Organizational Culture

A.K.A. Corporate Culture

What is Corporate Culture?

In six words: "How we do things around here."

The collective behavior, vision, goals, shared values, beliefs, habits, and systems of an organization.

“Starts at the top”

What is Corporate Culture?

The culture of a large, for-profit corporation is quite different than that of a hospital which is quite different that that of a university.

You can tell the culture of an organization by looking at the arrangement of furniture, what they brag about, what members wear, etc. -- similar to what you can use to get a feeling about someone's personality.

Culture and Change

The concept of culture is particularly important when attempting to manage organization-wide change

Organizational change must include not only changing structures and processes, but changing the corporate culture as well

Elements of Corporate Culture

Stated and unstated valuesOvert and implicit expectations for

member behaviorCustoms and rituals

Elements of Corporate Culture

Stories and myths about the history of the group

Shop talk—typical language used in and about the group

Climate—the feelings evoked by the way members interact with each other, with outsiders, and with their environment, including the physical space they occupy

Case Study: Google

Well known for it’s unique corporate culture that fosters creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurial spirit

"Culture drives the way you do things. To the extent, like us, your organizational culture is unusual in important ways, you will have to build different ways of running your traditional systems." - Douglas Merrill, VP of engineering

The Googleplex