Managing Cultural Change in Brisbane-based Professional Services businesses

Managing Organisational Culture

The three words of this article’s title seem simple enough to understand and many organisations invest heavily in trying to achieve just this.  But I think in order for us to intelligently discuss this topic, we need to ask a couple of questions and bring further clarity to the topic.  The first question is, “What is organisational culture?”  The second question is, “Can organisational culture be managed?”  So allow me in a few words to answer these questions by examining different definitions and then to investigate any potential steps that could be taken to produce positive change.

Most people who deal with this topic will articulate organisational culture through summarising the individual elements that make up culture such as, collective – behaviours, values, myths, symbols, norms, rituals, beliefs and assumptions that “this is the way we do things around here.”  It would be difficult to find leaders who would disagree with these fundamental components as being the essence of what makes up organisational culture.  However, it is the expanded definition of culture that I am going to discuss shortly that starts to expose different opinions.  Furthermore, the preferred perspective chosen profoundly affects the strategic approach taken to deal with it.

Generally speaking there are two main paradigms of organisational culture that people choose between.  Some see it as a singular dominating influence that each individual operates within.  Others see it being made up of various sub-cultures within the one organisation with continual superficial adjustments being made by those in each sub-group to accomplish organisational outcomes.  Naturally, if the first paradigm is your perspective then you will take a more basic approach to managing culture through a top-down effort of aligning all staff with the articulated mission, vision, values and strategic plan.  If the second paradigm of culture is your perspective then a more intricate approach is needed considering a more individualistic implementation plan that addresses various sub-cultures with the necessary duration and intensity required for each group.

So, “What is the correct expanded definition of organizational culture?”  In the light of what has been discussed, “Think about your experiences within the organisation/s you have worked?”  I would like to suggest from research and my experience that both paradigms reflect different facets of reality.  It has become increasingly evident that the more multi-cultural our society becomes, the more diverse the values of personnel who are employed.  Additionally, the greater accumulation of various fundamentally different personal values within the workplace naturally creates sub-cultures in order to assist people to both retain what they believe and respond to the organisational challenges that arise.  Thus, the increase in globalisation is being reflected in the workplace making the management of organisational change more difficult over time.  Simultaneously, I have also noted and experienced a sense that each organisation has its own archetype culture, which can either, detract from, or contribute to the organisation’s effectiveness.  There is little doubt that organisational culture is a complex dynamic, and that it profoundly impacts upon organisational outcomes, which is why leaders are often desperate to attempt managing it.

This brings us to the second question that was posited in the first paragraph – “Can organisational culture be managed?”  Experience has shown that organisational culture is difficult to assess and resistant to change.  You might remember the words of Drucker here, “That which cannot be measured cannot be managed.”  This is why I have taken some time to this point in defining what it is, because if we cannot define what it is we cannot ever hope to manage positive cultural change.  I have personally been involved in managing successful cultural change in large organisations through organisational-wide interventions over a two year timeframe with ongoing support.  It involved an approach that strategically addressed both paradigms discussed above.  So to answer the question, “Can organisational culture be managed?”  Yes, but it needs a multidimensional approach.

Allow me now to share with you the elements necessary to practically manage organisational culture change by addressing different key elements:

1. Top-down support:  Start with the archetype culture.  The culture shift attempt must have full passionate support from the top down, including leadership modelling of the required behaviours congruent with the regular articulated values, vision, mission, strategy, reward systems, structure, policies, procedures and allocation of resources.  Any conflict between these elements and it will be picked up quickly and, whether consciously or subconsciously, resisted.
2. Organisation-wide participation:  Systematically address the sub-culture paradigm.  From the top-down, implement a coach training process by training the top leaders in how to utilise coaching techniques with their direct reports, mentoring them in the process over time.  The important aspect of this training is to make the shift into believing their direct reports are worthy of investment, are resourceful and capable of significantly contributing to the organisation.  The process also needs to cascade down through the organisation to front-line employees.  So all are coached and all in positions of leadership are trained in how to coach. The message is clear, they are valued participants.  The coaching techniques must incorporate more listening than talking.  Finally, over time, all who are in the company will receive this training, cascading the coaching culture throughout the organisation.  Moreover, the coach training must also eventually be left in the hands of the company, developing specific internal coaches, so they can keep delivering the training to new employees and monitor the needs of the organisation.  I have seen this work bringing a greater sense of belonging, interpersonal connectedness, empowerment, appreciation, trust, transformation and organisation-wide participation.
3. Recruitment and induction:  There isn’t a better time to manage culture than at the point of entry with hiring people who are congruent with the organisational values.  This does mean that quality behaviour-based interviewing needs to be implemented, so the candidate’s values are accurately assessed and they are not misaligned with the company.  The more congruent the candidate is, the more they will enjoy their work and lower employee turnover will occur.  Once employed there is a need to undertake an induction process acculturating them through information and personal coaching by their manager who by now has been transformed through the organisation-wide coach training.

