Corporate culture or “the way we do things here” refers to the beliefs and behaviours that determine how a company’s employees and management interact and handle outside business transactions.
Culture is a key component in business and has an impact on the strategic direction of business. Culture influences management, decisions and all business functions from accounting to production.
Business culture is related to behaviour, ethics, etiquette and more. A business culture will encompass an organisation’s values, visions, working style, beliefs and habits. Business culture is its own unique dimension that includes getting off on the right foot, meetings, negotiation, formalities, social media use, internships and work placements and other elements which are highlighted on this website.
Every business has a culture. Whether or not this is recognised is another matter! Unless senior management makes a determined effort to create and promote the culture they want and regularly measures its effectiveness, the culture that evolves will be determined by an amalgam of the vision, values and behaviours of those that work in the business. This often results in the business claiming it has a particular culture when the reality is that it has a number of conflicting sub-cultures.
Often, corporate culture is implied, not expressly defined, and develops organically over time from the cumulative traits of the people the company hires. A company’s culture will be reflected in its dress code, business hours, office setup, employee benefits, turnover, hiring decisions, treatment of clients, client satisfaction and every other aspect of operations.
The lack of an appropriate cultural environment is responsible for the failure of more objective shortfalls, change and high performance working initiatives than all the other causes taken together. It is the crucial first phase for the development of any effective strategic plan.
