Often found in family-owned businesses and small start-ups, the family or “clan” culture prizes loyalty, group cohesion and shared values. This organizational structure encourages individuals at all levels of the organization to freely communicate and exchange ideas, according to Indeed Career Guide. In theory, this type of organizational structure should cultivate a positive company culture; but in reality, a clan culture can have significant drawbacks such as conformity at the expense of fresh perspectives. Show
Underlying AssumptionsBusiness operating from a clan culture focus on its employees; it operates like an extended family with common goals and shared beliefs. Leaders think that success comes from a long-range plan and collaborative "family" effort rather than a short-term focus and internal competition. The clan culture values flexibility, employee autonomy and teamwork rather than competition. While this business culture has many positive features, there are also some potential disadvantages. Lack of DiversityA business with a clan culture tends to be a homogeneous organization. Harappa cautions that a clan culture taken to an extreme can be insular, exclusionary and even hostile to outsiders seeking to join. While employees with common beliefs, goals or even demographic characteristics may make united effort easier, it also robs the organization of the benefits of diversity. A different pair of eyes is sometimes all that is needed to solve a business problem, but if all the eyes are looking at the problem in the same way, a solution may be less likely or discovered more slowly. Lack of DissentA clan culture is also known as a collaborative, tigh-knit culture, which can lead to pressure to conform. Since a clan-culture business puts a premium on teamwork, its employees may be hesitant to voice dissenting opinions or to fight for an unpopular idea even if they believe it's the best plan. If the group has a blind spot – such as a prejudice or a shared wrong assumption – it may also be implemented, with unhappy results, because no one wanted to challenge the group wisdom. Potential for AbuseA clan culture is open, friendly and arguably more appreciative of its employees than any other. However, this comfortable culture is vulnerable to abuse if employees use its tolerance as an opportunity to relax rather than an opportunity to contribute. Employees are given freedom and autonomy, and while many respond with gratitude and diligence, others may use the freedom to loaf or to conduct their own business on company time. Lack of AuthorityClan-culture leaders assume a mentoring role toward employees – some even compare it to the role of a parent inside a family. The lines of authority are not clearly defined inside a clan-culture business, since decisions are often made independently by employees or by common agreement. This lack of a clearly-defined chain of command can be a disadvantage in situations where a crucial decision must be made quickly. In the real world, there is often little time for group deliberation. A clan culture may also be problematic if there is an even split between employees on an important issue. Without a strong authority figure, good ideas that need a champion may also be abandoned simply because they couldn't get a majority vote. Types Of Company Culture: Which One Are You? Company culture is the way of life in an organization. The term encompasses core values, norms, and behaviors. It’s part of what makes your company unique and distinguishes you from others. Company culture is a key factor in an organization’s success as it determines how strategy gets implemented. Culture also affects how an organization interacts with its customers, suppliers, government, and society. No two organizations are the same, but they do share common characteristics and this includes cultural elements too. Here we'll go into the common company culture types and how you can determine yours. If you can define your organization's culture, you can adapt and strengthen it. The Competing Values Framework is a cultural assessment tool designed to help organizations understand and adapt their culture. It breaks down culture into four types that we’ll delve into now. Hierarchy cultureThe traditional bureaucratic type of company culture and—many startups would argue—an outmoded one. Hierarchical cultures are built on structure and control from the top down with a lot of respect for position and power. Often, there are several layers of management between upper management and employees so this type of culture is common in large corporates and and the military. The emphasis is very much on “doing things right” and the smooth running of operations. Pros: Well-defined processes, policies, and procedures; no issues with authority; clear role and responsibilities; clear paths for advancement. Cons: Power is centralized at the top meaning potentially slower decision-making. Departments are siloed which may result in less collaboration between departments and flexibility overall. Clan cultureThe Clan or “Family” culture eschews the rigidity of Hierarchy cultures for a more flexible approach based on strong working relationships between team members. Common amongst SMEs, Clan culture denotes a flat organizational structure and less onus on hierarchy. Employees tend to be loyal to the organization’s mission and values and to each other, with a high degree of trust awarded to individuals and teams to complete tasks their way. Pros: Flexiblity; employees are driven and engaged to work for the organization and each other; a lot of investment in people’s development and mentoring. Cons: Easier for employees and teams to go off-track; over concern for group harmony and cohesion leading to group-think; potential lack of response to customer needs over organizational; cliquiness. Adhocracy cultureAdhocracy cultures, as you may have guessed, emphasize adaptability (the name comes from the latin phrase “ad hoc”). These cultures provide even greater flexibility than Clan cultures, with teams rapidly forming to face new challenges based on market demands. The organizational structure may quickly change as projects are completed and new ones spring up. As you’d imagine, these are fast-paced, some would say frenetic, places to work. Initiative and risk-taking are encouraged with limited managerial oversight. Pros: Flexibility and innovation. Cons: Without clearly defined responsibilities important tasks may be overlooked; lack of structure means it can be difficult for some people to adapt. Market cultureLastly, we have Market culture. A reflection of the market itself, these are results driven and performance orientated. Goals are deliberately difficult to stretch employees and teams. Focus is on maximizing profits with as little transaction cost between individuals and teams a possible (meaning unnecessary activity). As you can imagine, these kinds of organizations are often highly competitive internally and aggressive externally. Pros: Efficient; focus on customers, beating the market, and staying ahead; drive and ambition from employees. Cons: Employee burn-out; too much competition leading to dishonesty and conflict; lack of investment in employees. The below diagram will help you get a feel for each culture type’s characteristics and how they overlap.  Assessing your cultureNow you’re aware of the company culture types laid out in the Competing Values Framework, you can use the Organization Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) to determines yours (although you probably have a strong gut feeling already!) As you can see, the questionnaire has six categories. In each category: Type A style indicates a Clan culture Type B style indicates an Adhocracy culture Type C style indicates a Market culture Type D style indicates a Hierarchy culture Work down the questions and distribute 100 points between the four sub-items. Add them up at the end to give you a dominant cultural archetype which you can plot on a graph. This is often done twice: once for 'now' and once for 'preferred'.
Final thoughtsThe above framework can be useful to identify any aspects of your culture that are undesirable so you can adjust accordingly. The framework is descriptive, there is no “best” type, and elements of each may be more prevalent and work best in different business areas. For some advice on implementing cultural change in your organization, check out our articles:
Join us in the conversation on flexible working, employee engagement, growing leaders, avoiding burnout, gathering and using employee feedback, here! Related Read: How To Create A Thriving Culture Of Learning What are the characteristics of clan culture?Clan culture has an emphasis on developing shared understanding and commitment instead of a formalised communication process. Typical characteristics of Clan cultures are teamwork and employee involvement programs, whereas the core values represent participation, loyalty, and commitment (Cameron & Quinn, 2005).
Which of the following is a characteristic of an organization with a clan control?Characteristics of Clan Culture
Emphasizes shared understanding and commitment in the workplace. Communication process in the organization is not formalized. Emphasis on teamwork in the office. The core values of clan culture include loyalty and commitment.
What is clan culture and examples?Clan cultures have a friendly, collaborative culture and can be compared to a large family—i.e., a clan—where people have a lot in common. Strong bonds of loyalty, tradition, and commonality generally form. Examples of companies that may have a clan culture include Google, Zappos, or Tom's of Maine.
What is one of the characteristics of organizational culture?Characteristics of organizational culture are; Innovation (Risk Orientation). Attention to Detail (Precision Orientation). Emphasis on Outcome (Achievement Orientation).
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