Organizational culture is how the employees and they behave based on the principles and beliefs founded when the organization was started. The culture determines how things are done in the company and how each employee plays his or her role. There are different models of organizational culture that apply to the Vermeer Exeter organization. One of them is the role model culture as described by Charles Handy who claims that the decision-making in the organization remains at the top most level like the directors and the owners of the organization, (Frost, 1991 p. 67). This is the case with the Vermeer Exeter company where each location has a director who is in charge of making the decisions and has to report to the head office occasionally. The directors head a team of about ten people who are efficient in their field of work. The employees in the different team feel comfortable with their leaders and this keeps them in the company despite the hard financial times the company is facing (Ashkanasy, Wilderom & Peterson, 2000, p. 89).
The company makes sure that their employees are responsible and have a flexible way of doing their duties and make decisions that can boost the sales. This way the employees are in a position to offer clients with the best advice depending on their tastes and preferences in the real estate’s markets. Cees established a culture from the beginning where the employees get fair and respect as they do their work as estate agents. This is despite the ill treatment agents were accorded at that time. This was possible because of his strict personality when it comes to maintaining a high level of professionalism and knowledge of the market they operate in. This way the employees get to enjoy equal treatment, as the clients, which is not the case in many organizational cultures where the clients are always right and are given a first priority (Ashkanasy, Wilderom & Peterson, 2000 p. 56). This is changing because the promotions and position in the top management are held by men, yet there are women who can take over and do a god job. The leaders also do little to help their employees when they do not do the right thing and instead go about complaining.
The organizational culture of Vermeer Exeter can also be defined using Schein’s model where there are three assumptions that guide the behaviors of the employees. The artifacts are the kinds of houses chosen by Cees when he began the business, he specialized in highly characterized houses, but later on began dealing with commercial and rental houses. The espoused values are evident in the level of professionalism and ethics that guide the employees and maintain a high level of fairness and equity. The shared assumptions on the other hand are evident in how the managers know their employees and how the roles are divided among themselves.
Vermeer Exeter has its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats just like any other businesses operating in a competitive environment. The strengths of the company are in the culture developed by Cees in his early years as the director of the growing company. The level of professionalism he portrayed while leading the company created a good foundation for the company, as people trusted his agents to give them the right advice and give them quality services. The employees and the directors’ work in harmony and the regular meeting they hold in different braches help the company evaluate their environment and share their experiences. Another strength comes from the knowledge of the markets they operate in. a good example is the two top directors who have a wide range of knowledge about the properties in the region and have connections with the Devon land owners who are their customers. The employees are also loyal to the company and those promoted are hardworking pushing the sales of the business to greater heights. The weaknesses of the company comes from the reluctance of the director to invest in sub segments because he believes they do not require to put in a lot of funds in order to retain their consumers (Bensoussan & Fleisher, 2008 p. 43).
There is a problem with the new IT systems in the company and in a way; it is really affecting the work of the employees and the satisfaction of the customers. There is a rising problem with the equal and fair treatment of both genders in the company. The features in the system develop errors and the employees have a tough time recording and providing accurate information. The opportunities for growth in the Exeter Company are many with the sales in London where people are selling their houses and buying rental estates. The threats facing the company include the legislation and regulation, which allows people to walk about in uncultivated lands, and this threatens the privacy needed by the wealthy people who are mostly the Vermeer clients. The other threat is the regular flooding that affects the rail service. The regulations on the use of aesthetic energy in preference of green energy may not also go well with the wealthy prospective buyers.
The changing market and the economic challenges experienced all over the world are in a way affecting the operations of many businesses and Vermeer Exeter is not an exception. The business needs to undertake changes to improve its performance and the changes needed include cutting down their costs especially on the number of employees in the branches that record poor performances. This will help reduce the money they pay as salaries to the personnel who are not productive. The other change needed to keep the company alive in future is to take a keen look at the competitors and adapt to more competitive and appealing marketing strategies to counter their competitors who have a lower commission compared to the company. The business will have to be more aggressive with its marketing strategies and target new markets like the sub segments.
There are many challenges in implementing the changes needed to keep the company alive. Laing off employees who have been loyal to the company will not be easy especially when it comes to evaluating the performance of each employee and determining who leaves and who remains. The need for an effective IT machine in the offices is of utmost need because it risks losing it customers due to dissatisfaction of the services rendered.
The need for new marketing strategies may not be easy to adapt because the company directors feel that they have a competitive advantage and this makes it difficult to convince them otherwise. The company can overcome the difficulties by making sure they use fair means to evaluate the employees by using an appraisal system that can provide in depth information about the productivity of the employees. Taking a closer look at the competitors and recognizing their weaknesses and threats will help the company develop strategies that will help perform better in marketing and sales.
Corporate social responsibilities involve activities carried out by businesses in their environment to help the people in social and environmental activities (Hunnicutt, 2009 p. 12). The Vermeer Exeter company has always been keen on their role in the social corporate responsibilities. The Associate director of the Vermeer Exeter believes in taking their responsibilities as a corporate group seriously though he only focuses on it because of the benefits the company derives from it. There is a general concern among the public that many companies volunteer to do their corporate duties because it is healthy for their businesses and ensures that they survive in the competitive environment. This is the case with the Vermeer Exeter and more so now with the entry of new faces to the business management who are only concerned with the profits the company makes. However, there are cases when a company undertakes the responsibilities even if they are not making any profits. This is because some businesses feel that it is their obligation to give back to the society, not because they make profit, but because they want to help improve the lives of the people around them. The responsibilities of the company towards the community are directly proportional with the profits they make in the region they operate in (Crane, 2008 p. 87). This was the belief of the Vermeer Exeter founder who believed it is the duty of every business to give back to the society and develop it. The businesses try to please the community, but they take this duty serious only when they are making profits. CSR is something every business undertakes, but mostly it is to give back to the society, though it may have motives, but it is an obligation of every business.
References
Ashkanasy, N, M, Wilderom, C, & Peterson, M, F, (2000), Handbook of organizational
culture& climate. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications.
Bensoussan, B, E, & Fleisher, C, S, (2008), Analysis without paralysis: 10 tools to make better strategic decisions, Upper Saddle River, N, J.: FT Press.
Crane, A, (2008), The Oxford handbook of corporate social responsibility, Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Frost, P, J, (1991), Reframing organizational culture, Newbury Park, Calif.: Sage Publications.
Hunnicutt, S, (2009), Corporate social responsibility, Detroit, MI: Greenhaven Press.
