The Changing Face of Organisations - by Mitchell Formica

In recent years the culture of organisations have moved from a well-structured and ridged layout to a widely diverse and open environment. These changes are due to the ever changing environment in which we live in. We are bound by nature, but we also are bound by society and with that comes certain responsibilities and obligations for organisations. Firstly we look at the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) and its impacts on the culture of a business and whether or not an economic crisis would affect the workplace balance and conditions. The answer is yes. When the financial crisis hit in July 2007, there was a quick turn of action by business’s to cut back on costs where possible. This meant tightening the belt for most if not all affected economies and cutting loose jobs that were not as important to stay afloat. In Australia alone it is estimated that 223,900 jobs have been lost due to the financial crisis (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2014).

The stresses of retrenchment have evidently lowered morale across the board and made it hard for the everyday working citizen to feel comfortable and stable in their position in the business. The change in culture toward a more fluid, diverse and flexible setting in most large organisations today have alleviated some stresses however, there is still the uncertainty of the business’s decisions. Today, companies like to see them-selves as big families that take care of their employees and give them opportunities to put forth ideas and excel in their work environment. The concentration of wealth and profit is still a top priority for all businesses however, public image and culture are regarded among the top ten priorities for a sustainable organisation and are seen as the life and blood of an organisation. Without the workers there wouldn’t be an organisation.

Recently work culture has seen a total re-vamp since IBM owned the largest proportion of market share for computers. Since then companies have totally re-structured their business to fit a more employee friendly layout. Instead of the autocratic manager we recognise as our boss and not our mentor we see different styles of managers like persuasive and consultative bringing forth new improvements like giving the employees a chance to have their say and opinions on things, leading to higher levels of motivation.  

(Tuesday, 20 May 2014).