Nothing is quite as essential in the workplace as company culture. After all, culture is the lifeblood of any organization – and for many reasons too.
At A Glance
Each company has an individual culture with specific values that make it unique. Find the proper method to improve your organization’s culture, and watch how your team thrives!
- Create a collaborative work environment and focus on positive workplace relationships
- Utilize team-building opportunities like company events
- Lead by example. Actions speak louder than words!
- Take time to improve onboarding and expand learning opportunities
- Understand how to improve employee engagement
- Recognize and appreciate your employees
- Empower your team members and expand their roles
Without a happy and healthy organizational culture, it becomes almost impossible for a positive work environment to flourish. Here are seven major ways to improve company culture to realize your company’s maximum potential.
See Related: 6 Tips For Boosting Morale Among Remote Employees
How To Improve Company CULTURE
The company we work for can have a major impact on our lives. After all, we spend a great deal of time at our workplace.
That goes for remote workers as well. Even if we’re not physically in an office, we still often feel the direct effects of our company’s culture.
That’s because company culture is more profound than we may initially realize.
But first, let’s get into what company culture actually is. The term “company culture” refers to the attitudes and behavior of an organization and its workers. And many, many aspects of our workplace can affect its culture.
Cultivating a positive workplace culture is critical to both a company’s success and the happiness of its employees. So let’s go over the major ways we can improve it!
#1. Cultivate Positive And Collaborative Workplace Relationships
To understand how to genuinely improve your company culture, you need to recognize what a great company culture is made of.
There are many types of organizations and different ways that employees work together. However, one of the most noticeable shifts in the modern workplace has been an increased level of remote workers.
Each organization will have its own unique culture that aligns with the company’s mission. That’s important to keep in mind. Because these tips on improving organizational culture won’t be a one-size-fits-all cure.
What Makes A Strong Company Culture
How great company culture presents itself will vary in each organization. So understanding your unique team and what works best for them is key.
Let’s start by reviewing the qualities of good workplace culture. It can include:
- High levels of employee retention
- A healthy work-life balance for employees
- Open communication and clear expectations
- A diverse workforce
- Ongoing professional development and opportunities for growth
- Recognized, empowered, and engaged employees
Of course, that list isn’t exhaustive, and plenty of other qualities can signify good company culture. So, how can we improve company culture to reach this point?
One Of The Best Ways To Improve Company Culture
There’s a reason why skills like “collaborative problem-solving” and “teamwork” are valued qualities in the workplace.
The office is somewhere where employees need to frequently communicate with each other to find success. Therefore, even the least-social roles out there require a certain level of collaboration and communication.
This goes for remote workplaces as well.
When it comes down to it, happy and healthy workplace relationships are critical for supporting a positive culture. Strong relationships at work can also improve employee engagement and boost job satisfaction.
So if you want to focus on improving your corporate culture, you must ensure that promoting positive relationships is a priority. After all, no one will be happy working somewhere infested with resentment, loneliness, or irritation.
Workplace culture thrives when our employees feel connected to each other. Leaders play an essential role in this, as well. You need to be active in this process!
Create an atmosphere your employees feel comfortable in to socialize and get to know each other. Trust and familiarity are essential to cultivating an organizational culture that your team can feel happy to be a part of!
#2. Utilize Team Building Opportunities
Promoting positive workplace relationships takes time and effort. Unfortunately, you can only do so much by loading the breakroom with snacks and occasionally chatting with your team.
That’s where team-building activities can step in. Taking time in the office or outside work hours to promote healthy and positive workplace relationships is key to creating a great organizational culture.
The key is to cultivate a team mentality. You can’t let your employees believe teamwork and cooperation don’t matter. Your entire organization must understand that collaborative engagement is critical.
And a great way to get your team members thinking about positive connections is through team-building activities. This can be almost anything!
The Best Ways To Promote Enjoyable Collaboration
You can just start simple, especially if your team isn’t particularly comfortable with heightened levels of communication just yet. So, start by throwing out some icebreaker questions during meetings or other group interactions.
This is a great way to get the casual conversation flowing while encouraging your employees to open up.
But one of the best ways to engage employees and cultivate a warm and friendly atmosphere is through company events.
The Power Of Company Events
As an experienced corporate emcee, I’ve seen firsthand the incredible power that company events can have on employee satisfaction and morale. Whenever a team can get together to enjoy a memorable and enjoyable experience, that’s when workplace happiness soars and relationships thrive.
The key is to find the perfect event speaker. This person focuses on connecting strongly with their audience to deliver a meaningful message. And they can also successfully use humor to give your team an experience worth remembering!
