How culture drives business success
The Culture of a business can impact business success. By the nature of the way everyone in the organisation behaves and the values they portray. Culture means different things in different contexts. It’s, the way a group of people behave. Everyone needs to be striving for the same outcomes. And demonstrating the core values of the organisation. Otherwise, things can go off the rails.
I agree with Peter Drucker’s quote “Culture eats strategy for breakfast”. It seems many people get confused about what a business culture means.
What do we mean by the Culture of an organisation or business
Culture is not one thing! It is many things, and it is measurable. Gallup Inc. are experts in analysing and quantifying things by making them measurable. Such as, staff engagement. It is one of the core components of understanding an organisations culture. And it’s a great benchmark to understanding it from an analytical point of view. But it’s only one of the many components. Read more about employee engagement and culture by Gallup, in this link.
To summarise, here is my list of what Culture means in a business:
- A business purpose, mission and values are clear, understood by all and documented
- You can see the values held by the leaders of the business by the way they and the rest of their employees behave
- The building design, the furniture and fittings are a fit for the type of work
- Measurement and management are for the right things. Such as, teamwork and individual performance
- Reward and recognition for the right things
- People feel valued by having care programs in place. And social events. These all form a part of staff engagement
- The way the business responds to current trends in their industry. Also known as market conditions
- How the business adapts to change affects employee engagement. New York Times highlighted this as being an issue that has hampered them in the Digital era
- Sustainability of the organisation. The organisations adaptability and response to industry changes. Read more in Successful_Habits_of Visionary_Companies by Jim Collins and Jerry Porras
In short, when these things are in place, the rest flows. From a human resources management perspective, employees are more productive and engaged. A mindset of nurturing your employees as an asset will drive your business success.
Maintaining the right business culture is not a set and forget exercise
An organisation needs to maintain their culture. Be agile enough to respond to change when needed. And track all the components to ‘check in’ that it’s all still on track.
Regular maintenance of it requires focus and intention. Especially during times of change, such as the recent pandemic. When people are working from home. Away from the office. We need to maintain the business culture and vibe. The way to do that when people are working from home and in uncertain times requires more attention.
4 Tips for keeping workplace culture in place during a pandemic
1. Document it. Have written policies updated to fit with the new norm.
It starts by defining the culture you want to maintain. Everyone needs to know what you expect from them when they’re working from home. How often do they need to communicate with you and how often?
Do they need to adjust their hours of work? Do they also need to juggle home schooling? Are they able to separate work from home life? Can you provide any help?
2. Working from Home (WFH) and Work Health and Safety (WHS)
Remember there is a Work Health and Safety (WHS) rule. Working from home (WFH) requires you to check that their workstation set up is good. That is meets the WHS regulations.
Is there a dress code? Be careful with this. There was a Telstra WHS case where a claim was successful. The person tripped on the stairs while WFH. They were waring slippers and walking down wooden stairs and tripped. Telstra lost due to not having a policy about their dress code when WFH.
3. Use technology to communicate
Revise some of the ways you communicate with opportunities to have video calls. Video calls such as Zoom are an effective communication tool. It allows people to feel they are still part of the business. Although it can be awkward to get people use to turning their video on. It soon turns into a great way to keep the energy alive. There are many other technologies available and at low cost. Such as, Google hangouts, Microsoft teams and instant messenger such as WhatsApp.
These can also be for fun engagement. While you might not be able to have the usual social gatherings such as Friday night drinks. Or a staff lunch. You can do social activities via technology. Do Trivia sessions, virtual lunches, and Friday night drinks with technology.
4. Have regular catchups throughout the day and week
Set up times for regular catch ups. Keep people connected with regular catchups. Scheduled for specific times each day have a catch-up call. Use video, so you can both see each other, it keeps you connected. Working from home can lead to disengagement. So, keep people engaged with work by checking in with them. Allow people to set up group chats to catch up on social things as well such as, how their weekends where.
Keep your business culture and employees engaged even during a pandemic
You have worked hard to create your workplace culture. Keep it on track despite challenges. Maintain employee engagement and morale high. Despite the current circumstances. And the ever-changing way we work you can keep your workplace culture on track. If you have any questions. Or need help with any aspect of human resources management issues. Reach out to King Consulting HR Consultants. We are here to help, contact us today.
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