Strategic Business Leader · Managing strategic change

Organisational Culture and Strategic Change in SBL

Updated 11 October 2026 · Fact-checked

Culture is the shared assumptions, values and habits that shape how people in an organisation behave. It can help or block strategic change. To answer exam questions, diagnose the culture using the cultural web or Handy's types, show how it clashes with the change, then recommend specific actions to shift it.

Understand Organisational Culture and Change

Organisational culture is 'the way we do things around here'. It is the set of shared beliefs, values and habits that people take for granted. Nobody writes most of it down. New joiners learn it by watching others.

Culture matters for change because strategy is carried out by people. If the new strategy fits the culture, people support it. If it clashes, people resist, often without saying so. A strong culture can be an advantage in stable times and a barrier when the environment shifts.

Johnson and Scholes call the core set of taken-for-granted beliefs the paradigm. It is the lens through which managers read the world. When the market changes, a rigid paradigm makes managers explain away warning signs and keep doing what worked before. The cultural web shows how the paradigm is held in place by six surrounding elements:

Stories: tales people tell about past successes, failures and heroes.
Symbols: logos, offices, titles, language, perks.
Power structures: the groups with real influence, often linked to the core paradigm.
Organisational structures: formal reporting lines and unwritten lines of influence.
Control systems: measures, rewards and punishments that show what matters.
Rituals and routines: regular behaviours and meetings that show what is acceptable.

Handy's cultures give a second way to describe culture. Power culture centres on one person or a small group, with quick decisions and few rules. Role culture relies on rules, procedures and defined jobs, and is stable but slow to change. Task culture is team-based and focused on solving problems, and is flexible. Person culture exists for the individuals in it, such as a partnership of professionals.

Changing culture is slow and hard. You can use the web to find which elements to change. Typical actions are new leaders, new stories and symbols, changed reward and control systems, restructuring to break up old power bases, training, and visible role-modelling by senior managers. Change needs consistent signals across several elements, not one speech.

Key rules to remember

Cultural web elements: Paradigm at the centre, surrounded by: Stories, Symbols, Power structures, Organisational structures, Control systems, Rituals and routines; Use all six when asked to analyse culture, but spend time on the ones that matter in the scenario.
Handy's four cultures: Power (Zeus) | Role (Apollo) | Task (Athena) | Person (Dionysus); Match the description in the scenario to the type, then judge fit with the change.
Paradigm: Paradigm = shared set of taken-for-granted assumptions about the organisation and its environment; A strong paradigm can cause strategic drift if the environment changes.
Change levers from the web: Change culture by changing stories, symbols, power, structure, controls and routines together; Changing one element alone rarely works because the others pull back to the old paradigm.

How to solve Organisational Culture and Change questions

Use this method for any question on culture and change. It works for 'analyse', 'assess' and 'recommend' requirements.

1Read the requirement and note whether you must diagnose the culture, assess its impact on change, or recommend how to change it.
2Identify the change being proposed and what behaviour it needs from staff.
3Describe the current culture using the cultural web, Handy's types, or both. Quote evidence from the scenario for each point.
4Compare the culture with what the change needs. State where it helps and where it blocks.
5Explain the likely effects, such as resistance, slow take-up or strategic drift.
6Recommend specific actions linked to the web elements, such as new leaders, changed rewards, new symbols and restructuring.
7Note risks and timing: culture change is slow, so suggest phasing and ways to measure progress.
8Finish with a short, clear conclusion and, if asked, write in the format required (report, memo) to earn professional skills marks.

Quickest way: Web, fit, levers

When to use it: Use when time is short and you need a structured answer in about ten minutes.

Jot the six web elements down the page and tick the ones with evidence in the scenario.
Write one line per ticked element: what it shows and how it affects the change.
Label the overall culture using Handy's types if it helps.
Write three to four change actions, each tied to a web element.
Add one risk or limitation and a one-line conclusion.

Common mistakes in Organisational Culture and Change

Listing the six web elements with textbook definitions and no scenario evidence.
Students memorise the model and treat the question as a recall test.
Fix: For each element, quote or refer to a fact from the scenario and say what it means for the change.
Describing the culture but never linking it to the change.
Diagnosis feels like the whole task.
Fix: After each point, add a sentence starting 'This means the change will...' to show the impact.
Recommending a single action such as 'hold a training day'.
Students underestimate how deeply culture is embedded.
Fix: Propose a package across several elements: leadership, rewards, structure, symbols and routines.
Confusing paradigm with the whole web.
Both terms appear in the same diagram.
Fix: Define the paradigm as the core assumptions, and the six elements as what reinforce it.
Assuming culture can be changed quickly or that all culture is bad.
Exam answers often focus on problems only.
Fix: Say that change takes time, and mention strengths of the existing culture that are worth keeping.
Mislabelling Handy's types, for example calling a rule-bound bureaucracy a task culture.
The names sound similar and students rely on memory.
Fix: Remember: Power = one centre, Role = rules, Task = teams and projects, Person = individuals first.

