Question

a) Describe the organizational culture at the Newskool. Be sure to use specific course concepts in your answer .

b) Is the culture at the Newskool strong or weak? How do you know?

c) In general, what are the pros and cons of a strong culture?

Imagine you are a senior manager at Newskool Grooves who has been tasked with putting together a cross-functional team that will decide on which type of communication platform the company should use for corporate communications (e.g., email, video conferencing, secure group chats, etc).

Imagine CEO Gerd Finger wishes to introduce a new line of music equipment at Newskool Grooves and that several of the other managers do not like his idea.

Answer 1

a) Newskool has a boundaryless organizational culture that focuses on the division of labour and decentralized authority. The culture existing in the company lacks any formal structure or approach towards carrying out daily business operations. There exists a free flow of information amongst all the levels of management and innovative ideas from the employees that enhance innovation, growth and efficiency in this competitive market. Other key features of Newskool’s organizational culture include innovation and risk-taking capabilities, use of updated technology, team and people orientation, aggressiveness in activities and minute attention to details. Thus, the company's culture facilitates breaking down age-old traditions for making use of the latest tools and techniques. Furthermore, employees of this organization are driven towards their work, have a greater sense of responsibility for the projects and keen on achieving the desired results. This indicates that Newskool possesses an adhocracy oriented culture with dynamic and entrepreneurial characteristics that facilitate a risk-taking and innovative atmosphere.

b) The culture of Newskool can be said to be strong because of the absence of any boundaries. This absence of vertical, horizontal and external barriers in the organization enables the managers, employees, suppliers and customers to work together as a team, share innovative ideas and recognize the best course of action for the company. The presence of structure in an organization culture clarifies the roles and responsibilities of each member. However, the absence of such control in Newskool has resulted in the high flexibility and responsiveness of the employees. Furthermore, this positive culture improves the performance of the employees by encouraging their innovative and creative ideas.

c) Some of the advantages of a strong organizational culture are that it helps in attracting and retaining high performing employees and increases the overall productivity of the team and the organization. Besides, employees become amazing advocates for the brand due to their high satisfaction at work. Furthermore, the company can build a healthy team and distinguish itself from others in the market. However, an overly strong organizational culture can reduce the cognitive diversity of the members. This, in turn, would negatively affect the capability of a company to operate effectively in a complex and uncertain environment. A strong culture can also lead to hyper-competition in the organization, ultimately hampering the overall productivity and performance.