Pulling in the same direction: how to develop a winning business culture
If you want to be successful, it's not enough to just have a great business idea. You also need to have a winning business culture that makes employees feel like they're part of something special and encourages them to do their best work.
There's a famous quote attributed to management consultant Peter Drucker where he says that "strategy eats culture for breakfast." He wasn't pitting the two concepts against each other. Instead, he was highlighting just how important culture is in creating and maintaining a successful business organisation.
We would say that culture is strategy. That is, culture is both intentional in its development and deliberate in its day-to-day execution. Culture is one of the significant contributors to commercial (under)performance. It's often said that people don't leave jobs, they leave workplace culture – "I had to get out of that toxic environment" is just one example.
What is business culture?
If you want to be successful, it's not enough to just have a great business idea. You also need to have a winning business culture that makes employees feel like they're part of something special and encourages them to do their best work. When it comes to business culture, there are three key areas that you need to focus on: vision and purpose, supporting culture with structure, and embracing your leadership role as the chief energy officer.
Business culture is the set of shared values, beliefs, and norms that determine how employees behave. It's what sets your business apart from other businesses, and it's shaped by everything from your company's history and values to how you treat your customers. Creating a strong business culture isn't easy. It can be difficult to establish and maintain yet can be easily destroyed through management neglect.
Start with why: your vision and purpose
The first step in creating a strong business culture is to define your vision and purpose. This will give your employees a sense of direction and help them understand how their work contributes to the bigger picture. Your vision should be ambitious yet achievable, and it should be something that everyone in your organisation can rally behind.
Your company's values are also important in shaping the business culture. These are the beliefs that guide employee behaviour and decision-making. They should be more than just buzzwords on a wall – they should be reflected in everything you do, from how you treat your customers to how you resolve conflicts within the team. Once you've established your vision and values, it's important to communicate them to everyone in your organisation. Your employees should be able to articulate your company's purpose and values.
Support your purpose with structure
The second key component of business culture is structure. This includes the systems, processes, and policies that you put in place to support your vision and values. For example, if one of your company values is transparency, you might have an open-door policy or regular town halls where employees can share their ideas and concerns. Or, if you value customer service, you might have a process for handling customer complaints that ensures every issue is resolved quickly and satisfactorily.
It's important to remember that culture isn't static – it should constantly be evolving to meet the changing needs of your business. When you are considering a planned approach to client management, referral partners, and other relationships, your strategy should reflect your organisational culture. For example, everyone in the sales team should not only understand what a profitable client looks like in terms of minimum spend requirement and level of service required, but they should also understand how clients experience doing business with your organisation and to what lengths they should go to win business.
Lead by example: embrace your role as the chief energy officer
The third and final element of business culture is leadership. As the CEO or business owner, you are the chief energy officer of your organisation, and it's your job to set the tone and create a compelling vision and belief. Your employees should see you as a role model who lives and breathes the company's values.
Think about it like this: all employees in the business possess a certain amount of energy that can be devoted to progressing the business. If this energy is aligned and flows easily through the business, there is a greater chance of success. However, if there is a disconnect between the business' vision/purpose and an employee's individual goals, this energy can quickly become blocked, leading to frustration and poor performance.
It's your job as the CEO or business owner to ensure that everyone in the organisation is pulling in the same direction and that the business' energy is being used effectively. You sit above the business, and your job is to feel your business – like an organism – and know when things are not right. It is to support the energy and enthusiasm.
When done right, business culture can be a significant source of competitive advantage. It can help you attract and retain top talent, improve customer satisfaction, boost employee engagement and productivity, and drive better business results.
