A dynamic company culture that supports and keeps your employees engaged is highly essential. It is the key to success, and it can establish a competitive advantage in the market.
Even though it is a rather difficult task to create a winning corporate culture, don't give up easily. Make sure you design something tangible, really specific and in accordance with your company's core values. Culture matters, because it's what drives people. And driven people will get you to the desired success of your organization.
In this guide, we explore why any organization should design and have one company culture, how it works, and what benefits you will obtain in your company if it relies on a set of shared values.
Table of contents:
Company culture refers to a shared set of workplace values, standards, beliefs, symbols, attitudes, and behaviors of a company and its employees. All these reflect how employees and management make decisions, act, and generally feel about where they work and their actual work activity. It can also impact the company’s clients if we talk about the relationship between employee-client/customer.
When speaking about company culture, we can also use the following terms: organizational culture, corporate culture, or workplace culture.
Since we clarify what corporate culture is, we also need to be aware of what is not. People tend to link this concept with superficial perks offered to employees, like discount cards, karaoke nights, fruit days, or free welcome gifts. These things do not define a company’s culture, although they may be considered parts of it and may indicate a specific type of workplace environment.
Company culture is important because it sets the tone for how employees work together, how they interact with customers and partners, how they are motivated and engaged, and how they are perceived in the industry. It helps define the values and goals of the organization, which can serve to foster a sense of loyalty and trust amongst staff members. Furthermore, it can be used as a tool to attract and retain quality talent, as well as to help establish an appealing brand image and identity. Finally, having a strong company culture can lead to higher productivity levels, improved morale, and a more positive work environment.
If we want to differentiate types of company cultures, we should say there are four main varieties:
There is much more to be said and explained about these four types, and here you can find a complex discussion.
There are two ways of functioning in this area:
There is another way to differentiate organizational cultures:
We have the ones with the traditional hierarchy style, where employees have a clear understanding of their role and responsibility. Still, if they want to advance in higher positions, they need to go through a rigid and formal process.
There are the opposite companies, where teamwork is hugely valued, and employees can easily engage in new tasks and projects without formalities.
There are no rules to obey or standards of size. Even though traditionally a large multinational with over 500 employees may fall into the first category, it is not unheard of to get a bit loose with the hierarchy. It depends a lot on the people, both employees and management.
The team of LaConte Consulting made a wonderful infographic about the implications of org culture, with the visible parts and the less visible ones.
"Company culture has the same effect on people as money. It doesn't change people, but it grants them the license to be more of who they already are. For almost every trait, people can operate within a range, not just at a fixed point. Culture sets the point within their range."
Your company’s culture will widely influence your organization’s reputation, not only internally but also externally. A great culture is well-known for keeping employees engaged and repaying great work. Culture helps to attract and retain top talent. Recruiting will be a piece of cake once people out there know that your employees are proud of their employer and their workplace.
A survey backs up this information, highlighting that 66% of job seekers are focused on researching a company’s culture and core values primarily.
Make no mistake. Company culture is a MUST, not a maybe. It is crucial to company growth, increased productivity, an excellent reputation, stability, retention, and so many more. Let’s go over the benefits:
It builds a healthier workplace - you can't guarantee each employee will be stress-free every day but taking all the steps to create a lively atmosphere is one of the successful company features. You can have happier employees if you choose to find the perfect work-life balance for them. In these times, those having families resent taking work-related stress home with them, so offering remote work as part of your culture may be a great asset. More and more people nowadays are focused on finding a job that provides a healthy work-life balance.
Boosts overall productivity - It is a no brainer: engaged employees who are proud of their work and their employer tend to work harder and better. So, productivity will improve. Having a good work ethic and a high level of performance among your team can only lead to tremendous success in the long run.
Note: By using novel HR management software you can also boost productivity in your business. Learn how.
It creates a better framework for decision-making - having a precise set of values. The mission and vision support your employees when faced with decision-making. This way, they know they find clear answers and guidelines, making it easy to make decisions in compliance with the company’s goals.
