The culture of a firm and the formation of strategy are two very

important aspects of an organisation. The world contains many different people all with different values, ideas and beliefs. These differences create a diverse range of cultures within organisations, some having bigger influences than others. Strategies within organisations are highly dynamic and complex, and can have positive and negative effects on an organisation. Vision and mission are concepts that many believe are vital for an organisation to operate effectively and to the best of its abilities. Andrew Campbell (1991) , a prominent writer on vision and mission, believes that both the culture and the strategy of a firm come together side by side to build an overall definition of mission for a firm. The paper will be based around Campbell's perception and whether either culture or strategy has a greater part to play in an organisation's mission.

Culture and strategy will be examined in a context relevant to the title question. Hofstede (1993) defines culture as 'the collective programming of the mind which distinguishes one group or category of pe

The 'behaviour standards' of a firm are more complex. There is a trade-off of a kind between a commercial rationale and philosophical or moral rational (Campbell 1991). The behaviour guidelines have to incorporate good economic sense that will help produce a strategy to compete effectively with competitors, but also have a side that guide the culture of the employees to help them work and make decisions on a day-to-day basis. This aspect of the mission will be highly influenced by the type of culture and the strategy incorporated by the firm. It is difficult to distinguish which has a more determining role. The strong mission must also contain the fore-mentioned 'strategy'.

Morgan, G. (1996) Images of Organizations London, Sage Publications

Strategy is formed in different ways. A comprehensive overview of strategy formation within a company may show interpretive, incremental and intended strategy, all contributing to an overall realised strategy. Morgan (1996) has written much on the organisation and he was used earlier to help define culture. The way Morgan discusses culture; it is difficult to see culture and strategy as equal contributors to a firm's mission. Discussing organisation reality and culture he says; '...we have a powerful way of thinking about culture...we must attempt to understand culture as an on going process, proactive process of reality construction.' He believes that the whole culture phenomenon is alive and it should be understood differently. 'Culture can no longer just be viewed as a simple variable that societies or organisations possess or something that a leader brings to his her organisation'. Morgan recognises that there are many different cultures in organisations that have evolved and have been affected in different ways. A company culture can be changed by different occurrences, be it a powerful leader such as ITT's famous power-hungry, 'jungle fighter', Harold Geenan, or a firm's deliberate strategy to have a friendly company ethos (Morgan 1996). Strategy it seems can change a company's culture, either consciously or by coincidence, but it is the slowly changing, traditional, national culture that has stamped its values on the organisation.

Campbell, A. & Yeung, S (1991) Creating a Sense of Mission Long Range Planning August pp.10-20

The 'purpose' of a mission is predominantly made up from strategy of the company. The three types of company that were recognised claimed to have purposes to benefit the shareholder, a wider benefit of all the stakeholders and thirdly, a purpose to aim towards a 'higher deal'. The three standpoints are a consequence of strategy decisions made by the company. The important aspect of the third type of purpose is that although it is a conscious strategy to satisfy more than just stakeholder needs, it is less economically based. It involves values, beliefs and ethics of the directors or controllers of the organisation and therefore is, in away, a highly culture based decision. If a culture, be it a nation or organisation, had beliefs that were weak in the pursuit of good ethics then it is possible that the purpose of a firm would be orientated more towards shareholders and other stakeholders. Companies that are based around these two types of 'purposes' have preferences that are more economically or financially based.

Some common words found in the essay are:
Baetz Bart, Wit Meyer, Collins Porras, Andrew Campbell, Campbell Yeung, Mission Campbell's, , Harold Geenan, Fawn Cox, Range Planning, culture strategy, vision mission, strategy culture, behaviour standards, 'sense mission', campbell 1991, strong mission, strategy firm, mission model, company's culture, ashridge mission model, statements range planning, purpose strategy behaviour, elements purpose strategy, de wit meyer,
Approximate Word count = 3346
Approximate Pages = 13 (250 words per page double spaced)