Managing Change: How to Change Your Corporate Culture (Part 2 of 3)

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This article was published in the April-June 2009 (Vol. 44, No. 2) issue of
Management – the quarterly magazine of The Malaysian Institute of Management

Reproduced here with permission from the author Dr. Victor S. L. Tan

and from
The Malaysian Institute of Management
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Changing corporate culture is unlike a heart transplant operation which can be done overnight. Instead, it is an ongoing process that takes time and requires constant monitoring. It is certainly not about transplanting alien cultural elements into an organisation. Changing corporate culture is about transforming the organisation through continuous influence and the shaping of beliefs, assumptions, values and patterns of behaviour of people towards creating a desired work environment. It is about changing the mindsets of people to a new way of thinking and working, which will enable the organisation to be effective, efficient and competitive. Thus, changing corporate culture is about opening minds and winning hearts of people to a new way of working, which is not just about increasing the bottom line but also about improving relationships amongst people and seeking meaning in work through a sense of belonging, shared values and satisfaction.

How does an organisation go about influencing and shaping its corporate culture? KL Strategic Change Consulting (KLSCC) Group has worked with over 200 Asian organisations, and in many of them the work has involved, to a great extent, changing their corporate culture to align to their respective visions, missions, goals and the environment.

The following diagram shows the KLSCC's Corporate Culture Change Model, which is comprised of four phases.

Phase 1: Culture Assessment

The Culture Assessment phase comprises two tasks. One is the assessment of the existing culture of the organisation, and the other is to determine the desired corporate culture. To get a more reflective picture of the real culture of an organisation, one should use a combination of tools. One way is to conduct personal interviews with a representative sample of participants in the organisation. One-to-one interviews as well as focused interviews with groups can be conducted to assess the existing culture as well as determine the desired culture of the organisation.

Besides interviews and discussions, Corporate Culture surveys can also be conducted on a representative sample of participants. To encourage accurate input, these surveys must be conducted in an anonymous fashion with the assurance of strict confidentiality. In this respect, KL Strategic Change Consulting Group has developed various corporate culture assessment questionnaires, tools and instruments to help organisations gauge their existing culture as well as determine their desired culture. A desired culture encompasses not just personal and organisational aspirations, but also the demand of the external environment (which includes competition, customers, shareholders and other stakeholders) that will enable the organisation to compete and succeed.

Phase 2: Culture Gap Analysis

This phase involves analysing the gaps that arise from the existing corporate culture and the desired one. This analysis looks into the people, policies, process, technology, strategy and structure of the organisation. One way this can be done is by analysing what currently impedes an organisation from achieving its desired vision, mission and goals. Another way is to define the missing links, be they resources, the appropriate leadership style or the behaviour of people that is required to enable an organisation to achieve the desired future state. The results from the gap analysis will provide sound input to the development of change programmes that influence and shape the culture of the organisation.

Phase 3: Changing Mindsets: Influencing Culture Change

The core of cultural change is the change in mindsets. This involves learning new ways of thinking, new ways of working and interacting with one another. It enables the acquiring of new attitudes and new skills in the workplace. To do this, there is a need to influence and shape the beliefs, assumptions and values of people in the workplace. There are many ways to do this. For a start, the change agents who lead the culture change should become role models. Their attitudes and daily behaviour in the workplace must reflect those defined as desired culture. Their consistent behaviour with the desired culture will encourage others to emulate them. Albert Schweitzer said it best, when he remarked, “Setting an example is not the main thing in influencing others. It is the only thing.”

The next change should be to revamp company policies, procedures and the systems of the company to be aligned with the new culture. Thus any inconsistent practices that are not aligned to the desired patterns of behaviour should be abandoned. To ensure wide influence of the new culture, the organisation should undertake company-wide training to communicate the new belief systems, core values and desired patterns of behaviour.

