CHAPTER TWO

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Theoretical Review

2.1.1 Definition of culture

The culture of a group can be defined as the accumulated shared learning of that group as it solves
its problems of external adaptation and internal integration; which has worked well enough to be
considered valid and, therefore, to be taught to new members as the correct way to perceive, think,
feel, and behave in relation to those problems. This accumulated learning is a pattern or system of
beliefs, values, and behavioral norms that come to be taken for granted as basic assumptions and
eventually drop out of awareness. (Edgar H. Schein, 5th edition 2016).

Culture is defined as the pervasive and shared beliefs, norms, and values that guide the everyday
life of a group. These beliefs, norms, and values are expressed to current group members and
passed on to future group members through rituals, stories, and symbols. (John B. Cullen, K.
Praveen Parboteeah, 6th edition 2014)

Organizational culture consists of shared values and assumptions. Values are stable, evaluative
beliefs that guide our preferences for outcomes or courses of action in a variety of situations. They
are conscious perceptions about what is good or bad, right or wrong. In the context of
organizational culture, values are discussed as shared values, which are values that people within
the organization or work unit have in common and place near the top of their hierarchy of values.
Organizational culture also consists of shared assumptions—a deeper element that some experts
believe is the essence of corporate culture. Shared assumptions are non-conscious, taken-for-
granted perceptions or ideal prototypes of behavior that are considered the correct way to think
and act toward problems and opportunities. (Steven McShane, Mary Ann Von Glinow, 8th edition
2017).

Organizational culture refers to a system of shared meaning held by members that distinguishes
the organization from other organizations. Organizational culture represents a perception the
organization’s members hold in common. (Stephen P. Robbins, Tim Judge - Essentials of
Organizational Behavior, 14th edition 2017)

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2.1.2 Characteristics of organizational culture

According to Stephen P. Robbins_ Tim Judge (2017) – there are seven primary characteristics
seem to capture the essence of an organization’s culture:

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,
and attention to detail.

3. Outcome orientation – The degree to which management focuses on results or outcomes rather
than on the techniques and processes used to achieve them.

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
individuals.

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

2.1.3 Levels of culture

According to Alan S. Gutterman’s study of 2023 research paper of organizational culture based on
Edgar H. Shein the researcher states that the culture in general can be analyzed at several different
levels, with the term “level” meaning the degree to which the cultural phenomenon is visible to
you as participant or observer.”

There are three major levels of culture.

1. Artifacts

Think of artifacts as the phenomena that you would see, hear, and feel when you encounter a new
group with an unfamiliar culture. Artifacts include the visible products of the group, such as the

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architecture of its physical environment; its language; its technology and products; its artistic
creations; its style, as embodied in clothing, manners of address, and emotional displays; its myths
and stories told about the organization; its published lists of values; and its observable rituals and
ceremonies.

2. Espoused Values

This level includes things such as organizational slogans and other visible expressions of
organizational mission, vision and internal and personal values (e.g., identifiable norms and formal
guidelines). Espoused values describe the desired state or outcome that the leaders of the
organization wish to achieve through the activities of the members of the organization and are
thought to have an important influence on how decisions are made within the organization and the
level of risk that the organization is willing to undertake.

3. Assumptions

This level includes the organization’s tacit core beliefs and assumptions that each member relies
on when interpreting and acting upon the organization's values and selecting the behavior that they
believe would be appropriate from the organization's cultural perspective. This level is definitely
the most difficult to assess since the elements of culture at this level are invisible and generally
exist without the awareness of members. These unconscious rules form the basis for norms of
behavior and standards of conduct that become deeply embedded through day-to-day interactions
of members that serve as a reinforcement mechanism.

2.1.4 Elements of culture

According to James Heskett explanation on his book win from within (2022) these are the elements
of culture:-

 Shared assumptions about people and the business: Why people want to work and why
they come to our workplace.
 Values shared by organization members: What governs how and why we do what we do.
 Generally accepted behaviors: How and why we do things around here.
 Artifacts (customs and traditions): Things that identify us from others.
 Measures of behaviors: What’s going right and wrong?

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  Actions triggered by the measures: How we recognize and correct behaviors.
 The organization’s mission: What we hope to achieve.

These are the elements of culture according to Heskett (2022) even if the first four are the basic
and accepted by other authors like Edgar H. Shien. Heskett added the last three as the new points.

