Organizational Analysis Project
Introduction
The purpose of this paper is to analyze how an organization’s culture may affect its overall
business performance. Since business entities have various work cultures and philosophies, it is a good
idea to identify a specific notion that can be identified in a particular company and enrich it. For this
purpose, the company Tesla was chosen because of its wider influence towards the needs of the society
when it comes to technology and related disciplines. The company was initially built upon the idea of
producing electric cars that can automate driving. Eventually, it has evolved into a firm that now caters
to the energy, space, and other related concepts. In the automotive industry, Tesla’s conventional
competitors include companies with established market presence such as General Motors, Toyota, and
Volkswagen. However, the aspect that sets it apart from them is that it has other divisions with very
little competition like energy, battery, and space, making it more resilient to market competition.
Culture
A business organization aims to achieve one thing, to generate profits. While this notion might
be too generic, various companies employ a specific organizational culture that can separate their
operations from others. In the case of Tesla, the culture of mission-driven innovation is widely
implemented and encouraged (Meyer, 2018). In fact, Elon Musk, one of the founders of Tesla, is not very
much bothered about how his electric cars will compete with the market. Rather, he wants to solve the
very dilemma of creating a car that is fully automated. As such, the company believes in the aspect of
building its core operations to solve problems especially related to electric automobiles, energy
resources, and similar technologies. The company’s management believes in the innovation culture that
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is based on the organization’s problem solving capability. It allows its workers to have a definite
contribution to solving the problems of society by integrating their ideas into what they intend to build.
Unlike with a conventional business culture where workers are instructed to follow specific guidelines,
Tesla empowers its workforce to offer solutions for the automotive and energy industry. Relating Tesla’s
organizational culture to Schein’s three levels of culture will reveal that Espoused Values are the most
evident level. The researchers and workers in the company are very particular with delegating their
knowledge and skills to solve a particular need in the market, a transition from fuel-based to the electrical
and automated form of transportation. Apart from the skills in the assembly in testing, the people of Tesla
all contribute to first establishing the concept behind the innovation they want to execute. In fact, Musk
seemingly requires that each employee should have solved at least one problem (Dyer, 2015). The
concept of making a car run on its own using an operating system is embedded in the values of the
workers as innovative presentation of ideas. The aspect of Artifact may not be too obvious but
Assumptions are identifiable to the unconscious desire of each employee to solve a problem.
Development
As mentioned, innovation is at the heart of Tesla’s mission to produce a vehicle that can run
with electricity. Such a feat from its origin back in 2003 was already the main consideration if one is to
enter the premises of the company. The linking factor that promoted the culture of innovation stemmed
from addressing disadvantages related to petrol-powered cars. Initially, the company was only
represented by a few people who pioneered the project of the electric car. Upon investor’s entry which
includes Musk, the corporate reorganization was implemented.
From the very start, innovation has always been the core culture of Tesla’s business. It developed into a
full mission-based notion as it entered different segments like energy and portable power. As of the
moment, very little has changed with regard to the business culture. Various modifications have been
implemented in its succeeding electric car models leading to software-based driving for automation.
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Elon Musk is still the CEO of Tesla which means the current organizational culture is maintained
since the company’s inception. The motivation of people who work and apply for positions at Tesla is
based on a shared goal of discovering new and better technologies without compromising the
environment. However, such mission-driven culture can sometimes take a toll on the aspect of efficient
communication among the employees. Each one has a preferred way of forwarding thinking which may
overshadow the importance of collaborative work. As of the moment, the culture is somewhat unstable
and requires change. Some employees at the company have noted that communication procedures are
among the primary concerns they have with the business culture. While communication is present, it is
not an optimum level in Tesla and probably this is due to the fact that it is a tech innovator (Brooks,
2018). One of the modifications and changes underway is the restructuring of the company’s management.
On May 14 of this year, Musk announced the change in the management wherein Musk said “We are
flattening the management structure to improve communication, combining functions where sensible
and trimming activities that are not vital to the success of our mission.”
Conclusion
An organization can only function if it has a solid structure for its process implementation. Most
of the time, the structure is influence by the very organizational culture that is present in the business.
The people who work under one company need to have a guiding principle so that the goal of the
organization can be achieved. The workplace culture enables each individual to meet the expected
results from the processes of the business. For Tesla, the problem solving and mission-driven culture
have always been the catalysts for innovation. In this regard, it is necessary that each individual
working for the company adhere to the core values that allow the company to get an edge over its
competitors. However, since profit generation is not the mere consideration of Tesla, there could be
some lapses in the procedures of communication as indicated in the recent surveys among the
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company. Because of such inefficiency, Musk has ordered a complete overhaul of its management
process especially identifying the communication pattern as a priority. If the recent organizational
culture has been having gaps in terms of coordination, the innovation-driven strategy of the company
may not be dispersed at an optimum rate.
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References
Brooks, R. (2018, July 23). Workplace Spotlight: The Challenge of Maintaining Tesla’s Mission- Driven
Culture. Retrieved October 18, 2018, from https://peakon.com/blog/workplace- culture/tesla-company-
culture/
Dyer, J. (2015, September 7). Decoding Tesla’s Secret Formula. Retrieved October 18, 2018,
from https://www.forbes.com/sites/innovatorsdna/2015/08/19/teslas-secret-
formula/#c3724ae653c4
Meyer, P. (2018, June 24). Tesla Inc.’s Organizational Culture & Its Characteristics (Analysis).
Retrieved October 18, 2018, from http://panmore.com/tesla-motors-inc-organizational- Culture-
characteristics-analysis