Increased employee retention - hiring notable talent is not all. You also must keep them on board. Employees expect more from employers than just the paycheck or health insurance. They seek an environment that cherishes teamwork, knowledge sharing, active communication, and collaboration and rewards positive attitudes and behavior.
TIP: If you're interested about retaining your staff, we have a 10 steps retention strategy that is easy to follow.
Brings higher profits - a company that values employees over profit is rewarded in the end. Employees who get a positive vibe regarding the work environment will be motivated to work for the organization’s performance.
Company culture consists of so many trivial things but also big ones:
What started as a research project to find files on the Internet by Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin has developed into the world's most popular search engine and most visited website. Originally known as BackRub, Google began as an online search firm focusing on artificial intelligence, online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, e-commerce, and consumer electronics. Don't believe me? Google it!
Google's mission statement: "Our mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful."
Google's culture strongly emphasizes employees feeling comfortable and enjoying their work with trust and fairness in the workplace. Google has created a pleasant working environment that doesn't feel like work. This ambiance boosts team efficiency and improves productivity. They even encourage employees to bring their dogs to work.
Google has successfully created a fun working environment that doesn't feel like work, boosts team efficiency, and improves employee productivity. They even encourage employees to bring their dogs to work.
Main features of Google's culture:
Apple is currently the world's largest and most valuable technology company, well known for its innovations and iconic products such as iPhone, IPad, Macbook, Apple Watch, etc. When Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997, he organized the company structure around functions and competencies. In other words, people with the most expertise are the most qualified to make decisions in that area. This structure led to a culture of collaboration where mentors coach mentors rather than general managers overseeing managers.
Apple's mission statement: "To bring the best user experience to customers through innovative hardware, software, and services."
Apple culture encourages creative thinking and innovation, focusing on breaking the mold and doing things differently. Employees at all levels are inspired to think unconventionally and out of the box. A high level of secrecy is a crucial feature of Apple's company culture to protect innovative features and capabilities of its products from competitors and the press.
Main features of Apple's culture:
Zappos is an American company that started a few years ago as a small online retailer that sold shoes. 20+ years later, they are still selling shoes, besides clothing, handbags, accessories, and more. Zappos aims to provide the best customer experience and an excellent company culture for employees. The company aims to sustainably deliver products and happiness to its clients, employees, collaborators, and the community.
Zappos' mission statement: "To provide the best customer service possible. Deliver WOW through service."
Zappos' culture emphasizes customer service, puts customers and their experience at the center of the company's goals.
Main features of Zappos culture:
Amazon is a multinational organization, one of the Big Five American technology companies. What started in 1994 as a garage marketplace for books has become an international conglomerate focusing on e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, streaming platforms, and artificial intelligence. Jeff Bezos, one of the wealthiest men on the planet and former CEO of Amazon, built an empire that shapes everything from e-commerce to the future of technology.
Amazon's mission statement: "To be Earth's most customer-centric company, Earth's best employer, and Earth's safest place to work."
Amazon's culture emphasizes hard work and dedication while also recognizing the importance of having fun and taking time for breaks. They put the customer's experience at the heart of everything while creating a safe workplace environment where passionate employees innovate for their clients.
Main features of Amazon's culture:
Microsoft Corporation is a pioneer and developer of PC software. It was established in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul G. Allen, and by mid-1990, it had become one of the most influential and profitable brands in US history.
Microsoft's mission statement: "To empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more."
Microsoft's culture emphasizes an environment of continual learning and innovation. Microsoft leadership nurtures a growth mindset since each person's development directly influences the company's progress. Employees are inspired to do things that make them happy and help them acquire more skills.
Main pillars of Microsoft's culture:
Airbnb is a San Francisco-based company founded in 2008. It operates as an online marketplace connecting people who want to rent out their homes with those looking for short- and long-term homestays and experiences. The company started after two founders rented air mattresses to conference visitors in their San Francisco home. Airbnb is credited with revolutionizing the hospitality industry.
Airbnb's mission statement: "To create a world where anyone can belong anywhere."
Airbnb's culture focuses on being hospitable and creating a welcoming environment for all employees, customers, and partners. Airbnb leadership understands the importance of employee retention; thus, the company's culture builds around creating the best workplace environment for its employees.
