- Introduction
1.1 What is “organizational climate?
According to the definition published by BusinessDictionary.com (n.d.), the term can be expressed as “Properties of the business environment in a workplace observed by staff that strongly influence their actions and job performance.” Patti (Ed.) (2000) in the book “The Handbook of Social Welfare Management” described aspects of organizational climate in Chapter 10: “Organizational Climate and Culture” written by Charles Glisson.
1.2 The difference between organizational climate and organizational culture
An article published by HTC Consulting entitled “What’s the difference between organisation culture and climate?” (n.d.) set out to clarify the differences between these two terms, commenting that because they are both “intangible features” it is difficult to explain the difference in simple terms, although they are both important to understand. Climate was described as relating to “the here and now” – how it feels to work within an organization. The article suggested that an alternative concept of the organization’s climate could be to regard it as its personality; perhaps a reflection of the organization’s founder(s) or its top management. In contrast, the culture was explained as comprising the values guiding the way the organization conducts its business and how people who are part of that business behave.
A simplified way of differentiating between the two terms could be expressed as:
Organizational Culture: “How things are done around here.”
Organizational Climate: “How it feels to work around here.”
- The importance of organizational climate
Undoubtedly, the organizational climate of an organization is very important for a successful enterprise, although its importance is viewed differently by members of that organization, according to their particular role or position.
- Workers
For the ordinary workers or employees of an organization, a good organizational climate is perceived by them as working for a business that treats them well. According to Atkinson and Frechette (2009), that creates a “strong bond” with their employer, in turn making them more likely to be willing to work harder and longer to contribute to its success.
Another benefit of a good organizational climate mentioned by the authors is that those existing employees are more inclined to recommend or praise their employer to others. A positive organizational climate also encourages employees to stay with their current employer. That is an important consideration for any employer. According to the article’s authors, the cost of replacing an employee can be two and a half times his annual salary.
- Managers
The Managers in an organization are likely to respond in much the same way as ordinary employees or workers, except that they have due to their positions more opportunity to influence the continued positive aspects of the organizational climate. Their actions and behaviors filter down to the ordinary employees and are perceived as the embodiment of the organizational climate. They are therefore key in respect of increasing or decreasing the motivation of those who work under them.
- Leaders
Leaders can – as mentioned in a case study cited by Atkinson & Frechette – further enhance the organizational climate by providing managers and others with the tools to facilitate training, thereby increasing motivation and creating improvement in the climate. Just as the managers can affect the motivation and loyalty of the lower levels in the workforce, it is the leaders that will be the motivators of their managers. Their behaviors can therefore have a ripple effect throughout the organization.
- The influence of organizational climates on organizational performance
- A healthy organizational climate
Raza (2010) published a paper on the relationship between organizational climate and performance, describing the organizational climate of (in this instance) a college as its “heart and soul” (p. 18). He reported how that climate is “directly influenced by administrators” which then affects the staff and their motivation, making the whole organization function more effectively. This effect was explained as being the combination of the effect of good leadership and the interaction of the staff. When both function in harmony, a good organizational climate is the result.
Another example might be in nursing. If nursing staff are well supported and given responsibility by their management, they are more likely to feel job satisfaction and be committed to their jobs, resulting in happier patients and a reduction of mistakes in carrying out their duties.
- A bad organizational climate
An example of a bad organizational climate was described by Selamat, Samsu and Kamalu (2013) in their paper “The Impact of Organizational Climate on Teachers’ Job Performance.” The paper was also related to schools and was derived from a survey of 37 teachers in one school district, and the findings showed that a bad organizational climate prevented them from doing their jobs effectively. The problems were found to comprise the over-emphasis on bureaucratic paperwork by the school district leaders, coupled with a lack of interpersonal communication (aloofness) and a focus on following rules and regulations rigorously as well as not listening to teachers’ concerns related to teaching issues. As a consequence the teachers lacked enthusiasm and motivation and performed their duties badly, causing a consequent decrease in the quality of the education they provided for their students.
Another example of how a bad organizational climate may manifest itself is if management show obvious favoritism towards certain individuals or groups within the organization. That can easily have the effect of demotivating the other employees, so that the whole workforce does not pull together as a cohesive unit, lowering efficiency and productivity.
- The main influencing factors for organizational climate
- Leadership style
Raza (2010) considered leadership style in his paper. He mentioned four specific aspects of a leader’s behavior: “aloofness, production emphasis, thrust and consideration.” Raza describes the first two as having a negative impact on the organizational climate, whereas thrust – perhaps implying the expectation by a hardworking leader for his staff to follow his example, is seen as a positive factor. Consideration by a leader for the concerns and problems of his staff is also a positive factor, whereas lack of consideration for example would have an equally negative effect on the organizational climate. Good and effective leaders are likely to have an empathy with their workforce and instinctively sense the best approach to take in order to get the most out of a willing and committed workforce.
- Organization structure
Asares (May 2010) stated that an administrator must create an organizational structure that “controls, coordinates and motivates employees” to ensure their cooperation in achieving the organization’s objectives. An example is that in a school, the properly organized and recognized structure will motivate the teachers so that they teach effectively, achieving the goal of providing the students with a sound education.
Another example of a good structure is one in which each individual’s role is clearly defined. Disputes over situations like perceived overlapping or infringing of others’ duties and responsibilities are inefficient, disruptive and demotivating, deflecting the focus away from the objectives of a successful business.
