The Four Types Of Organizational Culture

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Every organization has its own culture that plays an important role in shaping the behavior of the organization and its employees. One definition of organizational culture states it is “the values and behaviors that contribute to the unique social and psychological environment of an organization” including “the organization’s expectations, experiences, philosophy, and values that hold it together” (Organizational Culture, 2015). Basically, organizational culture is the combination of a company’s “attitudes, beliefs, customs, and written and unwritten rules that have been developed over time and are considered valid” (Organizational Culture, 2015).
There are a variety of ideas regarding the components an organization needs develop a strong …show more content…

These four types of structure are explained in detail in a white paper issued by Canfield Haworth (2009):
• The first culture type, control, is very formal. Organizations with this culture value standardization, control, and a well-defined structure for authority and decision making. Organizations with a control culture also have multiple layers of management that value standards and procedures and rely strongly on rules and bureaucracy. Since coordination and compliance are paramount in this culture, these organizations require leaders that can organize, coordinate, and monitor people and processes in order to be effective.
• The second culture type, compete, is still very formal because these organizations value stability and control but they differ in that they focus more on external relationships that help them achieve success. In these organizations, results speak louder than anything else and leaders must be able to effectively manage internal competitiveness and drive productivity to be …show more content…

These organizations seek to find new opportunities to develop products, services, and relationships and must be flexible, adaptable, and comfortable with a certain degree of chaos in order to be successful (e.g. high tech companies).
The culture of Hospital Corporation of America (HCA) has some aspects of all four of these culture types but I feel it is most similar to the collaborate culture. HCA has a very strategic hierarchy with many layers of management and is dependent on rules and procedures because of the nature of their business, communication and autonomy throughout the organization are very collaborative. While there is a need to be flexible and adaptable, there is a strong sense of common goals that are tied to the mission of the organization to provide the highest level of healthcare available in the communities served.
• Control at HCA – HCA maintains an overarching executive structure at the corporate level with sub units in individual hospital divisions. Each division has a CEO with their own executive leadership hierarchy that reports to the CEO of HCA. Using input from his direct reports, the CEO develops the overall direction and vision of the organization and then uses the corporate structure to strategically carry that

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