The management style of Cornhill direct puts the customer at the top, as they are the most important and influence the company the most. The business structure is quite flat and non-hierarchical this means that any member of staff can access all the managers with good forms of internal communication. The main influence on the management style of Cornhill direct is customer expectations as they put the customer at the top. The customer is very important as it the entire focus of the company. Other influences on the management style are the regulations and higher standards. There is a very strong emphasis on team based working.
I would of said that Cornhill direct has a largely based Consultative management style as everyone has a say in the decision making process, there is a flat structure with good channels of communication, they have a forward looking culture and they have various mechanisms such as newsletters and briefings.
The culture of a business can be widely affected by its attitudes, values and beliefs. There are 6 different types of business culture but some of these may be inter-linked. The 6 different types are:
- Power Culture
- Role Culture
- Task Culture
- Person Culture
- Backward looking culture
- Forward looking culture
Power culture:
In a power culture the decisions can be made instantly as only one person has the power to make decisions. There is only one way communications however there will be a autocratic management style.
Role Culture:
In a role culture there will be a very hierarchical business structure and the power is derived from the employees. The employees work in various functions and the power is dependant on the job description.
Task Culture:
In a task culture they focus on the customer and work in teams on specific tasks.
People Culture:
In a people culture they will be very co-operative and anyone can make a decision.
Backward Looking Culture:
In a backwards looking culture as the name suggests they will look back at how they have done well with regularly reviewing performance. They will also tend to avoid risks and will have traditional style managers.
Forward Looking Culture:
In a forward looking culture as the name suggests they will look to the future and plan ahead. They will be prepared to take risks and will seek change on a regular basis.
I would say that the culture of Cornhill direct is heavily based around the cultures of Forward looking as they do plan ahead, are prepared to take risks and seek change. I would also say that they are a task based culture as they focus on the customer and work in teams on specific tasks.
The socio-economic, environmental and ethical influences that Cornhill direct has on its culture are as follows. Firstly I will copy out the environmental policy from Cornhill’s website
“
Cornhill has a long-standing policy of providing a safe and healthy workplace for its employees and is committed to conducting its business in a manner that safeguards health, protects the environment and conserves valuable materials and resources. Cornhill will:
- Strive for the continual improvement … without compromising the abilities of future generations to meet their own needs.
- Endeavour to minimise the use of all energy… use renewable or recyclable materials whenever feasible.
- Minimise waste … encourage waste recycling.
- Encourage similar environmental standards … from suppliers and contractors
- Include environmental considerations in purchasing decisions.
- Liase with the local community in connection with environmental issues.
- Assess the environmental impact … on a continuing basis
”
This shows that Cornhill direct cares about the environment and has steps in place to help prevent any damage to the environment. This will contribute to their culture because it would mean that they were trying to make themselves look good for their customers as people would think if they had a good policy on the environment they will probably provide a good service.
The Social influences that Cornhill has are mainly based on staff so they get to know one another and therefore will improve teamwork.
The Economic influences that Cornhill has is to be aware of the economy. If there is going to be a recession then people may be out of work and might cut back on insurance policies. This in turn could affect the business of Cornhill and staff might have to be made redundant. Also the companies budget may have to be reduced and this could lead to a drop in service. Its going to be difficult to put the customer at the top.
The moral or ethical influences that the company has is that Cornhill likes to be seen as a good company to its customers. It will guarantee good service within a legal framework. It considers its employees to be an essential resource and therefore ensures equal opportunities.
The links between the management styles, culture and the companies structure will be as follows:
The Democratic management style will be linked to flat structure with multi-directional flows of communication between members. There culture will probably be a task based culture.
The Autocratic management style will be linked to a tall organisational structure and will have a power culture and a backwards looking culture.
The Consultative management style will be linked with a matrix type structure and will probably have a mixture of role, people and a forward looking culture.
The links between Cornhill Directs management style, structure and culture are as they have a consultative management style there culture is forward looking, people and task. Their structure is matrix with lots of flows of communication. This is as I said earlier as the links are with the consultative management style above.
Cornhill directs management style, culture and organisational structure all affect Cornhill Directs performance. The culture will affect its performance because as it is a forward looking culture they will be willing to take risks. As it is informal the staff will be more relaxed and enjoy their jobs therefore increasing the performance of the company. As the management style is consultative people with problems will be able to speak to the managers and improve the companies performance if they have any suggestions how the company can be improved. As the structure puts the customer at the top this will mean that they can be seen as the most important influence over the company and they will have to keep tabs on the companies performance to make sure that they are treating the customer rightly.
The fact that the customer is at the top of the organisational structure also relates to the companies objectives as one of the companies primary objectives is to give the customer what they need. This may be car insurance or home insurance.
