Nonprofit Organizational Assessment

Promoting consistency and encouraging coordination and control within the
company
Shaping employee behavior at work, enabling the organization to be more
efficient
Irving Janis defined groupthink as "a mode of thinking that people engage in when they
are deeply involved in a cohesive in-group, when the members' strivings for unanimity
override their motivation to realistically appraise alternative courses of action." This is a
state in which even if group members have different ideas, they do not challenge
organizational thinking. As a result, innovative thinking is stifled. Groupthink can lead to
lack of creativity and decisions made without critical evaluation. Groupthink can occur,
for example, when group members rely heavily on a central charismatic figure in the
organization or where there is an "evangelical" belief in the organization's values.
Groupthink can also occur in groups characterized by a friendly climate conducive to
conflict avoidance.
Healthy
Culture is the organization's immune system. – Michael Watkins
What Is Organizational Culture? And Why Should We Care? – Harvard Business
Review
Organizations should strive for what is considered a "healthy" organizational culture in
order to increase productivity, growth, efficiency and reduce counterproductive behavior
and turnover of employees. A variety of characteristics describe a healthy culture,
including:
Acceptance and appreciation for diversity
Regard for fair treatment of each employee as well as respect for each
employee's contribution to the company
Employee pride and enthusiasm for the organization and the work performed
Equal opportunity for each employee to realize their full potential within the
company
Strong communication with all employees regarding policies and company issues
Strong company leaders with a strong sense of direction and purpose
Ability to compete in industry innovation and customer service, as well as price
Lower than average turnover rates (perpetuated by a healthy culture)
Investment in learning, training, and employee knowledge
Additionally, performance oriented cultures have been shown to possess statistically
better financial growth. Such cultures possess high employee involvement, strong
internal communications and an acceptance and encouragement of a healthy level of
risk-taking in order to achieve innovation. Additionally, organizational cultures that
explicitly emphasize factors related to the demands placed on them by industry
technology and growth will be better performers in their industries.
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