Businesses will inevitably develop a culture, by taking ownership and influencing it owners and top-level management can ensure that it is a positive reflection of the company’s brand identity. By ensuring that there are consistent positive interactions amongst employee’s and between employees and clients this dramatically reduces the infiltration of those drivers which produce negative business cultures. During these financially challenging times it can become so easy for companies to lose their focus on a component that is so vital to success of the business. The irony however, those companies which invested in building and strengthening a healthy business culture are the ones which will most likely not only survive, but also grow through this turbulent economic period.
If you are not sure why you are where you are with respect to the present business culture of the business, then rewind and go back to the very beginning. Stan Slap the CEO of SLAP Company is quoted “The first step out of the gate has to be knowing where you want to end up. What do you really want from your company?” By reviewing the company’s Policies & Procedures, Core Values, Mission Statement, Vision Statement, and leadership performance, at minimum the framework of the company’s initial intended culture will be found. Some years ago, while discussing this same topic, it was said that business culture is not a “swamp cookie”, driving home the point that it is not static, and does change. So, if the business culture needs some work and investing into, at least now you have the tennis racquet and the ball and doing nothing not only maintains the present status quo but allows the cancer to grow.
“The fish rots from the head down” the first time I heard that quote it struck a chord and I use it every time as a tool of sorts to remind me to assess my level of culpability in situations as a leader. Companies faced with any of the following: low retention, high new hire turnovers, low performance numbers, poor internal communications, lack of departmental synergy, blame shifting, low productivity, internal gossiping, and growing management resentment should not be feeling comfortable with their present status quo. The CEO, C Suite and top-level managers should never underestimate their influence by their actions and communications internally and externally. Reputation is everything, and no one wants the reputation of the business soured, the impact can be devastating.
The one thing that is inevitable is change, doing nothing will only worsen the present state of a poor business culture. Hendrith Vanlon Smith Jr. is quoted “A business is like a living being. It needs to be cared for, loved, stewarded, nurtured, and led.” There are some key building blocks that are required to developing and maintaining a strong, healthy, and robust business culture; Career Pathing, Training, Employee Performance Evaluations, Employee Engagement & Empowerment, Coaching, Counseling & Corrective Action and Leadership by Example. By investing in and having an employee base which has bought into a positive business culture will lead to, better recruitment applicants, higher productivity, engaged workforce, high moral, and motivation, and financially, lower employee related cost and increased revenue due increased performance levels. Business Culture Matters (BCM) it creates a win, win environment for everyone.
Keith M. Dean, CEO/Founder -The BusinessofU