Develop the culture of your organisation

Every organisation, whatever its size or history, has a culture (simply defined as ‘the way we do things around here’). The culture of an organisation is based on assumptions and values about organisations, working life and relationships. These values influence the way people behave towards each other and customers, and how they relate to their work. There may be no such thing as a ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ culture. However, the culture of an organisation must be in line with its overall vision and strategy. If culture and strategy do not match, it’s unlikely the vision will be achieved.

For purposes of this standard, an ‘organisation’ can mean a self-contained entity such as a private sector company, a charity or a local authority, a significant operating unit, with a relative degree of autonomy, within a larger organisation or as a freelance/sole trader.

 

This standard is recommended for managers and advanced practitioners. 

1. agree values and assumptions that encourage behaviour that is consistent with your organisation’s overall vision and strategy and the needs and interest of key stakeholders

2. make sure your personal behaviour, actions and words consistently reinforce these values and assumptions

3. communicate agreed values to people across your organisation and motivate them to put these into practice

4. influence the organisations policies, programmes, and systems to support agreed values

5. challenge behaviours that conflict with your organisation’s values

6. monitor and review behaviours, policies, programmes, and systems against your organisations values

7. identify improvements to behaviour, policies, programmes, and systems

8. implement changes to continually improve 

9. follow current legislation, guidelines, policies, procedures and protocols which are relevant to your work practice and to which you must adhere

1. the concept of culture as applied to organisations

2. different definitions of organisational culture

3. the importance of values in underpinning individual and organisational performance

4. internal and external factors that influence organisations culture, including national cultures

5. the relationship between organisational culture, strategy, and performance

6. the principles and methods of managing culture change within organisations

7. dominant types of organisational culture in your sector and their strengths and limitations

8. your organisations vision and strategy

9. your organisations current culture

10. effective methods of communicating values, and supporting the way they are applied in your organisation

11. effective ways of dealing with behaviours that conflict with agreed values and assumptions

12. the importance of monitoring and reviewing behaviours, policies, programmes, and strategy’s

13. the ways to identify and implement improvements

14. current legislation, guidelines, policies, procedures and protocols which are relevant to your work practice and to which you must adhere