A Study of the American Red Cross

Organizational Culture: Its Impact on the delivery of humanitarian aid

A Study of the American Red Cross

Culture, they say is a way of life and the role it plays cannot be overlooked in any organization. In today's globalized world, there's a need to adapt to frequent changes and the willingness to change must be in place. Using organizational culture as the theoretical framework for this study, it's been proposed that organizations possess distinctive group cultures, espouse similar values, and share common belief systems. Guided by the organizational culture theory, this study attempted to describe the context of organizational culture through the experiences of those working within the organization (staff and volunteers). As a result, discover differing aspects of organizational culture and the impact of those aspects on the overall aid/relief delivery process. Founded in 1881 by visionary leader Clara Barton, the American Red Cross has been known to be the nation's premier emergency preparedness organization. The American Red Cross is guided by Seven Fundamental Principles: Humanity, Impartiality, Neutrality, Independence, Voluntary Service, Unity, and Universality. From neutral humanitarian aid to victims of war, to aiding victims of devastating natural disasters, this non-governmental organization has expanded its services for many years. Today, there are over 720 locally supported chapters of the American Red Cross and over 700,000 volunteers.

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