Four organisational cultures

All organisations form a unique culture based on the culture of their founder, the work and professional practices within the organisation, their sector, their nation, and how they began. How we start tends to be how we carry on: think how a group behaves on the first meeting, which tends to set the tone for the rest of recorded history. 

Most cultures fit within one or more of the following four types which are mapped using two dimensions: that of whether the organisation has an internal or external focus; and whether the organisation is flexible or stable (click on the heading to view the details):

1. Clan Culture. A clan culture has an internal focus on employees involvement and participation to meet rapidly changing external environment expectations. If our organisational culture is like a family, we may be in a clan culture; which can be pretty social, friendly, responsible and respectful. These organisations focus on values, and on meeting employee needs. Organisations may encourage employees to view leaders in these organisations as mentors; and leadership will emphasise fairness, consideration & avoid status differences. These companies emphasise employee involvement and team building. Smaller companies exhibit clan culture more often than large companies. These companies will state that they prioritise employee wellbeing and health and simultaneously challenge and motivate the team. Clan cultures may prioritise HR, taking a long-term approach emphasising inclusion. But they can get stuck on tradition and demand loyalty: leaving may see people effectively expelled from the culture (McDonald & Gandz, 1993, as cited in Daft, 2007).
2. Adaptability culture (aka Adhocracy approach). The Adaptability culture is characterised by values that support org's ability to interpret & translate environmental signals into new behaviour. This is an organisation where employees have autonomy to make decisions. It emphasises creativity and innovation, and tries to maintain an dynamic work environment. These workplaces typically encourage employees to experiment and test new ideas, and leaders encourage & reward experimentation & risk-taking. In fact the organisation views its leaders as 'calculated' risk-takers. Organisations exhibiting an Adaptability culture seek to expand their business and develop new products. They measure success based on whether they can anticipate the needs of the market and create solutions that meet those demands (McDonald & Gandz, 1993, as cited in Daft, 2007). 
3. Achievement culture (aka Market culture). The Achievement culture is characterised by a clear vision of organisation's goals; while leaders focus on achievement by specific targets. This organisation creates a results-oriented culture which values competitiveness, aggressiveness, personal initiative, willingness to work long & hard to achieve results. This organisation values accomplishing tasks quickly and efficiently. These organisations often use competition to motivate both leaders and employees. In an Achievement culture, people focus their work around contributing to defined goals, measuring their success on stock and market results. Winning is the glue that holds the organisation together (McDonald & Gandz, 1993, as cited in Daft, 2007). 
4. Bureaucratic (or Hierarchy) organisation. The Bureaucratic organisation has an internal focus & consistency orientation for a stable environment. It supports a methodical, rational, orderly way of doing business. The organisation adheres to strict institutional procedures, with leaders encouraging employees to correctly follow process. These organisations value efficiency and uniformity in their pursuit of results. Process control and systematic problem-solving help these organisations operate effectively, valuing following the rules & being thrifty. This type of organisation succeeds by being highly integrated & efficient. While few organisations operate in a stable environment today - most leaders are shifting away from bureaucracy because of need for flexibility - examples of a Bureaucratic organisation are government departments where tax-payer money is being spent, fairness in applying rules is required, and Treasury demands accounting to the cent (McDonald & Gandz, 1993, as cited in Daft, 2007). 

Most successful organisations lean toward one cultural category. An organisation's emphasis on cultural values depends on strategic focus & on external environment needs, so any of the four can be successful. However, some organisations may have cultural values in more than one category, or in all categories (McDonald & Gandz, 1993, as cited in Daft, 2007).

Sam

Reference:

Daft, R. L. (2007). The Leadership Experience (4th Edition). Thomson South-Western.