Give Your Workplace Culture a Health Check!

Below are a list of questions you can ask yourself and your team to establish if you have a great culture where you work and is it in line with your business strategy and goals? We have also included a few ideas to help you build or improve your team culture.

1.   Analyse your culture as it stands right now

a)   How is your company perceived by your team, your clients, suppliers, stakeholders, and the community?
-   What stories do people currently tell about your business?
-   What reputation is communicated among your team, clients, suppliers and stakeholders?
-   What do these stories say about your business and what you believe in?
-   How does your team reminisce on the growth or history of the business?
-   What stories does your team tell new people who join the business?
-   What marketing image do you portray and to what standard?

b)   Expectations and Routine
-   What do clients expect when they walk into your premises?
-   What does your team expect?
-   What would be immediately obvious if you changed it?
-   What behavior do these routine things encourage?
-   How do you solve problems?

c)   Process, Procedure and Systems
-   What procedures and systems are followed well?
-   What procedures and systems are not followed well?
-   Do your team get rewarded for good work or penalised for poor work?
-   What reports are issued?
-   Are you flexible or structured and extreme with either?

d)   Hierarchy and Structure
-   Which team members have influence and is it in a positive way?
-   Who makes or influences decisions
-   Is power used or abused?
-   Is there a clear structure, roles and responsibilities

As you answer these questions, you will build a picture that will help you understand what is influencing your culture. Once you have answered the above questions, and possibly others that have come to you along the way, answer the following question in a general statement;
Describe your culture and the key factors involved?
TIP – Ask your team and a few clients to do the same

2.   Once you have painted the picture as to ‘where you are now’, analyse the culture as you want it to be.

Repeat the process and answer the questions as to how you would like your culture to be?
Start from your strategies or goals, maybe you have a business plan? Think about your ideal culture and how it looks to you, your team, clients and other stakeholders.

3.   Look at the differences between the two.

Now compare the two cultures and identify the differences. While considering your ideal culture, ask the following questions;

•   What cultural strengths have been highlighted by your analysis of the current culture?
•   What factors are hindering your strategy or not aligned with one another?
•   What factors are detrimental to the health and productivity of your workplace?
•   What factors will you encourage and reinforce?
•   Which factors do you need to change?
•   What new beliefs and behaviours do you need to promote?

4.   Develop a plan to action the changes you need to make.

Cultural change is no easy feat and it involves engaging your team from the very start. To make change people have to understand why the change is happening, see the future as brighter and be part of the process.

A few great tips for managing change;

a)   Have a plan that includes outcomes, time frames, training, education, feedback.
b)   All team members need to agree that the change is better and will improve their life at work.
c)   Ask for volunteers to be champions of change and have them responsible for implementing certain aspects.
d)   Celebrate and reinforce the things you do well.
e)   Acknowledge the process along the way with small milestones.
f)   Support the new culture from the top, every day.
g)   Always remember to keep your team informed of the changes, in advance and remember that everyone deals with change differently.
h)   Ask your team individually, how they deal with change, how they prefer to learn and how they like to be communicated to?

Everyone learns and absorbs information differently, know your team.

Some of the things great cultures have in place are:

•   Vision or strategy shared with the team.
•   A set of behaviors that the team expects from each other and from clients.
•   A code of conduct, ethos, commandments, etc.
•   Reward and recognition strategies.
•   Regular meetings to brainstorm how to improve things and discuss ideas.
•    Training and professional development opportunities.
•   Regular performance and career discussions.
•   Clear structure and role
•   High performance values

If you would like further information or help with regard to improving or changing your culture, contact Anna. Anna can help you as little or as much as you need, from providing advice on strategies and concepts through to implementation and project management of new procedures.