Culture Audits
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CulturalAuditnew.pptxMGMT 3700: Cultural Audit
Selina Griswold
What is Corporate Culture?
In basic terms, culture is the set of enduring and underlying assumptions and norms that determine how things are actually done in the organization.
A coherent culture is based on shared values and beliefs, and the evidence they are shared is that they shape behavior across the organization.
The challenge for leadership is knowing how to instill or modify those assumptions and norms in the direction that is needed.
Corporate Culture
How do you learn what the corporate culture is, when you are new to an organization?
What if the corporate culture is not working?
Employees often have a difficult time sounding off to management. Their livelihood depends on keeping their jobs, and if the culture in the organization is the kind where, “We don’t talk about our problems” then the employee will shut down and keep their opinions to themselves.
Cultural Audit
Culture is a challenge to measure, in part, because of the built-in structural and behavioral forces that can keep CEOs and senior management from having their finger on the cultural pulse of the organization.
Executive leaders also have a vested interest in getting the CEO’s approval, and if that approval only goes to people who report what leadership wants to hear, it can mean the true state of affairs is not known.
Conducting the Audit
You need to get beyond the symptoms to treat an illness. To audit culture means auditors are now looking at the primary drivers of human behavior.
It’s not a “them” issue. If employees are unhappy or only hitting minimums, it’s not necessarily because they have inherently bad attitudes. Culture develops at all levels, but it’s ultimately shaped by the people at the top. Whether intentional or not, the strongest leadership values trickle down to mold your company’s culture and people’s behavior.
Who/what are you auditing?
Enablers - the processes and frameworks in place to support the desired culture of the organization;
Drivers - the incentives to encourage the right behaviors, such as recruitment to hire the right people, reward and performance management;
Belief - focused on what colleagues actually felt and believed in and considered actual behaviors.
What methods can be utilized?
A culture audit normally requires several different methods to assess the current state of the culture in your organization. To assess your culture, you can use the following:
Go to: http://www.ultiproweb.net/pdf/whitepapers/cultureassessmentfinalfinal.pdf (use this handout for the cultural audit assignment, it will provide invaluable information)
culture walks, observation in the workplace;
culture interviews or focus groups of employees;
individual employee culture interviews;
culture surveys, often developed internally based on collected information; and
commercially available instruments.
What are the pros and cons of the above?
Purpose of the audit?
The purpose of a culture audit is to identify the messages staff currently receive and then to assess whether those messages are the right ones, or if they are sending contradictory signals increasing levels of insight—that will help get to the culture you desire.
Parameters of the audit?
Who do you think should oversee the audit?
Should the participants have anonymity?
Who will analyze the results? What will be shared?
Should the audit be conducted internally or by someone external to the organization?
How will “minority” groups be treated in the process and results?
Tips for a successful audit
Getting senior executive and board support won’t be easy, but it’s important for internal audit so push for it. One of the ways to do that is to demonstrate expertise on connecting culture to risk management.
Whatever audit methods are used, the resulting information needs to be filtered through professional judgment and presented in a way that can influence change.
Some reports suggest that informal communication of culture audit results might be better than formal reporting. This puts the emphasis on internal audit’s role as a trusted adviser.
Tips for a successful audit
Understand there will never be a “good” time to conduct an audit, but putting it off will only perpetuate internal problems and stifle your growth potential. Ignoring an issue doesn’t make it go away.
Conducting an audit and not changing anything can cause employees to lose trust in the organization or the process.
For the assignment:
Do not just provide your answer, I need justification in case I do not agree with your perspective.
I do not expect you to simply say—just hire a consultant and let them take care of it.
I expect you to think about the benefits and ramifications of the cultural audit. All of the answers are not just copy and paste—it requires utilizing what you already know about diversity and inclusion.
UNIVERSITY CULTURES : Leading organizational change
Undertaking a cultural audit :
Example of a cultural audit instrument
The following bullet points form a sample survey that might be used as part of your cultural audit. The survey
might help to clarify how open and collegial your work setting is seen to b e.
My knowledge, skills and abilities are recogn ized and valued by my supervisor and colleagues .
Staff in our area are given a good orientation about the culture, systems and expectations that they need to
understand.
My department head shares information from the university with staff.
I am confident of finding the guidance I need for work -related tasks.
Generally people are generous in sharing their knowledge and expertise .
I strongly support the department’s priorities .
My supervisor looks for opportu nities for me to develop my professional and academic capabilities .
My last performance review was a constructive discussion of my progress and developmental needs .
I am valued for the knowledge and expertise that I share with my colleagues .
People are respected and valued for the roles they play .
We are not afraid to admit we have made a mistake .
We watch out for and support each other .
Collaboration is encouraged in this department .
My primary goal is to focus on my personal career .
Innovation is a feature of this department.
My colleagues regularly share what they learn .
I am confident that I can access the best sources of support when I need them .
I am aware of the work and roles that other colleagues undertake .
I have a good understanding of the lates t university strategic plan and its priorities .
Overall, this department is a caring environment in which to work .
I am confident that the department is a very effective community that supports each individual .
I have a mentor who assists and supports me .
My teaching role is supported and valued by other colleagues .
If I need help in doing my research , I can call on people who are more experienced .
We have a strong focus on quality improvement .
The student experience is a high priority for staff in this department.
Leadership is shown by most senior staff in this department.
