Organizational Culture

In 2003 NASA lost 7 crew members aboard the space shuttle Columbia when returning to Earth. This accident contributed to the change of the organizational culture within NASA.

I admire this company for being the top place to work within the federal government. NASA highly values people, safety, integrity and excellence. These are values any person or company should have as a respect for other people, as well as the surrounding areas, cultures and economy. NASA also incorporates all of the seven primary characteristics which are innovation, stability, respect for people, outcome orientation, detail orientation, team orientation, and aggressiveness. Innovation would be the most rapidly occurring change for NASA. There are constant changes in technology at this level. The employee’s needs to be open to change in products, the way things are done, and changes in staff. Stability is required in any organization, but especially one of this level. There are top secret documents, high security levels, and highly advanced equipment. Without stability this company would not be able to keep their status. Respect for people goes hand in hand with stability. The changes that NASA is undergoing are working on ensuring that people at NASA feel appreciated and respected. There is also a certain level of respect required for the families of the astronauts especially during times of tragedy such as the one in 2003. Outcome orientation, detail orientation and team orientation are all very much a part of any organization that runs smoothly. Aggressiveness is required to maintain the top spot in space research. It is also important when this company needs equipment for deadlines, and safety checks. If the people in the company were not aggressive at getting this achieved there would be many more accidents occurring.

This organization has a moderately strong culture, but as with any it could use some improvement. NASA is very detail oriented as it has to