organizational culture and leader behavior

Term –II, PGDM-IB, 09-11, Group - 1Aishwarya – 1, Ram Mohan -11, Harish Kumar- 21, Md Nur A Alom -31

Ranjan Shetty – 41, Sneha Gopinath - 51

End term project for

Acknowledgement

First we would extend our honest thank to our faculty Prof. Libby Simon (LLB, PGDPM, MHRM) for giving us the opportunity to conduct this project.

A special thanks to Mr. Santosh Vasudevan (Ops Manager, Firstsource) and Mr. T. K. Ravikumar, (Regional sales manager (Region – 5) {Karnataka & Andra Pradesh} and Srinivas, Client Relations, Firstsource, for expressing their views and thoughts.

We also thank one and all who have helped in making key decisions and discussion which allowed us to complete this project in time successfully.

Last but not least our families for extending their support.

This project is not the Endeavour of individual only, but is the result of valuable time, effort and co-operation of one and all of us. So, we would like to acknowledge each other for a great teamwork, Thank You.

: Members of Group 1

Aishwarya,Ram Mohan,

Harish Kumar,Md Nur Alum,Ranjan Shetty,

Sneha Gopinath.

Organizational Culture & Leader Behavior

The Project was divided into Six Segments:

Introduction – Aishwarya,

Literature Review – Sneha Gopinath,

Secondary Data – Ram Mohan & Md Nur Alum,

Primary Data – Ranjan Shetty,

Discussion – All the Team Members,

Conclusion – Harish Kumar.


Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................................5

Organizational Culture.............................................................................................................................5

Leadership...............................................................................................................................................8

REVIEW OF LITERATURE............................................................................................................................11

Organization Culture.............................................................................................................................11

THEORIES OF LEADERSHIP.....................................................................................................................12

1. “Great Man” Theories:...................................................................................................................12

2. Trait Theories:................................................................................................................................12

3. Contingency Theories:...................................................................................................................12

4. Situational Theories:......................................................................................................................13

5. Behavioral Theories:......................................................................................................................13

6. Participative Theories:...................................................................................................................13

7. Management Theories:..................................................................................................................13

8. Relationship Theories:...................................................................................................................13

Secondary Data.........................................................................................................................................14

Organizational Culture...........................................................................................................................14

Leadership.............................................................................................................................................17

Primary Data.............................................................................................................................................21

Firstsource Solutions Ltd., & Eureka Forbes Ltd.,...................................................................................22

Organizational culture (questionnaire)......................................................................................................26

Discussion................................................................................................................................................27

Analyzing...............................................................................................................................................34

Conclusion.............................................................................................................................................35


INTRODUCTION

Organizational Culture

“Left unattended, a company’s culture almost always becomes dysfunctional.”

To understand what organizational culture is, we first need to understand what culture is. Culture is a set of values that are adopted by people who habit any place. For example, when we refer to a culture of a particular place (say, Mayan Culture) we are talking about the shared traits of the people who lived there, their lifestyles, their rituals, etc. If we apply this definition of culture with the prefixed word 'organization', we are referring to the rules and the underlying values of an organization that are constant and apply to all employees, without any bias or favouritism. It is the foundation of the overt and covert behaviours and reactions of all people that work in an organization.

Organizational culture is the personality of the organization. It describes the psychology, attitudes, experiences, beliefs and values (personal and cultural values) of an organization. It has been defined as "the specific collection of values and norms that are shared by people and groups in an organization and that control the way they interact with each other and with stakeholders outside the organization. Organizational culture is the workplace environment formulated from the interaction of the employees in the workplace. Organizational culture is defined by all of the life experiences, strengths, weaknesses, education, upbringing, and so forth of the employees. While executive leaders play a large role in defining organizational culture by their actions and leadership, all employees contribute to the organizational culture.

Organizational culture is not the same as corporate culture. Corporate culture is the total sum of the values, customs, traditions and meanings that make a company unique. Corporate culture is often called "the character of an organization" since it embodies the vision of the company’s founders. The values of a corporate culture influence the ethical standards within a corporation, as well as managerial behaviour.

Organizational culture and ethics can be broken up into 3 tiers on an organizational culture pyramid. The lowest tier is that of artifacts and behaviours. Artifacts and behaviours are the most tangible aspects of organizational culture. The physical layout of the workplace and the displayed behaviours of the employees comprise this level. The next tier on the organizational culture pyramid is that of values. Values are those thoughts which influence the assumptions and behaviours of employees. Hence they are tangible. The top tier on the organizational culture pyramid is that of assumptions and beliefs. This tier is the most crucial and intangible aspect of organizational culture. At the same time assumptions and beliefs are


toughest to imbibe in the employees and takes time. But once the employees are in tune with the assumptions and beliefs of the organization, they stay on and impact the values and behaviours of the employees.

