CHAPTER ONE
1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
Culture is an important building block for the success and growth of organizations. It is what controls the behaviour of people and events that happen in an organization. It determines how activities are carried out in any organization.
From the above, it can be deduced that culture runs deep in every organization. It is the reason behind the way an organization is run. Every organization has its own unique culture which most often emerges based on the values of the top management and or founders of the organization.
The realization that an organization can only get as far as their cultures can lead them has spurred management into taking more interest in culture and how to build or maintain a culture that will enhance the performance of an organization.
Because the organization is located in an environment that has its own culture and also woks with people who have different cultural backgrounds, culture analysis comes in handy in dealing with those aspects that seem irrational, frustrating and intractable. The bottom line for leaders is that if they do not become conscious of the cultures in which they are embedded, those cultures will manage them.
Within an organization, there are sub-cultures (these sub-cultures are as a result of individual cultures which employees bring into the work place). There is the need therefore to bring these cultures together to the benefit of the organization.
The importance of culture is growing as a result of several recent developments. Organizations are encouraging employees to be more responsible and think and act like owners by owning up the organizational culture.
This study is intended to motivate the management of organizations to look into the culture of their organizations and work towards creating a culture that will enhance their performance.
The Researcher’s choice of Zenith Bank as a case study stems from the published consistent and impressive performance of the bank within a few years of their operation in the banking sector.
1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM