Management Matters
Why You Should Invest in Company Culture?
Date Posted: 07/11/2016
Company culture plays a key role in how clients, customers and members of the public view a company. It can make or break the company. Because of this, it is important that companies set aside funds for improving the overall company culture. It should be treated as an investment that will pay off as the company progresses. Before investing in company culture, businesses need to have a clear idea of what it is.
A company’s culture is something that develops organically over time. It is the beliefs and behaviors that determine how employees interact with various outside parties, such as clients, suppliers or other relevant parties. It is not something that is necessarily expressed in a single element, but rather can be seen through everything, from a company’s dress code and office setup, to its treatment of its staff and clients to business hours. Company culture is in every aspect of business operations. As such, businesses should strive to make sure their company culture is as positive as possible.
Keeping this in mind, here are several reasons and things companies should do to improve company culture:
Reinforce purposeful leadership
Leadership is critical for maintaining an organizational purpose, values and vision. Leaders can set examples for employees by living the elements of good company culture. They should show good values, behaviors, measures and actions.
Clear employee purpose
Purpose alone is not enough to motivate employees. Employees need to believe in their purpose and feel that what they do matters to them and to the company. A strong company culture can make employees feel that what they do has a measurable impact on the success of the company.
Improved employee and customer loyalty
Good company cultures enjoy improved employee and customer loyalty as they remove ineffective behaviors and poor values.
Retention and reduced turnover
Investing in company culture shows to employees that the business cares. Employees who know that the business cares about them are more likely to work hard, value their work, and commit to the company.
Empowers employee engagement
Employee engagement is related to how well the company has prepared employees to complete their tasks. Employees can better fulfill their roles to the best of their ability when there are no distractions or inefficiencies that arise from poor company culture.
Employees notice and react to company culture
Employees at all levels in an organization notice the various elements of company culture. For example, employees react to every management decision to hire or fire colleagues, by making comments on the fairness of their bosses. It is important that the strength and appropriateness of the company culture is positive both for employees as well as for the goods and services it provides to its customers.
Creation of an environment of trust
Company culture can create an environment of trust, which is key in the workplace. Employees who are able to rely on coworkers and work together without distrust always produce better results.
More effective adaption to changing environments
Strong and adaptive company cultures that support the dreams and growth of their employees are more able to survive dynamic business environments as well as drastic changes.
Recruitment
An important consideration of many highly educated job seekers and qualified workers is quality of company culture. A company that can offer continual growth opportunities in a joyful work environment will always attract the best candidates. Potential applicants look at company values and growth opportunities, both of which are key parts of company culture.
Clearly organized cultures enjoy labor cost advantages
Companies with clear and organized company cultures enjoy labor cost advantages for several reasons. They often become better places to work at and become well known among prospective employees. The screening process too is improved by employees who refer acquaintances who behave similarly to themselves.
Company cultures can sour
If left neglected, company culture which is the DNA and reputation of your organization can sour. This can be due to failure of leaders to reinforce desired behaviors or a breakdown in communication within the company.
These are just some of the many benefits that can be achieved through investing in company culture. By investing in various aspects of company culture, not only will client satisfaction increase, but employee satisfaction will be impacted positively too. As a result, performance improvements will become noticeable throughout the company. Clearly, a company’s culture is something that is well worth investing in for the long run.
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