Research Plan: Organizational Culture & Performance at Coles

This research plan investigates the impact of organizational culture on organizational performance, using Coles, a major Australian supermarket chain facing competitive challenges, as a case study. The plan outlines the rationale for the study, highlighting Coles' declining market share and the importance of organizational culture in achieving business objectives. It presents a problem statement focusing on the need for a flexible and diverse work culture in a changing global business environment. The research objectives include identifying the current organizational culture at Coles, determining its impact on performance, and recommending strategies for improvement. The research questions explore the elements of organizational culture at Coles and their influence on organizational performance, with a corresponding hypothesis positing a relationship between these factors. The literature review examines existing research on organizational culture, its elements, organizational performance, and the impact of culture on performance, identifying gaps in the literature related to sector-specific analysis and motivational factors. The research methodology section details the chosen pragmatism research philosophy, deductive research approach, and methods for data collection and analysis, including sampling techniques, reliability and validity considerations, and ethical considerations. Finally, a research plan is provided, outlining the steps and timeline for conducting the study. Desklib offers a wealth of similar assignments and past papers to aid students in their academic pursuits.

Running head: RESEARCH PLAN
Research plan
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author note

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Executive Summary
This study had identified the impact of organizational culture on the performance of
organizations. In this study, Coles had been chosen as the organization where the study would
have identified the organizational culture and its effect on business performance in Coles. Coles
had been facing in gaining competitive advantage in the market and had been losing their share
in the market so the influence of organization culture would have been identified in this scenario.
The report had established a suitable literature and research methodology which would be used
to achieve the desired goals.

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Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction................................................................................................................................4
1.1 Rationale................................................................................................................................4
1.2 Problem statement.................................................................................................................4
1.3 Research objective.................................................................................................................5
1.4 Research question..................................................................................................................5
1.5 Research Hypothesis..............................................................................................................5
2.0 Literature review........................................................................................................................6
2.1 Organizational culture...........................................................................................................6
2.2 Elements of Organizational Culture......................................................................................7
2.3 Organizational performance..................................................................................................8
2.4 Impact of organizational performance on organizational culture..........................................8
2.5 Literature gap.........................................................................................................................9
3.0 Research methodology...............................................................................................................9
3.1 Research Philosophy............................................................................................................10
3.2 Research Approach..............................................................................................................10
3.3 Research design...................................................................................................................11
3.4 Data Collection and Analysis..............................................................................................11
3.5 Sampling..............................................................................................................................12
3.6 Reliability and Validity........................................................................................................12

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3.7 Ethical Consideration...............................................................................................................13
4.0 Research Plan...........................................................................................................................13
References......................................................................................................................................15

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Topic: Impact of organizational culture on organizational performance- A case study of Coles
1.0 Introduction
This is a study which will identify the impact of organizational culture on the
performance of organizations. In this study, Coles has been chosen as the organization where the
study will identify the organizational culture and its effect on business performance in Coles.
Coles has been facing in gaining competitive advantage in the market and have been losing their
share in the market so the influence of organization culture will be identified in this scenario.
1.1 Rationale
Coles is one of the largest chains of supermarkets in Australia and faces tough
competition from Woolworths and Aldi. Recently, the organization has been falling behind in
terms of their sales and revenue generation (Coles.com.au, 2018). Organization culture is a key
pillar for developing effective goals, values and workforce engagement. The study will identify
the drawbacks with the organization culture within Coles and recommend strategies to improve
the organizational behaviour for improving organizational performance.
1.2 Problem statement
Organizational culture determines the norms, values and the objectives of a particular
organization. There is culture difference in different countries and organizations which can be
determined by their differences on their policies. The behaviour of an organization is reflected by
the organizational and practices they follow. The head of big data in Coles commented that
culture is holding back the organizations in Australia as they are still reluctant in adopting open
source. Coles has seen its affect on it in the market of 2017 when Woolworths were able t take

