Case study
Cultural architecture for a leading Financial Software company
The client
A leading global financial software company, ranked as the third-largest financial services firm worldwide.
The brief
After a significant restructure, shifting to a cloud-first model and embracing digital transformation, the company recognised that its existing culture wasn’t aligned with its new strategic direction. The goal was to design a culture framework that would empower the workforce and drive effective change.
What we did
Phase one: culture assessment and analysis
We kicked off the programme by conducting an Organisational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) to gauge the current culture’s alignment with the organisation’s vision and strategy. The OCAI helped us identify how well the existing culture was supporting the company’s vision.
Through structured workshops, we gathered insights on the strengths, weaknesses, and potential of the present culture, projecting these into future outcomes. Using a four-pronged model, we assessed the internal and external orientations; and the focus on stability versus flexibility to understand the prevailing cultural preferences.
Internal-external dimension
An organisation can either focus inward on collaboration, development and integration; or it can have an external orientation, looking at the market, what’s possible with the latest technology, what competitors are doing, and how consumer demand is changing.
Stability-flexibility dimension
The second defining dimension is the focus on stability or flexibility. A stability focus values clear structures, planning, budgets, and reliability – there’s an underlying assumption that reality can be known and controlled. On the flip side, a flexibility focus assumes that you can never predict and control everything – requiring the organisation to adapt quickly to changing circumstances, focusing more on people and activities than on structure, procedures, and plans.
All of these dimensions are important and necessary at various stages of growth. The task in this case was to decide which of these dimensions would best serve the client’s aims; to evaluate how well they were matching those dimensions; and to identify what needed to change to bring the culture into alignment with the strategy.
Phase two: benchmarking and implementation
To inform our analysis further, we engaged with leading digital-native businesses such as IFS and Splunk. We applied the OCAI to these organisations and compared the results with the client’s culture to gain valuable insights into cultural architecture. The aggregated analysis formed the basis for our recommendations. The insights were integrated into performance frameworks and the recruitment toolkit, laying the foundation for a comprehensive culture transformation.
We organised an event to launch the new culture framework, embedding its importance and promoting buy-in from employees at all levels.
The results
Next steps involved integrating the framework across key touchpoints, such as development frames, succession planning processes, and the employee lifecycle. This approach ensured that the new culture manifested consistently throughout the organisation, driving alignment with the strategic objectives and enhancing the company’s readiness to seize new opportunities in the dynamic financial services landscape.
What our client had to say
Working with ig has been instrumental in moving the business forward…from frontline leaders to mid-tier managers, ensuring real-time support and progression throughout the organisation.
Chief People & Places Officer and Executive Leader
In summary
By designing and implementing a tailored cultural architecture, we helped a leading financial software company align its internal culture with its new strategic direction. Our collaborative approach ensured that the company’s culture would empower its employees to drive innovation and adapt to the changing landscape of financial services.
