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Your business, your culture

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chris boatAll of us recognize a great company culture when we see it.  There are companies and organizations where you sense an ambiance that makes you feel welcome and wanted.   That’s a sign of a great company culture.

Conversely, we’ve all walked into far different circumstances, and that’s a sign of that company’s culture as well; a bad sign.

A good company culture, over time, is almost always intentional.  Otherwise you are depending on what could be widely varying cultural norms, somehow coalescing, and forming a great shared culture.  I suppose that’s possible, but it’s not likely.

Look up the definition of culture, and you’ll find something like beliefs, values, and basic underlying assumptions.

Per a Lifeway article, an organization’s behavior includes “all that you would see, hear, and feel as you first encounter” the organization.   As they say, if culture were an apple, then behavior is the skin of that apple.

A “value” is a “belief” that is actually lived out, as opposed to just a mental belief which may not actually manifest itself.

However, lasting cultural change does in fact involve beliefs, in fact it involves deeply held assumptions.   If you simply address behavioral change, without addressing the underlying beliefs, you will be fighting an uphill battle.

This isn’t to imply that companies should not have strictly enforced behaviors not only in regard to customer treatment, but how employees treat each other.  As an extreme example, you should not permit sexual harassment within your organization; a behavior that you must strictly control.

Culture, tends to flow from the top down.  When I was in field service in Texas some years ago, one of our industrial clients was a very difficult, perpetually angry individual. I can’t recall even a mildly friendly encounter with him.  All of our conversations involved him waving his arms and yelling; he dealt with everyone like that.

I dreaded going there, as did everyone in our organization. What I came to realize, was that his employees hated coming there as bad me.  What I also came to realize, was that his rude and boorish behavior was reflected in the way his employees treated each other, and their customers.

Think about this example for a moment.  Imagine a business owner that’s a crook.  He cheats his customers and his vendors whenever possible.  After a time, what kind of employee will be working there?  An honest principled one?  No, only those that have no issue with unethical and dishonest behavior.

So what will the culture be like there?  You figure it out.

Here are a few steps for establishing a positive company culture.

  • Hire wisely:  If you want your company culture to be friendly and outgoing, then hire friendly people to start with.
  • Establish and publish your company values.  You can find my company’s published values here.
  • Reiterate those values regularly; be sure every new employee is familiar with them.
  • Demonstrate those values yourself, and insist that your leadership team do the same.
  • Develop specific policies in line with them.
  • DO NOT permit people to violate your values without repercussion.

I often tell our folks that I don’t like playing the role of policeman, and in fact, if we have a team member that makes me play that role very often, he/she will not be a team member long. Life is better for everyone, if you develop a company culture that will alleviate your cop duties.

Here’s a quick way to assess your company’s culture:  Ask your employees what your customers would say is your company’s greatest strength.  WHY do they do business with you, and not a competitor?

This can be a cathartic exercise for two reasons.  It may point out a real strength, that’s very likely an ingrained part of your company’s culture. (and by the way, your organization DOES have a culture).  You can strategize on ways to build on that strength.

Or, it may point out an underlying weakness, that you can address with your team.

Peter Druker said “culture eats strategy for breakfast.”  Druker was absolute correct.

 

Eddie