Every organization has its own unique culture. And while to some degree, company culture develops naturally, there are also ways you can drive it in a direction that encourages positivity, engagement, loyalty, and a sense of everyone feeling like they belong.
What does a positive company culture look like?
A positive culture promotes employee success and well-being, creates physical and psychological safety for everyone, and empowers team members to do their best work through effective leadership, policies, values and accountability. It is defined by goals, beliefs and practices that are shared by employees and the organization, its mission and vision. In a positive culture:
- Leaders cultivate trust, equity and collaboration.
- Employees are encouraged to take risks and innovate, and have the autonomy to do so.
- Communication, feedback and recognition are continuous and natural.
- Employee growth and development are priorities that are never relegated to the back burner.
- Leaders make tasks and projects meaningful by aligning goals with company values and employee strengths.
The resulting benefits include higher levels of job satisfaction, employee loyalty and retention. A positive culture boosts a company’s reputation and employer brand, so top talent seek it out when looking for a new career opportunity. And employees live better, richer lives as stress and anxiety are minimized and greater work/life balance is achieved.
How do you get there?
Follow these steps towards creating a more positive company culture:
- Promote communication and transparency. A positive culture is based on empowerment. In an empowering environment, employees and managers have open communication and are transparent about their decisions.
- Set clear goals. Goal setting gives employees purpose and motivation. Leaders facilitate goal-setting but let employees arrive at specific end goals on their own. Then, they help them flex and tweak them so they remain realistic, attainable, and in line with the bigger business picture.
- Recognize good work. Reward and recognition are inherent to good company cultures. When employees feel appreciated, they are naturally more productive, engaged and loyal. Recognition should be personal and appropriate to tasks completed and milestones reached or exceeded.
- Provide flexibility. Whether this means working four longer days instead of five standard eight hours, job sharing, telecommuting, unlimited PTO or a combination of all of the above, the best company cultures are those in which employees are accountable for getting the job done well and on time, without the limitations of a rigid time-clock schedule.
- Be inclusive. Company leaders build a healthy culture by weaving diversity, equality and inclusivity into the very fabric of their organizations. Employees know without doubt that their company respects and protects their rights and beliefs and provides outlets for them to share their concerns or have personal conversations.
At PrideStaff Fresno, we can help you create the culture that resonates best with your organization and its short and long-term vision. Our mission is to deliver the value that matters most to you as you build this culture, along with the winning workforce to support it. Contact us today to learn more.