 Define the term organizational culture

Organizational culture is generally understood as all of a company's beliefs, values and

attitudes, and how these influence the behaviour of its employees.

 Explain why organizational culture is important in organizations

Organizational culture generates Commitment

Organization culture provides the members with a sense of organizational identity and
generates a commitment. Though ideas that become part of culture can come from
anywhere within the organization, an organization's culture generally beings with the
leader who implements particular ideas and values as a vision, philosophy or business
strategy. When these ideas and values lead to success, they become institutionalized
and give shape to an organizational culture.

Organizational Culture improves performance

HRmarketer (2005) states that, studies have shown that organizational culture has a
direct impact on other vital performance outcomes of any organization, including
customer satisfaction and business growth and the strong effects of organizational
culture are consistent across a wide spectrum of businesses and industries, from
education institutions, churches, automotive sales and service and fast-food retailing to
home construction and computer manufacturing. Organizational culture and its
embedding contribute to better corporate performance.

Bringing employees together

The organization culture brings all the employees on a common platform. The
employees must be treated equally and no one should feel neglected or left out at the
workplace. It is essential for the employees to adjust well in the organization culture for
them to deliver their level best. The work culture unites the employees who are
otherwise from different back grounds, families and have varied attitudes and
mentalities. The culture gives the employees a sense of unity at the workplace.
Organizational Culture ensures good behavior of employees

Organizational culture gives rise to a positive attitude and behavior which are again an
addition to culture. Culture leads to good behavior and good behavior makes good
culture which is useful for better behavior. Both employees and the organization enjoy
culture. Organizational culture creates the boundary beyond which no employees are
allowed to go. The attitude and behavior of the employees are directed towards the
achievement of goals through a sound culture. Disciplined employees make other
employees disciplined and well-behaved.

Increased employee engagement

A work environment that possesses organizational culture is driven by purpose and

clear expectations. This motivates and inspires employees to be more engaged in their
work duties and interactions with others. It also leads to high levels of workforce
engagement, which drives productivity. Having a strong connection to an organization
and its people creates an atmosphere of positivity that is hard to ignore.

Decreased turnover

People who feel valued and respected at a company are less likely to leave it. That's
why it's essential for brands to foster a winning organizational culture that supports
their core values and mission statement. Happy employees mean less turnover, which
saves companies time and money in the hiring process. Companies that achieve a
strong culture must take steps to maintain and improve it.

Elevated productivity

When employees have the resources and tools they need to succeed, it helps increase
productivity and performance levels overall. Organizational culture impacts the structure
of a workplace in ways that bring people of the same skill set together. Those who
share similar backgrounds and skills may work more quickly together when tackling
company projects.
Strong brand identity

A company's organizational culture represents its public image and reputation. People
make assumptions about businesses based on their interactions within and outside of
the company. If it lacks organizational culture or has a weak image, customers may
hesitate to do business with anyone who is associated with the brand. Businesses with
a strong brand identity tend to attract more business and job candidates with similar
values who support their mission.

Transformational power

Not all businesses have the power to transform ordinary employees into total brand
advocates, but those with a strong organizational culture do. Companies that recognize
their employees' efforts and celebrate team successes are more likely to notice a
change in employees as they experience a sense of accomplishment.

Top performers

Companies that promote community in the workplace are more likely to retain their
best employees. People who are great at their jobs and know the value of their skills
commonly leave negative work environments where they feel undermined and
unappreciated. Organizational culture builds a high-performance culture that
strengthens the work of people within the company, resulting in a positive employee
experience overall.

Effective onboarding

More and more, businesses with an organizational culture are relying on effective
onboarding practices to train new hires. Onboarding practices that include orientation,
training and performance management programs help new employees access the right
resources and better transition into their roles. This promotes employee longevity and
loyalty and reduces the amount of frustration some employees experience when they
don't have the information needed to do their job well. Onboarding is a great way for
companies to ensure new hires understand the core values of their business.

Healthy team environment

Organizational culture helps improve workflows and guides the decision-making

process. It also helps teams overcome barriers of ambiguity. Team members who are
informed and knowledgeable about certain processes are often more motivated to finish
projects. Having a clear culture that unifies employees and promotes organized work
structures helps people work together with purpose.

The standardizing function of organizational culture

Through establishing common value system, organizational culture forms unified

thought, make faith form a kind of tendency on the staff's psychological deep layer, and
then a kind of response mechanism reconstructed in the transformation.

The agglomerating function of organizational culture

Organizational culture is the group consciousness created by the staff together. It is a

kind of binder, unites the people of all respects and all levels around organizational
culture, and makes cohesiveness and centripetal force to organization. Organizational
culture connects employee's personal thoughts and feelings, and destiny with the safety
of organization closely. At the same time, employee has a sense of ownership and
acceptance to the organization.
  Explain the meaning of power and different forms of power in
organizations

Organizational power is the ability that you have to influence the behavior of
another stakeholder in your organization.

According to Kingsley Davis, “Power is the determination of the behavior of others

following one’s own end.”

According to Sheriff, “Power denotes the relative Weights of behavior by a member in a

group structure.”

According to Weber, “Power is the probability that one actor (individual or group) within
a social relationship is in a position to carry out his own will despite resistance,
regardless of the basis on which this probability rests.

