1.
MANAGING CORPORATE
CULTURE FOR
COMPETITIVE
ADVANTAGE
APPLICATIONS AND
IMPLICATIONS
By Bolaji Okusaga

2.
OUTLINE OF PRESENTATION
• Objective of presentation
• Corporate Culture defined
• Relevance of corporate culture in
management
• Managing corporate culture in a
change process
• Implications for managers
• Model of discourse and conclusion

3.
OBJECTIVES OF
PRESENTATION
• To understand what corporate culture is
• To determine and understand the
significance of corporate culture for
organisational performance and the
achievement of corporate objectives
• To understand how corporate culture can be
best managed to effectively support strategic
business objectives

4.
WHAT IS CORPORATE CULTURE
• Ideal corporate culture is a pattern of basic
assumptions that has worked well enough to
be considered valuable, and therefore taught
to new members as the correct way to
perceive, think and act in relation to official
matters and corporate issues
• Corporate culture is the personality and
identity of the organisation
• It is the sum total of the shared values and
ethos which govern decision making and
actions within an organisation

5.
JUSTIFICATION…
• Corporate entities tend to have distinct or specific
shared characteristics or organizational behaviour
which makes for differentiation and identity.
• Given the fact that organisations in the same
sector are likely to have similar process, however
the salient factor which makes for attitudinal
differentiation is corporate culture
• This can be observed in the values, norms,
traditions and service orientation of organisations

6.
ELEMENTS / CHARACTERISTICS OF
CORPORATE CULTURE
• BELIEFS: These are the consistent or
integrated values and expectations that
provide a framework for shaping what
people hold to be true or false, relevant
or irrelevant, good or bad
• BEHAVIOUR : These are observable
actions that constitute the way people
operate on day to day basis

7.
ELEMENTS…
• ASSUMPTIONS: These refer to the
unconscious rationale for continuing to apply
certain beliefs or specific behaviours
• PHILOSPHY: This refers to policies set forth by
organisations to guide behaviour, whether
expressly stated (mission statement) or not
• RULES: These refers to strict guidelines on how
to get along in an organisation
• ORGANISATIONAL CLIMATE: This represents
the general environment and socio-
psychological atmosphere within which
organisational members interact

8.
MANIFESTATION…
• DOMINANT CULTURE: This is a set of core
values shared by a majority of organisational
members. This could include concerns for
quality, customer service, loyalty etc.
• SUB-CULTURE: This is a set of values shared
by a small minority. Sub- cultures can weaken
and undermine organisational goals if they
conflict with the dominant culture

9.
INDICES OF THE STRENGHT OF
CORPORATE CULTURE
• The indices of the strength of corporate
culture are:
– SHAREDNESS: The degree to which organizational
members have the same core values
– INTENSITY: The degree of the commitment of
members to the core values
• Two major factors that determine the
strengths of corporate culture are:
– The orientation of members to group goals
– Reward structure prevailing in the system

10.
RELEVANCE OF CORPORATE
CULTURE IN MANAGEMENT
• Peters et. al.(1984), in their study of excellent companies
in the U.S.A, discovered that outstanding performers,
over a long time, exhibit a strong corporate culture
• These business leaders adopt value disciplines which
will be suited to their work process and corporate culture.
• Successful business leaders are increasingly recognising
that one of their competitive weapons is their corporate
culture
• They recognise that corporate culture is a critical factor
in long term economic success. For these business
leaders, the name of the game is competitive
differentiation via the vehicle of corporate culture

11.
CORPORATE CULTURE AND
BUSINESS SUCCESS
• A positive corporate culture binds, directs and
reinforces positive action
• The stronger the corporate culture and the more
directed and focused it is towards the
organisations strategic and market
requirements, the less would be the need for
policy manuals, charts or documented
procedures and values
• This because members of the group are more
likely to align their actions to the share values
and goals of the organisation

12.
CORPORATE CULTURE AND
BUSINESS FAILURES
• Poor performing companies do not have
strong culture, such companies are
usually dysfunctional
• An organisation’s culture will invariably
determine the nature and direction of
management practices
• A weak culture is not likely to engender
the desired sense of belonging which
causes an immersion into the corporate
goal

13.
INFLUENCE OF CORPORATE CULTURE
ON MANAGEMENT PRACTICES
• The relationship between corporate
culture and management practices are
evident in:
– Motivation
– Decision-making
– Performance and reward management
– Communication
– Leadership
– Teamwork

14.
MANAGING CORPORATE
CULTURE IN A CHANGE
•
PROCESS
Today’s business environment is described as turbulent,
unpredictable and rapidly changing. This type of
business environment has established a compelling
need for cultural change
• The challenge which corporate culture poses for
organisations is to manage it effectively, create change
or adapt to change and do so quickly or lose ground
• Studies have shown that many business organisations
have failed in their bid to introduce strategic changes
dictated by economic realities. The causes of such
failure in effectively managing corporate culture for long
term business goals

15.
EFFECTS OF CORPORATE
CULTURE MISMANAGEMENT
• Inadequate understanding of organisation's
underlying culture
• Basic differences in the values which the
existing corporate culture stresses and the
values required to drive the new strategic
change
• Insufficient commitment of time and
resources to cultural change effort
perceived to be desirable

16.
CORPORATE CULTURE AND STRATEGIC
CHANGE IMPERATIVES
• Given that strong corporate culture can
affect the ability of a business organisation
to adopt strategic changes, the following
options for managing a strong culture in a
change management process are:
– Ignore the culture
– Manage round it
– Attempt to change dysfunctional elements of
culture to fit strategy
– Change the strategy

17.
WEIGHING THE CORPORATE CULTURE
OPTIONS IN CHANGE
MANAGEMENT1& 2
OPTION 1 – “IGNORE THE CULTURE”
- The inextricable link we have established between
corporate culture and organisational performance
makes this an unenviable and unattractive option
OPTION 2 – “MANAGE ROUND IT”
- Organisations make no attempt to change culture but
selects only those strategic changes which have the least
possibility of being resisted by the existing culture
- This option might force organisations to compromise what
is strategically desirable for what is convenient
This might work where
-Dysfunctional aspect of culture is weak
-There is a considerable area of congruence
between current culture and strategic needs

18.
WEIGHING THE CORPORATE CULTURE
OPTIONS IN CHANGE MANAGEMENT 3
• OPTION 3 – “CHANGE
DYSFUNCTIONAL
ELEMENTS OF
CULTURE”
-This is the option which is strategically
desirable and attractive because this
ensures that culture effectively
supports corporate strategy

19.
DEMANDS OF EMPLOYING THE
THIRD OPTION
• Employing this option involves the following steps:
- Conduct environmental analysis
- Conduct internal analysis
- Decide on strategic focus
- Understand character of current culture and
consolidate its strength
- Determine aspects of culture that would be
dysfunctional to achievement of strategic
objectives
- Initiate and implement a culture change
programme

20.
WEIGHING THE CORPORATE CULTURE
OPTIONS IN CHANGE MANAGEMENT 4
• OPTION 4 – “CHANGE THE
STRATEGY”
• Similar to option 2, except that the change
to be effected in strategy is fundamental
• Again, desirable strategic choice might be
compromised

21.
IMPLICATIONS FOR MANAGERS
• Understand your culture and implications
for business strategy
• Merge your organisation’s value discipline
with the corporate culture
• Articulate desirable cultural values
• Persistently communicate your ideal
cultural values
• Continuously improve cultural values
through socialisation

22.
MODEL OF DISCOURSE
CORPORATE CULTURE
CHANGE MANAGEMENT PROCESS ORGANISATIONAL GOALS

23.
THANK YOU