2.1.5 Models (dimensions) of Culture

The researchers assess some models based on the book of John B. Cullen_ K. Praveen Parboteeah
- Multinational Management_ (2013).

A) Hofstede’s Cultural Model

The researchers try to assess each and every model types shortly and easily.

I. Power Distance

Power distance is concerned with how cultures deal with inequality. It focuses on:-

(1) The norms that tell superiors (bosses, leaders) to what extent they can determine the behavior
of their subordinates, and

(2) The belief that superiors and subordinates are fundamentally different kinds of people.

High-power-distance countries have norms, values, and beliefs such as the following:

 Inequality is fundamentally good.

 Everyone has a place; some are high, some are low.
 Most people should be dependent on a leader.
 The powerful are entitled to privileges.
 The powerful should not hide their power.
II. Uncertainty Avoidance

Uncertainty avoidance relates to norms, values, and beliefs regarding a tolerance for ambiguity. A
higher-uncertainty-avoidance culture seeks to structure social systems (such as politics, education,
and business) in such a way that order and predictability are paramount and rules and regulations
dominate. In such a culture, risky situations create stress and upset people. Consequently, people
avoid behaviors such as changing jobs.

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High-uncertainty-avoidance countries have norms, values, and beliefs such as the following:

 Conflict should be avoided.

 Deviant people and ideas should not be tolerated.
 Laws are very important and should be followed.
 Experts and authorities are usually correct.
 Consensus is important.
III. Individualism/Collectivism

The values, norms, and beliefs associated with individualism focus on the relationship between
the individual and the group. Individualistic cultures view people as unique. People are valued in
terms of their own achievements, status, and other unique characteristics. The cultural values
associated with individualism are often discussed with the opposing set of values, called
collectivism. Collectivist cultures view people largely in terms of the groups to which they belong.
Social groups such as family, social class, organization, and team all take precedence over the
individual.

Countries high on individualism have norms, values, and beliefs such as the following:

 People are responsible for themselves.

 Individual achievement is ideal.
 People need not be emotionally dependent on organizations or groups.

In contrast, collectivist countries have norms, values, and beliefs such as the following:

 One’s identity is based on group membership.

 Group decision making is best.
 Groups protect individuals in exchange for their loyalty.
IV. Masculinity

Different cultural expectations for men and women occur in all societies. In all cultures, men and
women are socialized differently and usually perform different roles. A variety of studies shows
that in most—but certainly not all—cultures, male socialization places a greater emphasis on
achievement, motivation, and self-reliance. In contrast, the socialization of women emphasizes
nurturance and responsibility. As a cultural dimension, masculinity represents the overall tendency
of a culture to support the traditional masculine orientation; that is, higher masculinity means that

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the business culture of a society takes on traditional masculine values, such as an emphasis on
advancement and earnings. However, within each culture, there remain gender differences in
values and attitudes.

High-masculinity countries have norms, values, and beliefs such as the following:

 Gender roles should be clearly distinguished.

 Men are assertive and dominant.
 Machismo or exaggerated maleness in men is good
 People—especially men—should be decisive.
 Work takes priority over other duties, such as family.
 Advancement, success, and money are important.
V. Long-Term Orientation

Long term oriented culture focus as on the future and take a long prospective with emphasis on
values associated to thrift and presentation. In short-term-oriented cultures, leaders use quick
rewards that focus on pay and rapid promotion. Employees in long-term-oriented cultures value
security, and leaders work on developing social obligations.

B) 7D Cultural Dimensions Model

The 7d cultural model builds on traditional anthropological approaches to understanding culture.

Anthropologists argue that culture comes into existence because all humans must solve basic
problems of survival. These challenges include how people relate to others, such as family
members, supervisors, friends, and fellow workers; how people deal with the passage of time; and
how people relate to their environment. All cultures develop ways to confront these basic issues,
but their strategies are not the same, which is why cultures differ significantly.

Five of the seven dimensions of the 7d cultural model deal with the challenges of how people relate
to each other. Each dimension is a continuum or range of cultural differences.

The seven dimensions are listed and discussed shortly below:

- The five dimensions that deal with relationships among people are:

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1. Universalism versus particularism: The choice of dealing with other people based on rules or
based on personal relationships.

2. Collectivism versus individualism: The focus on group membership versus individual

characteristics.

