What Is Corporate Culture?

What Is Corporate Culture?

Corporate culture refers to the beliefs and behaviors that determine how a company's employees and management interact and handle outside business transactions. Often, corporate culture is implied, not expressly defined, and develops organically over time from the cumulative traits of the people the company hires. A company's culture will be reflected in its dress code, business hours, office setup, employee benefits, turnover, hiring decisions, treatment of clients, client satisfaction, and every other aspect of operations.

 

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Corporate Culture

KEY TAKEAWAYS

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  Corporate culture refers to the beliefs and behaviors that determine how a company's employees and management interact.
  
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  Corporate culture is also influenced by national cultures and traditions, economic trends, international trade, company size, and products.
  
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  Corporate cultures, whether shaped intentionally or grown organically, reach to the core of a company’s ideology and practice, and affect every aspect of a business.
  

Understanding Corporate Culture

Alphabet (GOOGL), the parent of Google, is well known for its employee-friendly corporate culture. It explicitly defines itself as unconventional and offers perks such as telecommuting, flextime, tuition reimbursement, free employee lunches, and on-site doctors. At its corporate headquarters in Mountain View, Calif., the company offers on-site services such as oil changes, car washes, massages, fitness classes, and a hair stylist. Its corporate culture helped it to consistently earn a high ranking on Fortune magazine's list of "100 Best Companies to Work For."