6 Steps for Building Culture

Culture has been defined as "How we do things around here." It is the way people actually get work done and accomplish tasks within an organization. If you struggle to define your organization's current culture, you must remember that culture is felt more than seen or heard.

Organizational Development expert Stephen R. Balzac defines culture as "The residue of success." Balzac further explains that culture is the accumulated wisdom of what does and does not work in dealing with the world.

So how do you build the culture of you your organization? In this article, I share a 6-step process that you can follow to define and develop the culture that your team members will love to work in.??

Step 1:?Define what you want your culture to look like.

To build a thriving culture, you have to answer three core questions:

1. What is our Purpose?

• Researchers defined purpose as "an organization's meaningful and enduring reason to exist that aligns with long-term financial performance, provides a clear context for daily decision making and unifies and motivates relevant stakeholders."

2. What are our Values?

• Core values must be clear and straightforward. They should be easy to remember and represent your organization's beliefs.??

3. What is our Vision?

• This is a question that each organization has the freedom to determine. I have a Chick-fil-A client who has a vision to "Make everyone feel at home." They do a great job at creating this environment. As someone who engages with leaders from multiple industries and goes into these organizations somewhat anonymously to the front-line staff, I receive an authentic customer experience. In addition to this, I also know the leadership teams of these businesses, and I can tell you that they are all slightly different. You could say that the residue of success for each organization is somewhat or, in some cases, vastly different. This culture will exist whether you define it and decide upon it or not. It is primarily a reflection of the founder or current senior leader and the most influential personalities within the organization. Vision is a picture of a preferable future. Vision should be aspirational, and it is best to have a deadline connected to it.

Vision is a picture of a preferable future.  Vision should be aspirational, and it is best to have a deadline connected to it.        

Questions to ask yourself and your team:

• Where do you want your organization to be five years from now?
• How do you want people to feel when they enter your place of business?
• What do you want employees to experience while working at your organization?
• What do you want the community to say about your business?

These questions will get you started down the path of defining vision, which will, in turn, enable you to determine where you want to go.??

Step 2:?Think about what your culture is like now.?

Have you defined your culture as a leadership team as my client has? You have a sub-culture, whether you define it or not. Once again, culture is the residue of success within your organization. Suppose people have found success in talking about others behind their back and holding grudges. In that case, that behavior will be repeated by those who want to be successful within your organization. If avoiding conflict and allowing below-average performance to continue unchecked within your organization is normal, then that is what your leaders will model.

It is essential to understand what your current culture is as an organization. The point at which you are right now can be called your departure point. Think of your organizational culture transformation like a road trip. If you put a destination point in your favorite map app and you ask for directions, the first thing the app will ask you for is your departure location. It would be great if we could press a button and be told what our current culture is, but unfortunately, we cannot, we must do the challenging work of defining our current culture to know where we are at, so we can plan on how we will get to our cultural destination.??

Ask yourself these questions to help determine and define your current culture.??

• How are people successful in our organization?
• What do we value in our organization?
• What attitudes and behaviors do we encourage in our organization?
• What do we do organizationally that our peers do not see as necessary but we see as highly important?

Step 3:?Determine who will be responsible for developing the culture.

While it is everyone's responsibility to model the culture and reinforce it, there must be a point person who is ultimately responsible and accountable for driving the culture. Let me pause here for a moment and strongly encourage you to make sure that your operator is an active participant in defining and determining the culture and what culture you are driving towards organizationally. The Owner, Operator, CEO, or President is most likely the most influential person in the organization. If they do not model the cultural behaviors being pushed by the leadership team, it will never work. You will be fighting an uphill battle, and your best bet is to shape the culture around the positive attributes that your operator brings to the table.?

Now, let's get back to the "Director of Culture," or whatever you decide to call the person responsible for cultural development. Ideally, this person will be your training lead and be responsible for training new team members. This will allow your director of culture to baptize new members in your organization's culture and how to be successful within your business.?

This person will be your primary contact for developing Chick-fil-A culture. This person ensures that the values, goals, and vision are being effectively taught to employees and managers and fosters relationships with internal customers. This person will be responsible for reporting back to the leadership team how cultural development is going. Key performance indicators must be established and measured. In the same way that you measure the profit and loss or quality control, you must measure the culture of your team.??

How do you measure culture?

• Anonymous surveys with questions to determine if employees feel like the culture you are working towards is being achieved.?
• Celebrate wins and track what you are celebrating. What gets celebrated gets repeated. Instruct your leadership team to verbally praise the types of behaviors and attitudes you are looking for among team members. When you find people doing things right and celebrating them, share the positive activities with the team and track them.?
• Conversations with new team members, longtime employees, and employees leaving the organization. One of my clients had a situation where an exit interview with a longtime employee revealed an abusive leader within the organization. The business owner was unaware of this. Once he was confronted with the information, the owner led an investigation into the allegations and determined that the individual on the team was guilty. The operator then confronted the individual and gave them an ultimatum. Change or move on. This operator decided to protect the organization's culture, and ultimately it will benefit the organization and what they are trying to build.??

Step 4:?Spend time building your talent brand.

Your talent brand is what your team members think, feel, and share about their experience as a team member. They are the ones who know how Chick-fil-A operates on all levels because they live it every day! A new study out by Ripple Match shows that Generation Z (Born between 1997-2010) has two priorities related to the workplace: professional development and upward mobility. This is excellent news for the companies with a high value for developing their team and promoting from within.??

To build your company, it's crucial to get in touch with what your current employees want. You do this by asking them questions and engaging with them, letting your team members know that you want to create an environment that they want to work in.

Here are some questions you can ask yourself first.?

• What do we have to offer our team members?
• What are our strengths?
• Are we using all of your resources to the fullest potential, specifically talent resources?
• What is one thing that would make our team more excited about culture building and growth?

Making changes to your team that will create a more positive culture can be challenging, but if there are problems with the way things are being done, everyone involved should want change.

Step 5:?How to optimize your hiring process to ensure you're hiring the right people.

How do you hire for your company culture?

The business leaders I know personally that are leading in this area believe that: The value they place on people is the key to their success. They are looking for individuals who believe in and understand what it means to be a team player. People of character are essential, and these potential team members demonstrate their integrity by valuing trust, honoring commitments, and showing respect for others.?

Go through your interview process with every candidate asking yourself: "Will this person make my culture better? Would I want this person for a neighbor?"

Here are some examples of how you can make sure your hiring process is set up to bring in the right talent:

1. Ensure applicants appreciate your culture and values: It's easier to get everyone aligned when you hire someone who is a good fit for your organization. Aligning the new team members with your organization's values and culture can quickly get things on track.

2. Divide and conquer in the interview process: Interviewing is a two-way street. You need to be interviewing the candidate as much as they are interviewing you! Ask colleagues from other departments to sit in and interview your candidate with you and reciprocate for them. Have each team leader take on different parts of their interview to always be someone new speaking with each person and knowing all aspects of what makes them tick - like skills and culture fit, work experience, etc. Doing this ensures that every part of the applicant can come out in full detail instead of just bits and pieces from one individual.

3. Prioritize attitude over skills and experience: Attitude is the most critical piece. Skills and experience come next. Are they going to be a good fit for our culture?

4. Don't hire "mini-me" s: Your organization's culture is a vital aspect of its success. It can be an engine for innovation and progress, or it could become stagnant with the same ideas being passed around by people who look alike. A new team member should not just appear to fit in at your organization on paper - they need to add something different to challenge others' thoughts and perspectives.

Step 6:?Find ways to reinforce your core values constantly.

Successful companies invest in their culture to keep it alive and thriving. What does your organization do?

Having programs and initiatives that regularly reinforce core values is critical for maintining a vibrant, healthy atmosphere.         

Final thoughts

Building a strong culture is one of the most important things you can do as an organization. It will help your business be more successful and attract talent. Each step should make it easier for you to create and maintain the type of environment that drives success every day – so get started today on building your people-centric brand!

If you are a leader or business owner, this article should have offered valuable practical information on developing a culture in your organization. I hope this was helpful to you, and if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask them in the comments.

Be the leader your team loves to follow.