Organizational culture is defined by the set of shared values and practices of an organization. Instead of a mandated doctrine, organizational culture is better described as an outcome of collective behavior, which cannot be dictated by leaders outright. However, leaders are capable of shaping the way employees think and behave and this paper will discuss how leaders can influence organizational culture in the Asian context.
Organizational culture plays a great part in an employee’s overall experience at the company and can be developed as a competitive edge for the company. It is of great importance to businesses should they seek to develop an advantage over others, especially in view of the slowing economic growth across Asia . Schein’s …show more content…
The notion of collectivism and hierarchy is strongly embedded in Japanese companies and these affects their leadership and hence organizational culture. Japanese employees are often pressurized into working overtime for shockingly long hours and attend after-work gatherings; according to official data, about 200 people die every year due to punishing work schedules . In 2010, a former manager of a restaurant chain outlet hanged himself after having worked almost 200 hours of overtime in a single month, seven months prior to his death; the judge blamed ‘power harassment’ for leaving the victim mentally ill , which ultimately led to the unfortunate event. In this example it is clear that the leaders in the victim’s company had made it an underlying assumption that punishing over-time work is justifiable and a norm within the organization. Hence, we can see the important role that leaders play in influencing corporate culture.
The final argument is that leaders can influence organizational culture through constructing or alternating tangibles, which are the artifacts of their companies. Artifacts are the easiest to recognize amongst the three components of organizational culture and they come in the form of uniforms, company buildings or even office …show more content…
This can be seen from the example of Toyota Motor Corporation, where leaders of the company acknowledge the need to establish mutual trust between the employees and management, and takes measures to minimize social discrimination between the aforementioned groups; everyone has the same uniform, and there are no parking areas, dining rooms or offices set aside exclusively for executives . Through controlling artifacts, leaders of Toyota Motor has successfully built an organizational culture that is based on various principles including mutual trust, respect for people and teamwork. Hence, it can be concluded that through manipulating artifacts, leaders can influence organizational culture.
In conclusion, leaders can influence organizational culture through shaping the three levels of Schein’s model of organizational culture- artifacts, values and assumptions. However, the extent of a leader’s influence is not limited to these, more areas can be covered in future research. As business students and aspiring business leaders, gaining knowledge on influencing organizational culture is essential in preparing ourselves for the
Organizational culture plays a great part in an employee’s overall experience at the company and can be developed as a competitive edge for the company. It is of great importance to businesses should they seek to develop an advantage over others, especially in view of the slowing economic growth across Asia . Schein’s …show more content…
The notion of collectivism and hierarchy is strongly embedded in Japanese companies and these affects their leadership and hence organizational culture. Japanese employees are often pressurized into working overtime for shockingly long hours and attend after-work gatherings; according to official data, about 200 people die every year due to punishing work schedules . In 2010, a former manager of a restaurant chain outlet hanged himself after having worked almost 200 hours of overtime in a single month, seven months prior to his death; the judge blamed ‘power harassment’ for leaving the victim mentally ill , which ultimately led to the unfortunate event. In this example it is clear that the leaders in the victim’s company had made it an underlying assumption that punishing over-time work is justifiable and a norm within the organization. Hence, we can see the important role that leaders play in influencing corporate culture.
The final argument is that leaders can influence organizational culture through constructing or alternating tangibles, which are the artifacts of their companies. Artifacts are the easiest to recognize amongst the three components of organizational culture and they come in the form of uniforms, company buildings or even office …show more content…
This can be seen from the example of Toyota Motor Corporation, where leaders of the company acknowledge the need to establish mutual trust between the employees and management, and takes measures to minimize social discrimination between the aforementioned groups; everyone has the same uniform, and there are no parking areas, dining rooms or offices set aside exclusively for executives . Through controlling artifacts, leaders of Toyota Motor has successfully built an organizational culture that is based on various principles including mutual trust, respect for people and teamwork. Hence, it can be concluded that through manipulating artifacts, leaders can influence organizational culture.
In conclusion, leaders can influence organizational culture through shaping the three levels of Schein’s model of organizational culture- artifacts, values and assumptions. However, the extent of a leader’s influence is not limited to these, more areas can be covered in future research. As business students and aspiring business leaders, gaining knowledge on influencing organizational culture is essential in preparing ourselves for the