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Organizational Culture Assessment Tools

As organizations grow and evolve, culture plays a significant role in shaping their success.


Organizational culture refers to the shared values, beliefs, behaviors, and practices that define the character of an organization. A healthy organizational culture not only fosters employee satisfaction and productivity but also impacts the organization's bottom line.

 

In this guide you'll learn why, how, and what to pay attention to when you embark on a cultural assessment. Get to know the top choices and how to get access. 

Why Assess?

Assessing your organization's current culture is a critical step toward empowering leaders to make data-driven decisions. 

Benchmark

The goal is to create a benchmark so you can identify specific areas to improve, and create KPIs around how to measure those improvements, resulting in tangible

Improve engagement and retention

A positive organizational culture fosters employee satisfaction, which translates into higher engagement and lower turnover rates. Areas that impact employee satisfaction are things like communication, clarity of roles, leadership styles, and work-life balance. 

Enhance organizational performance

A culture that promotes innovation, productivity, and collaboration, leads to better outcomes. Surveys and assessments can help identify sticking points (like meeting structures and cadence) and implement changes that remove roadblocks, increase trust and psychological safety.

Attract Top Talent

A positive organizational culture can be a significant factor in attracting top talent. When an organization's culture aligns with the values of potential employees, it becomes an attractive place to work. Assessing and promoting a healthy culture can help organizations attract and retain the best employees.

Popular Cultural Assessment Tools

Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI)

The Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) is a simple and effective tool that measures an organization's culture based on the Competing Values Framework.

The assessment provides leaders with a visual representation of the organization's culture, as well as insights into the organization's strengths and weaknesses.

Culture Amp

CultureAmp is a modern culture assessment tool used by some huge companies. The platform offers a range of surveys, including the employee engagement survey, the onboarding survey, and the diversity and inclusion survey. The tool's AI-powered analytics provide detailed reports that help leaders identify areas that require improvement.

Denison Organizational Culture Survey (DOCS)

The Denison Organizational Culture Survey (DOCS) is a comprehensive assessment tool that measures an organization's culture in four key areas: mission, adaptability, involvement, and consistency. The tool's report provides leaders with insights into the organization's strengths and weaknesses, and recommendations for improving culture.

Culture Pulse

Culture Pulse is a quick employee assessment that measures values, norms, beliefs, and behavior, and demonstrates how culture controls the way employees behave amongst themselves as well as with people outside the organization.

Barrett Values Centre

The Barrett Values Centre's cultural transformation tools help organizations assess their culture, values, and vision. The platform offers various assessments, including the Cultural Transformation Tools (CTT), which assesses the organization's current culture and identifies areas for improvement. The CTT assessment provides detailed reports and recommendations that help leaders implement positive changes.

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Choosing the right organizational culture assessment tool can be challenging, given the various options available. Here are some factors to consider when selecting an assessment tool:
 

Goals

Consider your organization's goals and the outcomes you wish to achieve. Do you want to improve employee engagement, enhance organizational performance, or promote diversity and inclusion? Identifying your goals can help you select an assessment tool that aligns with your objectives.
 

Features

Assessment tools offer various features, including survey types, data analysis, and report generation. Consider the features you need to assess your organization's culture effectively.
 

Cost

Assessment tools come at different price points, and it is essential to consider your organization's budget when selecting a tool. Consider the long-term value of the tool and how it aligns with your organization's goals.
 

User-Friendliness

The assessment tool's ease of use is crucial, as it can impact the survey response rate and the quality of data collected. Consider how easy it is to use the tool and whether it provides clear instructions for respondents.

How to choose the right tool for your organziation

Not sure where to start?

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