What If Your Company Culture Was More Like Your LinkedIn Feed?

Company cultures are struggling right now. In the wake of the pandemic, the norms of how we get things done changed, spontaneous social connections withered, and uncertainty continues to stall a full economic recovery. This level of continuous, mass disruption to daily life has not been seen since WWII, well before the memories of most of the working adults in Corporate America – is it any wonder we feel unmoored?

The consequences of fragile cultures are very real. In strong, healthy cultures people understand what the organization stands for, and align the words that are spoken with the actions that are taken. This gap between what is espoused and what is enacted is small. A strong culture sets the tone for the heartbeat of organization operations and decision-making. Conversely, fragile cultures are perfumed by fear. You see it as collaboration shifts from a beneficial practice to an albatross or in subtly divisive language. This is one of the reasons many CEOs are desperate to have employees return to the office, because they are desperate for the normalized culture they knew.

Yet what if there was another way? What if you could promote critical cultural-enhancing behaviors like collaboration, knowledge sharing, mentoring, and community in your virtual hallways? It’s absolutely possible because this is what happens every day on LinkedIn, especially within the creator community. Let me share a few examples:

1. Collaboration: Hosting a podcast on all things leadership and learning has been a passion project for a while, so sharing a picture of my lovely new Yeti X mic was exciting. In less than 24 hours, two seasoned podcast hosts – Ian Daley and Tynan Allan – offered assistance. This ‘happy to help!’ attitude is the stuff companies dream of.
2. Knowledge Sharing: Knowledge is power and during uncertain times many people hoard what they know. Not so for Hayley Lewis whose?Sketchnote Monday?is a favorite for hundreds on the platform. Lewis succinctly summarizes important research in a creative, accessible format. It’s a masterclass in soft power.
3. Mentoring: Show me a great mentor and I’ll show you the heart of a teacher who wants to make the world a better place. GenZ creator Elizabeth Mendes has completely challenged my thinking on the value of TikTok with her sometimes whimsical, often powerful videos of being a Latina in STEM. As the beneficiary of reverse mentoring in our online engagement, I always walk away inspired and refreshed.
4. Community: Networking for women was a challenge without a pandemic; even though we know it’s essential to our careers, we struggle to reach out and forge new connections. I am a poster girl on this topic. Except here. Within the past six months I’ve connected with amazing women leaders across the globe like Dr. Chava Shane (Israel), Dr. Natalia Wiechowski (Dubai) Moumita Das Roy (New Zealand), Dr. Jen Frahm (Australia), Gemma Leigh Roberts (UK), and Carol Kauffman, PhD, PCC in my beloved Boston. Each of these creators has generously shared advice, resources, or a bolster of encouragement with me and joined my network. This is what researchers call social affiliation, which meets deep motivational needs and fosters belonging amongst members. Talk about the cool girls table!

So what’s the secret? If I had to hypothesize it’s a paradox of two tensions: me and we. Yes, LinkedIn is a virtual water cooler where we can showcase our expertise and business offerings; this is the ‘me’ aspect of the platform and it’s a great reason to be here. However, the ‘we’ aspect of sharing creative work, exchanging ideas, high-fiving each other’s’ wins, and offering virtual support through the inevitable losses is equally powerful. In some ways, one could argue the “we” approach is influencing the evolution of LinkedIn itself - now there’s a topic for a future study! For me, LinkedIn is the modern day Greek agora, the public square brimming with activity and a myriad of cultures, all sharing and learning from each other. Oh that we would all have such vibrancy and free exchange within our company cultures.