Before You Take The Leap!
Building the right company culture is not just an objective or goal; rather, building the right culture is a way of life! Today, more than ever, people and organizations understand the concept of what company culture is.
A simple Google search for “Company Culture” reveals close to 74,000,000 results from everything from:
- What is Company Culture, and how do I change it?
- 10 Examples of Great Company Cultures!
- What makes a Company Culture Great?
In the constant pursuit of growing and learning about culture, it is important to read related material, listen to cool podcasts, attend numerous workshops and network as much as possible. I find, however, that the best and most effective way to learn about Company Culture is to get immersed into a company and ask questions.
Reading, listening to podcasts, and attending workshops are all really great, but for me, getting into a company and learning from the ground up is priceless. As the infamous Benjamin Franklin stated, “Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.”
Recently, I received an email from an entrepreneur inquiring about company culture! Many of the inquiries and questions I usually receive are great, but this one stood out for me. This email was from a successful entrepreneur, who is leading a second-generation family business, and really wants to make change!
During the conversation, I got to listen and learn about the company, their successes and their willingness to improve their company culture. I was pleased to hear the amount of work and effort they put into learning about culture. However, despite all their efforts, the journey of where to begin was debilitating them, with questions like, “I’ve tried a number of things, but it doesn’t seem to make a difference. What do I do first, how do I begin?”
This is not the first time I heard this question; In fact, it was the very same question I asked myself over six years ago! Before buying Ping-Pong tables, investing in a giant slide to the lunchroom and/or giving everyone unlimited vacation, I’d ask these 5 pointed questions:
Ask these five questions before embracing a Culture Movement.
- Why do you want to focus on a Culture Strategy?
- Are you willing to invest a minimum 5 years to build and foster your company’s culture?
- Are you willing to obsess about, and listen to your number one pillar, your people?
- Are you willing to challenge your conventional wisdom around Human Resources?
- Are you willing to go on the most thrilling, rewarding ride of your life?
The Culture journey is not for the faint at heart. It requires marathon thinking, status quo disruption, a stomach of steel and a willingness to listen and stretch!
Now go on and make a difference!