Impact of Organization Culture on Employees Performance

Impact of Organization Culture on Employees Performance

Abstract of Impact of Organization Culture on Employees Performance

This research work explored the impact of organizational culture on employee’s performance using Covenant University, Canaan land, Ota as a case study. Despite the various culture and norms put in place to bring about increase or improvement on employees performance, the existence of employee’s behaviour towards culture is questionable. Culture which is a necessity for any organization is embedded in the fact that human interest, needs and aspiration differs from one individual to another. It is this variation in the interest and aspiration and desire of different individual that leads to clash of interest. As a result of this, culture is put in place so that the culture of the organization can be known and adhered to and which directly impact on the performance of the employees in the organization.

Questionnaire which was the primary source of data in the study was used and the questions contained therein assisted us in answering the research questions and hypotheses stated in chapter one, while secondary data was sourced from journal articles, textbooks, internet material and unpublished B.Sc. and M.Sc. theses from the data gathered, majority of the staff agreed that they are strongly affected (put to here Sir) by the culture of the university and that it has improved their performances and others areas of their life’s. They agree that they actually benefit from the culture of the university. We thus recommend that:

1)    Management should ensure that the culture is effective and should be easy to comply with.

2)    Management should note that when implementing the culture, the staffs are put in mind and that it benefits everyone which will invariably impact on their performance.

3)    Also, appropriate disciplinary action should be taken against official who do not adhere to the culture of the university.

Chapter One of Impact of Organization Culture on Employees Performance

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF STUDY

Culture as a concept has had a long checked red history. It has been used by the layman as a word to indicate sophistication, as when we say that someone is very “cultural”. It has been used b~ anthropologist to refer to the customs and rituals that society develops over their course of history. In the last several decades it has been used by some researchers and managers to refer to climate and practices that organizations develop around their handling of people. Or to the espoused values and credo of an organization.

Michael Armstrong, (2006) Defined Organizational or Corporate culture as the set of values, norms” beliefs, attitude and assumptions that may not have been articulated but shaped the ways in which people behave and things get done. Values refer to what is believed to be important about how people and the organization behave. Norms are unwritten rules of behaviour.

The definition emphasizes that organizational culture is concerned with the abstractions such as values and norms which parades the whole or part of an organization. They may not be defined, discussed or even be noticed. Put another culture can be regarded as a code word for the subjective side of organizational life. Myerson and Martin, (1987). Nevertheless, culture can have a significant influence on people behaviour. Below are some definitions of Culture:

The culture of an organization refers to the unique configuration of norms, values, beliefs and ways of behaving that characterize the manner in which group and individual combine to get things done. Eldridge and Crombie, (1974).

Culture is a system of informal rules that spell out how people are to behave most of the time. Deal and Kennedy, (1982).

Culture is the commonly held beliefs, attitudes and values that exist in an organization. Put more simply, culture is the way we do things around here Furnham and Gunter. (1993)

Considering the above definitions of culture Farnham and Gunter list, amongst others, the following areas of agreement on the concept: It is difficult to define (often a pointless exercise).

It is multi- dimensional, with many different components at different levels. It is not particularly dynamic and ever changing (been relatively stable over short period of time).

It takes time to establish and therefore time to change a corporate culture. Farnham and Gunter refer to a number of problems with the concept including: How to categorize culture (what terminology to used); When and why corporate culture should be changed and how this takes place what is the healthiest, most optimal or desirable culture

ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE AND CULTURE.

The term organizational climate is sometimes confused with organizational culture and there has been much debate on what distinguishes the concept of climate from that of culture. In his analysis of this issue, Denison (1996). Believes that culture refers to a deep structure of organizations, which is rooted in value, ‘beliefs, and assumptions held by organizational members. In contrast, climate refers to that aspect of the environment that is consciously perceived by organizational members.

Rousseau, (1988). Stated that climate is a perception and a descriptive. Perceptions are sensations or realizations experienced by an individual. Descriptions are what a person reports of these sensations.

The debate about the meaning of these terms can become academic. Is easiest to regard organizational climate as how people perceived (see and feel about), the culture existing in their organization. As defined by French et al (1985), it is ‘the relative persistent set of perceptions held by the organizational members concerning the characteristic and quality of organizational culture they distinguish between the actual situations (i e culture) and the perception of it (climate).

In another context, organizational culture is “the set of shared, taken for granted implicit assumptions that a group holds and that determines how it perceives, thinks about and reacts to its various environments. Kreitner and Kinicki (2004). This definition highlights three important characteristics of organizational culture. First, organizational culture is passed on to new employees through the process of socialization. Secondly, organizational culture influences our behaviour at work. Finally, organizational culture operates at different levels.

Organizational culture that lack positive values may result in employees who are unproductive and indifferent and have poor attitudes which will be reflected externally to customers. The key to success in organizations is satisfying customers. An efficient organizational structure and matching culture should help an organization do just that.

Finally, organizational culture is an approach to plan change and it’s a long-term more encompassing change approach meant to move the entire organization to a higher level of functioning, while greatly improving the performance and satisfaction of organizational members.