Unit 12 corporate culture

Lead-in

1. Split into groups. Within your group discuss the issues below. Share the opinion of your group with the others.

1. How do you understand the term “corporate culture”?

2. What is the role of corporate culture in successful business?

2. Choose the factors which are influenced by corporate culture. Then comment on your choice.

- communication in the company

- profit of the company

- planning

- decision-making

- image of the company

- management of the company

- size of the company

- personal relations in the company

- hobbies and interests of employees

- payment of work in the company

Key Vocabulary

Study the following list of vocabulary.

1. corporate culture	корпоративная культура(свод наиболее важных положений деятельности организации, определяемых её миссией и стратегией развития и находящих выражение в совокупности социальных норм и ценностей разделяемых большинством работников)
2. belief n	вера, мнение, убеждение
3. staff n	штат служащих, персонал
4. govern v	управлять, править, руководить
5. behave v	вести себя, поступать
6. evolve v	развиваться, эволюционировать
7. employee n	служащий, работающий по найму
8. restrict v	ограничивать
9. solve a problem	решать проблему
10. perceive v	воспринимать, понимать, осознавать
11. perception n	восприятие, осмысление, осознание
12. background n	происхождение, биографические данные, связи, окружение (всё, что связано с жизнью человека)
13. research n	исследование, исследовательская работа
14. encourage v	поощрять, поддерживать в чём-л.
15. accuracy n	точность
16. emphasize v	придавать особое значение, подчёркивать
17. status quo	статус-кво, существующее положение вещей

Pre-reading Activities

1. Complete the table with missing words. Consult a list of Key Vocabulary and a dictionary if necessary.

Verb	Noun
	belief
perceive
	government
solve
employ
	behaviour
restrict

2. Translate the sentences into Russian. Mind the words from exercise 1.

1. People’s creativity is restricted by routine and traditional office hours.

2. Many governments cut advertising expenditures during poor economic times.

3. A slogan is believed to express a key corporate value.

4. In recent years, there have been changes in employment, which have affected practically all the work force.

5. It’s known that employee’s behavior influences the image of the company.

Reading

Read the text and be ready to speak about corporate culture and its characteristics.

Corporate culture can be defined as a set of key values, beliefs, understandings and norms shared by members of an organization. It represents the unwritten, informal norms that bind the company staff together. Just as tribal cultures have rules and taboos that dictate how members will act toward one another, modern organizations have cultures that govern how their members should behave. In every company, there are systems or patterns of values, symbols, rituals, myths, and practices that have evolved over time. These shared values determine what employees see and how they respond to their world. When confronted with a problem, corporate culture restricts what employees can do by suggesting the correct way – “the way we do things here” – to define, analyze and solve the problem.

Corporate culture is a perception, because individuals perceive the culture of the company on the basis of what they see or hear within this company. Even though individuals may have different backgrounds or work at different levels in the organization, they tend to describe the organization’s culture in similar terms. That is the shared aspect of culture.

Corporate culture is also a descriptive term, because it is concerned with how members perceive the company and it is not concerned with the fact whether they like it. So, corporate culture describes rather than evaluates.

Research suggests that there are 7 characteristics which cover the essence of an organization’s culture.

1. Innovation and risk taking. The degree to which employees are encouraged to be innovative and to take risks.

2. Attention to detail. The degree to which employees are expected to show accuracy, analysis and attention to detail.

3. Outcome orientation. The degree to which managers focus on results or outcomes rather than on the techniques and processes used to achieve those outcomes.

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 and cooperative.

7. Stability. The degree to which company activities emphasize maintaining the status quo in contrast to growth.

Comprehension Check

1. Agree or disagree with these statements about the text.

1. Corporate culture represents the unwritten, informal norms that bind the company staff together.

2. Corporate culture evaluates rather than describes.

3. Research suggests that there are 10 characteristics which cover the essence of an organization’s culture.

4. In every company, there are systems or patterns of values, symbols, rituals, myths and practices that have evolved over time.

2. Answer the following questions.

1. How is corporate culture defined in the text?

2. Why is corporate culture considered to be a perception?

3. Why is corporate culture considered to be a descriptive term?

4. What are the characteristics which cover the essence of an organization’s culture?

3. Choose the suitable title for the first paragraph of the text.

A. The shared values of corporate culture.

B. The definition of corporate culture.

C. The informal norms of corporate culture.