3. Neutral versus affective: The range of feelings outwardly expressed in the society.

4. Diffuse versus specific: The types of involvement people have with each other, ranging from all
aspects of life to specific components.

5. Achievement versus ascription: The assignment of status in a society based on performance

(e.g., college graduation) versus assignment based on heritage.

- The two final dimensions deal with how a culture manages time and how it deals with nature:

6. past, present, future, or a mixture: The orientation of the society to the past, present, or future
or some combination of the three.

7. “Control of”versus“accommodation with “nature: Nature viewed as something to be controlled

versus something to be accepted

2.1.6 Concept and Model of Culture Creation

(Source: Edgar H Schein - Organizational Culture and Leadership (2016))

 Concept of culture creation

Culture is ultimately a characteristic of a group, just as personality and character are ultimately
characteristics of an individual. Just as personality theory is relevant to understanding individuals,
group dynamics theories and models are relevant to understanding culture.

Founders of groups and organizations may not be aware of the dynamic issues they are grappling
with, but those issues are there and need to be considered as determinants of the kind of culture
that ends up being created.

 A Model of How Culture Forms in New Groups

The book of Shien deals the model based on the study of Tuchman (1965) as forming, storming,
norming, and performing:

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Stage 1 - Forming: Finding One’s Identity and Role

The group is brought together for some purpose such as learning or performing some task. There
is a convener, leader, and founder unless environmental circumstances or some crisis like an
accident throws a group of people together into a shared-fate situation. The new members
automatically face the questions of identity and role (Who am I to be in this group?); authority and
influence (Who will control whom in this group, and will I have my own influence needs met?);
and intimacy (How will I relate to the other members of this group and at what level?).

These issues will preoccupy a new member no matter how structured the group is and no matter
how much the convener assigns roles and states norms. However, the convener’s approach and
style will determine the direction in which these issues are worked out by the members, as we will
see in the case examples of founders creating companies. This stage can be as short as a pre-
meeting lunch or as long as years if there is no informal time provided for building relationships.

Stage 2, Storming: Resolving Who Will Have Authority and Influence

To sort out their identity, role, influence, and peer relationships, group members begin by explicitly
or implicitly confronting and testing each other. That testing inevitably starts around the issue of
authority and influence and will show up in confronting the convener and any emergent leader.
The convener can “bury” the issue by being a strong chair or relying compulsively on Robert’s
Rules of Order, but the issue will then surface around disagreements and challenges on the task
work itself. It is for this reason that it is not wise to give a brand-new group a task; the members
will work out their own identity issues around the task without paying enough attention to the task
itself. The convener or founder can freeze the group at Level 1, leave the door open for spontaneous
personalization to arise in the group, or stimulate Level 2 immediately by being more personal
himself or herself. Entrepreneur founders will have an enormous influence at this stage according
to how they present themselves to the people they recruit, hire, and train as well as the kinds of
formal systems they create for how work will be done.

Stage 3, Norming: Resolving at Which Level of Relationship We Want to Operate

How does such “recognition” come about? It is again a matter of making explicit what has been
going on implicitly by naming it. Some member will say, “Why are we always ignoring what Mary

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is trying to say,” or “Let’s just get this done, Joe seems to have the right direction,” or “Do we all
have to participate equally?” If the group is relatively open, someone might even say, “For this
task I think we should let Helen be the leader, because she knows the most about it, but when we
need quick action, Pete always seems to get us there faster.” “Do we all want to stay task focused
and efficient [Level 1], or do we want to get to know each other a bit [Level 2]?” It is again the
persons who are least conflicted about the issue of closeness that will see and name the issue. The
convener or leader is also in a critical position to do this by pointing out that the members are all
different and have different talents and needs, and that the strength of the group is in the variety
rather than the homogeneity. That insight makes it possible for members to replace the illusion of
“we all like each other” with the reality that “we can all understand, accept, and appreciate each
other.” This insight creates Stage 4.

Stage 4, Performing: The Problem of Task Accomplishment

Only when this stage is reached can the group really use its resources to work effectively.
Unfortunately, many groups get stuck either at stage 1, with members continuing to struggle for
influence and power, or at stage 2, believing they are great and all like each other. In both cases
the members are still thinking about themselves and their role in the group and are, therefore,
unable to give full attention to the group’s task. The leader now has to ensure that consensus is
reached on what the task is and how best to tackle it, especially with regard to the problem-solving
methods, the decision processes, and the assessment method the group should use to track its
progress.

