Which of the following statements is true regarding effective organizational cultures?

As we should expect, the ideal culture will vary depending on the job role and function of the person we're asking. In fact, when we look at HR vs. Sales vs. Operations, for example, the ideal culture will be drastically different.

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• VIDEO OVERVIEW OF ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
• how to improve company culture
• words to describe company culture
• How A New Employee Can Assess An Organization's Culture
• company culture interview questions
• What do you understand by organisational culture?
• Which of the following statements is true regarding the functions of culture in an organization?
• Which of the following is not a component of an organization's culture?
• Which statement is not true of national and Organisational culture?

VIDEO OVERVIEW OF ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE

how to improve company culture

Culture change starts by measuring the corporate culture that your employees most desire (you can't improve a company culture without employee feedback). Sadly, it's not uncommon for a CEO or senior leaders to want one type of culture while the vast majority of the workforce wants a drastically different culture. 

For example, imagine that senior leadership wants to create a Social Culture, where employees get together outside of work, have great friends, and socialize with one another. Now, further imagine that a majority of employees aren't there to make new friends; they want to climb the corporate ladder, build their resumes, and move up or leave.

That's a case where improving the culture isn't about fixing specific processes, rather it's about not forcing a certain type of corporate culture onto a group of employees who really don't like that type of culture.

The only way to avoid these kinds of dysfunctional corporate cultures is for leaders to assess the type of organizational culture that their employees actually want and then build the culture around the majority opinion. You can't do this in the abstract, it's vital to assess the current company culture and the extent to which that fits what employees want.

Strong organizational cultures are those where there is shared value on issues like whether people should be competitive or collaborative, or whether the work environment should be creative & free-flowing or logical & regimented.

For example, if the workforce is going to experience far higher employee engagement with an Enterprising Corporate Culture, then, even though it will mean adjusting some leadership behavior, that's what the company should strive to be. In general, a positive culture is one that is fully synchronized between the culture that employees want and the culture that leaders and human resources are trying to build.

words to describe company culture

It's possible to identify an organizational culture just by looking at the words a company uses to describe itself. Here are a few words that are often associated with each of the four organizational cultures:

WORDS OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH A SOCIAL CULTURE
Social, friendly, collaborative, camaraderie, fun, emotional wellbeing, friendships, employee engagement, employee experience, trust, flexibility, playful

WORDS OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH A DEPENDABLE CULTURE
 Methodical, dependable, process, safety, predictable, stable, teams, stable, clear roles

WORDS OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH AN ENTERPRISING CULTURE
Enterprising, entrepreneurial, meritocracy, creativity, intelligence, best ideas, move fast, adventure, innovation

WORDS OFTEN ASSOCIATED WITH A HIERARCHICAL CULTURE
 Hierarchical, traditional, power, structure, roles, corner office, competitive, up or out, corporate

How A New Employee Can Assess An Organization's Culture

Step 1: Ask the hiring manager about a time when an employee at the company displayed a great attitude.
An easy way to assess the corporate culture of your potential future employer is to ask for a specific example of a time when one of their current employees displayed having the right attitude for this particular company. A gentle way to ask this might sound like this: "If you think of a current employee who really represents the right attitude for this culture, could you tell me about a specific time they did something that really exemplifies having the right attitude?"

A key bit of career advice for any potential new hire is to understand the shared values around what is (or is not) successful behavior at that company.

Step 2: Be wary if they can’t give you a specific example.
The best bosses recognize their employees' accomplishments, but a shocking number of leaders don't actively recognize their high performers. In fact, in a recent study on the dismal state of the performance appraisal, only 28% of people believe that their leader always recognizes their accomplishments. Meanwhile, 54% believe that their leader never, rarely or occasionally recognizes their accomplishments. While that data is scary, it actually gives you a great way to test whether your potential employer has a strong company culture. If they struggle to provide you with a concrete example of when one of their employees did something great (exemplifying the right attitude and fitting into the company culture), it stands to reason that they're probably not going to recognize your accomplishments or that the company has an especially weak culture.

Step 3: Ask about a time when an employee at the company displayed the wrong attitude.
After accomplishing the previous two steps, it's possible that you won't need step three. In other words, if you've already discovered that this potential new company is probably a poor corporate culture for you, don't try to convince yourself otherwise by asking questions until you get an answer you like. However, assuming that you'd still like some more evidence about whether you will fit into the organizational culture, ask them about employees that have (or had) the wrong attitude.

company culture interview questions

How can you tell if someone will actually be a fit for your particular workplace culture? Two interview questions are particularly effective for determining if someone is going to be a cultural fit.

Interview Question #1: Could you tell me about a time you didn't agree with your boss?

Leaders who embrace a free flowing and creative workplace culture are far more likely to be receptive to employees who disagree with them. Leaders in those cultures are also more likely to more openly consider the honest feedback and ideas of their people.

When you ask this interview question, you'll quickly hear whether the candidate is okay with a boss who is not receptive to disagreement (like would be experienced in a Hierarchical culture), and whether they require the kind of open-exchange that would occur in a Social or Enterprising culture.

The second interview question for assessing culture fit is:

Interview Question #2: Could you tell me about a time your idea or opinion was rejected?

Enterprising cultures, for example, need out of the box thinkers to thrive, but not every idea is viable. An employee who acts out every time their idea gets passed over creates an unhealthy dynamic that will damage an entrepreneurial culture. By contrast, someone who admits that they didn't follow the right procedures or build sufficient political capital in order to get their idea accepted is likely a better fit for a Dependable or Hierarchical culture.

What do you understand by organisational culture?

An organization's culture defines the proper way to behave within the organization. This culture consists of shared beliefs and values established by leaders and then communicated and reinforced through various methods, ultimately shaping employee perceptions, behaviors and understanding.

Which of the following statements is true regarding the functions of culture in an organization?

Answer and Explanation: The answer is "B", conveying a sense of identity for organization members is a function of culture in an organization.

Which of the following is not a component of an organization's culture?

The corporate culture is influenced by the internal factors within the organization's control span. It incorporates the organization's vision and values, and government regulations are not a part of this.

Which statement is not true of national and Organisational culture?

Which statement is not true of national and organisational culture? National cultures all differ, and organisational cultures will often reflect national cultures.