Forms of Powers in Organizations

Coercive Power

A person able to punish others for not following orders has coercive power. Coercive
power is most effective when it is used sparingly and strategically in certain instances,
such as the threat of termination to an employee sexually harassing a coworker. When
coercive power is utilized on a regular basis, however, fear and dysfunction can result.
Because coercive power relies on the threat of something negative and highlights an
employee's subordinate position in the organization, consistently coerced employees
often grow to resent their managers at the cost of job satisfaction and motivation.
Employees in fear of punishment may refuse to work on duties not stated in their
contract, often resist collaboration or offering their opinion, and tend to avoid their
manager.

Connection Power
Connection power is gained by knowing and being listened to by influential people or
the perception of such by others. If others believe a person is friendly with those in
power, they may be more willing to do what that person asks or try harder to please
that person. Increasing connections and mastering political networking lead to a greater
potential for connection power. A person with connection power, though, is not
necessarily respected by others within the organization but rather is a conduit used to
gain the respect of those in legitimate positions of authority within the organization.

Reward Power

Reward power comes from the ability to give rewards to other employees. Rewards are
not always monetary, such as improved work hours and words of praise. When rewards
are given strategically, they can be strong motivators. When rewards are given too
often or haphazardly, however, they can have a negative impact such that employees
may start to focus on achieving rewards more so than performing the work at hand.

Legitimate Power

Legitimate power comes when employees believe a person can give orders based on his
position within the organization, such as when a manager orders staff members to
complete a task and they comply because the orders came from their superior. Power
based on position is not always effective as it's based on a title rather than respect.
Ultimately, a lack of collaboration can result.

Referent Power

People who are liked, respected and whom other employees desire to emulate have
referent power. Supervisors who lead by example, treat employees with respect, seek
their collaboration and gain the trust of their employees possess referent power. This
power often takes time to develop and may not be an effective means of power in
organizations with numerous short-term employees or a high turn-over rate.
Informational Power

People with access to valued information possess informational power. In after school
programs, for example, instructors working with youth understand the students and
know their families more so than the director that does not work directly with the youth
and families on a daily basis. The director, in this case, needs information about the
students and their families from the line staff. These staff members possess
informational power. This power can be quickly fleeting because, once the needed
information is shared, the person's power is gone.

Expert Power

The greater a person's knowledge or specialized skill set, the greater her potential for
expert power. People gain power based on the perception of their greater knowledge of
the task at hand than other employees. In several cases, employees with expert power
are outranked by others. Technology experts are typically in this situation. For example,
if the CEO's computer is not running properly, the CEO will likely listen to what the
computer repair person recommends should be done to fix the problem. As information
is shared and more employees gain the same knowledge or skills, expert power tends
to diminish over time.

 Explain the different sources of power in the work environment

Sources of Power

Legitimate or Positional Power

Legitimate power is also known as positional power. It's derived from the position a
person holds in an organization’s hierarchy. Job descriptions, for example, require junior
workers to report to managers and give managers the power to assign duties to their
juniors.
For positional power to be exercised effectively, the person wielding it must be deemed
to have earned it legitimately. An example of legitimate power is that held by a
company's CEO.

Expert Power Derived from Possessing Knowledge

Knowledge is power. Expert power is derived from possessing knowledge or expertise in

a particular area. Such people are highly valued by organizations for their problem
solving skills. People who have expert power perform critical tasks and are therefore
deemed indispensable.

The opinions, ideas and decisions of people with expert power are held in high regard
by other employees and hence greatly influence their actions. Possession of expert
power is normally a stepping stone to other sources of power such as legitimate power.
For example, a person who holds expert power can be promoted to senior
management, thereby giving him legitimate power.

Referent Power Derived from Interpersonal Relationships

Referent power is derived from the interpersonal relationships that a person cultivates
with other people in the organization. People possess reference power when others
respect and like them. Referent power arises from charisma, as the charismatic person
influences others via the admiration, respect and trust others have for her.

Referent power is also derived from personal connections that a person has with key
people in the organization's hierarchy, such as the CEO. It's the perception of the
personal relationships that she has that generates her power over others.

Coercive Power Derived from Ability to Influence Others

Coercive power is derived from a person's ability to influence others via threats,
punishments or sanctions. A junior staff member may work late to meet a deadline to
avoid disciplinary action from his boss. Coercive power is, therefore, a person's ability to
punish fire or reprimand another employee. Coercive power helps control the behavior
of employees by ensuring that they adhere to the organization's policies and norms.

Reward Power and Ability to Influence Allocation of Incentives

Reward power arises from the ability of a person to influence the allocation of
incentives in an organization. These incentives include salary increments, positive
appraisals and promotions. In an organization, people who wield reward power tend to
influence the actions of other employees.

Reward power, if used well, greatly motivates employees. But if it's applied through
favoritism, reward power can greatly demoralize employees and diminish their output.

Conclusion

Therefore, Organizational culture sets the context for everything a company does and
defines the proper way to behave within the organization. It consists of shared beliefs
and values established by leaders and communicated and reinforced through various
methods, ultimately shaping employee perceptions, behaviors and understanding.

Organizational power is defined as the ability of the organization structure to utilize all
the mandatory resources in favor of organizational development, such as man,
machine, and other resources. And the forms include ; Formal Power, Legitimate
Power, Expert Power, Referent Power, Coercive Power, Reward Power, and
Informational Power.
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