2.1.7 Types of organizational culture

According to the study of Rasak Bamidele Ph.D. (Landmark University, (January 2022)) the
researcher states tried to assess the works of some scholars. It is essential to note that not only one
organizational culture exists. Academic literature generally accepts that numerous organizations
have distinctive cultures. Based on this the researcher concluded that there are four primary forms
of organizational culture:

1. Internal process model

In order to maintain continuity and control, the internal process model requires a control/ internal
emphasis in which information management and communication are used. This model has often

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been referred to as a ‘hierarchical society’ because it requires the regulation of technical matters,
obedience, and obedience to laws. The internal process model most explicitly represents the
conventional bureaucracy and public administration theoretical model that relies on structured
rules and procedures as control mechanisms.

2. Open systems model

A flexibility/external emphasis in which preparation and adaptability are used to achieve

development, resource acquisition and external support is included in the open systems model.
This paradigm has also been referred to as a ‘developmental culture’ because it is related to creative
innovative leaders who often retain an external environment emphasis.

3. Human relations model

The model of human relations requires a flexibility/internal orientation in which training and wider
human resources growth are used to create harmony and the morale of employees. This
organizational culture model has often been referred to as ‘community culture’ because, through
collaboration, it is correlated with confidence and involvement. Managers aim to promote and
mentor staff in organizations of this kind (Bradley and Parker, 2001, 2006).

4. Rational goal model

A control/external orientation in which planning and target setting are used to achieve productivity
and performance is included in the logical goal model. Due to its focus on performance and goal
achievement, this type of organizational culture is referred to as a rational culture. Production-
oriented organizations of this kind organize and managers organize workers in pursuit of
designated objectives and targets, and incentives are related to performance (Bradley and Parker,
2001, 2006). The meaning of this academic interpretation of culture forms is not that in
organizations the styles occur in any pure form. Several cultural forms may be displayed by
organizations. Rather, in our interpretation of prevailing cultures and thinking about what re-
balancing is required if culture is to be moved to embrace new behaviors and values, such
typologies aid.

(Source: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/357605292)

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2.1.8 What do organizational culture do?

 Functions of culture

Does organizational culture improve organizational effectiveness? Launi Skinner. “You can have
the best strategy in the world, but culture will kill strategy,”

Quicken Loans CEO Bill Emerson agrees. When asked why he Detroit-based finance company
has grown so quickly, Emerson replied: “The No. 1 thing is culture. It allows us to move very
quickly and react very quickly in making business decisions.”

(Source: Steven McShane, Mary Ann Von Glinow - Organizational Behavior (2017))

According to Stephen P. Robbins_ Tim Judge - Essentials of Organizational Behavior (2017) these
are the basic functions of culture:-

1. It has a boundary-defining role: It creates distinctions between organizations.

2. It conveys a sense of identity for organization members.
3. Culture facilitates commitment to something larger than individual self-interest.
4. It enhances the stability of the social system. Culture is the social glue that helps hold the
organization together by providing standards for what employees should say and do.
5. It is a sense-making and control mechanism that guides and shapes employees attitudes
and behavior.
 Strong versus Weak Cultures

It’s possible to differentiate between strong and weak cultures. If most employees (responding to
surveys) have the same opinions about the organization’s mission and values, the culture is strong;
if opinions vary widely, the culture is weak.

In a strong culture, the organization’s core values are both intensely held and widely shared. The
more members who accept the core values and the greater their commitment, the stronger the
culture and thegreater its influence on member behavior. The reason is that a high degree of shared
values and intensity create a climate of high behavioral control. A strong culture should reduce
employee turnover because it demonstrates high agreement about what the organization represents.
Such unanimity of purpose builds cohesiveness, loyalty, and organizational commitment. These
qualities, in turn, lessen employees’ propensity to leave.

(Source: John B. Cullen_ K. Praveen Parboteeah - Multinational Management_ (2013))

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Companies are more effective when they have strong cultures because of the three important
functions listed below:

1. Control system – Organizational culture is a deeply embedded form of social control that
influences employee decisions and behavior. Culture is pervasive and operates non-consciously.
Think of it as an automatic pilot, non-consciously directing employees so their behavior is
consistent with organizational expectations. For this reason, some writers describe organizational
culture as a compass that points everyone in the same direction.

