The implications of culture on the strategy implementation process u6 p62

Who implements strategy? Employees (and managers). Strategy implementation requires that your resources and capabilities are directed effectively and efficiently to achieve your goals. Culture influences the behaviour of your employees and managers, as well as their decision making and actions. It therefore strongly affects your ability to see through your strategy.

CULTURE MUST SUPPORT STRATEGY

You will often see firms (attempt to) adjust their culture alongside a change in strategic direction, to try and achieve this.

There is no one best culture that fits all organisations and their strategies.

To be appropriate, your culture must support purpose and strategy.

So a challenge exists, then, to align strategy and culture. How?

Most problems arise when there already exists a strong or deeply embedded established culture which will have a natural ability to resist change. Example, NTFE p63. Change in strategy is not likely to be successful if it simply contradicts the culture of the organisation, leading to employee change resistance. If culture is not compatible it can actually become a serious weakness. Culture's direct impact on the success or otherwise of your strategy may lead you to ask whether culture can be managed as an organisational capability.

Dynamic culture (u6 p66).

Some experts see culture as a controllable organisational variable, others sThe performance of your organisation depends on which its cultural values and norms can be aligned with your strategy, but can culture be manipulated (or manipulated enough) to allow this. Those who see culture as wholly changeable are regarded as "trait theorists" (Deal & Kennedy, Ouchi). Critics of trait theorists accuse them of downplaying the inherent differences that can exist across societies, industries, organisations. They include Barney and Kotter & Heskett. They argue that cultural traits have an adaptability, and that this affects how much culture can be changed to influence performance. Example: Montblanc pen maker, p67. The argument is that because cultural traits have differing adaptability, culture may be manipulated even though it may not be completely controlled.

"Paradigm Shift" :)

To change an organisation's "paradigm" - the deeper level of basic assumptions and beliefs that are commonly shared amongst its members (which operate unconsciously and define in...a fashion an organisation's view of itself and its environment) - to change this effectively, it is crucial for managers and "change consultants" to understand the relationships between those processes that coordinate activities or enable organisational members to interact.

Before attempting to change culture, management must
Evaluate what a particular change in strategy means to the culture
Assess if a change in culture is needed at all
Decide if an attempt to change the culture is worth the likely costs to the whole strategy process

The direction of cultural change and its impact cannot be handled systematically or rationally. It is a dynamic process.

National vs Organisational culture