Corporate Culture and Why It Is Important To Your Organization

Culture is Key to Increasing Performance!

Tools, Processes, and Investing can only take you so far to build a high performing organization.  The magic glue that keeps your people aligned and happy is your Culture.

This post discusses what culture really is and why it is important. Part 2 will be coming soon:  Culture: The Killer App for Your Competitive Productivity Advantage.

What is Corporate Culture Really?

Below are a few of the important aspects of your culture.

• Respect – how is respect demonstrated?
• Trust – benefit of the doubt, assume good intent.
• Caring – humans work here, be kind yet direct.
• Work Ethic – work hard play hard.
• Credit/Blame – do we witch hunt, treat as a learning opportunity, or just move on?
• Clearly Defined Core Values – What is our purpose and other guidelines?

Below are some very related areas to consider when improving your culture.

Culture is the sum total of the aura around your people as they work.  It is the way leaders interact and how honest and upfront they are.  It’s how people feel (not necessarily think on the surface) about your firm and its leaders.

If you have a few minutes, see what is on your firm’s GlassDoor page https://www.glassdoor.com and if you agree, fine.  If not, or you feel your firm is getting shorted, then put in a review and ask your colleagues to do the same.  Employees need to take responsibility to see that their firm’s reputation, especially on employee review sites, has both the bad and the good.  GlassDoor reviews more often happen when people leave and many times they are irritated or dissatisfied in many ways.  Don’t let that be the only view the public, especially job seekers, sees of your firm.

Why Culture is Important to Your Organization

Everyone works for money but there is so much more to it than that.  Praise and mentoring, opportunity to grow in both skills and position, interesting work, time off, sponsored nonprofit opportunities, and more.

Why do we go to work in the morning?  What makes a job or employer worthwhile?  These are great questions to answer as you drive culture change.

If your people are engaged, positively impressed by your culture, and feeling appreciated they will likely be frank in their discussions and attrition will be low.  If they are just doing a job and they don’t know why, or they do not feel appreciated, they will hold back their ideas and feedback and may even be looking for that next job.

You are basically defined by your culture be it cowboy or pocket protector.  This is simply part of life and your culture should be what you make it.  We all want to be proud of who we are and what we belong to so make it part of your culture.

Culture – Your Thoughts?

Thoughts on your Culture?  How is it defined and adhered to?  Good luck and keep your eye out for ways to improve, guide, and enjoy your work culture!

Your path to business success.