2. Social glue – Organizational culture is the social glue that bonds people together and makes
them feel part of the organizational experience. Employees are motivated to internalize the
organization’s dominant culture because it fulfills their need for social identity. This social glue
attracts new staff and retains top performers. It also becomes the common thread that holds
employees together in global organizations. “The values of the company are really the bedrock —
the glue which holds the firm together,” say former Infosys CEO Nandan Nilekani.

3. Sense making - Organizational culture helps employees make sense of what goes on and why
things happen in the company. Corporate culture also makes it easier for them to understand what
is expected of them. For instance, research has found that sales employees in companies with
stronger organizational cultures have clearer role perceptions and less role-related stress.

(Source: Steven McShane, Mary Ann Von Glinow - Organizational Behavior (2017))

 Culture Creates Climate

If you’ve worked with someone whose positive attitude inspired you to do your best, or with a
lackluster team that drained your motivation, you’ve experienced the effects of climate.
Organizational climate refers to the shared perceptions organizational members have about their
organization and work environment. This aspect of culture is like team spirit at the organizational
level. When everyone has the same general feelings about what’s important or how well things are
working, the effect of these attitudes will be more than the sum of the individual parts. One meta-
analysis found that across dozens of different samples, psychological climate was strongly related
to individuals’ levels of job satisfaction, involvement, commitment, and motivation. A positive
workplace climate has been linked to higher customer satisfaction and organizational financial
performance as well. Dozens of dimensions of climate have been studied, including innovation,

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creativity, communication, warmth and support, involvement, safety, justice, diversity, and
customer service. There are a number of findings managers can use to improve their plans for
organizational design and team building. For example, someone who encounters a diversity
climate will feel more comfortable collaborating with coworkers regardless of their demographic
backgrounds. Climates can interact with one another to produce behavior. For example, a climate
of worker empowerment can lead to higher levels of performance in organizations that also have
a climate of personal accountability. Climate also influences the habits people adopt. If there is a
climate of safety, everyone wears safety gear and follows safety procedures even if individually
they wouldn’t normally think very often about being safe—indeed, many studies have shown that
a safety climate decreases the number of documented injuries on the job.

(Source: Stephen P. Robbins_ Tim Judge – Essentials of organizational behavior (2017))

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2.2 Empirical Review
According to Elias Tadesse’s study (2019) at Equatorial Business PLC: Dynamics and conducive
organizational culture is mandatory for the contemporary organizations to have satisfied and
productive employees under the intense of global completion. Realizing this, the main aim of this
research was to determine the practice of organizational culture at Equatorial Business Group PLC
and recommend to improve the poorly perceived areas of its culture. Stratified sampling based on
job level was used to make the population representative in each stratum. For a total of population
in the study area 240 (52%) were selected as respondents. 240 copies of questionnaires were
administered to head office but only 220 (91.67%) were returned and used for analysis. The study
made use of descriptive statics to obtain the results. Almost all organizational culture variables,
dominant characteristics, institutional leadership, management of employees, strategic emphasis
and criteria success are poorly perceived by the employees which is by far below the average score
(50%). Finally, the study concluded by providing possible recommendations such as the
managements must take immediate adjustment to the culture dimensions scored below average
(50%) and special attention must be given to senior officer employees as they poorly perceived
their organization culture. It is recommended that the organization has to create opportunities that
allow senior officers to management position or to any other career advancement.

According to Tesfaye, Tigist (2020) studies the effect of organizational culture on organizational
effectiveness: the case of Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital: Even though there is an assumption that
organizational culture is one variable which can affect an organization’s function but there are few
studies which explicitly discuss the effect it has on organizational effectiveness. The main purpose
of this study was to examine five traits of organizational culture; involvement, consistency,
adaptability and mission and how they affect organizational effectiveness in the case Addis Ababa
fistula hospital (AAFH). For the study the researcher deployed explanatory research design and
stratified sampling using the five sectors of AAFH functions. Proportion to population size method
was used to distribute the sample in each stratum. The data had been gathered through structured
questionnaire from 154 current employees of AAFH and an in-depth interview with managers.
The collected data were analyzed using statistical package for social science version 25. In order
to check the reliability and internal consistency of the questionnaire, Cronbach alpha was tested.
Both Descriptive as well as inferential statistics were used to analyze the data and interpret results.
According to the results of regression analysis, it can be concluded that 55.0% of variation in
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organizational effectiveness is accountable for organizational culture. Specifically, Adaptability
and Mission sub culture dimensions have a positive and a high significant effect on organizational
effectiveness. Based on the research findings and research conclusions, major recommendations
such as; employees’ capacity development, performance management system, and emphasis
should be given on AAFH’s involvement and consistency practices in order to enhance the
effectiveness of employees’ satisfaction and commitment.

