maas 1999). It can further be stated that while the institution of change to the culture of an organization has become important, it cannot be successfully be implemented within the said organization without the involvement of the human resource department. The human resource department of any organization has a massive influence on the employees of the organization and the management has to seek its support to ensure that the implementation of changes to its culture is successful (Edgley-Pyshorn & Huisman 2011). From the very beginning of planning and implementation of cultural changes within an organization, the human resource department has to be intimately involved to ensure that it has an understanding of what these changes entail and the benefits that are to be gained from them. 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