Influence of Organizational Culture on the Productivity of Employees

Organizational culture refers to shared values, beliefs, and practices that determine and shape how a company or business runs. It can be thought of as a company’s personality. It influences how employees behave and how the business is run. Knowledge of organizational culture is essential for business administrators since it dramatically affects employee productivity. Let us discuss what organizational culture is, the types of cultures, the creation and maintenance of culture, and its effects on productivity.

What is Organizational Culture?

Organizational culture refers to how a company is run, from how employees relate to one another, to how business decisions are made. Part of the role of business administrators is managing and influencing this culture. A positive organizational culture may mean high satisfaction, better teamwork, and more productivity; however, low morale and high turnover problems might be noted on the opposing side.

The Four Main Types of Organizational Culture

There are four major organizational cultures, all with strengths and challenges. Business administrators can understand these to create a culture that best helps their company achieve its goals.

Clan Culture 

This type of culture is more like one big family. It enhances the ability to work as a team, collaborate, and engage your employees more in the project. In clan culture, everybody’s voice is heard and the environment is friendly and supportive. Such a culture can have high satisfaction among employees but may need to be more decisive on quick, tough decisions.

Adhocracy Culture

Adhocracy cultures focus on innovation and creativity. Organizations with this kind of culture encourage and support employee risk-taking and ” out-of-the-box” thinking. It’s a highly vibrant and fast-moving environment replete with new ideas. However, it can get chaotic if not appropriately managed since little attention is given to structure and rule-making.

Market Culture 

The market culture is results-oriented and competitive. There are goals, targets, and marketplace success by which companies with such a culture drive themselves. The employees should be high performers with a solid winning emphasis. While this might produce high productivity, it can be very stressful if the pressure becomes too hard to bear.

Hierarchy Culture

Hierarchy culture is based on structure, procedures, and control. Organizations with this culture have defined roles and responsibilities and highly respect working by the rules. It is usually highly stable and organized, although it tends to be inflexible and non-innovative.

Culture Creation & Maintenance

Business administrators have one primary responsibility: to ensure that organizations are set up with and continue in a positive organizational culture. Organizational culture comes from an organization’s leadership, policies, and practices. It starts with the values and visions set by leaders but is furthered and confirmed by how employees are treated, decisions are made, and success is measured.

An administrator of a business should ensure that operational practices mirror such values. This could include training and development opportunities, recognition and reward opportunities, and open communication. It is similarly critical to periodically assess and adjust the culture to keep it robust and prosperous.

The Culture-Productivity Link

In this regard, productivity is strongly linked to the organizational culture. A positive culture within the parameters set by the company’s goals increases motivation in work towards employees. When they feel valued, supported, and primarily connected to the mission, they will contribute to the company’s success. On the other hand, a hostile or toxic culture lets off an unfavorable influence. 

When employees feel less valued, pressured, or unrelated to organizational goals, productivity decreases. Low morale and high turnover are symptoms of a culture that needs hard work. Business administrators are called upon to shape and sustain the culture that epitomizes productivity. An insight into the kind of cultures and how they act towards employees in the workplace, negatively or positively, helps create an environment for the staff to thrive. 
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