The Future of Organizational Culture

Disclaimer:?This is a generic article on the topic of organizational culture based on the current business world, the opinions in the article are also from my point of view generally?and non-intended for any business/individuals/entity.?

Back in the days when organizations laid off people, it was news. Now, it’s just another day of how the business world works. You would be lying if you said that you haven’t made a panic-induced phone call at some point to your close friend/colleague ranting about how people are getting laid off.

I believe that great companies exist because of great people. But I also believe that we are in a world that is VUCA, BATI... whatever fancy acronym that’s trending right now! It’s all been a blur since the pandemic. Organizations are doing what they need to do to sustain and thrive.

?Are we still talking about culture? Yes, very much. Like everything in this world, organizational culture is evolutionary just like the people who make it. If you ask GenZ to do something without telling them exactly why that is needed for the business right now, they wouldn’t do it. Maybe they will do it for the sake of it, but do we need disengaged employees who will just do their job with no motivation? As long as we are still talking about culture, we certainly don’t. Forget the job part, you speak to any Genz person for more than 30 mins you realize that they do see the world through a different lens. I can’t comment on how the boomers feel about it, I can only speak from a millennial’s perspective.

A great organizational culture is built on psychological safety, and it begins with leadership – It’s time to open up, it’s time for vulnerability, brutal honesty, and transparency. Naturally, no one wants to talk about the skeletons in the closet. It takes a lot to let down our guard and be who we are, even with the closest of family or people. This is what we need to change in our culture. It is pointless to keep the ball rolling when people are not even sure why they have to keep the ball rolling. We need to understand that times like this either make or break the organization’s culture. Use the chaos, find meaning in the chaos. These are going to be the stories of the future that humanize your employer’s identity.?

We need People Engagement managers and teams working on Culture to base their programs on psychological safety to understand employee sentiment better.

Vulnerability needs to be seen as a sign of strength but not weakness. It’s time for real talk, employees need to hear about the absolute realities. Enough of the filters, this is real people and real business.

Let’s bring back connections where people aren’t just in survival mode, proving themselves by doing one task at a time but rather focusing on the bigger picture to be aware and understand the WHY better. If people only care about what they bring to the table, regardless of how extraordinary that is we are still failing as a system.

?As I said, culture is evolutionary, the future of it is built by the people who are also evolving. But one thing will be a constant – the core values of your organization. It could be as simple as how you treat your teammate or how you feel about asking for help in a tough situation.

Without order, nothing exists. Without chaos, nothing evolves.–?Jedi Mind Tricks, Heavy Metal Kings

Musings by

Cynthia Joseph

Program Manager 2 | Engineering Culture Team at Oracle Cerner