Main pillars of Airbnb's culture:
Slack Technologies is an American software company founded in 2009, famous for its communication tool Slack. This tool simplified the communication streams internally (and sometimes externally, such as with partners). Its easy-to-use interface allows team members to communicate quickly, share documents and files, manage projects, and track team progress.
Slack's mission statement: "To make work life simpler, more pleasant, and more productive."
Slack's culture encourages employees to be resourceful and responsive to customer needs. Company culture is influenced by communication, and Slack knows how to create open, collaborative opportunities for effective communication.
Main pillars of Slack's culture:
Uber Technologies Inc. is another American conglomerate mainly providing taxi services via a mobile application. The company also offers ride-hailing, food delivery, package delivery, and freight transport services in more than 425 cities worldwide. The company's explosive growth has made it one of the most successful and fascinating companies over the past years. Its global ride-sharing app, launched in 2009, changed modern transportation for good.
Uber's mission statement: "To provide transportation as reliable as running water, everywhere, for everyone."
Uber's culture puts safety first and focuses on providing responsible and reliable service for riders and drivers. Their goal is to improve movement for everybody who uses their platform, create a happy workplace for their employees, and find better and faster ways to help customers get what they need and go where they want.
Uber's cultural norms:
LinkedIn is a business and employment-focused social media platform primarily used for professional networking and career development. It was launched in 2003 and is designed to build professional relationships. LinkedIn allows job seekers to post their CVs and employers to post jobs.
LinkedIn mission statement: "To connect the world's professionals to make them more productive and successful."
LinkedIn's culture encourages collaboration and communication within the organization and among its members. They are driven by the collective vision to create economic opportunities for everyone in the global workforce. Their culture focuses on making decisions that impact and enriches the lives of members and each other.
LinkedIn's values:
Dell is one of the world's leading technology companies founded in 1984 by Michel Dell while he was a student at the University of Texas at Austin. It sells personal computers (PCs), servers, data storage devices, network switches, software, computer peripherals, HDTVs, cameras, printers, and electronics built by other manufacturers. They aim to transform people's lives, believing everybody should have access to the best technology anywhere in the world.
Dell's mission statement: "To be the most successful computer company in the world at delivering the best customer experience in markets we serve."
Dell's culture emphasizes constant innovation and improvement, emphasizing the importance of building new things.
Dell's shared values:
"Employees who believe that management is concerned about them as a whole person – not just an employee – are more productive, more satisfied, more fulfilled. Satisfied employees mean satisfied customers, which leads to profitability" - Anne M. Mulcahy.
No company that wants to succeed in today's business environment can ignore the importance of building an excellent corporate culture. It is no easy feat, but the results are hugely important to the overall health of a company, its people, and its customers.
A great culture shapes a company's identity and can be the differentiator between a thriving, attractive business and a barely surviving one. So it is crucial to spend time considering how to improve your culture.
Here are some on-point tips on how to start working on your corporate culture:
Core values are just words when not put into action. They are the foundation of your culture. Crafting a mission statement gives your employees a sense of direction and engages and motivates them to contribute to a larger purpose. Living by your core values means incorporating them into every aspect of your business.
Upper management and HR staff will have to be trendsetters for the employees regarding following these values. They must remind everyone what your company stands for and tries to accomplish. Your employees, business partners, and customers will recognize and appreciate that leadership lives by the company's values and puts them into practice daily.
Your set of core values attracts top candidates in the labor market. The prospective candidates will always research your organization before applying, and they will see if your mission, vision, and values are more than just words.
Learn how to set your mission and vision.
One of the first steps in improving your corporate culture is by establishing and sharing your company goals.
Don't think about sales standards or KPIs. A company goal is why someone founded that company, a target to achieve.
Usually, it is a catchy phrase that encompasses the purpose of establishing the business in the first place. A company's mission or vision statement is the most common way an organization defines its goal and direction. This short yet powerful statement is timeless: it remains the same even if the organization goes through profound changes.
Goals are a big part of your company culture because they impact the outside significantly.
Discover how to set up performance goals for employees with several examples.
