5 Ways to Build a Flourishing Corporate Culture
Your company culture can be a powerful driving force. A healthy, thriving corporate culture will increase your employees’ productivity, growth, efficiency and reduce employee turnover. Your employees will be motivated and loyal and your teams will find commonalities across various departments and divisions.
When business consultants observe the culture of an organization, what characteristics do they seek as signs of success? They look for acceptance and appreciation of diversity, fair employee treatment, pride and enthusiasm about the work, strong communication, strong leadership and innovation.
It’s one thing to identify the benefits and characteristics of a strong and flourishing corporate culture, but how do you actually get there? Whether you are a start-up company or your organization needs a reboot, consider these methods:
- Create and Publish Your Mission Statement
The core of every company culture is its values. Mission statements define those values. According to The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People by Stephen Covey, every business owner and even its employees can benefit from creating a personal mission statement.
Start with yourself. What are you passionate about? What are your values? What makes you great? Why did you start or invest time or money into this company? What do you hope to achieve?
Once you have created your mission statement, publish it. Send it out via email to all your employees. Put it on your company website. Spread the news far and wide so your company knows your vision. Then live as if you believe it. Your employees will feel the difference.
- Build Relationships of Trust
Trust is the cornerstone of any thriving organization. Do your employees trust you and other leaders to take them on the right path?
If not, consider how you can build or restore their faith in you. Have you made a promise that you have not delivered? Do your best to deliver it. Do you or your managers not know much about your employees’ interests or home life? Create an Employee Spotlight of the Week program. Have some of your employees never met you in person. Seek them out and have a conversation.
If they know you have their back, your employees will have yours. They’ll be motivated to work harder and overcome obstacles. They’ll stay with you through the good and the bad.
- Invest in Employee Training
Do you see a sickness in your organization? Or is something preventing it from getting off the ground? Maybe it’s time for a training program. Through observation and communication with company leaders and the possible hire of a business consultant, you will be able to discover what your employees most need to learn. Then you can begin to research or create the right training to address those needs.
- Interdepartmental Projects
Creating a collaboration workspace, particularly between multiple departments, can go a long way toward creating unity and cohesiveness across an organization. As people with varied skill sets work together to accomplish meaningful goals, they are better able to understand and appreciate each other’s’ goals and help one another along the journey.
- Keep Your Eye on Human Resources
Human Resources is the glue of many organizations. Your HR representative ensures that your employees are being respected, treated fairly and that diversity is celebrated. A good Human Resources department will be aware of and address discrimination, unhealthy workplace relationships, or the hardships at home of individual employees. They also know when to bring that information to you when necessary. Wounds or illnesses are healed and the company can continue to flourish.
