Leadership and the Role of Organizational Culture
Name
American Public University
MGMT605: Leadership
Instructor
Date
Leadership and the Role of Organizational Culture
The leadership of an organization plays an integral role in the establishment of an environment that promotes a strong organizational culture. The goals and ambitions of any organization are shaped and achieved through the collective actions of its leaders, who set expectations for their team members and help to create an atmosphere of collaboration and accountability. Organizational culture is defined as a set of shared beliefs, values, symbols, and behaviors that are accepted, maintained, and reinforced by the organization’s members and leaders. These beliefs and values form a cohesive system of norms and rules that guide how members of the organization will act and interact with one another.
The typical notion of leadership within an organization is that of authority and control. However, when looking to build a culture, this approach needs to be balanced with the goal of engaging the members of the organization, who are key influencers in setting the overall direction of the organization (Engida et al., 2022). Thus, the leadership should promote a culture of openness and partnership, encouraging staff to take ownership of their roles and strive to best serve the organization. In other words, the role of organizational culture is to facilitate a shared understanding of how members should act and interact with one another, creating a foundation for successful collaboration.
Organizational leaders are important to the creation and nurture of an effective organizational culture. They provide context for team members, clarify the mission and vision of the organization, and set expectations of behavior. In addition to facilitating collaboration within the organization, leaders also need to ensure that the culture is one that reinforces the values of the organization. This includes providing effective feedback and recognition, so that employees understand the organization’s mission and how they can contribute to it.
Leaders also play a role in addressing the challenges of an organization. A well-crafted and enforced organizational culture, along with effective communication, allows leaders to recognize and direct discussions about any changes needed to ensure both efficiency and efficacy (Al-Swidi wt al., 2021). Leaders should ensure that these discussions are conducted in such a way that creates an open and productive environment.
As an organization changes both internally and externally, the leadership must also adapt their own behavior and actions to ensure that the mission and values of the organization remain intact. Leadership must communicate the importance of being flexible and adapting to change, but always in line with the mission and goals of the organization.
In conclusion, the role of leadership in organizational culture is to set expectations, provide context, and facilitate collaboration. Leaders must also create an environment that encourages conversation and encourages members to grow and develop. Ultimately, a successful organizational culture comes down to strong leadership that encourages the members of the organization to work toward a common goal, while still allowing room for growth and development.
The interests on the Topic
I am fascinated by the role of organizational culture and leadership. As someone who has held a leadership position in the past and been a part of a differentiated and successful team, I believe that successful organizational cultures are built on the foundations of strong, collaborative leaders. Leadership should be about setting example and creating an environment of trust, acceptance and success where diverse opinions are valued and ambitions are reached.
Organizational structure, policies, and procedures can be essential to the healthy functioning of any organization, but all of these initiatives must be led by the vision and purpose of crafted by the leadership team. The leadership of an organization determines the culture of the entire organization; they should strive to promote a culture that embodies the mission and values and the organization’s shared purpose (Lasrado & Kassem, 2021). They must act as team leaders, facilitators and mediators, creating an environment of transparency, collaboration and inclusivity.
Leadership also plays an important role in fostering productivity and unity, helping employees to find purpose in their work and feel engaged in their roles. It must also be creative and adaptive to the ever-changing external factors; this means that an organization must be willing to embrace and welcome change (Meng & Berger, 2019). Leaders should be encouraging and inspiring, giving employees the opportunity to develop both professionally and personally.
Leaders must also go beyond the traditional model of “command and control” and form relationships with the larger organization. A leader should not only ensure that their immediate team is successful, but also ensure that the organization is functioning optimally as a whole, embracing innovation and working towards success.
Organizational culture and leadership are intrinsically intertwined; successful organizational cultures have a strong and unified leadership structure that is able to create, promulgate and reinforce a culture of integrity and personal growth (Lam et al., 2021). This is what interests me the most, being able to nurture a healthy, sustainable and flourishing organizational culture requires good leadership and effective strategies.
Leadership has a tremendous influence on organizational culture, and it is important to me to build a culture that embodies confidence, unity, diversity, and growth. I strive to be a leader that encourages collaboration, values the perspectives of others, and fosters an environment of transparency and trust. As a leader, I want to enable my team to flourish and thrive, enabling them to reach their full potential and work to achieve the organization’s mission. With my personal skills, knowledge, and experience, I am determined to build a culture that supports, motivates and rewards individual and collective achievement.
Major findings from the scholarly sources
Organizational culture is one of the most important factors influencing the leadership style of a leader and the success of an organization. This paper will discuss the major findings from seven scholarly sources exploring the role of organizational culture, leadership styles and other factors in the workplace. The sources discussed include Aydin (2018), Engida, Alemu and Mulugeta (2022), Meng and Berger (2019), Lasrado and Kassem (2021), Lam, Nguyen, Le and Tran (2021), Shao (2019) and Al-Swidi, Gelaidan and Saleh (2021). The findings of these sources will be used to gain an understanding of how organizational culture and leadership styles can impact employee commitment, job satisfaction, trust and environmental performance.
According to the research, a leader’s choice of leadership style is heavily influenced by the culture of the firm. The first article, by Aydin (2018), explores the impact of organizational culture on leadership styles and the various ways in which a leader’s approach can be influenced by the culture of the organization. While Engida, Alemu, and Mulugeta’s (2022) second article demonstrated a favorable correlation between organizational culture and employee commitment, they also discovered that shifts in leadership style had no effect on workers’ openness to new ideas and practices. The final article, written by Meng and Berger (2019), investigates the connection between organizational culture and leadership performance, specifically how they affect PR professionals’ levels of job satisfaction. According to the fourth article, written by Lasrado and Kassem (2021), an organization’s success may be attributed to the dedication and enthusiasm of its workers when that company fosters a culture of involvement.
