How to Define and Build a Strong Corporate Culture from Day One

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Defining Corporate Culture
   • Relevance of Organization Culture
   • Types of Corporate Culture
   • The Positive Workplace Culture
2. Design Corporate Culture from Day One—a Step-by-Step Guide
3. Conclusion
4. FAQs

Defining Corporate Culture

A corporate culture is defined as a collection of beliefs, values, ethics, and attitudes that characterize an organization and guide its practices. Corporate culture, to some extent, can be articulated in its vision or mission statement. All organizations have a culture to shape, whether they’re new, old, big, small, government agencies, or non-profits.

The elements of a company culture include the physical environment, staff habits, and human resource management practices. Moreover, culture is reflected in the degree of emphasis on defining elements, including process, hierarchy, collaboration, innovation, community involvement, competition, and social engagement.

Relevance of Organization Culture

A favorable and robust organization culture can be a fundamental propeller of success and sustainability, creating measurable business benefits, such as the following:

• Employee retention and performance
• Company resilience
• Competitive edge
• Growth and innovation

Types of Corporate Culture

Typically, organizations exhibit characteristics from all four types but tend to emphasize one or two dominant types.

• Hierarchy Culture
  This kind of culture values structure, established processes, and clear roles. The emphasis is on stability, predictability, and efficiency. Typically, this kind of culture is found in huge corporations and regulated industries, including banks.
• Clan Culture
  This culture emphasizes teamwork, collaboration, and a family-like atmosphere. It fosters employee loyalty, strong relationships, and open communication. This culture type is best for small to medium businesses and family-owned companies.
• Adhocracy Culture
  The priorities of this type are adaptability and creativity. To remain relevant in the rapidly evolving markets, this type encourages fast decision-making and taking risks. This culture is common in constantly evolving industries, such as tech startups.
• Market Culture
  A results-oriented culture focuses on achieving measurable goals and competition. The emphasis is on market share, customer satisfaction, and profitability. This culture is typical of highly competitive industries.

The Positive Workplace Culture

A business differs from one to another. Still, some universal traits serve as the company framework that has or wants to create a positive work environment.

• Belongingness
  People will always want to feel that they belong and matter in the workplace. When they feel like they’re part of the team, the more engaged they will be.
• Professional development
  Today, technology is evolving fast, so it’s critical to invest in employee development. Professional development is more than training, it also involves providing employees opportunities to learn new skills to advance their careers.
• Psychological safety and trust
  When people do not fear speaking up, psychological safety happens. They trust that they can share insights and opinions without fear of retribution, even if their opinions are different from those of the supervisors or the management.

Design Corporate Culture from Day One—a Step-by-Step Guide

The leadership styles, mission and values, daily operations, employee expectations, and people combine to create a unique business landscape. A positive culture attracts and retains top talent. Thus, developing a corporate culture is crucial to see your organization proactively.

Here is a step-by-step guide to designing and creating a corporate culture from day one.

1. Decide the Ideal Look of the Company Culture
   The first thing you have to do is define what the culture will look like for your company. Spend as much time as possible on the planning stage.
   The team wants to know why the organization exists and what distinguishes it from other organizations. Also, they want to understand the values because if the organization’s values differ from theirs, it would be very hard for them to work in the environment.
2. Compare an Ideal Culture with the Present Culture You Have
   As more people join the company, the culture begins to develop. Every employee brings their values and experiences, which are integrated into the corporate culture.
   When considering how to create a positive culture, honestly look at the workplace culture that you like or have experience with. Take elements from these cultures and tweaks to match your company vision.
3. Ask for Employee Inputs
   Employees have their own opinions regarding corporate culture. Use anonymous surveys to ask them what they think. They’re more likely to be honest about their current environment if they feel they can freely express themselves.
   When analyzing surveys, check out recurring response patterns. Make it clear that you want them to have the digital workplace and tools needed to do their work well.
4. Encourage Work-Life Balance
   The modern world is highly stressful. When it gets too much to handle, it can negatively impact the employees’ daily lives, including their job satisfaction level. More productive and effective employees are those who take good care of their physical, spiritual, and mental health.
   • Encourage employees to take all their vacation days.
   • Offer mental health care access through their benefits.
   • Have an open-door policy with managers and supervisors.
   • Schedule breaks during workdays to interact with colleagues over coffee, etc.
5. Employees Should be Aware of the Company Expectations
   If you’re trying to build a company culture, make sure that existing employees understand the job performance expectations. A transparent and team-oriented company culture encourages employees to post regular work updates.
   It’s paramount for employees to understand what is expected of them. This means that the organization should take time to educate them about expectations.
6. Hire Candidates for Culture
   When adding new employees, it’s tempting to just take into account the education and experience. While these candidates may require less training, this does not always mean that they will be a good cultural fit.
   You can always train a candidate with the most qualifications that you’re looking for if they’re a good fit for your culture. It’s harder for someone to change their personality to fit in a work environment they don’t feel comfortable in.
7. Recognize Achievements
   A major component of employee engagement is making sure that employees feel that they matter to the company. Employers should, by all means possible, create a workplace culture where employees feel safe and share insights.
   Give employees a boost by recognizing their achievements and milestones. For instance:
   • Birthday and other important events should be announced.
   • Names of new employees can be shared on the company portal.
   • Congratulate the marketing team on successfully handling a new product launch.
   • Give a shout-out to the sales team when they reach their target.
   • Recognize contributions for those leaving for other opportunities, education, retirement, or family reasons.

Conclusion

A positive corporate culture is a work in progress. Although building the work culture takes much time and effort, the investment is well worth it. A good corporate culture means minimal turnover rates, lower retention costs, and enhanced team morale and employee productivity. If you want to know more about how to build a strong company culture, visit us today: The Elysium Group

‍FAQs

1) What are the factors shaping organizational culture?

Factors that impact corporate culture include values, leadership, work environment, etc.

2) Is there a benefit to having a strong company culture?

Companies that prioritize developing a work culture experience greater employee morale and performance.

3) How does corporate culture affect organizational behavior?

Work culture sets transparent behavioral expectations.

4) Who is responsible for organizational culture?

Leaders are responsible for designing and building a strong company organizational culture.

5) What is the purpose of an organizational culture?

An organizational culture refers to the mission, vision, objectives, and values of a company that guide its employees.