Organizational Culture and Climate: Assessment and Analysis

Introduction

According to Körner et al. (2015), organizational culture is a set of norms and values that are present within an organizational system. On the other hand, the organizational climate is a recurring pattern of attitudes, feelings, and behaviors that reflect the way of life of an organization. The difference between organizational culture and climate is that the former analyses the traditions and values that feature in an organization, while the latter assesses the feelings that stakeholders have towards working for a certain organization. It is important to evaluate the culture and climate of organizations to understand their inherent weaknesses and opportunities that are available for improvement. This knowledge can be applied in practical organizations to help them enhance their performance so that they attain their overall goals. 

This paper seeks to evaluate the organizational culture and climate at the St. Charles Parish Hospital with the aim of understanding its features, weaknesses, and strengths. The paper will apply the findings from the organizational culture and climate assessment tool to reflect on the lessons that have been learned. By assessing the culture at the hospital, the paper will then evaluate areas of improvement and the steps that management should implement to enhance the quality of services offered at St. Charles Parish Hospital.

Organizational culture and climate analysis

1. Summary of assessment findings

Based on the assessment, St. Charles Parish Hospital has an organizational culture that emphasizes the importance of teamwork, respect, learning and development, effective communication, and socialization. The organization has developed a strong communication strategy that relies on the hierarchical structure while appreciating informal relationships that are present at the hospital. Moreover, St. Charles Parish Hospital also values development and learning, and employees receive mentorship and training programs that will improve their knowledge and competencies in various fields. Finally, the organization thrives on respect and equal treatment of all members while rewarding employees who demonstrate strong performance through diverse employee appreciation programs. 

2. Mission, vision, and goals reflected in culture and climate

Based on the assessment tool, St. Charles Parish Hospital’s mission is to offer high-quality healthcare services to patients while creating a conducive environment where staff can further their careers. Its vision is to provide safe, timely, and quality healthcare services to the community to reduce negative health outcomes within the local population. The hospital has several goals that include promoting a culture of continuous learning for staff, tailoring care to the specific needs of patients, and observing ethical principles in the course of the day-to-day activities by staff. Moreover, St. Charles Parish Hospital seeks to promote socialization of employees to attain teamwork and synergy within employees. 

3. Strengths and Opportunities for improvement

One of the core strengths of St. Charles Parish Hospital is that it encourages socialization of employees and promotes teamwork. The healthcare profession requires effective collaboration between teams to improve the quality of care given to patients, and the organization has achieved this goal. The second core strength is an investment in staff learning and development through mentorship and training opportunities, which creates highly qualified professionals who thrive on continuous learning. The organization can improve its remuneration structure and incorporate strategies such as the 360-degrees feedback where rewards are based on among other factors, feedback received from colleagues and supervisors. It can also improve leadership by applying participative leadership where employees are involved in decision-making activities on issues affecting them (Sfantou et al., 2017). 

4. Climate reflective of the culture

The organizational climate at St. Charles Parish Hospital features values such as respect, safety, trust, and teamwork. The staffs are respectful towards each other and this is evident in their informal relationships and socialization outside the work environment. The organizational climate of St. Charles Parish Hospital also features a strong safety culture, especially in its physical controls that protect the facility from risk. Finally, the hospital has a continuous learning program, which is attained through numerous mentorship and training opportunities for employees. 

Healthy, safe, person-centered care environment capacity

1. Describe the organizational culture’s capacity to support employees provided with all necessary tools to perform their jobs effectively 

The organizational culture at St. Charles Parish Hospital strongly supports and empowers employees to perform their roles effectively. It ensures that they have adequate knowledge and competencies by enrolling them for training and mentorship programs that help them to improve their skills. The organizational culture also rewards employees and recognizes their input, which motivates them to perform their jobs effectively. Finally, the hospital has a strong safety culture, which protects employees from harm when performing their duties. 

2. What would a visiting potential staff recruit experience about the institution’s culture that would attract them to work there?

