What impact does ‘culture’ have on business success? I believe it’s significant and am often ranting about it at conferences and seminars Well it appears that both bosses and employees agree!
Research by Deloitte has identified that 94% of executives and 88% of employees believe a distinct workplace culture is important to business success. What’s interesting is that when it comes to agreeing the key factors that influence and impact on culture, there is a difference of opinion!
For example, bosses rank things such as financial performance (65%) and competitive compensation (62%) among the highest influencers, but employees see these factors as among the lowest!
They say that the key factors that establish and reinforce culture are….
- Regular and candid communications (50%)
- Employee recognition (49%) and….
- Access to management/leadership (47%)
I have to say I’m with the employees! Although of course I am not dismissing what the bosses think, I believe that culture is heavily influenced by the systems and processes (both formal and informal) that have been Built in the business – it’s also about Rewarding and Recognising the behaviours we want from our people (see more of that here), not just the financial results.
The B and R‘s are ingredients of an UBER Culture which is Characteristic #5 of The 7 Characteristics of 3D Businesses! It’s about consciously working hard to establish a clear set of ‘values’ that shape and drive the culture. Not a list of nice words put on posters or plaques in the reception (Enron had that by the way!), but a set of ‘Rules’ that help reinforce and develop the culture that they want, and has built the systems and processes to reinforce those ‘Rules’.
The key ingredients of an UBER culture are:
- Everyone Understands what’s expected of them and behaves accordingly and consistently as a result
- Systems and processes are Built to reinforce and support those values and behaviours
- People are Engaged, Empowered and Encouraged to deliver them
- People are Rewarded and Recognised for doing it!
So, 3 questions for you…….
- Have you established the preferred behaviours you want from your people?
- Are your systems and processes Built to support these behaviours?
- Do you Recognise and Reward those who consistently display them?
If the answer is ‘no’ to these questions, then there’s a fair chance that you’ve got some work to do!
A starting point might be to download our Free eBook Creating An UBER Culture which expands on the key elements of UBER culture, and crucially helps you see how you measure up – The answers you get might not be pleasant, but at least you could start doing something about establishing and reinforcing your culture you want!