Knowledge management was discovered to have a direct correlation with innovation capabilities, and a favorable association was also seen between organizational culture and knowledge management, according to the fifth paper by Lam, Nguyen, Le, and Tran (2021). In his sixth work, Shao (2019) observed that strategic alignment is driven by inspiring motivation and idealized impact leadership behaviors, and that the relationship between these two factors is moderated by an organization’s focus on adaptability.
Al-Swidi, Gelaidan, and Saleh’s (2021) seventh article discovered that a green corporate culture mediates the connection between environmental issues, green leadership behavior, and employee behavior. They also discovered that there was a positive relationship between green human resources, environmental concern, and green leadership behavior and environmental performance.
According to all seven research sources, organizational culture is a crucial component in shaping leadership styles, with various aspects of culture having an effect on the leader’s approach to management. Employee commitment, work satisfaction, and trust were observed to increase when the leader exhibited a change leadership style or was otherwise exceptional (Shao, 2019). Moreover, green staff practices, strategic alignment, and the potential to innovate were all found to be inextricably linked to effective knowledge management. Environmental concerns, green leadership actions, and staff actions were found to all have varying degrees of influence when a green corporate culture was present.
The application of the research on the academic and career goals
My research on leadership and the role of organizational culture will have great application to both my academic and career goals. As a part of my academic pursuits, I am studying management and with a concentration on organizational leadership, which requires a deep understanding of the intricacies of organizational culture and the power of leadership. Thus, through my research, I will be better prepared to understand the nuances of organizational culture, its connection to leadership, and the impact that these two elements have on the success of a given organization.
Additionally, I plan to use this research to further my career goals, specifically in understanding the roles that people play in organizations. My research will help me to understand what qualities make a successful leader and how their presence can shape the broader organization structure and culture. With this knowledge, I will better understand how to identify and implement the necessary steps required bringing out the best qualities of those working within and around the organization. This will ultimately allow me to identify, encourage, and facilitate the developments and changes needed for an organization to reach its highest potential for success.
Overall, my research on leadership and the role of organizational culture will be an asset as I continue to pursue both my academic and career goals. Through this research, I will gain an understanding of the dynamics of an organizational structure, from the smallest unit to the larger, overarching framework. This knowledge will open up immense possibilities for creating stronger leaders within an organization, thereby allowing the associated organization to reach new heights of effectiveness.
Conclusion
Leadership plays a major role in the success of organizations by creating and inspiring organizational culture. Leadership helps to establish a team’s expectations, principles, values, mission and vision, resulting in greater engagement and productivity in the workplace. It is essential for any organization to nurture and sustain its culture in order to remain competitive and innovative. Developing leadership skills and ensuring an effective organizational culture can improve relationships, decision-making, and ultimately organizational success.
Summary Section
In summary, this paper examined the role of organizational culture and leadership within an organization. It was found that leaders play an important role in setting expectations, providing context, and supporting collaboration. The overarching goal of leadership should be to ensure an environment of openness and trust, while encouraging members to take ownership of their roles and strive to best serve the organization and reach its goals. Effective leadership should also be creative and adaptive to external changes, while maintaining a commitment to the mission and values of the organization. Organizations benefit from strong, unified leadership that can create, promulgate, and reinforce a culture of integrity and personal growth. Ultimately, a successful organizational culture comes down to having a conducive environment that encourages engagement, facilitates collaboration, and promotes growth.
The importance of providing a positive organizational culture and leadership cannot be overstated. A successful organizational culture creates an environment of trust, respect and open communication that promotes collaboration and leads to better staff engagement, performance and productivity. Leadership should focus on fostering creativity, maintaining strong relationships with employees and offering clear direction and guidance in order to promote growth and success. Organizations must also practice and enforce the values and expectations laid out by the leadership team in order to create an effective culture. As mentioned, it is essential for organizations to be adaptive and open to change, while maintaining the core mission and values of the organization. Only then can they create a collaborative environment that enables employees to reach their full potential.
References
Al-Swidi, A. K., Gelaidan, H. M., & Saleh, R. M. (2021). The joint impact of green human resource management, leadership, and organizational culture on employees’ green behaviour and organisational environmental performance. Journal of Cleaner Production, 316, 128112. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0959652621023301
AYDIN, B. (2018). The role of organizational culture on leadership styles. MANAS Sosyal Araştır malar Dergisi, 7(1), 267-280. https://dergipark.org.tr/en/pub/mjss/issue/40516/485849
Engida, Z. M., Alemu, A. E., & Mulugeta, M. A. (2022). The effect of change leadership on employees’ readiness to change: the mediating role of organizational culture. Future Business Journal, 8(1), 1-13. https://fbj.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s43093-022-00148-2
Meng, J., & Berger, B. K. (2019). The impact of organizational culture and leadership performance on PR professionals’ job satisfaction: Testing the joint mediating effects of engagement and trust. Public Relations Review, 45(1), 64-75. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0363811118303801
Lasrado, F., & Kassem, R. (2021). Let’s get everyone involved! The effects of transformational leadership and organizational culture on organizational excellence. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 38(1), 169-194. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/IJQRM-11-2019-0349/full/html
Lam, L., Nguyen, P., Le, N., & Tran, K. (2021). The relation among organizational culture, knowledge management, and innovation capability: Its implication for open innovation. Journal of Open Innovation: Technology, Market, and Complexity, 7(1), 66. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2199853122008356
Shao, Z. (2019). Interaction effect of strategic leadership behaviors and organizational culture on IS-Business strategic alignment and Enterprise Systems assimilation. International journal of information management, 44, 96-108. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0268401218305747
