Culture of organization in conditions of changes as an ability of efficient transformations: the case of gas transportation companies in Ukraine

Research background: The relevance of the research on corporate culture in the conditions of changes is substantiated and its elements, which are important for effective transformations, are defined. The influence of corporate culture on the company performance and its elements is identified. The article deals with hierarchical levels of corporate culture which identify elements of corporate culture and "hidden" factors that allow establishing relationships with the outside world and promote productive work. Purpose of the article: The objective of the article is to identify the elements of the organizational culture at the enterprise level, which influence the effectiveness of its activities under the changes and generalization of its components that determine its ability to transform the existing state in accordance with the established world experience and practice. The research is based on the experience of gas transportation companies in Ukraine. Methods: The McKinsey 7S model was used to describe the enterprise to assess the state of the proposed levels of formation and to change its corporate culture. The McKinsey 7S Framework used in this study as analytical tool to explore a system of interrelated elements which improve the organization's work, raising the level of employee culture and generating common values. The expert method was used to assess the qualitative indices of enterprise internal environment, including "style/culture" and "common values", based on the questionnaire of the experts' group. The survey was conducted at three levels of management for the gas transportation companies, located in different regions of Ukraine. The three levels of management for the mentioned above enterprises — top, middle and low managers were taken into account. The use of the fuzzy logic method makes it possible to investigate the influence of the corporate culture elements on the results of the enterprises and to identify those elements which are important for the implementation of changes at the enterprise and without which it is impossible to achieve effective transformations. Findings & Value added: Taking into account the results of the assessment of corporate culture elements at the investigated companies, the directions of corporate culture development for enterprises that are in a state of changes are pointed out, namely: use of different management styles; support of employees in making innovative decisions; development of cooperation and elimination of conflicts between workers; formation of general corporate values; creating trust between employees and top managers; promoting the development of young workers; use of the mechanisms of education and maintenance of a high level of morality and culture of workers.