Yeh culture-vulture kya hai?

‘This ain’t a part of our culture?’ We have heard many a parent say to their children. To give credit to the child at the receiving end, the poor soul has no clue where this came from, let alone respond to it. This question (is this our culture?) is relevant not just for organisations but for families, teams, colleges alike

So what is culture? Does it stem from customs, behaviour of a group of people?

In my opinion, culture is how a group of people respond to an opportunity or behave in adversity. Both these situations are a true test of the team.

If people in an organisation define whether it is successful or otherwise, then culture is what beads them together.

It is like a simple string in a diamond necklace, it is invisible but it is what holds the glittering diamonds together.

This article is like a soliloquy, where one is trying to put together (pen down) thoughts on a topic that is close to one’s heart.

Think of some of the leading organisations (Google, Apple, Amazon etc) or best sports teams (Indian Cricket Team, Manchester United (of yore), Liverpool etc) in the world. These are just placeholders, just so that we have a common reference point.

 Some questions before we go any further:

• Why do some organisations/teams perform better than others, consistently?
• Why do some organisations/teams respond to adversity much better than others?
• Why do some organisations/teams enjoy longevity of success?
• What differentiates good teams from great?
• Why do some organisations innovate more consistently than others?
• Why do some teams demonstrate more camaraderie than others?
• Why are some organisations ‘the best places to work’, consistently?
• Does a leader engender a culture?

These are questions for us to ponder. Each one of us may have our unique answers

Here is what Culture means to me:

1. Beyond placards, maxims, vision statements: Culture is palpable in winning organisations & teams. People demonstrate it in daily life. Look at any successful team, the joy of playing together shows on every team member’s face. The positivity, the adrenaline rush, the joy of winning – pushes the organization & the team forward. Only great organisations/teams are able to handle success. Success begets failure, if not handled with humility.
2. Unlike a river in terms of flow, but very much like a river in terms of benefits: Rivers flow in one direction. Culture flows like a matrix – horizontally as well as vertically. Each one lends something unique to the culture – enriching it further. And like a river, culture is capable of creating rich & fertile bank for the organization to sow seeds & reap rewards in the long-term.
3. Like blood pressure – every organization/team has a culture, good or bad, enabling or otherwise: Every organization or team has a culture that is omnipresent. Whether that culture is enabling or not, is for the organization and the team to decide. Successful organisations/teams are perceptive; they are able to gauge the pulse & decide the course of action.
4. Culture is present-continuous: While the word ‘culture’ sounds like a blast from the past, it in fact is ‘present continuous’, what the organization or team does in the present, has a very strong bearing on the way the culture is perceived.
5. Culture thrives on consistency: One can reap the benefits of a positive culture only if there is consistency in execution & implementation. Imagine an organization that chooses ‘innovation’ as one of their pillars but does not do enough to encourage/enable/engender innovation. ‘Flash in the pan’ innovation will not build longevity.
6. Culture is not top-down, it truly grows when it is bottoms-up: Top-down is command, the organization or team’s culture truly grows when members across organization strata embrace it and identify with it. The organization benefits the maximum when new members start to contribute to the culture in a positive way.
7. When you say – we have an open culture, you actually don’t: Why should you need to say it in the first place. It should be visible, it should be demonstrated through action.
8. Culture is like homeopathic medicine: Unlike some steroids that can give immediate relief or response, culture works on the roots of the organization/team. It can give long-lasting benefits as the healing is done at the root of the problem. That is the only reason why some organisations or teams have a successful run for long periods of time. Time changes, and they are able to adapt to the needs of the ‘new time’.  
9. Yes, leaders are catalysts of culture: Leaders do play a role in defining the culture of an organization & are catalyst for change. To become effective and have longevity, it needs to be embraced by the team. There was a way Sir Alex Fergusson or Steve Jobs or Matt Busby or MS Dhoni, or Saurav Ganguly or Ratan Tata built their teams or organizations. There is a lot of science and art that goes behind building an enabling culture where the team thrives. Let me make a disclaimer upfront – it is not that these leaders are flawless but what they have built has stood the test of time.
10. Yes, you can change the culture of an organization or a team without changing the leader: This typically happens when the chips are down. This is when the organization or the team decides to take a new path to arrive a new result.

In essence, culture can play a crucial role in the success or failure of an organization or team. Organisations/teams that invest in culture-building will reap benefits in the long run. Please share your views on the subject. We will all be richer :-)