Figure 1. Levels of Organizational Culture (Adapted from Schein 1980; Schein 1985)

Several methods have been used to classify organizational culture. Some are described below:

Geert Hofstede

Geert Hofstede demonstrated that there are national and regional cultural groupings that affect the behaviour of organizations.

Hofstede looked for national differences between over 100,000 of IBM's employees in different parts of the world, in an attempt to find aspects of culture that might influence business behaviour.

Hofstede identified five dimensions of culture in his study of national influences:

Power distance - The degree to which a society expects there to be differences in the levels of power. A high score suggests that there is an expectation that some individuals wield larger amounts of power than others. A low score reflects the view that all people should have equal rights.


assumptions & beliefs

values

artifacts &behavior

Uncertainty avoidance reflects the extent to which a society accepts uncertainty and risk.

Individualism vs. collectivism - individualism is contrasted with collectivism, and refers to the extent to which people are expected to stand up for themselves, or alternatively act predominantly as a member of the group or organization. However, recent researches have shown that high individualism may not necessarily mean low collectivism, and vice versus. Research indicates that the two concepts are actually unrelated. Some people and cultures might have both high individualism and high collectivism, for example. Someone who highly values duty to his or her group does not necessarily give a low priority to personal freedom and self-sufficiency

Masculinity vs. femininity - refers to the value placed on traditionally male or female values. Male values for example include competitiveness, assertiveness, ambition, and the accumulation of wealth and material possessions.

Long vs. short term orientation - describes a society's "time horizon," or the importance attached to the future versus the past and present. In long term oriented societies, thrift and perseverance are valued more; in short term oriented societies, respect for tradition and reciprocation of gifts and favours are valued more. Eastern nations tend to score especially high here, with Western nations scoring low and the less developed nations very low; China scored highest and Pakistan lowest.

Edgar Schein

Edgar Schein an MIT Sloan School of Management professor, defines organizational culture as:

"A pattern of shared basic assumptions that the group learned as it solved its problems of external adaptation and internal integration, that has worked well enough to be considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way you perceive, think, and feel in relation to those problems".

According to Schein, culture is the most difficult organizational attribute to change, outlasting organizational products, services, founders and leadership and all other physical attributes of the organization. His organizational model illuminates culture from the standpoint of the observer, described by three cognitive levels of organizational culture.

At the first and most cursory level of Schein's model is organizational attributes that can be seen, felt and heard by the uninitiated observer. Included are the facilities, offices, furnishings, visible awards and recognition, the way that its members dress, and how each person visibly interacts with each other and with organizational outsiders.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive

The next level deals with the professed culture of an organization's members. At this level, company slogans, mission statements and other operational creeds are often expressed, and local and personal values are widely expressed within the organization. Organizational behaviour at this level usually can be studied by interviewing the organization's membership and using questionnaires to gather attitudes about organizational membership.

At the third and deepest level, the organization's tacit assumptions are found. These are the elements of culture that are unseen and not cognitively identified in everyday interactions between organizational members. Additionally, these are the elements of culture which are often taboo to discuss inside the organization. Many of these 'unspoken rules' exist without the conscious knowledge of the membership. Those with sufficient experience to understand this deepest level of organizational culture usually become acclimatized to its attributes over time, thus reinforcing the invisibility of their existence. Surveys and casual interviews with organizational members cannot draw out these attributes--rather much more in-depth means is required to first identify then understand organizational culture at this level. Notably, culture at this level is the underlying and driving element often missed by organizational behaviourists.

Using Schein's model, understanding paradoxical organizational behaviours becomes more apparent. For instance, an organization can profess highly aesthetic and moral standards at the second level of Schein's model while simultaneously displaying curiously opposing behaviour at the third and deepest level of culture. Superficially, organizational rewards can imply one organizational norm but at the deepest level imply something completely different.

Leadership

Leadership has been described as the “process of social influence in which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a common task”. A definition more inclusive of followers comes from Alan Keith of Genentech who said "Leadership is ultimately about creating a way for people to contribute to making something extraordinary happen." According to Ken Ogbonnia (2007), "effective leadership is the ability to successfully integrate and maximize available resources within the internal and external environment for the attainment of organizational or societal goals." Leadership is a process by which a person influences others to accomplish an objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent. Leaders carry out this process by applying their leadership attributes, such as beliefs, values, ethics, character, knowledge, and skills, never ending process of self-study, education, training, and experience.

Kurt Lewin and colleagues identified different styles of leadership [29]:


Dictator Autocratic Participative Laissez FaireDictator Leaders

A leader who uses fear and threats to get the jobs done. As similar with a leader who uses an autocratic style of leadership, this style of leader also makes all the decisions.

