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Top 5 tips for a successful company culture

May 16, 2017

If you ever wondered why top companies go through such a hassle to provide an incredible organizational culture for their employees, well the answer is pretty simple: because it’s good for business. Company culture is somewhat forgotten when it comes to small businesses, but the numbers suggest you should never neglect it. Most of the giant companies emphasize company culture because if it’s done right, it can transform mediocre results into great achievements. It comes down to simple math when you review the basic stages an employee goes through in a company:

  • Recruitment [$] + Induction [$] + Development [$] / no company culture => Unsatisfied employee that will probably leave the company at the first opportunity that seems slightly better.
  • Recruitment [$] + Induction [$] + Development [$] / great company culture => Motivated, reliable and proactive employees that will probably have great overall performances.

Company culture improves retention, which in turn improves cost and efficiency. Constantly replacing the team will cost precious time and money, the two most important variables in the equation of a good business.

Understanding what company culture should be about

The second step towards improvement is to actually understand what you are looking for. We could consider acknowledging the necessity as a first step. It’s not easy to find a perfect definition that can explain what a company culture is, partially because the organizational culture itself can be so diverse. This is how the Business Dictionary defines organizational culture:

The values and behaviors that contribute to the unique social and psychological environment of an organization.

Organizational culture includes an organization’s expectations, experiences, philosophy, and values that hold it together, and is expressed in its self-image, inner workings, interactions with the outside world, and future expectations. It is based on shared attitudes, beliefs, customs, and written and unwritten rules that have been developed over time and are considered valid.

Organizational culture starts out simple, but its ramifications can be as many and as comprehensive as the company needs them to be. It can include general business guidelines specific to the company, as well as motivational elements. The company culture should be about anything that affects the organization’s productivity and performance.

Tips for creating a great organizational culture

Here comes the tricky part. Though most organizational cultures are as unique as the individuals who founded the companies, there are some things that are generally helpful. We will dive past the basics of creating a company culture (i.e. vision, values, practices, and so on), to focus more on the best tips available, inspired by examples from some of the most successful companies in the world.

1. Incorporate organizational culture in your recruitment. Right from the start, the company culture should play an important part of your recruitment strategy. As a matter of fact most of the things you do should develop from your organizational culture. Social media has made it easier to show everyone how great your work environment is. Promoting some of your team activities and elements of your organizational culture will most likely attract applicants that share similar values. Look from the very beginning for similar values between the applicants and your company culture, and try to imbue core values as early as possible. A great deal of your company’s efficiency depends on how good your recruitment process is.

Learn from the pros: Though most big companies apply this technique, probably the company that stands out the most among the good case practices is Apple. The company expects the very best from its employees, and they express it from the first interview. Premium products require a premium mentality.

2. Create a company events team. Employees will always be more motivated at work if they have an event to look forward to, especially if some of their work is somewhat repetitive. At one of the companies I worked for in the past we constantly had a Fun Team, meant to organize company events, team buildings, and others. This team can include some of your most dedicates employees, along with new comers. It’s a great way to increase socialization among coworkers and motivate them throughout the week. The events don’t even need to be expensive or to happen that often, as long as they take place.

Learn from the pros: Warby Parker is a perfect example of these kinds of activities, with a team dedicated to organize and promote company events to their colleagues.

3. Put safety first. All employees will appreciate a workplace that makes them feel safe, whether it’s about work safety or their health and general well-being. Center your organizational culture on safety, and you will have a guaranteed increase of your retention rate.

Learn from the pros: Though it has seen its fair share of thunder storms, the Chevron ship never lost the thing that makes employees love to work there – the sense of safety and collegiality.

4. Ensure a challenging environment. Challenges can keep a job interesting. Some of the best organizational cultures create perfect environments for employees to bounce and debates new ideas. Creativity can be relevant for an employee’s work time even at the most repetitive job. Presuming your recruitment went well, and by now you have a team with a similar set of values, you only need to provide the means and the right environment for them to start discussing innovative ideas.

Learn from the pros: Salesforce’s staff members keep commending the company’s internal communication system Chatter, which allows the employees to share ideas and documents in real time.

5. Explain the big picture. It’s much more likely for an employee to become proactive and dependable when he understands the larger goal, and wants the company to succeed, more than anything else. Quite frankly this is possibly the best kind of employees you can have, because they will fight for the company almost as much as the founders. Explaining the big picture and objectives makes your employees feel more trusted and encourages a transparent and positive culture.

Learn from the pros: There are some companies that go the extra mile when it comes to trusting their employee. Adobe employees are given stock options, therefore their performance is directly linked to the success of the company.

No matter how large your company is, don’t underestimate the importance of a good organizational culture. Great company culture leads to better teamwork and improved results, which in the end will lead to qualitative products and ultimately success.