It is crucial to create a culture that encourages employees' voices. When honest communication is not one of the main pillars of your culture, people can feel out of the loop. On the contrary, by making open communication a core value of your organization, you create an engaged and creative workforce deeply connected to your mission.
Start by collecting feedback and by showing how feedback has influenced your decision-making process. Update your employees with relevant financial data, organizational changes, developments, and new hires. Open your door, but, more importantly, open your mind to employees' suggestions, ideas, or complaints.
When trust and open communication run through your culture's veins, people feel heard and encouraged to share their innovative ideas.
Discover what effective communication skills are.
It is crucial to make your leaders culture advocates. To lead by example means to model the behavior you want to see in your employees. Do you want them to work harder? Roll up your sleeves and do your part! Take time off if you want your employees to maintain a healthy work-life balance.
You cannot expect employees to act differently when you don't practice what you preach. When your leadership professes the highest levels of integrity, yet they fail to live up to that standard, employees will experience a great deal of cognitive dissonance, leading to disengagement and high turnover rates. Rather than giving team members instructions, a confident leader inspires them through their integrity, ethic, and competence.
Leading by example builds respect among your workers and boosts team morale and productivity.
What are the top leadership qualities?
When your team members excel, make sure to recognize their success. Rewarding excellence positively affects organizational culture, encourages employees to go the extra mile, and attracts top candidates.
Including recognition in your culture means it should be rather frequent than something saved for extraordinary moments. One way to nurture organizational culture and motivate employees to embrace it is to connect recognition to your core values.
Building the culture you want is a perpetual process that doesn't happen overnight. Use both financial and non-financial rewards to foster a great working environment. Your thriving culture will shortly create a positive employee experience that attracts the best candidates, inspires high performance, and boosts engagement.
Discover several examples to express employee recognition.
Before the pandemic, the usual approach was that upper management owned the company culture. Culture has become an incredible tool that enriches employees' lives and improves organizational success.
Trust and implicate all employees in the process of defining your core values. To build a culture everyone adheres to and feels responsible and accountable for, start by listening to employees' voices.
Involve your employees and learn their insights, ideas, and feedback. In this way, you foster a sense of commitment and ownership; they will adopt and assimilate your organizational culture and feel like they belong.
Continue reading about team management skills.
When we think of work, we imagine tasks, deadlines, strategies, and projects. The main focus is on the business goals and objectives. Yet, equally significant but often disregarded are the working relationships built across the organization.
You can't make people like each other. You can create a culture that encourages healthy and productive relationships as a leader. Connected teams drive collaboration, and the work promotes a sense of belonging, trust, and loyalty.
Connection starts during the onboarding process and continues during the employee lifecycle. Build an environment that welcomes new hires and demonstrates your culture's high commitment to emphasize employee relationships.
Team building activities - even when working remotely - are powerful tools to bring your employees together and promote collaboration, boost creativity, and improve communication.
Happy, skilled employees are the foundation of excellent cultures. Investing in their learning and development is crucial for your company to grow and thrive. Let your employees know from Day One that your culture focuses on individuals and their career goals.
One of the main reasons cited by employees when leaving a company is for new job opportunities. Having a career goal and a clear path to achieve it gives employees a sense of belonging; it motivates them to grow within their current organization instead of seeking employment elsewhere.
By offering them training initiatives and upskilling tools, you invest in a long-term commitment and show solid appreciation to your workers who become your culture's ambassadors.
Find out key areas of improvement for employees.
If you're looking for some great terminology to describe your company culture, we have some 30 words:
Positive, inclusive, transparent, collaborative, inspiring, empowering, energizing, open-minded, innovative, supportive, flexible, value-driven, meaningful, respectful, fun, responsible, successful, rewarding, inspired, passionate, caring, creative, progressive, productive, forward-thinking, dynamic, visionary, caring, team-oriented, trustworthy, and growth-oriented.
These are just a few tips. It takes arduous work and dedication to create a winning corporate culture, but as we’ve seen, the benefits of having one are huge, so it is worth it!
Automate your time-off request with the easy to use online HR software.
Easy set-up ● No contracts required ● No credit cards