Indicators of a Healthy, Successful Company Culture.
Stability and the ability to be dynamic are two seemingly competing characteristics of any strong corporate culture. On one hand, stability is a by-product of the core principles (serving as a foundation) upon which the corporate culture is built. While on the other hand, the ability to be dynamic is an effect of the constantly growing and evolving actions and attitudes. This evolution is based on the aforementioned core principles. Both these elements are important to a strong company culture.
Although a business can function to some extent without a culture, it would simply be a place where people work to support themselves. Beyond the fundamental business principles being carried out, the company could be said to be inactive or inert. Resulting in an opportunity loss to make lives better within and outside the business when there is a strong company culture present.
This article discusses five major parts of a healthy and successful company culture. Focusing on these aspects would be helpful in creating a business that would offer more to the lives of the employees than a paycheck. The employers and customers also benefit from such an atmosphere.
1. Mindfulness
It comes as no surprise to discover that leadership coaching clients pay attention to mindfulness. Mindfulness simply entails being in the “now” (in the current moment) and accepting the reality of the current situation. It helps develop problem-solving skills and creativity while tuning out distractions. No, it does not require compulsory yoga sessions. It does, however, require that you cultivate an attitude of focusing entirely on the task at hand. In both the employees and employer. Leaders who display a mindful attitude serve as wonderful examples. Mindfulness also involves knowing when to take time off to celebrate or appreciate what we do and remind ourselves why we do what we do.
2. Understanding the Importance of Culture as an Organization
Corporate culture should be understood and practiced by every member of an organization, starting from all the leading figures, to all employees in all the departments. If it is only discussed among department heads or among some departments in the organization, its effect would not be fully apparent.
Every member of the organization needs to know what the company is about, not simply what is manufactured or the service provided, but the impact to the world at large. They need to be made aware that their individual contributions are vital and in what ways they are vital.
Every member of the organization needs to know what the company is about and the impact to the world at large.
3. Eliminating the “weeds” of negativity
Similar to the way an actual weed takes over a garden (at times choking out the flowers and vegetables) if left untended, so do the weeds of corporate negativity choking out the positive initiatives in an organization if left untended or unchecked. This does not mean that the employees should start living under false comfort, pretending to be satisfied. But that attention should be paid to genuine complaints, rather than ignoring them because they might eventually transform into rumors and become negative energy. This does not mean that the negativity should be ignored but instead should be addressed as soon as possible to avoiding choking out the positivity present.
4. Ensuring That All your Corporate Values are in Alignment and not Against Each Other
Have you outlined and organized all of your corporate values to work together in one direction? Or do some of them seem to be conflicting with others? In your quest to achieve outstanding productivity while supporting employee growth, do you allow one take precedence over the other? If you do in some cases, how do you bring back the balance when such cases are handled? You need to be able to successfully demonstrate that you live those values and not just saying that you do.
5. Contributing to the Wider Community
Whether self-contained to a single location or distributed in smaller teams all over the globe, your company is still a part of a larger community and as such has to make contributions to making the community better. Assuming your headquarters takes up an entire block, it has automatically become part of that neighborhood and by extension that city. Organizing community outreach programs and having a sense of social responsibility is vital. This aids young professionals who are seeking the best employment opportunity open to them and could also benefit the surrounding community. Although you cannot literally count how much “goodwill” you are earning among the people in an annual report, it is still extremely important to you and your company. So, how are you helping in making your community better?
To make your corporate culture better, you are welcome to learn more about my leadership and team development work. Both numbers from previous studies and examples of personal experiences have shown that current and future operational success of a business is closely linked to the health and maturity of its culture and the effectiveness of its leader. To get started, get more information on my Intelligent Leadership Coaching program. Recently named one of the top three advanced leadership development programs in the world, it is a 9 to 12 month “immersive” leadership and personal growth journey that unlocks and unleashes a leader’s full potential so they truly become the best leaders and people they can be.
