Co-op News (August 2019)
What is co-operative culture - and why does it matter? This issue looks at how co-op values intersect with the values in organisations, across movements and between countries. Plus 100 years of the Channel Islands Co-operative – and how the new Coop Exchange app is tackling the capital conundrum.
What is co-operative culture - and why does it matter? This issue looks at how co-op values intersect with the values in organisations, across movements and between countries. Plus 100 years of the Channel Islands Co-operative – and how the new Coop Exchange app is tackling the capital conundrum.
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Why is co-<strong>op</strong>erative<br />
culture important?<br />
CONNECTING, CHAMPIONING AND<br />
CHALLENGING THE GLOBAL CO-OP<br />
MOVEMENT SINCE 1871<br />
Holyoake House, Hanover Street,<br />
Manchester M60 0AS<br />
(00) 44 161 214 0870<br />
www.thenews.co<strong>op</strong><br />
editorial@thenews.co<strong>op</strong><br />
EXECUTIVE EDITOR<br />
Rebecca Harvey<br />
rebecca@thenews.co<strong>op</strong><br />
INTERNATIONAL EDITOR<br />
Anca Voinea | anca@thenews.co<strong>op</strong><br />
DIGITAL EDITOR<br />
Miles Hadfield | miles@thenews.co<strong>op</strong><br />
WRITER<br />
Jen Banks<br />
DESIGN<br />
Keir Mucklestone-Barnett<br />
ART & DESIGN PLACEMENT<br />
Owais Qazi<br />
INTERNATIONAL OUTREACH OFFICER<br />
Elaine Dean<br />
DIRECTORS<br />
Barbara Rainford (chair), David Paterson<br />
(vice-chair), Gavin Ewing, Tim Hartley,<br />
Beverley Perkins and Ray Henderson.<br />
Secretary: Richard Bickle<br />
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<strong>News</strong> is published by <strong>Co</strong>-<strong>op</strong>erative<br />
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the global co-<strong>op</strong>erative movement,<br />
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co<strong>op</strong>erativenews<br />
Whether it manifests itself through shared values, attitudes or assumptions, culture<br />
can play a key role in determining an organisation’s behaviour. In this issue we look<br />
at co-<strong>op</strong>erative culture – what it is and how the values and principles of co-<strong>op</strong>eration<br />
are reflected in diff erent sectors. How is it reflected in approaches to leadership,<br />
education or personal lives?<br />
Ed Mayo explains how there is no one identity across diff e rent organisations,<br />
since organisational culture is strongly influenced by factors such as environment,<br />
colleagues and the nature of a co-<strong>op</strong>’s work (p28). And in our feature on Cec<strong>op</strong>’s<br />
40th anniversary, we hear about some of the challenges its founding members<br />
faced when bringing together diff erent co-<strong>op</strong>erative cultures under one Eur<strong>op</strong>ean<br />
umbrella organisation (p36-37).<br />
Organisational culture is also influenced by the sector in which co-<strong>op</strong>s <strong>op</strong>erate and<br />
the size of the business. A new report argues that Canadian federation of credit<br />
unions Desjardins Group has moved away from its original mission and co-<strong>op</strong><br />
culture due to increased competition from other banks and new consumer trends<br />
(p38-39).<br />
Why does culture matter? As Ed Mayo writes, when values are reflected in<br />
genuine behaviour, co-<strong>op</strong>erative culture can bring authenticity. Employees<br />
who work for organisations whose values they share are also more engaged<br />
and tend to accomplish more, which means that culture can help co-<strong>op</strong>s thrive.<br />
This issue we also look at the cross over in values between co-<strong>op</strong> culture and diff<br />
erent religions, hear about a university course looking specifi cally at co-<strong>op</strong><br />
culture, and how their unique way of organising helped co-<strong>op</strong>s to survive the<br />
fascist regime of Mussolini’s Italy.<br />
ANCA VOINEA - INTERNATIONAL EDITOR<br />
<strong>Co</strong>-<strong>op</strong>erative <strong>News</strong> is printed using vegetable oil-based<br />
inks on 80% recycled paper (with 60% from post-consumer<br />
waste) with the remaining 20% produced from FSC or PEFC<br />
certified sources. It is made in a totally chlorine free process.<br />
AUGUST <strong>2019</strong> | 3