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  • Essay / Types of Organizational Culture

    Types of Organizational CulturesOrganizational culture is the way in which organizational members interact with each other, with their work, and with the external environment in relation to other organizations. An organization's strategy can be helped or hindered by its cultures (Hofstede). In explaining the types of cultures, Hofstede begins with means-oriented and goal-oriented cultures. A means-driven culture is characterized by the way work is done in an organization. In this culture, individuals consider themselves to be avoiding risks and putting less effort into their work even if the working days are the same. Goal-driven culture implies that workers in the organization achieve particular internal goals, regardless of the level of risks associated with those goals (Hofstede). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay The other type is internally and externally motivated culture. Internal culture implies that employees perceive their tasks towards the external environment as completely given. This stems from the concept that business ethics are essential and that business knows what is good for customers and for the world. External culture primarily focuses on meeting customer needs (Hofstede). Hofstede talks about relaxed and strict cultures. The laid-back culture is an indication of loose internal structures in which there is very little control. Strict culture, on the other hand, indicates a culture in which employees are cost and time conscious. Another culture is that of the local and professional type. For local culture, workers identify with the organizational leader of their organization. For the professional type, the identity of employees is characterized by their professions and the content of the position. Hofstede talks about open and closed type culture in which, for the open type, the organization believes that everyone can fit into the organization, which the closed type does not advocate. The last cultures Hofstede talks about are those focused on employees and work. For the employee-oriented culture, workers feel that the organization cares about their well-being, whereas this is not the case for the work-oriented culture in which they feel compelled to work. (Hofstede). Some countries are more likely to have specific organizational cultures than others. The distribution of resources is different depending on the country; some countries are more resource rich than others (Cray 56). When resources are abundant, individuals tend to engage in riskier ventures than in countries with fewer resources, where individuals avoid risky engagements because they aim to protect the fewer resources they have. Therefore, in rich or resource-rich countries, their organizations are likely to have a goal-oriented culture while those with fewer resources have a means-oriented culture (Schein 81). Employee motivation is vital for the success of any organization and emphasis should be placed on motivating employees in different types of organizational cultures. To motivate employees in a means- and goal-oriented culture, organizations must allow room for risk-taking; employees should not be penalized for doing innovative things that could have benefited organizations. In case of failure, employees should be appreciated for the efforts made. For internal culture and. 21).