The internet has created two clear pockets of people: the hyper-informed consumer and the hyper-sensitive staff member.
Staff have access to information such as other companies' cultures, the role and behaviour of great leaders, exciting opportunities that exist out there and, above all, they are mostly motivated by creativity rather than financial security.
With all this going on, it is getting harder and harder to attract, motivate, inspire and keep staff.
So when companies call me to assist them with their company's culture, the starting point always is a look at their current business strategy. If the strategy is not on course, no matter how much 'culture' work is done, the ship is heading towards an iceberg and nothing can stop it.
It is imperative to understand and be 100% clear about which direction the company is taking - into the future confidently. By following a process called #trenovate, the most appropriate vision for the future becomes crystal clear, but that is a whole other blog post.
Once the process of 'Trenovate'ing has been done, then you can begin on the process of creating the right 'culture'.
Here are 6 steps to create a great culture following a program called Culture S.T.A.R.S:
- Develop a story on what your business is going to look like, not what it looks like right now
- Broken down into what, how and why as well as where, by when, and values needed to cross the bridge
- Ritualise the values into daily, weekly and monthly activities
- Make sure your office/retail/restaurant/factory space or area is representative of this story
- Tool up your staff with the right tools to flourish in making the story come to life
- Create the perfect staff member character that lives the values of the business down to the last breath to give your team a character to emulate
- And lastly, gamify the adoption of the company culture. To change behaviour you need to personalise and reward the process
Ready, steady - go create some culture S.T.A.R.S!
