Do your employees reflect your organization’s values?

CEOs and leadership teams recognize the importance of company culture on long-term success. Deloitte’s 2016 Global Human Capital Trends survey revealed that 82% of respondents recognize culture as a potential competitive advantage, and nearly nine in ten executives in the U.S. and U.K. believe culture is important.Culture isn’t built with motivational posters or vague mission statements. Culture is a set of clearly defined, shared values that get lived day by day across the entire organization. Deloitte defines culture as “the system of values, beliefs, and behaviors that shape how real work gets done within an organization.” 

Employees and customers care about culture

When culture is strong, it becomes part of the company’s brand identity. Cultural values should infuse every aspect of the work your employees do and the decisions they make. For example, Alphabet’s (formerly Google) motto is “don’t be evil.” Apple’s culture emphasizes rapid innovation. Starbucks values fair trade, diversity, and inclusion.Talent management is greatly impacted by culture, particularly in the areas of recruitment and performance. 

Recruiting: A good culture attracts talented candidates

Winning the competition for top talent is one of the most important reasons to work hard toward building and maintaining an engaging and inclusive company culture.In late 2016, HR advisory firm, Korn Ferry Institute, fielded a survey to find out what job seekers value most in a prospective employer. Candidates selected company culture as the top reason why they would select one job over another. When asked to project their values into the future, survey respondents believed that five years from now, they would value flexible working situations the most, followed closely by company culture. 

Performance: People work harder when they’re engaged

Engaged employees perform at a higher level than unengaged workers. For most employees—and especially the younger generations entering the workforce—the job has to be about much more than a paycheck. They want to work for an organization that matches their values and personality.When the people who work for your company share its values, they are energized about achieving the company’s objectives. And it’s no secret that having a good company culture can help you retain your best employees. 

Four ways to strengthen your organizational culture

Experts agree that culture must start with the CEO and be reflected across the leadership spectrum. Here are four ways the HR team can help executives establish an organizational culture that drives business success:

1. Define your cultural values. Is your business culture collaborative, friendly and team-oriented? Competitive and combative to drive results? Innovative and fast-paced? Your culture is built on the values that make your organization successful and deliver competitive advantage.

2. Hire for value fit. Skills—like a programming language or new marketing software—can be learned on the job. Soft skills and values, such as open communication, integrity, respect, compassion, or collaboration are hard to teach. Hire great people who reflect your company’s values. Task everyone that interviews candidates to think about value fit.
3. Open feedback channels. The fastest way to erode a positive, productive organizational culture is to allow disagreements, rumors, or culture problems to go unchecked. Listen to employees and address problems quickly.
4. Align incentives with values and protect the culture. Communicate performance expectations clearly. Incentivize behaviors that align with organizational values and do not tolerate nonperformers or employees who disrespect the company’s stated values.

Summary

Culture is built upon strong executive leadership, excellent talent acquisition and consistent HR practices. Asure Software’s Talent Management solutions can help you build candidate and employee experiences that reflect your organization’s culture.