6 - Strategy and organisational culture

Question 1

CoSec and an org’s culture

Answer 1

CoSec will be part of the culture by virtue of being an employee

but their role will often require them to step back mentally or physically, to objectively consider how and why other people behave in certain ways

Question 2

Barney definition of organisational culture

Answer 2

A complex set of values, beliefs, assumptions and symbols that define the way in which a firm conducts its business

Question 3

Simple, frequently occurring definition of culture (use in exam with Barney def)

Answer 3

The way we do things around here

Question 4

What is strategic drift?

Answer 4

The time gap between the development of the strategy and the changes within the environment

Question 5

4 phases within strategic drift process

Answer 5

Incremental strategic change
Strategic drift
Flux
Transformation or death

Question 6

Incremental strategic change (phase of strategic drift process)

Answer 6

Small changes that occur during long periods of relative stability - orgs adapt gradually without need for more radical change

Question 7

Strategic drift (phase of strategic drift process)

Answer 7

Occurs where micro or macro changes restrict org’s ability to amend strategy - causes gap between strategy and environment to widen

Question 8

Flux (phase of strategic drift process)

Answer 8

Caused by gaps developing during strategic drift stage - causes disagreements and complexity within org over how to respond

Question 9

Transformation or death (phase of strategic drift process)

Answer 9

Result that naturally emanates from stage of flux - agreed resolution to realign strategy with environment, or strategy (and potentially company) ceases to exist

Question 10

Bias in strategy

Answer 10

Natural/cognitive bias can have great impact on strategy - we should try and be as objective as possible when developing strategy so it is important to be on the lookout for bias and be aware of types of bias

Question 11

3 examples of cognitive bias

Answer 11

Confirmation bias - selecting what agrees with existing beliefs
Recency bias - not looking far enough back
Groupthink bias - fitting in with the crowd

Question 12

Johnson’s 3 main cultural frames that need to be taken into consideration to understand individual’s behaviour

Answer 12

Geographic - national/regional influences

Organisational field - sector of industry with differing prof influencers

Organisation - intermix of subcultures and divisions within org itself

Question 13

4 elements within geographical cultural frame

Answer 13

• Relationship with authority
• Acceptance of inequality
• Longevity of a vision
• Tolerance of uncertainty

Question 14

3 elements within organisational field cultural frame

Answer 14

Categorisation (labelling of activities)

Recipes (set of assumptions, norms, routines - ‘best practice’)

Legitimacy (institutionalisation of categories and recipes across period of time)

Question 15

4 elements within organisation cultural frame

Answer 15

Mission - underlying causes of the heartbeat
Methods - habits of an organisation, why tasks are carried out in certain ways
Principles - hierarchical structure, flow of information
Values - fundamental beliefs about humanity that pervade the organisation

Question 16

Johnson’s cultural web - 6 elements

Answer 16

Organisational structures - formal hierarchical lines and lines of communication

Power structures - the people who ultimately hold the power

Symbols - tangible visible presence of org (logos, cars driven by execs)

Stories - how people talk about the org, myths and realities

Rituals and routines - daily behaviour of individuals

Control systems - methods of monitoring and maintaining people

Question 17

Dominant culture

Answer 17

Majority of employees are driven by and moulded by overriding and often unchallenged set of values

Question 18

Strong culture

Answer 18

Core values are widely shared within org and drive org forward

Question 19

Goldsmith and Clutterbuck - 7 pros of strong culture

(reverse is true for weak culture)

Answer 19

• Provides sense of identity
• Develops commitment
• Shapes behaviour
• Internalises control systems
• Support and sustain decision-making
• Eases communication and co-operation
• Decreases ambiguity

Question 20

Weak culture

Answer 20

Minority are striving to get their views and values heard, following own goals rather than those of org

Question 21

Kotter and Heskett - 7 causes of weak culture

Answer 21

• Individual entrepreneurship
• Over-dominant market position
• Lack of appropriately qualified or experienced managers
• Increasing bureaucracy
• Ignoring external influences and forces
• Management becoming insular or political
• Arrogant approach led by hubris

Question 22

Why can a weak culture become a liability?

Answer 22

Provides a barrier to change, as prevailing culture will be disconnected with org’s goals

Question 23

Why can a strong/dominant culture become a liability?

Answer 23

Insistence on maintaining core values can lead to failure if org fails to recognise where values are out of step with changing macro environment

Question 24

6 areas that require constant vigilance to ensure alignment of the strategy with the culture of the organisation

Answer 24

silo thinking
dominant chief executive
leadership arrogance
lack of openness to challenge
lack of diversity
hierarchical attitude

Question 25

Why is it key for a CoSec to have a very close awareness of the culture of an organisation?

Answer 25

It helps explain people and organisational behaviour, and can be a significant area for an objective CoSec to challenge

Question 26

Why is culture so relevant to strategy

Answer 26

It is impossible to consider the dev of strategy without understanding nature of org culture, individuals, and other companies within sector.

In order to deliver sustainable strategic change, the culture of the organisation may need to be changed, as a conflicting culture can hold the strategy back.