According to Hamed M. S. Ahmed and Abdilkerim Asrar Seman research on organizational

culture in health sector at Werabe University 2023. The dedication of employees has been a major
factor in determining an organization's success. In order to retain more employees and boost
success, productivity, and effectiveness, organizations are becoming more and more interested in
the topic of employee commitment. Examining how organizational culture affects employees'
commitment in the context of Werabe Comprehensive Specialized Hospital was the primary goal
of this study. To achieve the intended purpose of the study, the researcher used both descriptive
and explanatory research designs. The 626 employees who made up the study's target population
were selected from 232 samples using a proportional stratified random selection technique. Both
primary and secondary data sources were employed in the investigation. The study adopted the
culture and commitment questionnaires from Denison (1990) and Onyango (2014) as the primary
sources for data collection. Both descriptive (frequency, percentage, mean, and standard deviation)
and inferential statistics were carefully used to analyze the data that had been collected. According
to the study, commitment among employees was positively and statistically significantly impacted
by involvement, flexibility, and mission. Contrarily, consistency has a statistically significant
detrimental impact on workers' commitment. Additionally, engagement, followed by adaptability,
is the organizational culture characteristic that contributes the most to the prediction of employees'
commitment. Considering the positive impact of organizational culture on the improvement of
employees commitment, the researcher advised the hospital to increase involvement, adaptability,
and other organizational culture traits. Based on the findings, the researcher recommended that
well-structured organizational cultures will offer a viable advantage for organizations, specifically
increasing employees’ commitment.

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According to Peke-Ndawanapo Anghuwo study of the impact of the Organizational culture on
employee productivity in NamPort (2021). The primary objective of this study is to investigate the
impact of organizational culture on employee productivity in Namport. The study was primarily
anchored on the Denison Model. The hypothesized relationship between organizational culture
and employee productivity was tested by adopting an explanatory survey design that employed a
quantitative research method. Simple random sampling procedure was used to select a sample of
168 respondents from a target population that consisted of white-collar NamPort employees with
access to work computers. The study collected primary data through an online survey that utilized
a questionnaire with structured questions. Specifically, descriptive and inferential statistics
analyzed the quantitative data through SPSS. Following data analysis, the study revealed that
organizational culture has a significant impact on employee productivity in NamPort. Furthermore,
the results indicated a positive correlation between organizational culture dimensions and
employee productivity. Moreover, the findings revealed that the consistency dimension exerts the
strongest positive and significant influence on the dependent variable, as evidenced by the R-value
of 0.978 for the regression coefficient. Based on the research conclusions, the study recommends
that NamPort’s executive team recognizes the critical role of organizational culture in the
organization’s growth and success. In addition, recommendations were also made to broaden the
scope of the research to other segments of the maritime industry, to strengthen the findings.

According to Tewodros Bayeh study on the impact of organizational culture on corporate

performance (2016) at Walden University. Lack of effective organizational culture and poor
cultural integration in the corporate group affect organizational performance and decrease
shareholders return. The purpose of this exploratory case study was to explore successful strategies
that one corporate group used to establish an effective organizational culture to improve
performance. The Denison organizational culture model served as the conceptual framework for
the study. A purposive sample of 20 senior managers from a corporate group in Ethiopia
participated in semi structured face-to-face interviews. The selected participant met the criteria of
a minimum 5 years of experience with successful strategies in establishing an effective
organizational culture in the corporate group. The interview data were transcribed, categorized,
and coded; they were subsequently member checked and triangulated to increase the
trustworthiness of interpretations. The findings included a well-defined mission that attributed to
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developing shared understanding between employees and managers, and employee-focused
leadership that contributed to motivating employees. Core corporate value findings included the
well-being of the society through self-regulated corporate social responsibility. The findings
identified in this study could have potential for economic growth in the local economy and may
contribute to social change with strategies business managers may use to sustain their business and
improve the life standards of employees and the local community.

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