We talk about corporate culture a lot around here, and the reason is simple – strong corporate culture is absolutely crucial to the future growth of any company. You can recruit the best candidates and pay the best salaries, but without an environment that nurtures your employees, they’ll be jumping ship like passengers on the Titanic.
In 1992, Harvard Business School Professor, James Heskett and his partner, John Kotter performed a comprehensive research project, studying corporate culture and found that corporate culture invariably affects a company’s economic growth.
But let’s take a look at some of the reasons why…
Strong Culture Drives Performance
There’s something about aligning people to a common goal that makes them feel a part of something bigger. Nike and Apple, for example, have a culture of secrets. Not only do they create a sense of urgency to be in on the secret, their employees feel they are guarding something important and have a strong connection to their products.
When employees feel that they are in on something big, they are naturally more productive in their work environment. It’s part of them and a part of their lives. These types of cultures also create alliances and behaviours that should reflect the mission of the company.
Strong Culture Increases Retention
A healthy corporate culture will create strong morale amongst employees, making them less likely to leave. The environment you create should inspire and motivate employees in a way that makes them happy to come to work. Happy employees tend to stay where they are. Google, for example, offers a ton of perks that most companies don’t offer in order to keep their employees happy and productive. To name a few – free gourmet meals and snacks, massage incentives, free haircuts and nap pods.
Their staff knows that they will never work anywhere as cool as Google, so you can be sure they’re sticking around.
Strong Culture Attracts Millennials
Millennials are currently the largest workforce, and thought to also be the most forward-thinking and innovative. They are the employees every company wants and few find a way to attract. Smart millennials have their pick of jobs and can demand they pay they desire, so what is it about a particular position that piques their interest? Most other factors being equal, a millennial will pick the company with the strongest company culture almost every time.
Millennials are eager to learn and want opportunities to advance, but they also need the freedom to speak up and change their surroundings. A culture that nurtures millennials will grow leaps and bounds above its competition.
Strong Culture Shapes a Brand Image
Like it or not, what goes on behind closed doors at your company is rarely a secret. When I told you about the perks at Google, you probably automatically associated their brand with fun, and guess what? That’s what they’re going for!
The culture of your company will always shape the way the world views your brand and your mission.
Strong Culture Inspires Loyalty
Not only does a healthy culture create loyalty among your workforce, it also creates loyalty among your customers. Think about it – if you walk into a store and are greeted by happy, helpful employees, how likely are you to shop there again? Now just imagine that every single branch of that chain seems to have the same type of employees with cheerful attitudes. Don’t you automatically assume that the company must treat its employees well and care about its customers?
Attitude and culture have a much more far-reaching effect than just the staff you employ.
Maintain Company Culture While You Grow
It’s not enough to know that a strong corporate culture will affect your bottom line. You must also know how to maintain it and scale it to grow with your company. It may be easy enough to create an intimate bond with your first five employees, developing your own rapport and culture, but what happens when you suddenly find yourself with 30 staff members in 5 different departments?
Following are a few things you can do to ensure a strong culture no matter how large your staff becomes:
1. Make it a point to know one personal fact about each employee
When it comes time for bonuses or incentives, make them personal. Don’t give a diabetic a membership to the jelly of the month club. Find out one thing that makes him tick and personalize his rewards.
2. Don’t ask your employees to do anything you aren’t willing to do yourself
This goes beyond qualifications. There may be certain things that you hire someone to do that you simply aren’t skilled enough to do yourself. That’s not the point. The point is to let your staff know you’re willing to get your hands dirty. If you ask them all to do a site clean-up, slap on the hard hat and get in the trenches with them. Likewise, if you ask your employees to keep track of their hours or clock in for certain tasks, be more than willing to do the same.
3. Create traditions that celebrate your corporate family
Don’t wait for momentous occasions to host a dinner. Schedule a tradition of Friday afternoon snacks in the courtyard, or team “dates” every quarter. Give your employees something to look forward to and share experiences no matter how big your team gets.
4. Create small teams
As your staff grows, you’ll need a way to keep in constant communication with various departments and to hold them accountable for their own tasks. The best way to do this is by creating smaller teams in which a trusted team leader keeps you constantly informed of performance and complaints.
5. Prioritize surroundings.
Your surroundings should reflect the type of culture you’re aiming for, but should also inspire your employees to be productive and creative.
6. Don’t leave out fun.
While a nap pod may or may not fit your company culture, there is almost always some element of fun you can incorporate into your surroundings. Let your staff know that it’s okay to laugh and have fun, even in the most serious of environments.
7. Offer flexible work schedules.
Top-performing employees have options and one of the biggest incentives you can offer to gain an advantage is a flexible schedule. If your organization provides the opportunity to allow employees to work from home part of the time, you can almost ensure that your retention rates will be high. Today’s workforce craves a work-life balance that few employers offer.
Wrapping it Up
We know that corporate culture is important to company growth, but is it critical? I think so. Would Apple be where it is today without the secrecy first implemented by Steve Jobs? Would you be standing in line for the latest iPhone had they not created a culture of expectancy and anticipation? But even if you’re not Apple, it’s important to remember the shift in society today that demands more than a gold watch for 25 years of loyalty and hard work. Today’s employee demands an environment where people can grow and be heard. Where people can feel like they are a part of something bigger than themselves. And where people can still enjoy their life in the process. Today’s employee demands a strong corporate culture, and in order to grow, you will have to adapt to the needs of your employees.
What can you do today to encourage a healthy corporate culture?