Autocratic or Authoritarian Leaders

Under the autocratic leadership styles, all decision-making powers are centralized in the leader as shown such leaders are dictators.

They do not entertain any suggestions or initiative from subordinates. The autocratic management has been successful as it provides strong motivation to the manger. It permits quick decision-making as only one person decides for the whole group, and keeps it to them until they feel it is needed by the rest of the group. An autocratic leader does not trust anybody.

Participative or Democratic Leaders

The democratic leadership style favours decision-making by the group as shown, such as leader gives instruction after consulting the group.

He can win the cooperation of his group and can motivate them effectively and positively. The decisions of the democratic leader are not unilateral as with the autocrat because they arise from Laissez Faire or Free Rein Leaders

A free rein leader does not lead, but leaves the group entirely to itself as shown; such a leader allows maximum freedom to subordinates.

They are given a freehand in deciding their own policies and methods. Free rein leadership style is considered better than the authoritarian style. But it is not as effective as the democratic style.


Figure 2. Way an organization is designed to function

The way an organization is designed to function and the way it actually functions are two different things. Within the boundaries of every organization is that organization’s own unique culture. The culture is composed of two parts - the planned, formalized side and the unplanned, spontaneous informal side. An organization’s culture consists of the values, norms, and attitudes of the people who make up the organization. Values show what is important, norms reveal expected behavior, attitudes show the mind set of individuals. What the organization and its founding bosses want may closely resemble what their employees want. The degree of responsibility, independence and opportunity for exercising initiative that individuals in an organizations have, the degree of rules and regulations and the amount of direct supervision that is used to oversee and control behavior the typically influence the organizations culture. This is reflected upon by the authority relationships that exist in an organization. Leaders are instrumental in guiding the efforts of groups of employees to achieve goals and objectives. The leader is looked upon as a role model and his behavior and his characteristics have a deep impact on the behavior of an individual in an organization. The leader’s involvement and participation creates an environment which is reflected upon the culture of the organization.


autocratic

participative laissez faire

REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Organization Culture

“Culture is the widening of the mind and the spirit”

Jawaharlal Nehru

Organizational culture can be defined as a system of shared meaning held by members that distinguishes the organization from other organizations. There are seven characteristics that capture the essence of an organization’s culture. But it is very difficult to give only one definition, there are many:

Outcomes- Defining culture as a manifest pattern of behavior- Many people use the term culture to describe patterns of cross individual behavioral consistency For example, when people say that culture is “The way we do things around here,” they are defining consistent way is in which people perform tasks, solve problems, resolve conflicts, treat customers, and treat employees.

Process- Defining culture as a set of mechanisms creating cross individual behavioral consistency- In this case culture is defined as the informal values, norms, and beliefs that control how individuals and groups in an organization interact with each other and with people outside the organization.

1. Innovation and risk taking- the degree to which employees are encouraged to be innovative and take risks.

2. Attention to detail-the degree to which employees are expected to exhibit precision, analysis, attention to details.

3. Outcome orientation-the degree to which management focuses on results rather than on the techniques and processes used to achieve these outcomes.

4. People orientation- the degree to which management decisions take into consideration the effect of outcomes on people within the organization.

5. Team orientation- the degree to which work activities are organized around teams rather than events.

6. Aggressiveness- the degree to which people are aggressive and competitive rather than easygoing.

7. Stability- the degree to which organizational activities emphasize maintaining the status quo in contrast to growth.


COMPONENTS OF ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE

MATERIAL CULTURE- this mainly consists of artifacts. NON-MATERIAL CULTURE – this consists of rituals, taboos, jargon.

THEORIES OF LEADERSHIP

1. “Great Man” Theories:

Great Man theories assume that the capacity for leadership is inherent – that great

leaders are born not made. These theories often portray great leaders as heroic, mythic, and

destined to rise to leadership when needed. The term “Great Man” was used because, at the

time, leadership was thought of primarily as a male quality, especially in terms of military

leadership.

2. Trait Theories:

Similar in some ways to “Great Man” theories, trait theory assumes that people inherit

certain qualities and traits that make them better suited to leadership. Trait theories often

identify particular personality or behavioral characteristics shared by leaders. But if particular

traits are key features of leadership, how do we explain people who possess those qualities but

are not leaders? This question is one of the difficulties in using trait theories to explain

leadership.

3. Contingency Theories:

Contingency theories of leadership focus on particular variables related to the

environment that might determine which particular style of leadership is best suited for the

situation. According to this theory, no leadership style is best in all situations. Success depends

upon a number of variables, including the leadership style, qualities of the followers, and

aspects of the situation.


4. Situational Theories:

Situational theories propose that leaders choose the best course of action based upon

situational variable. Different styles of leadership may be more appropriate for certain types of

decision-making.

