Cultural transformation in an organization frequently occurs when there is a misalignment between culture and company strategy. Consider this: If your organization’s employees behave differently from what upper management anticipates, your company may not be pursuing talent optimization.
Even if your organization has avoided silos, other factors may necessitate a shift in culture. When compared to your counterparts, you are most likely behind the curve. As an example, consider remote work. Your company may provide flexible working hours, but if they are not sufficiently flexible, your employees may be dissatisfied.
Instead, your organization may have a local culture. This can happen if your company’s ideals aren’t clearly stated, or if your leader isn’t aware of the demands of your employees. In short, probably the companys’s also have a workplace where employees are terrified to come to work.
In any of these circumstances, your company’s culture may have a negative impact on its employees. Even if an employee appreciates their job, management, and team, a poor culture can demotivate everyone in the firm. Of course, this will be quite risky, as the influence will have a negative impact on the productivity of all employees if allowed uncontrolled.
In fact, a culture that can change and evolve over period is desirable.
Southwest Airlines is an excellent illustration of a well-executed corporate culture. About 50 years ago, the airlines was created. Competitors such as American Airlines and Delta have been around twice as long as Southwest, but the company is still going strong. And it does so in great measure because of its world-class culture.
The premise that employees come first, not customers, is central to Southwest’s culture. This appears contradictory to the majority of businesses. Of course, this should be the reverse! However, as Southwest shows, happy staff lead to higher customer satisfaction, which increases revenue significantly.
This is an unique approach to client care, particularly in a competitive business like air travel. But that doesn’t mean it’s not true. Southwest has to redouble its commitment to all of its employees as a result of this.
The airlines are no exception. Six basic cultural principles were aligned by the organization’s senior staff about ten years ago. These values, which can be found on the business culture page, outline how employees can live and operate “the Southwest way.”
Southwest wants to empower leadership at all levels of the business by building on these cultural values. With a vast list of employee benefits and unique events, it’s no surprise that the Southwest is regarded as a great place to work.
You may be wondering if your corporate culture needs to change after reading the examples above. And, if so, when and how?
The first step in assisting your company’s growth is to ask these questions. Almost all business leaders acknowledge that their company has a culture. Far fewer, however, can identify the culture and determine whether or not it worked for them.
So let’s begin there. Consider your existing culture. Could you describe it? If so, what are the distinct features? Sure, your staff may enjoy a pleasant conversation and the weekly happy hour, but consider more. What values/behaviors do your employees exhibit?
Make it a priority to answer these questions. Begin a conversation with your staff to help define the corporate culture. What motivates and resonates with them as a result of this? But what is not to include?
Hold discussions with senior leadership members based on this feedback. Contrast the current workplace culture with the ideal culture. If you wander off the path, take the required actions to develop a culture that propels the organization forward.
Even under normal circumstances, cultural change is tough. With COVID-19 and remote workplace, it’s undoubtedly become simpler to neglect culture.
These obstacles, however, do not have to derail your efforts. You will gain a huge competitive edge by learning from the examples above and embracing the virtual workplace. Perhaps most importantly, you will invest in what is most crucial to your people’s success.
ACT Consulting has been committed to helping businesses discover solutions to various challenges in the organization for over 15 years. ACT Consulting believes that deliberate initiatives are required to build, expand, and sustain an organization.
ACT Consulting International is committed to being your best partner by implementing a precise, quantifiable, and focused transformation on “leadership & people, business, and culture”.