Culture profile of Spain's Michelin-starred restaurants

Purpose This study profiles organizational culture in Spanish Michelin-starred restaurants and examines the complementary diagnostic value of the Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument (OCAI) and the Denison Organizational Culture Survey (DOCS). Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional survey yielded 178 valid responses from leaders and managers of restaurants recognized in the Michelin Guide Spain and Portugal 2022. The OCAI assessed the Clan, Adhocracy, Hierarchy, and Market culture types, while the DOCS assessed the Involvement, Adaptability, Consistency, and Mission dimensions. Findings The results revealed a dominant Clan culture type, with strong Adhocracy traits. The DOCS findings showed high scores in Involvement and Adaptability. Among the DOCS subdimensions, Customer Focus received comparatively lower scores. Correlation analysis found most theoretically related OCAI and DOCS constructs to be positively associated, though significance varied across pairings. Practical implications The findings suggest leaders in high-performance creative restaurants should balance team cohesion, creative flexibility, and operational stability. Customer Focus can be enhanced by integrating guest knowledge into existing practices. Applying the OCAI and DOCS together affords practitioners a richer cultural diagnosis than either instrument alone. Originality/value This study presents the first quantitative culture profile of Spanish Michelin-starred restaurants, based on a novel integration of the OCAI and DOCS as complementary diagnostic instruments.