Executives are often confounded by culture, because much of it is anchored in unspoken behaviours, mindsets, and social patterns.
But when properly managed, culture can help them achieve change and build organisations that will thrive in even the most trying times.
There are as many as eight distinct culture styles:
Caring – focused on relationships and mutual trust.
Purpose – exemplified by idealism and altruism.
Learning – characterised by exploration, expansiveness, and creativity.
Enjoyment – expressed through fun and excitement.
Results – characterised by achievement and winning.
Authority – defined by strength, decisiveness, and boldness.
Safety – defined by planning, caution, and preparedness.
And Order – focused on respect, structure, and shared norms.
These styles fit into an “integrated culture framework” according to the degree to which they reflect independence or interdependence (people interactions) and flexibility or stability (response to change).
They can be used to diagnose a culture and to model how likely an individual leader is to align with and shape it.
Here are five insights regarding culture’s effect on companies’ success:
(1) When aligned with strategy and leadership, a strong culture drives positive organisational outcomes.
(2) Selecting or developing leaders for the future requires a forward-looking strategy and culture.
(3) In a merger, designing a new culture based on complementary strengths can speed up integration and create more value over time.
(4) In a dynamic, uncertain environment, in which organisations must be more agile, learning gains importance.
(5) A strong culture can be a significant liability when it is misaligned with strategy.
Culture and strategy are entwined, they are opposite sides of the same coin, both in balance, one supporting the other.