5. Behavioral Theories:

Behavioral theories of leadership are based upon the belief that great leaders are made,

not born. Rooted in behaviorism, this leadership theory focuses on the actions of leaders, not

on mental qualities or internal states. According to this theory, people can learn to become

leaders through teaching and observation.

6. Participative Theories:

Participative leadership theories suggest that the ideal leadership style is one that takes

the input of others into account. These leaders encourage participation and contributions from

group members and help group members feel more relevant and committed to the decision-

making process. In participative theories, however, the leader retains the right to allow the

input of others.

7. Management Theories:

Management theories (also known as “Transactional theories”) focus on the role of

supervision, organization, and group performance. These theories base leadership on a system

of reward and punishment. Managerial theories are often used in business; when employees

are successful, they are rewarded; when they fail, they are reprimanded or punished.

8. Relationship Theories:

Relationship theories (also known as “Transformational theories”) focus upon the

connections formed between leaders and followers. These leaders motivate and inspire people

by helping group members see the importance and higher good of the task. Transformational

leaders are focused on the performance of group members, but also want each person to fulfill

his or her potential. These leaders often have high ethical and moral standards.


Secondary Data

Organizational CultureIt is a system of shared meaning held by members that distinguishes the organization

from other organizations, this system of shared meaning is, on closer examination is a set of key characteristics that the organization values.

Organizational culture is: a shared, common frame of reference, i.e. it is largely taken for granted and is shared by some significant portion of members; acquired and governs, i.e. it is socially learned and transmitted by members and provides them with rules for their organizational behavior, a common psychology, i.e. it denotes the organization’s uniqueness and contributes to its identity; enduring over time, i.e. it can be found in any fairly stable social unit of any size, as long as it has a reasonable history; symbolic, i.e. it is manifested in observables such as language, behavior and things to which are attributed meanings; at its core, typically invisible and determinant, i.e. it is ultimately comprised of a configuration of deeply buried values and assumptions; is modifiable, but not easily so.

Figure 3. Levels of Organizational Culture (Adapted from Schein 1980; Schein 1985)


Using Schein's model, understanding paradoxical organizational behaviors becomes more apparent. For instance, an organization can profess highly aesthetic and moral standards at the second level of Schein's model while simultaneously displaying curiously opposing behavior at the third and deepest level of culture. Superficially, organizational rewards can imply one organizational norm but at the deepest level imply something completely different. This insight offers an understanding of the difficulty that organizational newcomers have in assimilating organizational culture and why it takes time to become acclimatized. It also explains why organizational change agents usually fail to achieve their goals: underlying tacit cultural norms are generally not understood before would-be change agents begin their actions. Merely understanding culture at the deepest level may be insufficient to institute cultural change because the dynamics of interpersonal relationships (often under threatening conditions) are added to the dynamics of organizational culture while attempts are made to institute desired change.

Although all organizations have cultures, some appear to have stronger, more deeply rooted cultures than others Culture was initially seen as a means of enhancing internal integration and coordination, but the open system view of organizations recognized that culture is also important in mediating adaptation to the environment.

How Culture Begins at Organizations?Founders hire and keep only employees who think and feel the same way they do.

Founders indoctrinate and socialize these employees to their way of thinking and feeling. The founders’ own behavior acts as a role model that encourages employees to identify with them and thereby internalize their beliefs, values, and assumptions.

The different types of Organizational Culture:

1. Dominant CultureExpresses the core values that are shared by a majority of the organization’s members.

2. Subcultures Minicultures within an organization, typically defined by department designations and

geographical separation.

3. Core ValuesThe primary or dominant values that are accepted throughout the organization.

4. Strong CultureA culture in which the core values are intensely held and widely shared.


Learning Organizational Culture:

Stories Rituals Material symbols Language Events

Organizational culture largely dictates issues like:

Attitude toward innovation. Formalization of rules. People/team orientation. Outcome orientation. Attitude toward women and minorities. Dress code. Language on the job. Discipline. Ethical standards.

Functions of Organizational Culture

Culture is the social glue that helps to hold an organization together by providing standards for what employees say or do.

Culture provides boundary-defining roles. Culture conveys a sense of identity for organization members. It serves as a “sense-making” and control mechanism that guides and shapes the

attitudes and behaviors of the employees. Success within an organization depends largely on how well one fits into the …

organizational culture. Organizational culture varies widely from very innovative to very traditional. An organization’s culture often reflects the values and personality of the founders and

leadership. Organizational culture is nurtured and sustained through hiring practices and the

socialization of hew hires. Organizational culture should be a vital consideration before accepting a job.


