Company Culture; what is it and why is it so important?
How important is company culture for a business? Some would say, it is paramount.
For a business where the primary focus is on helping people in the community, reputation you could say is key. This is heavily influenced by said company's staff; therefore establishing the right culture is crucial.
So which comes first: Hiring the right fit or already having the right culture to fit into?? Well, in my experience it’s a symbiotic relationship. Culture is contagious, therefore hiring the wrong (or right person) can have a domino effect on other staff. Therefore it is crucial to get the mix right when hiring new people. On the flip side, in order to hire the right people you need to have a good culture already in place to welcome them into. Therein lies the challenge.
So how do you cultivate good culture within a team??
Well that is the billion $ question isn’t it. Approaches may differ from company to company and even between industries but it all comes down to one thing; People. If you can prioritise the people in your workplace the easier building a good company culture will be. I am no behavioural expert by any means, but this is what I have seen goes a long way to creating and keeping a great culture amongst staff:
Connection and communication (need I say more on this one).
Giving your team a sense of purpose for what they do every single day, finding out their ‘why’ and linking this with the companies ‘why’.
At VC we have strong values of “family”, “Everyday is a Gift” and “leadership”.
Not only appreciating good work when it’s seen, but acknowledging it and sharing it with the team (big morale booster).
Setting up team ‘ground rules’ for behaviour and desirable qualities, and encouraging accountability to stick to these.
Having fun and creating the opportunities for enjoyable moments for staff outside of work.
Trust and honesty: leading from a place of trust and following with trust. Once trust is there, good culture tends to establish itself.
Last (but not least) creating an open environment where people feel comfortable to speak their truth without judgement. This goes a long way to allowing people to open up and be their true selves.
In our line of work, mobile health practitioners are often on the road and spend most of their working hours either with clients or on their own. This can be quite isolating, therefore it is most vital that there is a strong sense of purpose that the team is driving towards. Finding time for team workshops, social events and emphasis on the purpose for the work we do helps foster a positive company culture.
So once you have the right concoction of factors that have created the ideal culture, it's in your (and the companies) best interests to strive to maintain this. This is where good leaders shine bright!!