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back their lead in terms of market share (McLean, 2016). The global business scenario has
changed significantly and the companies in the market will have to constantly adapt to the
changing need in the market. Therefore, developing a diverse and flexible work culture is a key
to organizational success. It is essential to identify the impact of organizational culture on the
organization performance in Coles. This will facilitate in identifying the important elements of
organization culture and organizational performance. The impact of different elements of
organization on the factors of the organization will be identified to develop suitable strategies for
improving the organizational culture in Coles.
1.3 Research objective
 To identify the current organisational culture at Coles
 To identify the impact of organizational culture on the performance of Coles
 To recommend suitable strategies for improving organizational culture in Coles
1.4 Research question
 What are the different elements of organizational culture in Coles?
 What is the impact of organizational culture on organizational performance in Coles?
1.5 Research Hypothesis
H0: There is no impact of organizational culture on organizational performance in Coles
H1: There is impact of organizational culture on organizational performance in Coles

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2.0 Literature review
As stated by Hogan and Coote, (2014), organizational culture determines the norms,
objectives and values of any organization. The cultural differences between the different
companies exist as they operate in different environment and they belong to a different country
they have different values and norms. The management of different organization have to
introduce the employees to the cultural beliefs and the goals of the organization so that the
employees can align their goals to that of the organizational gaols. Effective development of
organizational culture ensures enhancement in performance by learning from the surrounding
environment and perform at their fullest capacity at all times. On the other hand, as put forward
by O’Reilly III et al., (2014), organizational culture is not a tool or strategy that could be used to
enhance the performance of the employees and organization. Moreover, the author also states
that organization culture and performance are not interrelated and there are other effective ways
of improving the organizational performance. Therefore, in this scenario, the literature review
will aim to prove that organizational culture can be used as element of performance management
and there is a significant relationship between organizational culture and organizational
performance.
2.1 Organizational culture
According to Lonial and Carter, (2015), shared beliefs, values and the basic assumption
constitute the culture of any organization. The organizational culture is present at different levels
within the organization. There are generally three levels in organizational culture which consist
of factors such as creations, values, assumptions and artefacts. The organization defines the
behaviour of the employees that are acceptable and at the same time defines the restrictions
imposed on the employees. However, the organizational culture is not homogeneous across

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various departments with the organization. This is because of the fact that there are norms which
are well accepted by the employees and there are others which are not. As stated by (), as time
progresses different departments and groups develop their own set of culture which may consist
of different values and norms. Zyphur, Zammuto and Zhang, (2016), states organization culture
starts from various assumptions formed by the groups, which help them to perceive and make
decisions according to their beliefs. Therefore, different organizations have unique value which
is different to other organizations. There are some organizations which focuses on innovation,
self-improvement and technology and there are others emphasizing on passion, honesty and
integrity.
2.2 Elements of Organizational Culture
As opined by Valmohammadi and Roshanzamir, (2015), in order to develop a strong
organizational culture, the organization focuses on maximizing the values of the employees so
that a strong culture can be developed. The organization culture can be measured by the amount
of work by the degree of cooperation between the management and the employees within the
organization. There are clear rules about the different behaviour of the organization. Moreover, it
will be used for the organization to make changes such as coordination and integration of
different units in business. The Hofstede’s cultural dimension is the effective framework of
defining the culture of organizations in different countries. It also consist of defining the national
culture in different countries based on the factors such as individualism versus collectivism,
power distance, uncertainty avoidance., masculinity/femininity, and long term versus short term
orientation. The national culture will have deep impact on the culture of the organization.

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2.3 Organizational performance
The ability of the organization to maintain their sustainability in highly competitive
environment is known as organizational performance. Organizations make use of balance
scorecard to measure the performance of the employees and the different dimensions of the
performance measurement are financial perspective, learning perspective, customer perspective
and internal business perspective (Pollanen et al., 2017). Comprehensive measurement of the
organization can b done based on factors such as quality, consistency and performance.
Performance measurement is a tool, which should be effectively used by the organization to
continuously measure the performance of the organization.
2.4 Impact of organizational performance on organizational culture
The cultural system in every organization has been developed to guide the employees in
making decisions. The behaviour of the employees is highly affected by the culture within a
organization which includes the values and shared beliefs. The performance of the organization
and its four functions are enhanced by the organizational culture. This includes factors such as
using control mechanism to shape the patterns in behaviour, organizational commitment,
creating sense of identity and intensification of the organizational values (Lonial & Carter,
2015). Therefore, effective development of the organizational culture will ensure that employees
improve their team bonding and help each other to progress towards the goals of the
stakeholders. Moreover, the employees can align their personal goals with that of the
organization by incorporating the values and beliefs. This develops a sense of belonging among
the employees which helps in motivating them.