- Goals and objectives
Abdulkadir and Adedoyin (Jul 2012) emphasized the importance of an organizational climate that has freedom to define goals, objectives and priorities for its workforce. The example cited in the paper was the insurance companies in Nigeria that need to secure and retain the best people, motivating them to work within a good organizational climate, in order for the business to obtain and maintain a competitive edge in the market. That is just one example, but the general principle of flexibility in management is important, so that goals and objectives can be adjusted to suit particular situations and circumstances, for example to maximise efforts onto a particular out-of-the-ordinary project that needs different treatment or work practices to bring it to a successful and timely conclusion.
- The process of management
Ahmad et al. (Oct 2010) published a paper in the International Journal of Business and Management that highlighted the importance of recognizing the need for the best HR practices as part of the management process that will ensure job satisfaction, and from that a good organizational climate in modern businesses. They focussed their study in particular on pharmaceutical companies, where highly technical people directly contribute to a company’s performance if they have good job satisfaction arising from good management (p.214). Management have to recognize the value of each individual and the need to nurture the unique qualities or skills that make that person valuable to the organization
- The behavior of people
A paper entitled “Organisational Climate: A proven tool for improving business performance” (2006) stated that the way people behave in an organization is influenced by the organizational climate. Examples are that behaviors recognized as acceptable or normal will be copied, whereas those that are seen to be “not done around here” will be avoided. When all the people within the same organization behave acceptably in their interactions, the organization will be more efficient and therefore more successful. An example could be someone who is invariably just a few minutes late every morning or takes just a bit too long over lunch breaks. That person – if seen by others to be “getting away with it” – will cause resentment and friction, diverting the focus and attention of others away from their jobs and diminishing the efficiency and effectiveness of that part of the organization.
5. Analysis
Such individuals knew that a successful business depends on its workforce, and that a happy and motivated workforce will “go the extra mile” that makes all the difference. In those organizations a good organizational climate was created and maintained, more by following basic people management principles than by following any specific business or management theories.
Though organizational climate is important to any organization, it appears to be relatively straightforward (with good planning) to establish one along the right lines, but only too easy to get wrong, or allow to go wrong, unless it is continually monitored. Perhaps that is where a good HR department can make the difference, constantly watching for signs of discontent and paying careful attention to any grievances aired by individuals within the workforce.
6. Conclusion
It is clear from the sources reviewed that organizational climate is a key factor in any organization and for commercial enterprises is important for their economic success. It seems that such success is to a great extent arising from the diligent work of a workforce motivated by the “feel good” factor generated by a good organizational climate. It was also noted that a good organizational climate contributes to staff retention, which helps an organization minimize recruitment costs that would be incurred when employees are replaced.
7. References
Abdulkadir, D., S and Adedoyin S., I. (Jul 2012). “Influences of Firm Size, Age and Organizational Climate on the Adoption of Strategic Human Resource Management Practices.” International Review of Business and Social Sciences Vol. 1, No. 7 [22-36]. Available at: http://irbss.org/files/pdf/IRBSS-12-1618.pdf [Accessed 23 May 2013].
Ahmad, Z., Ahmad, Z., Ahmad, I., & Nawaz, M., M. (Oct 2010). “Organizational Climate (OC) as Employees’ Satisfier: Empirical Evidence from Pharmaceutical Sector.” International Journal of Business and Management. Vol. 5, No. 10; October 2010. Available at: <www.ccsenet.org/ijbm> [Accessed 23 May 2013].
Asares, C. (May 2010). “Organization Structure & Climate to Teaching Performance.” Eyes on Success. Available at http://eyesonsuccess.com/2010/05/30/organization-structure-climate-to-teaching-performance/ [Accessed 23 May 2013].
Atkinson, T., and Frechette H. (2009). “Creating a Positive Organizational Climate in a Negative Economic One: Improving Organizational Climate to Transform Performance.” Forum Corporation. Available at: <http://www.trainingindustry.com/media/2505214/creatingpositiveorgclimate_us_aug09.pdf> [Accessed 23 May 2013].
“organizational climate.” (n.d.). BusinessDictionary.com. Available at: <http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/organizational-climate.html> [Accessed 23 May 2013].
“Organisational Climate: A proven tool for improving business performance.” (2006) Organisation Effectiveness and Development. Available at: http://www.oedconsulting.com/assets/oed_organisational_climate.pdf [Accessed 23 May 2013].
Patti, R., J. (Ed. 2000). “The Handbook of Social Welfare Management.” Sage Publications, Inc. Thousand Oaks, California. Print.
Raza, S., A. (2010). “Relationship Between Organizational Climate and Performance of Teachers in Public and Private Colleges of Punjab.” University Institute of Education and Research Pir Mehr Ali Shah, Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi, Pakistan. Available at: <http://prr.hec.gov.pk/Thesis/201S.pdf> [Accessed 23 May 2013].
Selamat, N., Samsu, N., Z., and Kamalu, N., S., M. (2013). “The Impact of Organizational Climate on Teachers’ Job Performance.” University of Alicante, Educational Research Journal 2013 vol. 2 Nº1. Available at: http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&frm=1&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CD4QFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.erej.ua.es%2Frdd%2Farticle%2Fdownload%2F51%2F39&ei=CF-eUau2HsqHPYqwgPgM&usg=AFQjCNFHiFizUXtK0JcKlaxFvXtG9ht-ag [Accessed 23 May 2013].
“What’s the difference between organisation culture and climate?” (n.d.). HTC Consulting. Available at: < http://htc-consult.com/new/whats-the-difference-between-organisartion-culture-and-climate/ [Accessed 23 May 2013].