Leadership'Leadership is all about courage to dream big. ‘

Leadership is a complex process by which a person influences others to accomplish a mission, task, or objective and directs the organization in a way that makes it more cohesive and coherent. Leadership makes people want to achieve high goals and objectives, while, on the other hand, bosses tell people to accomplish a task or objective. A leader exercises authority over the group, and it should be willingly accepted by his followers. And the responsibilities a leader is expected to assume are full responsibility in all situations. He must steer the group clear of all difficulties. He has to assume responsibility for all actions of the group. Since the leader influences the behavior and the activities of the followers he should be endowed with the technical competence and personality traits. He should also be well aware of his own preferences and limitations to impress upon his followers

IMPORTANCE OF LEADERSHIP

1. Initiates action

2. Motivation

3. Providing guidance

4. Creating confidence

5. Building morale

6. Builds work environment

7. Co-ordination

LEADERSHIP BEHAVIOURAL APPROACH

Autocratic:

An autocratic leader is one who commands and expects compliance. He is dogmatic and positive and leads by his ability to withhold or give rewards and punishments.

Participative or supportive:

The participative or supportive leadership behavior is based on the assumption that people essentially want to participate, want to accomplish and will work well if general supervision is employed and where they are allowed to use their own initiative and support is given while accomplishing their task.


Instrumental or instrumental supportive:

Instrumental behavior of leadership emphasizes the leader’s role as a manager in the rational aspects of management namely planning, organizing, controlling etc.

Figure 4. Leader Behavior in various situation, Impact and their OutcomeLeadership styles

Autocratic Leader:

An Autocratic leader will not entertain any suggestions or initiative from subordinates. Under this type of leadership, one person decides for the whole group. An autocratic leader does not trust anybody.

Merits: It helps to make quick decisions, Inefficient and insincere workers can easily be

identifiedDemeritsIt kills initiatives for work and results in frustration among workers. It often gives scope

for conflicts between the leader and his followers

Participative or Democratic Leader:

A democratic leader can win the cooperation of his group and can motivate them effectively and positively.


Merits The decision finally made is mutually accepted. It improves the job attitudes of the sub-

ordinate staff.DemeritsThis leadership is suitable only if the subordinates are all capable of making worthwhile

suggestions. It may, sometimes be very difficult to evolve a solution that is acceptable to everyone.

Laissez Faire or Free Rein Leader:A free rein leader will leave the group entirely to itself such as a leader allows maximum

freedom to subordinates.MeritsThe superior subordinate relationship is found to be very good. Highly efficient

subordinates can make use of the freedom given to them to excel.DemeritsControl may become difficult as the leader does not involve him at all in the activities.

The subordinates are deprived of the expert advice and moral support of their leader.

Functional Leader:

A functional leader is one who is an expert in a particular field of activity. Such a leader always thinks of the task he has undertaken and spends most of his time finding out ways and means of doing it better.

Merits The very presence of an expert is beneficial to the followers and the organization. the

subordinates can certainly enrich their job knowledge and skill.

Institutional Leader:An institutional leader is one who has become a leader by virtue of his official position in

the organizational hierarchy. An institutional leader may not be an expert in his field of activity.MeritsHe has official authority to act. He may initiate action against a subordinate who is

shirking duties. DemeritsHe will not be in a position to offer proper guidance to his followers because he may not

be an expert in his field of activity. Although the leader has the official right to demand performance from his followers, he may not have the moral right


IMPORTANT KEYS FOR LEADERSHIP

Trust and confidence in top leadership is the single most reliable factor of employee satisfaction in an organization.

Effective communication by leadership in the critical areas is the key to winning organizational trust and confidence.

Helping employees understand the company's overall business strategy.

Helping employees understand how they contribute to achieving key business objectives.

Sharing information with employees on both how the company is doing and how an employee's own division is doing relative to strategic business objectives.

Figure 5; The Flow of Influence with three Leadership Styles


Primary Data

The Data collected from two organizations are been taken in a standard format, and describes Edgar H. Schein’s “Levels of organizational culture” as written in ‘Organizational culture and leadership: A dynamic view’ Copyright 1985.

Figure: 6, Edgar H. Schein’s “Levels of organizational culture”

Edgar H. Schein in his comprehensive book on organizational culture and leadership suggests that organizational culture has three levels, the level ranges from visible artifacts and creation of testable values to invisible and even preconscious basic assumptions. To achieve a complete understanding of an organizations culture, all the three levels must me studied thoroughly.

The Details are mentioned below:


Artifacts Personal enactmentCeremonies and ritesStoriesRitualSymbolsValuesTestable in the physical environmentTestable only by social consensus

Basic Assumptions Relationship to environmentNature of reality, time, and spaceNature of human natureNature of human activityNature of human relationships

Firstsource Solutions Ltd., & Eureka Forbes Ltd.,

Culture can be understood, in part through an examination of the behavior of organization members, Personal enactment is behavior that reflects the organizations values.