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2.5 Literature gap
The current literatures used in the study focuses on identifying the impact on the
organization on organizational performance based on performance management. However, it
does not take into account the other aspect of organization performance. The analysis of the
literature is generic and is not linked to any of the sectors. Majority of the literature have not
taken into the account performance management and significance of performance management
will be evaluated. There is no empirical literature that has been used to provide details about the
organization culture in companies in the same industry. Moreover, the impact of organization
culture discussed is general and different cultural values and beliefs have not been taken into
account. The motivational factors are not taken into account as organizational culture has a deep
link with the motivation.
3.0 Research methodology
Research methodology is the systematic approach of identifying the different methods
and frameworks for developing relevant findings in accordance to the objective of the research.
The different methods in research are dependent on the nature of the research, purpose of the
research, research design and general classification. Therefore, based on this factors research
methodology can be divided into various categories such as conclusive or exploratory, applied
or fundamental, descriptive or analytical and qualitative or quantitative (Flick, 2015).
However, based on the nature of the study the research methodology can be divided into applied
research and fundamental research. In this current study, a specific problem related to a
particular company has been addressed. The result from the study can be used by managers in
the organization to implement changes. Therefore, applied research is the correct research for
this current study.

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3.1 Research Philosophy
The different methods of collecting and analyzing data will be identified using the
research philosophy. Research philosophy will clearly define the different assumptions made in
the study. The research philosophy will be chosen based on the practical implication. The
different types of research philosophy are realism, intepretivism, pragmatism and positivism
(Humphries, 2017). In this current study, pragmatism is the chosen research philosophy which
will accept or reject different concepts justified by their actions. In this philosophy, there is
multiple numbers of ways of interpreting a research as multiple realities exists at the same time.
In general, positivism and interpretivism are two theories that are mutually exclusive and
pragmatism is used to modify the philosophical assumptions. This is generally done by shifting
the position of the dogmas to a different position on the range. Moreover, it will facilitate in
conducting both qualitative and quantitative analysis of data and prove the developed hypothesis.
3.2 Research Approach
Adductive approach, deductive approach and inductive approach are the different
approaches in research. Deductive and Inductive can be differentiated depending upon the
research objective and hypothesis formulated. Abductive approach will present shocking facts
and remaining part of the study will be used for explaining the reason for these facts. Deductive
approach is used to validate the existing theories by testing the developed hypothesis (Sekaran,
& Bougie, 2016). On the other hand, the inductive approach is used for developing new
paradigms and framework. In this study, the deductive approach will be chosen as the research
approach as it facilitate in improving the observational scope.

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3.3 Research design
Research design describes the specific methods that will be used for data collection,
usage and analysis. The different research designs are conclusive, exploratory and explanatory
research (Meyers, Gamst & Guarino, 2016). Exploratory research is used for exploration data
without any of developing relevant conclusion. However, the explorative study will analyze
secondary data to develop alternate solutions to the research problem. In conclusive study, the
conclusive study will be used to prove the assumed conclusion. Explanatory method is used for
explaining and interpreting the observed data. In this current study, mixed method will be used
for data collection and data collection so sequential explanatory is the correct research method
for the study (Lamont et al., 2015). In this study, initially quantitative data collection and
analysis will be conducted to develop result and then qualitative analysis will be conducted. The
purpose of conducting qualitative analysis of data is to assist in understanding, explaining and
interpreting the data analysis from quantitative data.
3.4 Data Collection and Analysis
This study will consist of quantitative and qualitative analysis of data as mixed method is
the research design. The studies will primary data collection where both quantitative and
qualitative data will be collected (Dumbach, 2014). The quantitative data collection will consist
of close ended questionnaire where the data will be collected from the lower level employees in
the organization. The qualitative data will consist of open ended questionnaire which will consist
of gathering long answer from management level officials in the organization. The data analysis
will conducted through two phases where the quantitative data analysis will use statistical
techniques such as frequency of the response to develop graphs and charts. This will also consist
of regression analysis which will used to identify the degree and the nature of relationship