2.5.1 (HL)—Organizational culture

Corporate culture is the shared values, assumptions and everyday behaviours that shape how people make decisions and work together.

Culture is visible in what gets rewarded, challenged or ignored: how managers respond to mistakes, how teams share information and whose voice carries weight. It can support consistency and identity, but an established norm can also block learning or inclusion.

If a firm praises only short-term sales, staff may hide service problems even when a customer-retention strategy is announced. Changing the slogan will not change the incentive or the behaviour.

Culture is not the same as a formal policy or a national stereotype. Infer it from repeated behaviour and explain the business consequence.