Definition of
Organizational Culture

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1) Definition of Organizational Culture

Our definition of organizational culture keeps in mind the practical day-to-day needs of a leader: Execution, organizational performance, and the bottom line.

Let me give you an example:

Imagine you spend one full week inside one organization – from Monday to Friday – and on Friday at 5:00 PM you conclude that for the most part, the prevalent decision-making style in this organization is team-based decision-making: The decision-making process is facilitated by the person responsible in each team – the boss, or the manager, or the CEO, etc. – where all the team members have an equal opportunity to participate in the decision-making process.

Then the following week, you spend it inside another organization – again, from Monday to Friday – and at the end of that week, on Friday afternoon, you conclude that for the most part, the prevalent decision-making style of this second organization is boss-driven decision-making: The bosses of their respective teams are the only people who participate in the decision-making process.

In these two organizations – considering specifically the decision-making process – we have two different ways of behaving, two different ways of doing things, two different patterns of behavior.

Going back to our definition of organizational culture: Organizational culture is the way we do things around here – in other words, organizational culture equals patters of behavior.

That’s it.

Note: Several authors use this definition of organizational culture, for example:

It is true that the building decorations, the clothing of your employees, and even the paintings hanging on the walls, form part of the organizational culture, but who cares about these artifacts?

We are talking about culture as a leadership tool, we are talking about building a sustainable competitive advantage, and we are talking about the bottom line.

In our definition of organizational culture, the office kitchen’s decoration style, the way people dress inside the office, or even the jokes around the water cooler may or may not have an impact on organizational performance, but on the contrary, decision-making is a vital human process in any organization.

The same holds true for the rest of organizational human processes with the most impact on performance: hiring, rewards and recognition, using conflict as a creative force, etc., in one word: The ensemble of management and leadership behaviors inside the organization – the ensemble of these leadership and management practices make up the culture of your organization. That’s what’s important – not what type of china your employees use during lunchtime.

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2) Organizational Culture Functions

In our definition of organizational culture it is vital to know what the culture is for.

According to John P. Kotter and James L. Heskett in “Corporate Culture and Performance” (The Free Press, New York, NY: 1992), organizational culture does three things:

It aligns, motivates, and controls large groups of people – three tasks that are extremely difficult to accomplish by any means.

The culture of your organization helps you align, motivate, and control large groups of people.

Hence, culture is a powerful leadership tool indeed.

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3) How to Use Culture as a Leadership Tool

In our definition of organizational culture it is key to know how to use it.

Why is it necessary that a leader know what the culture is and what it is for?

Think about it – what do you think is the answer?

Why would an organizational leader need to care about culture?

Before answering, here is another question to give you a clue:

What do you think is the most important ingredient in shaping the culture of an organization? Have you ever thought about this?

The most important ingredient in shaping the culture of an organization is the behavior of its leaders.

If you are the CEO and you know that your behavior is the most important ingredient in shaping your organizational culture, you will be much more careful about how you behave and about what you say.

If you ask your organization for candor, if you ask your entire workforce to be frank in their day-to-day performance conversations, if you ask them for a truly open communication environment, but you don’t exhibit such behavior in your own daily manners and deeds, it is very unlikely that you will be able to create a culture of candor in your organization.

Fundamental in our definition of organizational culture:

What culture do you truly want to create? Take a careful look at what we call the Heart and the Muscle of the organization in our Leadership Skills section (how we define leadership).

The most powerful and easiest way to shape your organizational culture is through the Heart and Muscle of your organization – these (together with the Head of the organization) are the most influential management and leadership practices (human processes with the most impact on performance) inside your organization.

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To keep on learning about leadership skills, go back to the previous page (or click here ), and continue reading in a sequential order.

If you would like your executives to find out about our definition of organizational culture through our speaking or consulting services, please click on this link.