1. What are some visible aspects of Recycline's culture that reflect the company's values and commitment to green issues?
2. What role do leaders play in shaping Recycline's organizational culture? Explain.
3. Could Recycline easily change its organizational culture if the green products market encounters a backlash? How would management know if a permanent change in culture has occurred?
Thanks to Eric Hudson's perceptive scanning of the external environment in the mid-1990s, recycled products firm Recycline discovered an opportunity others missed.
Hudson broke into the natural product arena with an innovative toothbrush made from recycled materials-a bold decision in 1996. Hudson named his first product the Preserve Toothbrush, and Recycline was born. Today, Preserve products can be found at top retail chains including Target, Whole Foods, and Wal-Mart. Recycline believes that customers are getting wise to the "green-washing effect" in which businesses cultivate a superficial green image without the substance to back it up. A close look at Recycline's internal culture confirms that Hudson's company is authentically green. But Recyc line's organizational culture isn't just green-it's effective.