Firstsource Solutions Ltd.,

Mr. Santosh Vasudevan the operations manager at one of the process values good relationship and believes that people are the most important part of the organization, he conducts Open house meetings every two months to know the problems faced by the employees. The employees know that if their problems or concerns are addressed properly then they know they need to give 100% efficiency; he also goes out for dinner with the winning team who has performed exceptionally well.

Eureka Forbes Ltd.,

Mr. T. K. Ravikumar, a regional sales manager (Region – 5) {Karnataka & Andra Pradesh} His way of believing people in his organization by sharing the sales report of the business every month. The employees intern know that if monthly sales are higher than the sales in the previous year, He also recommends the General manager for Taking his team to Foreign tour if the sales team have achieved targets. [Last year they have toured to Thailand & Bangkok]

Relatively elaborated set of activities that are enacted time and again on important occasions are known as organizational ceremonies and rites.


1. Rites of enhancement: Reward and recognition for Best Customer Service Executive, Best Team, Best Team Leader, etc.,

2. Rites of integration: An annual picnic is planned every year, in the month of May{ In 2008,May they have been to Pondicherry}

Eureka Forbes Ltd.,

1. Rites of passage: Rewards the persons for retirements, Promotion, etc.,2. Rites of Integration: Annually 7 day fully paid tour is organized by the

organizations at various places in India {In January 2009 they have been to Goa}


Most of the researches have argued that the most effective way of reinforcing Organizational values is through Stories.


At the time of Induction or orientation program at Firstsource they show the videos, have lecture sessions about the Organization culture, values, integration and behavior. Stories about the past and the future of the organizations, about the Boss, Promotions, crises situation, When rules are broken, etc.,

Eureka Forbes Ltd.,

The story told and retold is different at Eureka Forbes ltd., as compared to Firstsource, the aspects they consider is any new employee need to go to different Branches they call it as “CRC” [Customer response centers], and speak to the higher level of management to know more about an organizations.

Symbols communicate organizational culture by unspoken messages.


When you look at the symbol of Firstsource there is an angle ring like design, this shows that in this organization they make sure you are well protected, and there is a blessing always.

Eureka Forbes Ltd.,

The logo of Eureka Forbes Ltd. Have a shining star, this shows how much importance one gets at this organization this shows the culture of the organization for any new idea that any of the employees have.

Values are the second and deeper level of culture; Values are often companies’ mission statement.



Respect

We respect each and every individual in our organization and believe this is key to creating and maintaining trust.

Teamwork

We believe that by working together everyone achieves more, leading to high performance which adds tangible value at all levels.

People Centricity

We are sensitive to employees’ needs and aspirations and provide opportunities for personal and professional growth.

Integrity

We ensure integrity by being fair, consistent and committed. We have zero tolerance for falsification of data or information.

Transparency

We value the feedback and opinion of our employees and clients. Our leaders are accessible and open to feedback at all times.

Fun

We create the right environment to ensure work is fun and engaging.

Eureka Forbes Ltd.,

Integrity and high ethical standards. Mutual respect and trust in our working relations. Communication that is open consistent and two ways. Diversity of people culture and ideas. Innovation and encouragement to challenge the status quo. Continuous improvement, development and Learning in all we do teamwork and meeting our commitments to one another performance with recognition for results.

Assumptions are the deeply held beliefs that guide behavior and tell members of an organization how to perceive and think about thing, as the deepest and most fundamental level of organizations culture.



Srinivas, Client Relations

Srinivas joined Firstsource in 2002 as Assistant Manager – Operations. During his career at Firstsource, Srinivas has worked across three different verticals - operations, F&A and Client Services. Srinivas has grown from Assistant Manager to Manager to DGM, Client Relations for a UK Banking and Financial Services client.

“It has been an enriching and exciting journey at Firstsource. I am delighted that inspite

of the expansion and growth the company has undergone, nothing much has changed in terms

of work ethics, management focus and the fantastic work culture. The most motivating part for

employees is that it is willing to grow people from within and give them opportunities and

hands-on-experience within new domains.”

Eureka Forbes Ltd.,

Mr. T. K. Ravikumar, a regional sales manager (Region – 5) {Karnataka & Andra Pradesh}

Joined as Sales Representative in 1998, Enthusiasm and desire to work and learn moved him to Head regional sales manager.

“Looking back, my journey at Eureka Forbes Ltd., has been an extremely fruitful and

rewarding one. It has been enriching as I have not only learnt the nuances of handling a

business but have also been able to witness the different stages of a business at different levels.

Eureka Forbes Ltd., is second to none in providing good employee benefits and serves as a

platform for providing career advancement. For me, growth was the biggest motivation to have

stayed back at Eureka Forbes Ltd.,”


Organizational culture (questionnaire)Greetings,

We the students of IFIM BUSINESS SCHOOL are conducting a survey to find out the Organizational culture in companies.

