Abstract
The discussion defines the organization culture and the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). Additionally, it highlights the differences between the two operation guides within organizations. The organizational culture is a pattern or beliefs set by an organization pioneers, or the staff members. Events occurring in an organization may also shape the culture. It can be applied during the promotion process. However, defined procedures should be followed when promoting employees or increasing wages. The SOPs set standards that must be followed to ensure that results are consistent. However, there might be conflicts while dealing with these types of operating procedures.
Keywords: Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), organizational culture
Organizational Culture and Standard Operating Process
The culture of an organization influences the way people behave. Hence, culture is considered when developing HR policies and practices. The concept can be defined as the pattern of beliefs or values that shape the employees’ behavior (Schein, 2010). On the other hand, the standard operating procedure (SOP) is a process that describes the necessary steps that complete a given task according to an institution’s rules and regulations. Although organizational culture and standard operating procedure may differ, both approaches are critical for both the organization and its employees; hence, the human resource managers and the leadership team should differentiate both aspects to understand their impact on the organization’s operations.
Organizational culture focuses on how the institutions operate. It refers to the concepts, such as the norms and values of the business that are not defined, noticed, or even discussed. A given culture may have a significant influence on the way people behave. Organizational culture assumes several approaches. Firstly, it can follow the standards set by leaders who are then emulated by the employees who follow their example and identify with their behavior (Schein, 2010). The followers usually consider the leaders as their role models. Secondly, the culture may develop out of critical events in which people learn about undesirable and desirable actions. Thirdly, the working environment of an organization greatly influences an institution’s culture. Lastly, the culture can be influenced by the need to maintain effective working conditions, thus creating specific values.
Organization culture is adopted and understood with time. Additionally, people develop successful approaches and ways to handle issues, technologies, and processes within their organizations. In institutions where culture has grown over time, it is difficult to change unless there is a traumatic occurrence, which disrupts the normal processes within a given organization.
It is crucial to create, support, and change cultures within organizations. Although no particular approach that culture can be developed from, it is worth noting that the organization culture enhances the confidence that improves staff’s performance. It is crucial to have an appropriate and productive culture that would support the desired results (Schein, 2010). If the culture does not deliver the desired results, then it should be changed or enhanced.
Standard Operating Procedures
The standard operating procedure (SOP) entails the process required to do a given task. It is a document that includes “How to” operate within a given setup. The procedures are mostly found in manufacturing industries where a systematic explanation of how processes should be tackled as well as how to train new staff. Standard operating procedures include the expected practices within an organization (Amare, 2012). Therefore, SOPs are necessary procedures, standards, and policies needed in marketing, operations, and administration of a business to ensure success.
SOPs play an integral part in the success of any organization since they provide information on how to perform jobs and facilitate consistency of a given product. Most of the SOPs are managed under quality assurance since the department is responsible for the quality of a product. The purpose of SOPs is to state the regular occurrence of the work within an organization. The SOPs document the consistent technical requirements that support daily operations. They define the primary programs and analytical processes used in calibrating, maintaining, and using specific equipment and machines. The operation programs are supposed to be particular to the organization or the section whose activities are described.
Additionally, the SOPs assist the institutions in complying with the government set regulations. It is worth noting that wrongly written SOPs have limited value. On the other hand, if SOP guidelines are not followed, the system might fail, affecting the result (EPA, 2007). Thus, it is essential to review and enforce the SOPs either by the management or by the direct supervisors. Hence, copies of SOPs should be readily available and accessible in the specific working areas to assist the individuals doing the work.
The SOPs play a significant role in reducing variations since they promote consistency within the organization’s processes. SOPs are used as references by industrial and authority’s regulation compliant and as training manuals. The SOP reduces the chances of misconduct and miscommunication and can be used to address the safety concerns (EPA, 2007). In essence, the advantages of SOPs include legal defense, reduced work effort, credibility, and improved comparability.
Differences
A notable difference between the Standard Operating Procedures and the organizational culture is evident. The SOPs are documented in typical operations, which should be followed to achieve the desired result. The corporate culture may be defined as an undocumented way of doing things in an organization. Thus, if a conflict arises within a firm, it may be difficult to solve if an individual followed the conventional procedures of organization culture instead of the documented standard procedures (Kurz, 2006). The organizational culture is usually adopted from the way people run activities around a particular institution and can only be altered in case major events within the organization arise. During promotions, people might have an automatic candidate for a specific position, but on the other hand, the standards for such events must be followed, which may bring conflicts. Hence, SOPs are enumerated rules and regulations, which are enforced by the management (EPA, 2007). Thus, when it comes to solving issues within organizations that operate on both standards, a conflict may arise, especially if individuals feel that they did their part and followed either of the approaches.
Conclusion
As it is evident from the comparison of both organizational culture and standard operating process, every organization or institution operates within a given framework to achieve a certain goal. Most organizations have undocumented ways in which they operate, which is referred to as the organizational culture. Management and employees of a given institution usually adopt a particular culture. Besides, the culture may be established to conform to general standards adopted within a given time. In case of a significant disruption, it may lead to a major change of culture within an organization. People tend to accept specific values and norms, which guarantee business continuity, thus ensuring respect and better results among the teams involved.
On the other hand, standard operating procedures (SOPs) are the documented ways of running operations in an industry or organization. The SOPs are appropriate for industry setup since they enhance safety and consistency of result. Additionally, they are useful in ensuring that the organization has followed the government regulations. In addition, those principles are used as training manuals for new employees. However, in the case of conflicts, a problem may arise, leading to disruption of services because people have different views when resolving issues. One party may maintain that it followed the company’s culture, while the other entity may assert that it has followed the SOPs.
References
Amare, G. (2012). Reviewing the values of a standard operating procedure. Ethiopian Journal of Health Sciences, 22(3). 205-208.
EPA, T. (2007). Guidance for preparing standard operating procedures (SOPs). Journal of Quality Assurance, 1-2.
Kurz, D. L. (2006). A promotional process for the smaller police agency. Police Chief, 73(10), 38.
Schein, E. H. (2010). Organizational culture and leadership (Vol. 2). San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons.