7 Ways to Improve Organisational Culture

It goes without saying that a strong culture among people is the glue that binds an organisation and helps ensure its longevity.

If you have any doubts as to whether or not your professional culture is working simply take a look around you.

Is productivity up, waste down, efficiencies improved, employees mixing happily and friendly and are you losing profit based on performance or even worse are you losing employees because your culture isn’t strong enough to hold it all together?

Truth is there are many variables that can affect and infect the endemic culture of an organisation and it will take a very clever leader to discern the differences among its people and provide a charter that they can not only work under, but also value and appreciate.

Here are 7 Tips to help realign your workplace culture.

Don’t Just Aim for Balance

When we seek harmony and balance in regards to our work life it should be well understood that we are not looking to build our life around our work.

Think about it … If your boss stopped paying you, would you keep turning up?

Of course you wouldn’t because one of the main reasons we come to work is to generate an income that provides us with disposable income that in turn allows us to live the life we desire, or rather can best afford.

So if you’re simply aiming for “Balance” it will never be enough because unless the individual's needs are met then satisfaction can never be achieved let alone sustained.

Let People Be People

As an employer we need to measure the expectations of the employee against the charter or culture that we are seeking to establish within our organisation. For most this charter will reflect a set of values that represent the orgaisation, and the principles of that orgaisation.

Look at it this way. If you pretend it’s a blind date and there is a screen between you and the employee and you begin asking the questions that help identify the values of the individual, along with the principles, morals and ethics that you most desire, you will find that in many cases those expectations will be met and that’s because you are not judging the individual by the cut of their clothes or the length of their hair, their level of education or even where they live.

You see this is a very important point because it’s about getting the very best out of the individual and to do this we need to let them be themselves (within reason of course) but really when you appreciate the inherent value that the strangest of people can bring to an organisation you will quickly realise that it’s not about how they look, but rather how they perform.

After all isn’t everything measured by results?

Learn to foster people’s wants, needs and talents and as you do I know from experience that productivity around that person will increase exponentially!

Know Who Your People Are

Culture is created and administered intellectually but the process of manifesting the results associated to culture, are reciprocated emotionally, meaning that depending on how the individual or group feels about a certain situation will in turn have a direct correlation as to how deliberately that culture is fostered and enacted.

If you’re not in touch with your people then you cannot ever expect the culture you want to be ever present.

People will return respect once it is earned, but within society our culture tends to dictate that unless you make me believe and trust you I will not follow you, and I will not respect you – now that’s the scary reality!

When you connect with your people and when you can succinctly identify the needs of each individual you will be well on the way to building an organisation that’s unstoppable!

Pay Attention to Your Culture

Sustaining a happy, congenial and harmonious work environment will never be easy but you can make it easier just by better understanding what’s happening around you.

Pay attention to the culture within your people, your teams, and your organisation and if you don’t know how to do that just look at the results of each person or team and you will very quickly determine what’s working, and what's not.

Your job is to read the signs rather than put out the fires, so Pay Attention!

Be Like Google or Facebook

As administrators we are empowered to create any culture we want. We then set about supporting and ensuring those cultural expectations are adhered to but wielding a big stick is never going to cause any person to respect and admire a charter if its enforced.

Culture has to grow systemically and organically and in doing so will find its best fit for any organisation provided the people who are administering it are a reflection of the culture that’s not just being administered but is in fact the culture that's most desired to underpin the organisations success.

Remember it starts from the top!

Don’t Be Afraid to Be Better or Let Others be Better

Remove the fear, removed the apprehension, remove the reservation and remove the doubt and in doing so you will provide your people with the opportunity to be who they really are and bring to you and the organisation the very best they have to offer and they will do this because they are happy, and because they feel valued and because the charter you established to support them is one that they admire, respect and feel valued for being a part of.

A great man once said that the reason I am so successful is because I surround myself with people who know more than I do!

Make Your People Believe in You

This is the single most important key to employee engagement and retention?

People will follow you to the ends of the earth if they believe in you but they will not move off the spot if they do not.

You need to set the example rather than have an expectation that others will behave in a certain way, even if you do not.

You need to set the standard yourself because this is what others will identify with as being the standard for the organisation.

The ONLY reason people do what they do, is because they can.

As a leader you need to be maintaining the standard set down by the company charter and as an individual you want to aspire to that charter because you admire and respect everything it stands for.

When you create a happy, congenial and productive work place culture you will be literally astonished as to how much more can be accomplished, simply by keeping a smile on everyone’s face and being a shining example of what they need to aspire to!

I’m Christopher Shaw and I’m wishing you continued success.

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