The filling up of this questionnaire will last approximately 8 minutes, and the information provided in this questionnaire is kept as confidential. We'd like to emphasize we are not selling anything, this is purely research and you will not receive any follow-ups from this research.

Name : Designation :

To what extent are the following statements true about the company?

Completely False

MostlyFalse

Somewhat False

Somewhat true

Mostlytrue

Completely true

1 2 3 4 5 6

___ In this company, people are expected to follow their own personal and moral beliefs.

___ People are expected to do anything to further the company’s interests.

___ In this company, people look out for each other’s good.

___ It is very important here to follow the company’s rules and procedures strictly.

___ In this company, people protect their own interest above others consideration.

___ The first consideration is whether a decision violates any law.

___ Everyone is expected to stick by company rules and procedure.

___ The most effective way is always the right way in the company.

___ Our major consideration is what is best for everyone in the company.

___ In this company, the law or ethical code of the profession in the major consideration.


___ It is expected at this company that employees will always do what is right for the customer and the public.

We appreciate your patience and the time you have allocated for filling the questionnaire, as you have given some valuable information and this adds as a catalyst to the study we are conducting.

Thank you,

Warm Regards,Students of IFIM Business School2009-11 PGDM-IB

Discussion

The Discussion is based on the questionnaire being filled by 25 people from different organizations and from different designations, before preparing the questionnaire we thought about the objective on the outcome of the culture in organization by the view point of the Employee.

The Objectives of the Questionnaire are:

1. The questionnaire is designed to find out the people from different industry how they rate their organizations Culture.

2. It focuses on the experience of the people.3. How they feel about their rules and procedures at the organization?4. How welcoming they are for the changes at their organization.5. It also focuses on the perception of an employee about the ethical behavior of their

organization.

The result of the questionnaire is given below,

Question 1

In this company, people are expected to follow their own personal and moral beliefs.

The questionnaire filled up by all the 25 people participated by answering this question, his question asked was basically to understand the personal and moral beliefs that they follow


in the company for which majority of 36% answered somewhat false and the also 32% of applicants believed somewhat true,

Question 1 1 2 3 4 5 6Percentage 8% 20% 36% 32% 4% 0%

Percentage

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Question 2

People are expected to do anything to further the company’s interests.

This question helps us in understanding the behavioral aspect of the employees to do anything for the benefit of the company’s interest, and 40% of the applicants agree that the company expects them to do as part of the cultural behavior, and non of then do not agree completely or completely disagree.



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Question 3

In this company, people look out for each other’s good.

This question helps us understand the relationship of colleges in the organization and the culture at which it is natured and this focuses at the relationship in the organization and this is very essential for any organization to have this kind of environment and 28% of the applicants agree that they have good environment and mostly agree about the fact.


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Question 4

It is very important here to follow the company’s rules and procedures strictly.


This helps understand the perception of the employees in the organization to follow the procedure and rules of the company strictly in the organization, which helps us understand the implication and the cultural behavior in the organization to follow the procedures, this helps define the organizational goals and values and the mission statement.


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Question 5

In this company, people protect their own interest above others consideration.

This question was asked to help us understand the relationship in the office with others employees and measure how healthy is it, this defines that loophole if any organization have it or not, and when we had the survey done almost 44% of them agree that they put their interest above others interest which is striking, as people are more selfish and non of the applicants deny the fact that they are not selfish when it comes to work,



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Question 6

The first consideration is whether a decision violates any law.

Almost 52 % of applicants surveyed agree somewhat that the decision would violate any law, but 36% of applicants say somewhat false, and this shows that in a organization only after taking some decision they actually come to know that this decision violates law, but from the findings we understand that the most of them do or do not agree, this shows that the organization behavior have a constrain called law, but without which may increase the concerns.


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Question 7

Everyone is expected to stick by company rules and procedure.


Most of them that is almost 80% of them agree with this that is due to the face that any organization do not expect to break any rules or procedures, until it is proven, and this makes most of the employees stick to their rules and procedures, and only 20% of them say that they do not stick to the rules.


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Question 8

The most effective way is always the right way in the company.

The Interesting fact from this question surveyed was that the percentage of people agree is just an inch less than that of the people who agree, 52% disagree or say false, and 48% applicants say True and Agree, this shows that the applicants are the best lot of the sample from the population that had been asked to answer this survey, the fact in this question shows that the people do not believe that doing right thing in the company do not help them grow in the company, and they this is because of the time consumed in choosing with way is correct and which is wrong.



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Question 9

Our major consideration is what is best for everyone in the company.

This shows that the ethical role for an employee in the company that if the Good number agree about a decision then the decision is good for an organization and this kind of environment is provided by the top level of management and this shows the responsibility to the ethical behavior of the employees to the organization.


