How (and Why) to Focus on Building a Positive Company Culture

Company culture is one of those corporate buzzwords that has been thrown around for years, but what does it really mean and is it really that important? When we use the word “culture,” what we’re really talking about is the personality of a company. It’s the mission, values, ethics, language, norms, and general expectations of that company. It even dives as deep as to embody how you treat your customers and how you envision your impact on the future.

 

When you look at how much that one little word truly encompasses, it’s easy to understand just how important it is and why your company should be paying attention to the signs of a good culture or a bad one.

 

Company Culture Matters, Why?

 

While having an impact on turnover rates and the type of talent you attract, culture can also have a big impact on the engagement level of your current workforce, all of which can impact your bottom-line. For example, based on information from Employee Benefit News, the cost of replacing an employee can typically be found by calculating 33% of their annual salary. When you multiply this number over time, in a company with a high turnover rate, the numbers can be staggering.

 

Tips For Understanding Your Culture

 

Understanding your current company culture is often easier said than done. It is an everchanging horizon with goals that will undoubtedly double in distance every time they are reached. But this is the beauty of growth. Each new talent addition to your team and each new idea could spark a new direction for your culture to trend.

 

Use the company culture examples below to help you understand where your company stands today.

 

1. Actively observe how your employees react to their work environment and specifically how they interact with each other.

 

  • Do they smile and greet one another?
  • Do they seem happy to come to work?
  • Do they display family photos and small knick-knacks in their individual spaces?

 

Did you know bare office spaces are a sign that employees could be disengaged from their jobs and may be looking for employment elsewhere? 2. Invite employees to share their opinions using a culture survey. A few good questions to ask are: (Answer each with Strongly Agree, Agree, Disagree, or Strongly Disagree)

 

  • My company takes steps to further my education.
  • I am satisfied with the job-related training my organization offers.
  • I understand how my work impacts the organization’s business goals.
  • I have the ability to make decisions affecting my work.
  • My supervisor and I have a good working relationship.
  • Management and employees treat each other with respect.

 

3. Think about if you take the time to not only share your company goals and values with your employees, but also act upon them. Culture begins at the top and is learned by everyone else through interaction. 4. Implement standard entrance and exit interviews to better understand how both new and past employees view your brand. 5. Look at the facts:

 

  • Are you providing opportunity for your employees to grow in their positions and knowledge through continued education and networking opportunities?
  • Are your employees empowered to make decisions in their roles or do they constantly need to ask for permission to get things accomplished?

 

Broken Company Culture? Here’s How to Fix It.

 

If your current company culture isn’t trending in the direction you’d like, there is still opportunity to correct your focus. Commit time and research into creating a new company culture using the following four steps as reference.  1. Make creating a plan a priority. That means setting aside time to assess your current company culture. Be honest and get honest feedback from your employees. You can do this by surveying through an anonymous service like Survey Monkey. 2. Create a vision for where you want your company to be within a specific time frame using the results from your survey as a guide. Set goals that are measurable. Then, be transparent with your employees about your cultural goals and how they can contribute to meeting them. 3. Once the plan is in motion, continually monitor your goals to be sure the needle is moving. 4. Remember, culture isn’t static. You will likely need to update and repeat this process on a regular basis.

 


Build a Strong Future with Qualified Staffing

 

Having the right employees can help make a positive difference in your company culture initiatives. A strong staffing agency, like Qualified Staffing, can bring you the competent, resourceful workers, you need to take your business to the next level. Contact us today to learn more. 

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