Defining Your Workplace Culture

If you had to define your workplace culture in three adjectives, what would they be?

Cooperative? Fun-loving? Familial? 

Tense? Closed-off? Inefficient?

Now, think about what three words you would like to describe your workplace culture as. 

Customer-focused? Data-driven? Collaborative?

As a business leader, executive, or manager, you set the tone for your company culture. 

That means that you have the power and responsibility to steer the ship in the right direction, keeping your crew focused on the goals ahead in a work environment that is both professional and pleasant. 

But, how do you get there?

Practicing What You Preach

If there was one make-or-break rule for defining your company’s culture, it’s this:

Your employees will only go as far as you’re willing to go. 

We’ve all been told “Do as I say, not as I do,” by someone in charge and know how incredibly frustrating it is to watch someone tell us to act in a way they’re not willing to. 

For example, if you ask your team to rotate working one Saturday a month, but someone has to go twice because you can’t be bothered to do your part, that’s a problem. 

If you are forgetful or miss deadlines but expect everyone around you to meet their deadlines with time to spare, that’s a problem. 

Your team will look to your behavior as the standard for company culture more so than your expectations. 

Playing the Middle Ground

We often don’t think of workplace culture as something we create but rather something that develops naturally. It’s organic, nuanced, and built around social structures that change as people join or leave your team. 

That’s why many business leaders feel that “pushing” particular workplace culture is worse than not having one at all because it creates shallow relationship dynamics and the illusion of collaboration. 

On the flip side of that, though, is the corporatized idea of company culture. Some managers and business leaders are passionate about driving forward a prescribed culture, fully expecting that their employees will fall in line with enough “Pizza Fridays” and morning chanting. 

Just as with most things, you have to find your balance. 

It’s okay to make the expectations clear– We work together, we own mistakes, we fail forward, etc. 

What’s not okay is asking a professional to chant a mantra or risk getting written up. 

The only culture that breeds is one in which they resent coming to work and being infantilized despite being quite capable of the job you hired them for. 

Recognizing Positives Disguised as Negatives 

Imagine that you have a team that can’t seem to stop coming in late. The majority of the employees sleep in at least once a week and stay late to catch up.

You also notice, though, that they are progressively more productive as the day goes on. They never resent staying around to make up their missed time. They’ll often remain past their missed time because they’re focused and “in the zone.”

What an excellent foundation for an aspect of your company culture! 

Instead of punishing your team for being late, accommodate their needs. 

It’s not always possible to say, “This team now works 12 pm-8 pm instead of 9 am-5 pm.” Still, if that’s something you can manage, your team would not only be more consistently productive, but you’d also be building a company culture that says, “Come as you are, let’s make this work, thank you for being on our team.”

What Company Culture Will You Create?

You hired the talent you did for a reason. Whether you see their potential or are already enjoying their success, it’s your job to create the kind of culture that celebrates each team member along their journey with your company. 

Build something authentic and efficient that respects the individual as a human being with talents and deficits, and you will watch your team flourish under your skillful leadership.