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Question 10

In this company, the law or ethical code of the profession in the major consideration.

Majority of the applicants accept that the law and the ethical code of the profession is a major consideration in the company to grow and this helps in having a profession is a major consideration in the company to grow and this helps in having a positive culture and which


helps the organization to have a positive culture and which helps the organization to have a ethical code of conduct acceptable by law. Here 36% go by somewhat true and 32% by Mostly true. But none of them completely agree or completely disagree.


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Question 11

It is expected at this company that employees will always do what is right for the customer and the public.

A simple question which is a straight forward one which shows that the company or the

organization that applicants are working which always do the right for the customers and the

general public, and they do expect to do so, as an ethical understanding almost 84% of the

sample agree with this and a large crunch of 40% of applicants agree with somewhat true, and

rest 24% go by mostly true.



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Analyzing

To describe the results from the questionnaire, in a total of 25 applicants from different

organizations and from different designations there was 100% participation. There are some

striking outcomes that this questionnaire helped us to find out in this study and there was some

of the facts that once again reflected that the ethical behavior in an organization is very much

important and the Organization Culture and the leaders should be responsible for the culture at

the organization. This shows that for any organization, Organizational Culture & behavior is an

important factor.


Conclusion

Edgar Schein has concluded organizational culture & leadership to mainly include the

following:

Culture a phenomenon that surrounds us all.

Culture helps us understand how it is created, embedded, developed,

manipulated, managed, and changed.

Culture defines leadership.

Understand the culture to understand the organization.

Culture is customs and rights.

Good managers must work from a more anthropological model.

Each organization has its own way and an outsider brings his/her baggage as

observer.

Understand new environment and culture before change or observation can be

made.

Culture: norms, values, behaviour patterns, rituals, traditions.

Culture implies structural stability and Patterning and integration.

Culture is the accumulated shared learning from shared history.

Culture explains incomprehensible, irrational.

Organization with history has culture.

Not every group develops a culture.

Once culture exists it determines criteria of leadership.

Leaders should be conscious of culture otherwise it will manage them.

Culture is multidimensional, multifaceted.

Culture reflects group's efforts to cope and learn.

Every group must learn to be a group.

Groups must reach consensus.

Leaders should embed the assumptions into and create culture.

Leaders should get others to share assumptions.


Primary mechanisms used to embed in ongoing manner.

Secondary more subtle, more ambiguous, more difficult to control, yet can be

powerful reinforcements.

Primary mechanisms convey culture content to newcomers.

Secondary become primary in time.

New leaders become cultural change agents as organizations mature.

Remember to integrate subcultures.

Be sensitive to subcultures.

Building an effective organization is a matter of meshing by encouraging evolution of

common goals, common language, and common procedures to solve common problems.

Thus we understand from the above that organizational culture consists of an

organization’s shared values, symbols, behaviours, and assumptions. It allows its members to

frame events in a similar fashion and provides the stability an organization needs to survive in

an ever changing world. No perfect culture exists. In order to be the “right” culture for an

organization, it must be functional and allow the organization to meet its mission and goals. It is

very important that an organization periodically reviews its culture to make sure it still allows

the organization to succeed in its competitive environment. One can never truly understand an

organization until one understands the culture of that organization.

Whilst all writers highlight the importance of the human factors in implementation, we

can conclude that their differing views as to how to approach the people issues, reflects the

diversity of opinion within the broader perspective of change management. A diversity that

stems from the very different opinions as to what organizational culture is, and as to whether

and how it can be changed.

Based on the interaction with the industry & literature review, we can make a number

of tentative conclusions. First, that most organizations are making significant reductions in staff

numbers and that they are under-going significant change both in their type of organizational

structures and in their management styles. The employees of the organization do believe that


organizational culture can be changed, it seems there is little consensus as to the factors for

achieving such change, other than, it needs time to accomplish. Thirdly, that management is

not concerned about any ethical considerations in changing their employee’s values and beliefs.

A tentative conclusion is that most employee improvements occur when there is indeed

an emphasis on the harder techniques, particularly those that aim to directly change

employee’s behavioural patterns, but then most improvements occur where these are

complemented by a number of softer techniques.

Culture spans the range of management thinking and organizational culture has been

one of the most enduring buzzword of popular management. It is apparently unifying and this

strongly appeals to managements concern with projecting an image of the organization as a

community of interest. Perhaps most importantly culture penetrates to the essence of an

organization –it almost is comparable to the concept of personality in relation to the individual

and this acute sense of what an organization is - its mission, core values - seems to have

become a necessary asset of the modern company.

Organizational culture is a powerful force that has toppled the CEOs of Fortune 500

companies and turned small businesses into powerful success stories. But organizational

culture does not simply exist in the business world. All organizations no matter how big or small

have a culture.


organizational culture and leader behavior

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