Worked examples

Example 1

A long-established family-owned manufacturer plans to move from selling through distributors to selling online direct to customers. The founder's son, the managing director, makes nearly all decisions. Staff say 'we have always made quality products and the market will come to us'. Job titles are formal, and bonuses are based only on factory output. Analyse how this culture may affect the change. (10 marks)

Show the solution

Identify the cultural features using the web. Power structures: the managing director holds control, so change depends on him. Stories: the quality and 'market will come to us' story shows a product-focused paradigm. Symbols: formal job titles suggest hierarchy. Control systems: bonuses on factory output reward production, not customers.
Describe Handy's type: this looks like a power culture, with decisions centred on one person.
Compare with the change: online direct selling needs customer focus, speed, digital skills and cross-department teamwork.
Assess the impact: the production-first paradigm may lead staff to dismiss online selling as unnecessary. Output bonuses will push staff to ignore customer service. Reliance on one decision-maker could be a strength if he leads the change, but a bottleneck if he does not.
Conclude: culture is likely to slow the change. The MD's support is the main strength. Changes to rewards, new customer-facing roles and visible leadership are needed.

Answer: The culture is a power culture with a production-focused paradigm. It conflicts with a customer-led online strategy because rewards, stories and hierarchy all reinforce the old way. The MD's authority is an asset if he drives the change, but the controls and beliefs will need to change before online selling is accepted.

Example 2

A bank has merged with a smaller fintech firm. The bank has a role culture with detailed procedures and slow approvals. The fintech has a task culture based on small project teams. The board wants a single, innovative culture within two years. Recommend how the board could change the culture. (10 marks)

Show the solution

Start with the gap: a role culture values rules and certainty, while a task culture values speed and problem-solving. Merging them risks conflict, with bank staff seeing fintech staff as reckless and the fintech staff seeing the bank as obstructive.
Leadership: appoint a visible leadership team that includes fintech leaders. Senior managers should role-model the new behaviours, such as working in cross-functional teams.
Structure: create mixed project teams and reduce approval layers for low-risk decisions, so the structure supports faster work.
Control systems and rewards: add measures and rewards for innovation and teamwork alongside compliance. A bank must keep strong risk controls, so keep them where regulation requires.
Symbols, stories and routines: use shared branding, celebrate joint project successes, change meeting routines and open the offices so teams mix.
Training and communication: explain why the change is needed and give staff skills for agile working.
Risks and limits: two years is short for culture change. Expect some resistance and some loss of fintech staff if bureaucracy wins. Monitor progress through staff surveys and retention figures.

Answer: The board should shift the bank towards a blended culture by changing several web elements together: leadership role-modelling, mixed teams and lighter approvals, rewards for innovation, new stories and routines, and training. It should keep necessary regulatory controls and accept that full change may take longer than two years.

Exam tips

Always use evidence from the scenario. A named model with no evidence earns few marks.
Tie every cultural point to the change in the question. The examiner wants impact, not description.
When asked how to change culture, give a package of actions across several web elements and say why one action alone is not enough.
Use a professional format, such as a short report with clear headings, to pick up professional skills marks for communication.
Show balance: note strengths of the existing culture and the time and cost of changing it.

Practice questions from Managing strategic change

Organisational Culture and Change in other exams

The same ground in other exams, if you are preparing for more than one or want another angle on it.

Organisational Culture and Change: frequently asked questions

What is the cultural web in SBL?

It is Johnson and Scholes' model showing the paradigm at the centre, held in place by stories, symbols, power structures, organisational structures, control systems, and rituals and routines. You use it to diagnose culture and to find levers for change. In the exam, apply each element to the scenario rather than defining it.

What are Handy's cultures: role, power, task and person?

Power culture centres on one person or a small group. Role culture depends on rules and defined jobs. Task culture is team-based and focused on solving problems. Person culture exists to serve the individuals in it. Say which type fits the scenario and whether it suits the change.

How do you change organisational culture in an SBL answer?

Use the web to choose actions: new leadership and role-modelling, new stories and symbols, changed rewards and controls, restructuring of power bases, and training and communication. Say that culture change is slow and needs consistent signals. Mention how you would monitor progress.

What is the paradigm and why does it matter?

The paradigm is the set of core assumptions that managers share about the organisation and its environment. It matters because a rigid paradigm can make managers ignore changes in the market, leading to strategic drift. Changing strategy often means challenging the paradigm first.