Sharon Turnbull

Have you ever wondered why there is so much talk about organisational culture these days and why there are so many management books written about the topic?

An awareness of culture can make a big difference to how you perceive management problems and to how you act on these problems. Understanding cultures can enhance inter-group relationships, and perhaps, even help you get a promotion more quickly.

Whether you are working in a very stable culture, or one which is constantly in transition, we will show you that you can be more effective as a manager if you understand how your culture works.

The objectives for this topic are to explore:

• What is culture?
• Where do cultures come from?
• How can culture affect your job and your organization?

We know that culture figures prominently in changing an organization. Where it has been and what it stands for, will significantly determine where it is able to go. You have to manage culture to manage change.

To manage culture you have to understand who plays what role in sustaining, challenging, and shifting that culture. When a culture change program has been launched, it is tempting for leaders to move straight on to other challenges, often taking their eyes off the ‘cultural ball’; but this is exactly the time when leaders need to be most alert to what is happening on the ground.

The objectives for this topic are to:

• Recognize the range of different behaviour patterns that emerge once a culture change has been launched.
• Understand what these responses mean, why they occur, and how you can work with them to ensure sustained change.
• Learn to gauge how people are really feeling about the change.