Organisation Culture Essay

1692 Words7 Pages
------------------------------------------------- Critically examine the key elements, and management of, organisational culture specific to the hospitality industry, evaluating the opportunities (including ‘competitive advantage’) and challenges that may exist. A firm’s culture can play a crucial role in driving pecuniary growth brought about by engaged staff rendering exemplary customer service or it can stymie the firm’s financial and service objectives (Doran, Haddad & Chow 2003, p. 77; Hon & Rensvold 2006, p. 980; Michel, Kavanagh & Tracey 2012, p. 170; Millet 2014). ‘No two organisations are the same’ (Mullins 2010, p. 738). So are company cultures, which encompass key elements such as beliefs, values and norms. This paper discusses the aforementioned elements within organisation culture and the management of the culture within the hospitality context. It will then go on to assess the opportunities and challenges of applying culture. Organisational (Corporate) Culture Defined For Schein (cited in Chen 2013, p. 153) organisational culture refers to ‘an organisation’s invention, discovery or development of a set of fundamental hypotheses in the process of external adjustment to and internal integrations of problems’. In the same vein, Ford and Sturman (2011, p. 111) notes that organisational culture is ‘a way of behaving, thinking, and acting that is learned and shared by the organisation’s members … it is shared philosophies, ideologies, values assumptions, beliefs, attitudes, and norms that knit a community together’; in other words, akin to an individual’s personality (Mullins 2010, p. 739); and how things are done (Han 2012, p. 208). Key Elements of Culture Ford and Sturman (2011, pp. 113-114) identify the following concepts within their explanation of organisational culture: Beliefs Beliefs are cardinal to culture. They are the moral
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