Orientation programmes can be conducted for new recruits as well as existing staff to help them modify their beliefs, attitudes, values and behaviour to the desired patterns of behaviour in the workplace. The company must capitalise on every communication channel possible to widely publicise and communicate the new corporate culture. Newsletters, e-mails, department meetings, branch managers' meetings, management meetings, family day gatherings, sports club activities and company anniversary events can be useful channels and opportunities for promoting and reinforcing the new culture within organisations.

Another very effective way to start the culture change process in an organisation is through the recruitment process. Potential candidates are screened for the right values and behaviour patterns that will fit the desired culture. Candidates are then interviewed thoroughly and selected on the basis of possessing the relevant values, thinking and behaviour patterns. Some organisations we worked with, have also undertaken a thorough workforce reorganisation, whereby people with the beliefs, values and behaviour that are consistent with culture of the organisation are put in charge whereas those who are not, are being sidelined.

“The crux of effective change will come from how organisations implement a performance reward system to recognise, encourage and reinforce the practice of the desired culture.”

Thus the new leaders who are in charge will develop their people and inculcate the practices of the new culture in the organisation. This type of workforce restructuring, while it “rocks the boat” often is what is needed to change the culture of very old, bureaucratic and archaic organisations in crisis situations. Often the demands of competition and the fast changing environment dictate this type of approach to change quickly and effectively to enable the organisation to survive. Culture change requires constant monitoring and fine-tuning of approaches to achieve effective results. And ultimately, the crux of effective change will come from how organisations implement a performance reward system to recognise, encourage and reinforce the practice of the desired culture.

Phase 4: Sustaining the New Culture

Sustaining a new culture requires continuous improvement efforts in moulding, shaping, influencing and reinforcing actual behaviour in the workplace on a daily basis. The reality of whether a new culture is sustainable lies in what value and importance leaders place in maintaining the consistency of the desired practices and patterns of behaviour in the daily activities and tasks in the workplace.

Thus a constant flow of new ideas and suggestions to promote and reinforce the new culture is needed to get people to really internalise those beliefs, values and behaviour. And the constant linking of positive performance and results to the new culture will also add credibility towards the new corporate culture. And once people truly see the benefits of the new culture not just for the organisation but also for themselves as individuals, they will want to continue those practices.

To serve as a useful guide for change agents to implement culture change in their organisations, 1 would like to share our experience of the change efforts we made in working with over 200 Asian organisations. Overall, there is a common, desired work environment which employers and employees strive for.

While there are many issues and a lot of dissatisfaction raised by various levels of staff in the organisations we worked with, we feel that a lot of these are symptoms of some of their yet unfulfilled intrinsic needs. These needs could be the feeling of recognition and appreciation, a sense of importance, a sense of belonging, the joy of achievement, the pride of involvement or the fun of sharing.

In summary, there is a common thread running through the organisations which we have worked with. Overall, their staff members want the following:

• Good relationships between divisions, departments and individuals
• A conducive work environment
• Appreciation of good work done
• A sense of fairness
• Encouraging support and guide when needed
• Competitive salaries and staff benefits
• Relevant and timely information on what's going on
• More open communication without fear
• Promotion and growth opportunities in the company
• Tactful discipline

Overall, to create this environment and a conducive and productive corporate culture, top management, leaders, managers and staff must work in concert to achieve a win-win partnership to ensure the following are practised in the workplace:

• People are clear of the direction of the organisation
• People are involved and their views or input sought in the decision making process
• The workplace is friendly and meaningful, and people enjoy coming to work
• Communications are clear, timely and relevant
• People get the resources and support they need to do their jobs
• People are respected, recognised and appreciated for doing a good job
• People are kept informed about what is going on in the company
• People are held accountable for their jobs and own up to the problems
• Individual and team efforts are rewarded or recognised
• There are opportunities for learning and career advancement
• There is a spirit of enthusiasm, sense of belonging and teamwork
• Nurturing people is a practice of the organisation

Written by Dr. Victor S. L. Tan. Dr. Tan is the Chief Executive Officer of KL Strategic Change Consulting Group. He is an author of five management books. His latest book is The Secret of Change. For more information, visit www.klscc.com or contact the author at victorsltan@klscc.com