Visiting potential staff would be motivated to work at the St. Charles Parish Hospital due to its culture. The strong teamwork culture that emphasizes the importance of strong relationships between employees would make potential staff feel welcome at the institution.  Moreover, the strong organizational systems including safety, communication, and reward would also inspire potential staff to seek employment at St. Charles Parish Hospital. These systems help organizations to run smoothly and the staff that works for the hospital will grow their careers. 

3. Nurse leader’s role in setting the organizational culture and climate to promote a healthy work environment?

According to Vickie (2017), a nurse leader is tasked with the design, implementation, and evaluation of patient care through delegation, coordination, and supervision of the healthcare team. The nurse leader at St. Charles Parish Hospital provides leadership to the healthcare team by ensuring that nurses have access to the knowledge, skills, and resources needed to provide quality care to patients. Moreover, the nurse leader also mentors younger nurses, as a means of creating the next generation of nurses who aspire to safeguard healthcare quality by adhering to nursing ethics. 

Implications

4. Two strategies to address the opportunities for improvement 

The first strategy is to hire an HR professional who will guide the hospital in implementing the 360-degrees feedback tool. The organization should seek a competent professional with a proven track record of working for competitive healthcare organizations. Through working with the HR professional, St. Charles Parish Hospital will be able to implement other reward schemes that motivate employees and improve their productivity. 

The second strategy is to implement participative leadership by gradually involving staff in decision-making activities, including conflict resolution so that they feel appreciated by the management (West et al., 2016). For instance, the management may seek employee input in creating work schedules and task priorities, which is an issue facing the organization at present.  

2. Alignment of Personal Leadership Profile and Organizational Culture and Climate 

My personal leadership profile is consistent with the organizational culture and climate at St. Charles Parish Hospital. I value participative leadership that seeks input from lower-level employees in decision making, as this is an effective strategy of motivating staff.  I also believe in teamwork since it creates synergy between employees and helps them to develop solutions to challenges more effectively.  The organizational culture at St. Charles Parish Hospital thrives on teamwork. 

Conclusion

In summary, the paper has evaluated the organizational culture and climate at St. Charles Parish Hospital. From the findings, it is clear that the hospital thrives on a culture that supports effective communication, teamwork, and continuous learning. St. Charles Parish Hospital applies mentorship and training programs to ensure that its staffs are competent and can provide quality care to patients.  Employees are highly motivated and they have developed strong relationships that extend to the outside of the work environment. However, the hospital faces weaknesses in its leadership and motivation strategy. It should improve its reward system and leadership by embracing the 360-degrees feedback and applying participative leadership respectively. This assignment has helped me to reflect on various issues regarding the role of culture and leadership in creating effective organizations. It has also enabled me to apply theoretical knowledge on a practical problem, thereby enriching my knowledge of the issues. By reflecting on the lessons that I have learned, I will be an effective nurse leader in the future since I will incorporate the knowledge I have learned from the assignment in future nursing practice. 

References

Körner, M., Wirtz, M. A., Bengel, J., & Göritz, A. S. (2015). “Relationship of organizational 

culture, teamwork and job satisfaction in interprofessional teams”. BMC health services research, 15, 243. doi:10.1186/s12913-015-0888-y

Sfantou, D. F., Laliotis, A., Patelarou, A. E., Sifaki-Pistolla, D., Matalliotakis, M., & 

Patelarou, E. (2017). “Importance of Leadership Style towards Quality of Care Measures in Healthcare Settings: A Systematic Review”. Healthcare, 5(4), 73. doi:10.3390/healthcare5040073

Vickie, H. (2017). “Standout nurse leaders. What’s in the research?” Nursing Management 

48(9) pp 16–24. doi: 10.1097/01.NUMA.0000522171.08016.29

.West, M., Smithgall, L., Rosler, G. & Winn, E. (2016). “Evaluation of a nurse leadership 

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