As a Growing Business, Is Your Company's Culture Well-Defined?

The problem with 'company culture' is that although most people know what it is, they know they need it and they want it, they don't want to focus or invest in it right away. It is too soft. It's not tangible. You can't put it in a spreadsheet. The problem with not doing anything about your company culture is that something will be done for you and it may not be what you wanted. You will have a culture regardless of whether you purposefully define it or do nothing about it.

What is company culture?

I think we all know what company culture or work culture is to some extent. You know there is a difference if you work for a bank or a marketing agency. If you work for a small company or a large company. Culture is whether you eat lunch together as a team or whether everyone eats lunch at his or her desk every day.  Is your manager available for advice or do you need to make an appointment when you want to speak to her? Are you free to object or disagree with management? Are your suggestions being heard? Is your team collaborative with strategy or is strategy dictated to the team? Is there room to think outside the box? In essence, what is it like to work in your company?

At what point should you start to think about your culture?

As soon as you devise the values of your company. When starting out with a company, people will decide on their mission and vision first. They may skip or never even consider the values they hold. Or they may think it is obvious in their mission. But knowing your company values like integrity or innovation is important to your clients and your employees. The problem is that most companies develop their mission and values but then forget about them as they go about the business of running a business. Soon their employees notice that what is happening in real life isn't what the company is selling. It creates a disconnect between what they are doing in real life and what their company stands for. To gain the trust of your employees and clients you must live and breathe what you represent.

How should a company integrate their values?

It starts from the moment a person wants to join your organization, their experience from the initial contact to arranging an interview to attending the interviews to the offer you make to joining your company. It's the way people experience being a part of your company even before they enter the door and continues even after they leave the organization. Establish during the recruitment stage who you are as a company and you will attract the people who fit your company.

I love what Netflix says on their page "Life at Netflix". They make a bold statement that they are people over process. They are very clear in their way of working. The part I really like, not necessarily because I agree but because they are real enough to say who they are, is this part: “We model ourselves on being a team, not a family. A family is about unconditional love, despite your siblings’ unusual behavior. A dream team is about pushing yourself to be the best teammate you can be, caring intensely about your teammates, and knowing that you may not be on the team forever.” This will surely attract the right people that fit their culture. If you want to work for a company that feels like a family, then Netflix is not for you.

When you consider the type of culture you want to cultivate in your company, all your policies and procedures should reflect the way you work. How does someone receive their pay? How will they be recognized, through pay or some other form of appreciation? How many holidays will you provide? What new ways will you spark innovation at work?  Many companies like to have ping pong tables, meditation rooms, climbing walls (yea, some companies have them!) but these are not what makes a culture. A pool table alone does not say this is a company that allows for creative innovative thinking if it just sits there. If people are afraid to use it then it doesn’t fit your culture or you need to change something within your company’s work environment.

Whether you deliberately create your work culture and maintain a positive employee experience or you let things go on their own without any guidance, you will have a company culture. Wouldn’t it be better if you defined it rather than letting someone else define it for you?