Introduction
Corporate culture is a significant element that constitutes the conceptual backbones of any business organization. It embraces a set of shared beliefs, traditions, and standards that represent the nature of the organization. In his book on corporate culture, John Kotter (2008) operates with the following definition of the notion: “when people talk of corporate culture, they usually mean values and practices that are shared across all groups in a form, at least within senior management” (p. 6). Thus, the author points out that corporate culture always starts with the management that establishes the rules and certain guidelines for the workers of the organization to follow.
Main text
Corporate culture is a complex concept that implies a wide range of notions and acts. It stretches from the business decisions that specific organizations take and the ways that they use to perform their main tasks. Naturally, all small organizations, as well as global corporations, use some standard, signature solutions that become the parts of their corporate cultures. The longer these solutions work and bring fruitful results, the more stable corporate cultures they build. For instance, if the management of the establishment decides to increase advertising expenditures for some specific revenues that lag and the results turn out to be successful, then such a standard solution becomes a part of the corporate culture of the organization (Kotter, 2008).
Moreover, corporate culture implies several details. These are, for example, the elements of specific clothing, the rules of behavior, the organizational issues, the communication standards, and so on. Therefore, the corporate culture is the face of the company in all its evictions.
There are some standard characteristics of a successful corporate culture. In his article for Harvard Business Review, John Coleman (2013) provides the readers with a consistent account of features that are inherent to the efficient corporate culture. According to the author, its primary characteristic is vision. In other words, every corporate culture starts with a common purpose that combines the joined tasks the company is striving to accomplish. If the members of the organization are looking in one common direction, they are likely to reach success. The second part of any corporate culture constitutes the values that underline it. Values serve as significant guidelines on specific actions that are to be taken so that to reach the major tasks of the organization. One more crucial factor that predetermines the success or failure of the corporate culture is its narrative. A successful organization is always able to use it appropriately, unearthing its unique history in the best light.
The future of any company or organization largely depends upon the people who work for it and the practices that they use in their work. Thus, no company can reach its aims and support its values without the workers who desire to embrace those values. Similarly, it is impossible for the organization to support its corporate culture, unless people who work for it tackle its practical challenges with all their devotion and concentration. The last part of the successful corporate culture is place. In his article, Coleman (2013) provides several examples of global corporations like Silicon Valley or Pixar that cluster in small open spaces, instead of separable ones. According to him, the open spaces contribute to mutual collaboration and support a friendly atmosphere at the workplace (Coleman, 2013).
Conclusion
Consequently, corporate culture outlines the crucial foundation of every corporation or organization. It helps people to recognize the values and principles that are promoted by the specific establishment. The maintenance of strong and stable corporate culture within an organization determines its success and future work.
References
Coleman, J. (2013). Six components of a great corporate culture. Harvard Business Review. Web.
Kotter, J. (2008). Corporate Culture and Performance. NY: Simon & Schuster.