An entertaining and unique company event is truly a great way to show your employees the value of collaboration and teamwork. There’s nothing laughter can’t fix!
#3. Lead By Example
A strong culture is an accumulation of the attitudes, actions, and behaviors of all members of an organization. From senior management to entry-level positions, all employees have a hand in cultivating an organization’s culture!
But company leaders have an additional responsibility in this journey. After all, many organization members look up to leadership to find guidance.
As a leader, your employees will follow suit if you are demonstrating the qualities of a poor organizational culture. And vice versa for positive company culture.
Secondly, the best way to promote the value of a solid and healthy organizational culture is by showing it! So you need to be a walking representation of your organization’s mission and core values.
After all, we all know that actions speak louder than words.
Bonus: 27 Funny Drinking Toasts To Celebrate The New Year With
#4. Take The Time To Improve Selection And Onboarding
Great organizational cultures are built on trust, growth, and learning. Cultivating a growth mindset and demonstrating knowledge are both vital in creating a strong culture.
This can be broken down into two aspects.
Introducing New Hires To Company Culture
The first has to do with new hire onboarding. Providing employees with an initial understanding of your company’s culture is critical in maintaining its grandeur.
This is also critical for new hire retention, as nearly 30% of new hires quit within the first 90 days.
Within the first couple of days on the job, new employees should obtain a thorough and complete understanding of company values. Foster a sense of connection, belonging, and responsibility early on.
Even during the hiring process, this should be laid out for job seekers and potential new hires. Ensure you’re attracting the right people to your company to improve the organizational culture.
Giving Current Employees Tools To Grow
Secondly, you must ensure your employees have the learning material and tools needed to grow and develop. Promoting these fundamental values are critical in ensuring your team stays engaged and productive.
When our minds can stay active and continue to grow, innovation soars, and workplace satisfaction improves.
So give your employees the power to keep learning!
#5. Understand The Power Of Employee Engagement
Employee engagement is the foundation of a strong organizational culture and a positive employee experience. Engagement is so interwoven into the fabric of the modern workforce that almost everything would fall apart without it.
After all, engaged employees are productive, innovative, and happy.
High levels of engagement in the workplace correlate with increased employee morale and better moods for everyone overall. When employees feel intrigued by their work, it makes sense that they feel more fulfilled in their roles.
Give Your Employees A Purpose
A great way to tie improved engagement into your organizational culture is by giving your employees a purpose. Communicate to your team how their responsibilities go towards meeting company goals.
Providing a purpose is key. It’s the start of everything. Plus, it can improve workplace culture and increase employee role satisfaction.
#6. Recognize Employees And Offer Appreciation
I already defined “company culture” as the conglomeration of the attitudes and behaviors of those inside the company itself. But keep in mind that those attitudes include the actions toward employees themselves.
That’s where employee recognition comes into play. This is actually one of the most critical parts of a positive work environment for all employees.
Company cultures that emphasize employee recognition and appreciation have lower turnover rates and happier workers overall. Unfortunately, most of the time, when employees leave a job, it’s because they don’t feel valued or appreciated.
Appreciation and recognition go hand-in-hand.
The All-Encompassing Beauty Of Recognition
The fantastic thing about quality employee recognition is that it can come from anywhere! So, as a leader, it’s up to you to focus on infusing recognition into your company’s culture. It’s an active process.
But recognition doesn’t just need to come from higher-ups.
In fact, peer-to-peer recognition is the most effective way of circulating recognition throughout a company. So encourage your team to spread the love!
#7. Empower Your Employees
Positive and healthy company culture starts with providing freedom to its employees. Employee autonomy is essential here.
No employee wants to be micromanaged or unfairly controlled in their roles. A lack of trust like this is the downfall of organizational culture.
As a leader, you need to embrace flexibility and employee empowerment. This will be the best way to truly promote a genuinely happy and respectful workplace culture.
Build A Foundation Of Trust
Don’t micromanage, and instead trust your team with the tasks you assign to them. Provide meaningful opportunities for growth and professional development. And lastly, expand the responsibilities of your employees.
These are all essential steps toward cultivating a great organizational culture. Just keep in mind that it all starts with respect, trust, and communication.
Keep Reading: 11 Examples Of Empowerment In Business
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Adam Christing has been called “The Tom Brady of emcees.” He has hosted more than 1,000 company meetings, special events, gala celebrations, and more. He is the author of several books and founder of CleanComedians.com. For more event tips, follow Adam Christing on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
