Building connection in company culture - Q&A with Richard Roberts

Some of the best moments in my talks on company culture and employee engagement are often the questions I get asked. They really open up the conversation and reveal the issues as people in the room see them. As these are often people managing teams, perhaps even the business owner - you get a sense of what’s on their mind.

These questions have inspired a new blog series. I’m going to tackle topics relating to company culture on a Q&A basis, using some of the questions I’ve been asked and adding a few of my own.

A positive and engaging company culture is about connection, purpose and trust. That’s connection with your organisation, the purpose they find in their work and the levels of trust they experience.

So, let’s start at the beginning - and explore why connection matters so much.

What role does connection have in creating an engaging culture?

People are seeking an emotional connection with where they work - or who they work for. They want to be a part of something that has meaning. They want to be a part of something that has that sense of connection or be a part of something bigger. When people feel connected, they also almost always feel proud to work where they do - and that’s highly powerful. I think one of the key challenges now is how you nurture connection in a more virtual hybrid way. So, I think it is absolutely essential that employers invest time and energy and thinking into how they keep their people connected.

Why are so many employers talking about connection and culture right now?

I think employers are realising that it’s a key factor in having a profitable and successful business. There's far more research out there now on what makes a great culture - and it matters too. For example, Gallup found that over half of employees (56%) said company culture is more important than salary when it comes to job satisfaction.

I think the significance of culture has increased because people have realised what makes a great business and what doesn't. Just look at the number of companies that are now offering engagement culture surveys, engagement platforms, and the importance of technology in keeping people connected. It also cascades into what employees think of leadership style, and how they are being managed. I’m quite sure employers realise that their culture is being judged which is why they are keen to discover what their people think.

Why do you think it is that companies are struggling to build connection?

I think they haven't really adapted to managing people in a hybrid world. The problems start when companies try to manage people as if they were still in the office on a daily basis, or if they have a very direct ‘command and control’ style of management. They haven't adapted to the fact that this is a different way of working now. It needs some thought when your business is in Cardiff and the person you've just recruited is based in Scotland. It’s about the actions you take, that send clear messages to your new employee that 'you're part of us, you're part of our community, you belong with us'. Or completely the reverse if they neglect it.

Can you give some examples of what companies can do to build better connection?

If you think about connection in an organisation, where's that going to come from? It’s going to come from your team. So, create opportunities for people to connect. If you can, meet once a month, for example face-to-face. I know that can be difficult in certain circumstances. Always have an element of getting to know you. For example, that could be showing pictures of your kids, bringing in a special object that means something to you and describing it. I'm a great believer that it's actually the small things that have the biggest impact. Maybe that's just arranging a random coffee with somebody from a completely different team every week, or simply checking in to see how remote based colleagues are doing. And don’t forget that with global organisations, people are working in different time zones. You might have a great idea to run a team building quiz - but no one is going to join in at 3 am in LA. So, think time zones when you are planning these things.

What advice would you give a line manager to build better connection?

Often the reason people leave is that things have gone sour with their line manager. I think companies just assume that line managers know how to manage and do it in their particular culture. Help them to understand the expectations that you want from your managers. And that might be as basic as we would love you to do a regular one-to-one with your team member each week. If so, give some guidelines about how to run a one-to-one and build connection. Then you need to train, support, guide and coach that person. I’d also say please don’t move those one-to-ones. I know they are the easiest meetings to move but they really matter, especially with remote based employees. A great tip for line managers is when they introduce a new starter, don’t just say who they are and the role they are going to do - find out three things about them that others might find interesting. It’s just a small example of the little things that help us all connect to each other. We can be a bit more creative than just sending out a really dull email.

Despite expectations about hybrid working, companies are wanting more people to return to offices. How can employers manage that better?

It’s another difficult challenge. I am not keen to see employers mandating a return to office policy, these can be deeply unpopular. I also think we’ve seen many examples of highly effective remote working so people have fair case to push back if they feel they can work from home. But, the office, and face to face contact is a great way to find, or re-discover connection, so, if you are going to request it, at least make it meaningful. Give them reasons why they’d want to. And this doesn’t mean going in to do the same work they could do from home, that’s really going to annoy people. What’s more, I think companies underestimate the social part, the water cooler chat or being in the coffee room and having a, "Did you see the football last night? It's a shame Wales got beaten in the World Cup," and all that kind of stuff. We need to connect with each other as much as our organisations.

Any tips for leaders to build connection back in the office?

I think people are more creative when they get together and that could be working on a shared problem. Definitely projects run more smoothly if people are getting together on a regular basis. It's also about understanding people's different styles. One thing that's worked really well on leadership development is where you have managers who meet regularly once a month just to talk about managing people and sharing their stories, the good, the bad, the things that they've tried. It can be really great advice to share, just as a peer group and it’s far more likely to happen face to face.

About Richard Roberts

I’m passionate about helping create engaged, inspired and highly productive teams and cultures.

Please contact me if you want to chat through a scenario or need my help in auditing your levels of connection and company culture - with recommendations for actions you can take.

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