The Bottom-Line Benefits of Developing a High-Performance Culture

Any time of year, and every economic environment, serves as a good time to invest in creating a high-performance culture.?That is, a culture committed to achieving your organization’s specific growth goals.?One that is focused on results, collaboration, and continuous improvement.?Growth is top of mind for most leaders, and it is one of the primary benefits of developing a high-performance culture.?Let’s examine how achieving a high-performance culture makes a difference to the bottom line.?

Research by MindGym found that in the recession of 2007 – 2009, only nine percent of companies outperformed rivals in their industry, by at least 10 percent, in terms of sales and profit growth. They posited the success of these standout companies was a result of a high-performance culture that enabled these organizations to maximize productivity and drive innovation. In addition, the Deloitte & Touche, 2020 “Culture as a Competitive Advantage” report found that organizations with a strong performance culture were four times more likely to exceed their financial targets.?

Developing a High-Performance Culture Clearly Pays Off

Creating a high-performance culture takes an investment of time and money. When times are tough and cash is tight, it may seem hard to justify the additional investment.?However, if you decide to make the investment to build a high-performance culture that is comprised of a set of standards and behaviors that empower employees to collaborate, innovate, and achieve strong business results data suggests that you will reap numerous benefits, such as higher:

• Customer satisfaction loyalty and referral rates
• Employee retention, engagement, and morale

In fact, employees in high-performance cultures perform 20 percent better .

3 Best-Practice Steps for a Successful Transformation?

Recent research by John Graham, Jillian Grennan, Campbell Harvey, and Shivaram Rajgopald, as published in the Journal of Financial Economics found that 92% of the 1348 North American executives they surveyed believe that improving corporate culture would increase the company’s value. And 84% believe their company needs to improve its culture.?

If implementing a high-performance culture or enhancing your existing state is now a priority for your organization.?There are three steps you can take.?

Even if cash is tight, business leaders can do three things to establish a high-performance culture. All three require very effective communication.?

1. Alignment leads the way to shared goal achievement?

• One of the primary ways in which a high-performance culture drives growth is through alignment. When employees are aligned with the company's goals and values, they are more likely to work together effectively and efficiently. Alignment can foster a sense of shared purpose and motivation among employees, which can further drive productivity and growth.?
• Alignment begins by setting clear goals and expectations, so there is no confusion or frustration. Every person in your organization, from the executive suite to the “factory floor” and everywhere in between, needs to know the organization’s top business outcomes and how they are expected to contribute to them. Alignment must be pervasive in order to achieve a high-performing culture.???
• Everyone wants to know how their work matters. Both the expected outcomes the organization must achieve to declare success, and why each function and personal contribution needs to be specific, measurable, and in alignment.???

2. Accountability measures progress towards goals

• High-performance cultures are transparent and accountable. Every person is held accountable for their actions and is expected to take ownership of their work. This helps ensure that even cross-functionally, everyone is working towards the same goals and that the company is moving in the right direction.??
• Additionally, accountability can help prevent problems and mistakes, as employees are more likely to think carefully about their actions and consider the consequences, before making decisions.??
• Achieving accountability requires continuous monitoring and reporting on results.?This is vital to keeping everyone informed about the state of progress to the outcomes and how their work is making a difference.?Regular and ongoing feedback helps keep everyone on track and in synch.?Everyone needs to know when they and the organization hit or miss the mark - sooner rather than later.?Keeping employees informed helps keep them engaged and motivated.??

3. Employee recognition reinforces desired behaviors??

• Communicate what values and behaviors are desirable, such as collaboration , responsiveness to customers, making customer-centric decisions, taking responsibility for one’s actions, etc.??
• Model the way and ensure these are reflected in your organization’s policies, practices, and processes.???

A high-performance culture prioritizes and encourages excellence , productivity, and innovation. This fosters employees’ desire to continuously develop their skills and abilities. This may require employees to have new tools and develop new, or enhance existing, skills to perform their jobs effectively.?Invest in success by providing employee training and development opportunities as well as the latest technology and equipment.??

Create a Culture That Leads to Long-Term Success and Growth?

The relationship between high-performance cultures, growth, alignment and accountability is complex and multifaceted. A high-performance culture in which employees are motivated, engaged, and committed to achieving the company's goals and objectives leads to improved customer experience, productivity, and increased profitability, all of which are essential for a business to grow and thrive.?

Overall, the relationship between high-performance cultures, growth , alignment, and accountability is one of mutual support and reinforcement. A high-performance culture can drive growth through improved productivity and alignment, and accountability helps ensure that the company remains on track. By investing in a high-performance culture, business leaders can create a positive and supportive environment that can lead to long-term success and growth.?

P.S. You won’t know if you have fully achieved a high-performance culture and its benefits unless you can measure improvement.?This requires a high-performance, executive-level dashboard that:??

• Displays all of the outcomes you’ve chosen to include in the calculation of your winning measure in a way that is easy for every stakeholder to digest, so everyone will see that you are winning???
• Communicates the most important information for the user based on connecting the measures and metrics between activities, outputs, outcomes, and business results.?
• Delivers direct line-of-sight to provide the insights needed to support customer acquisition, retention and growth, competition, touchpoint, and investment decisions needed to run and improve the business on a regular basis.?

If your dashboard could be the weakest link, maybe this would be a good time to review your measures and dashboard .