In conclusion, you will note that organisational culture change comes from a multifaceted approach, incorporating a significant amount of elements.  At the same time the approach I have shared above encompasses both of the extended cultural definitions that were presented in the article.  Yes, organisational culture can be managed but it is not to be done in a haphazard manner.  There needs to be an organisation-wide approach starting with buy-in from the top level leaders who are first willing to make the changes necessary in themselves, modelling the required behaviours.  There needs to be both organisation-wide supportive systems and harmonious empowered coaching relationships that create supportive environments for each employee.  If the coaching is implemented well, it will enable employees to safely discuss any cultural conflicts they are experiencing and develop action plans for organisational alignment, greater productivity and increased satisfaction.  Finally, there needs to be a positive reward system in place to promote effective coaching, and effectiveness needs to be measured by both the feedback of those receiving the coaching and improved organisational results.

David Allan – Certified Executive Coach (MBus) www.executivesuccesscoaching.com

P.S. why not complete an online assessment on your change management effectiveness and receive a PDF revealing your results and giving you customized strategies for improvement?

Importance of Casting Vision

The need for leaders to cast a clear vision is generally accepted as one of the success factors behind effective leadership.  However the development of this skill still remains a mystery to many leaders.  How does one develop the capacity to cast a clear effective vision?  It is obvious that some knowledge is required, some of which I am about to share with you, but there is more than knowledge required to pull this off with precision.  Leaders must learn both the science (processes) and the art (dealing with people) of casting vision.

A vision needs to be value-based, where people are willing to invest their energies because they believe in the outcome – it gives greater meaning to those involved.  This is true whether it be a personal or organizational vision.  So whatever the endeavor, the visionary must have (for self) and create (for others) buy-in to a worthy outcome.  Organizationally, this cannot be achieved without trusting relationships built through significant discussion and communication.  When those implementing the vision are invited to participate in the creation of options and action-planning, ownership to the vision is increased and commitment levels produce more effective results.  Gone are the days when a leader can just use top down command and control mechanisms to thrust a vision upon others because they are paid to be there.

It is crucial to understand that if you are casting a vision then you are also unmistakably a change-agent.  You therefore need to call on all the expertise required to manage change.  Thus the leader must cast the vision for the organization often and in varying ways.  This enables others to continually capture the vision. This is one of the reasons why organisations use mottos, wall plaques, stationery, one-to-one discussions, memos, meeting agendas, and various other mediums to constantly get the singular message out to all staff.  As a change agent, the leader also needs to consider how to best manage the early adopters, the never adopters and all else in between.  Hence you have to be careful to honour the past, reveal the current status quo’s lack of effectiveness and paint a successful picture of the future.

In order for a vision to be actualized it also must be viable.  For example, organisationally, if the vision is competing with other existing companies, then strategic planning is a key component.  Hence, to enter an existing market the strategic planning process would look strongly at whether it could gain market share and survive/thrive.  Or if the vision involves diversifying from existing products and services into a complementary area, then the capabilities of the company could be examined to see if it has capacity to expand and implement the vision.  Using a tool like Porter’s five forces can be good for this.  It can also aid in investigating an innovative start-up business vision, where you can examine things like how easy it is for others to duplicate the new product or service, etc…  An investigation like this may lead to the realization that the vision is too risky and likely to fail.

Finally, it is underestimated how important it is for the leader/s to have absorbed the vision into their own psyche.  Unless the leader is passionate about the vision it will not be believed and pursued to its potential.  Thus, with a passionate leader, a viable vision that is value-based, and has a strong buy-in, the final step is to create an action plan.  You can chunk the vision down into specific goals creating projects with distinct start and completion times.  Using project management processes, the right people are delegated to the roles and responsibilities to oversee and empower teams to achieve the vision.  This involves ongoing communication, rewards and review.  It involves managing people, processes, timelines and results.  In conclusion, it is so critical for optimum results that leaders constantly aid their team/staff to relate all the goals, projects and action steps back to the bigger vision so that no one gets lost or left behind.

www.ExecutiveSuccessCoaching.com