Why Culture Can Make or Break You

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In today’s business landscape where change is the only constant, every CEO is asking themselves how to lead through periods of complicated change and uncertainty. When I first stepped into a leadership role, I dramatically underestimated how important culture was in shaping the fabric of an organization and driving our hearts and minds to achieve our goals. When I think back now, it’s clear that a strong culture that encourages disruptive thinking is the secret to thriving in a challenging innovative environment. The following are three critical areas for leaders to consider when developing company culture.

Embrace Disruption

The most successful companies in Silicon Valley today all have one thing in common: a culture focused on disruption. The businesses with bold teams that are able to see around corners and innovate ahead of the pack are the ones that continuously stay ahead of the game, while those that do the same thing for too long fall behind. I believe that the success or failure of all companies is dependent upon their ability to get market transitions right and that capturing these transitions with speed requires a culture that fosters disruptive innovation. For me in my career, this has meant staying close to customers, employees, partners, VCs, academics, industry leaders and startups to harness the Valley’s unique ecosystem. This has allowed us to move with speed into market adjacencies and reinvent ourselves.

Foster Innovation

Many in the valley would credit Cisco with redefining innovation in the early 1990s. Not just internal innovation, but also creating the model for successful acquisitions and next-generation startups. When two companies come together in the right way, the power of innovation can be two-fold – and we’ve successfully done this over 180 times. This starts with the basic issue that most acquisitions will fail. One of the biggest challenges I faced in overseeing transactions was the importance of not combining with a company that has a different culture or vision of how the industry will play out. If you find the cultures are not in line, you’ve got to be able to walk away, no matter how attractive the deal is. Even though it might be the best financial decision and look good on paper. That’s how important culture is. Not just what you do today, but who you acquire and how you strategically partner in the future. Building the right culture is like building a house. It takes time to build it right, requires a strong foundation and is laid down brick by brick, person by person. Once you have the pieces together, you must protect it and allow it to stay authentic.

Lead by Example

It’s up to leaders to drive the discussion on culture and set the example. You must constantly communicate it, “walk the talk,” and take the time and energy to develop it. For example, a culture built on trust starts with putting employees and customers first when they need it most. Over the last 20 years, I have regularly been personally involved with individuals and their families who are going through a difficult time, or who have a family member experiencing a life-threatening illness. Now there isn’t a company meeting that goes by without an employee telling me what an impact our culture has made on their life. The same goes for customers. Being customer-driven is a huge part of Cisco’s heritage, and as a leader, I listen to customers day in and day out to determine what their needs are and how we can create solutions that solve their long-term business problems. This mind set has cascaded down to the entire company and has been key to our success.

It is the role of the leader to constantly communicate all of the above. Culture is the foundation of any company. You may like it and agree with the principles, or you may not, but all successful companies have incredibly strong cultures. This is how leaders establish trust and loyalty and harness the fuel that will power businesses through transition. In today’s environment, you must have an unwavering belief in your culture and its ability to touch every customer, employee, partner and the will to succeed.