Homework 1

Getting started

1 Work in small groups. Match the sentence beginnings (1—1) with their endings (a-g).

1 My company/organization has a vision; b) I know where it’s going; I share its goals.

2 We have an entrepreneurial culture; g) we’re encouraged to look for new business and take risks.

3 People in my company are highly competitive; e) we battle each other for promotion and for bonuses.

4 My company is pretty bureaucratic; d) there are lots of regulations and correct procedures, we’re encouraged to do things by the book.

5 My company has a supportive culture; f) when we need them, we’re sent on training courses. Every employee has a mentor.

6 My company has a controlling culture; c) the boss is autocratic, and we do as we’re told without question.

7 My company is quite informal; a) for example, it doesn’t have a dress code.

2. Look at the words and phrases in bold above and match them to the following definitions.

1. A person who gives another person help and advice over a period of time and often also coaches them in their job: mentor.

2. A set of rules for what you can wear: dress code.

3. Aims: goals.

4. Demands total obedience from staff: autocratic.

5. Extra amounts of money given to you as a reward: bonuses.

6. Follow the rules exactly: do things by the book.

7. View of how the company will be in the future: vision.

8. Involving risk-taking: entrepreneurial.

Aspects of corporate culture

Talking point

Discuss these questions in small groups.

1. Which of the things mentioned in Exercise 1 on page 1 are typical of your company’s/organisation’s culture?

I don’t have worked yet but I think that all of the points mentioned before are important in a company’s culture except the autocratic; nowadays the employees of the highest positions are supposed to take some decisions from the lower ones. The system has more freedom and more risk-taking so they can probably gain a competitive business strategy.

The most important point in a company is its vision because it will bring organization and several benefits like improving productivity and efficiency, without it, no one would idealize the future of the company or set new goals. The dress code is necessarily because the employees are the reflection of the management.

2. Which would you like to be part of your company culture? (If you don’t work for a company or organisation, talk about one you would like to work for).

I would like to be part of the Google Company because since I saw a video of the installations and some techniques they use to increase

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