What culture should you have?
Scholars of organization development (OD) and culture say that a company’s culture should support its business strategy. How do you know this is happening? Some ideas:
-
If your business strategy involves creative output – is there a free flow of ideas and information flowing from top to bottom and all across your company?
-
Do employees and leaders alike share ideas in a non-threatening environment?
-
Is there tolerance for risk and failure? Are your employees and your company’s structure resilient?
-
If your business strategy is technical in nature – do employees participate in training? Is there mentorship and support for learning in place?
What is culture?
Culture creates reputations that motivate people to come to work in organizations, and determines if they stay.
Culture is what people talk about when asked about their jobs. How people feel makes more of an impression on them than what they do.
Culture is the difference between a good day and a bad one on the job, on the levels that drive people – emotional, psychological, and spiritual.
More than leadership, market value, differentiation or business strategy, culture is driving your organization.
Why is culture important?
Today’s headlines are dominated by news of executives and leaders abusing their high status to have their way – physically, financially, socially – with those over whom they have power. Where does that misbehavior begin? There could be several origins – one of the most influential is the culture of the organization in which the behavior occurred.
Leaders must pay immediate and constant attention to create and maintain cultures that foster ethical, fair attitudes and behaviors in environments that are deliberately diverse and employee-centered.