Sustainable Culture Transformation: The Importance of Digging Deeper

One of the Japanese Lean?sensei?I worked with during my manufacturing career taught me that there is a lot we can learn from observing nature. For instance, once we were troubleshooting a persistent conveyor jam and he guided us to eliminate the problem by installing a simple mechanism that was inspired by a fish tail. As I learned many years later, this same principle holds true when it comes to culture transformation as well.

For example, a truth I have often observed about culture transformation has been consistently reinforced to me by the experience of clearing my yard of weeds and unwanted brush. After neglecting this practice for a while, the weeds and brushes that would have been easily dealt with while they were young always grow into thicker, woodier “trees” that require more work to remove. Whenever I would eventually cut the “trees” down, as close to the ground as possible, I would always find them fully regrown a few months later if I neglected to grind down or dig out the stumps.

When it comes to culture transformation, things aren’t so different. The current culture of an organization is a living system that has been created and unconsciously reinforced over years, possibly decades. Transforming the culture successfully requires consistent effort on several fronts for a sustained period of time. Quick fixes and overnight makeovers, as impressive as they seem, usually amount to nothing more than clearing out the brush while ignoring the roots; rest assured that the unruly culture will return in due time. If there’s no work done at “grinding down the stumps,” every half-hearted attempt to change the culture turns into yet another “program of the month” that you would have been better off without.

In my experience, 80% of the tangible actions you ought to take to transform the culture can be researched and implemented fairly easily. Unfortunately, the vision statements on the walls, town hall meetings, minor changes to the systems and processes, and dipping people in some training classes don't ultimately suffice. It is the last 20% that makes all the difference. The nuances of how you implement even the obvious steps, how you role-model the behavior in a meaningful way, how you successfully shift the language of your organization—these elements are what really matter and these are the trickiest to pull off on your own.

So, in this edition of the newsletter, I am sharing a few ideas that I hope you will find thought-provoking relative to transforming your culture. Keep in mind, however, that each culture transformation effort is unique and must be designed and implemented with the particulars of the specific situation in mind. It’s for that reason that I encourage you to schedule a complimentary discovery call with me if you’d like to discuss the specifics of your situation. (It really will be me on the call, not an assistant, and there is absolutely no obligation when it comes to scheduling a call; if you’d like some advice or simply to ask a few questions, I’d be more than happy to have a chat with you).

If there are topics you find to be of special value to you, or if you’d just like to get in touch and chat about what’s going on with you, simply reply to this newsletter or send me an email at?[email protected] .?If you’re experiencing challenges that you would like my perspective on, or you’d like to explore how we can partner with you to support you in your transformative journey, please?click here to schedule a call with me. I’d love to hear from you.

The Future of Workplace Excellence Belongs to Culture Warriors

In this week’s article, I discuss the struggles that many people face in their workplaces when it comes to working with bosses, antiquated business practices, and policies that hinder them from reaching their full potential.

Often, leaders are frustrated with their people’s lack of initiative while people on the front lines feel like they're on their own. Each side is waiting for the other to go first and make a change. As a result, both parties begin to doubt whether working on culture makes any significant difference and whether it’s even worth the effort at all. However, I can tell you from experience, we all owe it to ourselves and our colleagues to fight for the workplace culture we want to create.

The opponents we often face are the organizational dinosaurs who have risen to the ranks of VP or SVP merely because of their past functional expertise. They are the so-called tough guys who rely on squeezing subpar work out of people rather than having the courage to work on transforming themselves and their ability to deliver unprecedented success and fulfillment in their organizations.

It's time for all of us to pay attention to the value of empathy, collaboration, servant leadership, and communication. It’s time for all of us to transform ourselves into leaders who can effectively lead a culture transformation and transform our people’s results and morale. Check out the article for a few insights on how to sustainably shift the culture of their workplace. I have also included a few links in the article for those who are interested in a closer look.

Get in touch!

What have you noticed about the culture, and especially the language, of your workplace? Is it empowering or defeating? Is it self-focused or others-focused? Are others aware of it, or has it gone unnoticed by most? Have you been able to make a clear connection between the language, culture, results, and morale, or is the connection still a little fuzzy for you? I’d love to know what you came up with, so?feel free to reply with your thoughts.

Also, if you answered “yes” (or “no!”) to any of the questions above, I’d love to partner with you in the process of creating an extraordinary culture that delivers breakthrough results and unprecedented fulfillment. If you are interested in learning more about how The Ghannad Group can partner with you to transform your culture,?click here ?to schedule a discovery call with me. During our conversation, we can discuss your specific situation and I’ll share my ideas and insight relative to the questions you have.??

If you found something of value in this edition of the newsletter, I'd love to discuss it with you in the comments below.?And if you'd like to share that value with others, I encourage you to do just that by clicking the Share button below as well!