Make Your Winning Culture One of a Kind
By: Jared R Chaffee
Tags: Culture, Leadership Development, Work, Professional Development, Leadership

“Corporate culture is the only sustainable competitive advantage that is completely within the control of the entrepreneur.” — David Cummings

In part 1 of this series, I covered what I mean when I say “culture,” and laid out the key components that all winning cultures are built upon- the 9 Foundational Virtues. If you missed part 1, you can read it here:

Once a strong cultural foundation is laid, you can build upon that and add elements that are unique to your organization and what you’re trying to accomplish. You need to know what you want- which may sound easy, but it’s not. Look at other cultures to draw on for inspiration, but keep in mind that what you’re building is for you. Don’t try and copy what everyone else is doing, really reflect on what’s right for your organization. It needs to come from within.

Another important thing to remember here is that cultures evolve over time and are ever-changing. So what you choose today will most likely not be the same in 5, 10, or 20 years. Cultures are also the embodiment of an ideal, they are aspirational and something at which to aim. You may never get there fully, but it gives you a direction to drive towards.

Make Your Culture Unique with These Elements

Customize your culture by building unique elements off your basic foundation. Incorporate some of the elements below or get inspired and create your own to make your culture truly unique.

Dress Code

If you want to have a laid back, easy-going culture then consider implementing an official casual dress policy. Or if you expect your team to close million-dollar deals, then ensure your teams follow a more formal dress code. Whatever it is, make sure it’s in line with expected behavior because even something as small as the way we dress influences the way we behave.

Reward & Recognition

Reward is one of the most powerful extrinsic motivators you have. Consider what drives employees to succeed. Reward and recognition not only includes bonuses and incentive pay, but also performance metrics, accountability systems, and team awards.

Organizational Structure

Know whether you want a flat organizational structure or the typical pyramid organization with multiple layers of management. One is not necessarily better than the other. Remember, it all depends on the behaviors you’re trying to drive for your unique culture. For example, a typical pyramid structure tends to move slower as information is filtered through the multiple layers of management. So if you need a quick-reacting culture in a fast-moving industry, a flat organizational structure may be better.

Decision Making

How should decisions be made, by committee so everyone has a say, or by one person in charge? If you’ve read my Unity of Command post, you know my preference. But again, it depends on what you’re trying to achieve. Decisions made by committee tend to be more inclusive, but are made at a slower pace. On the other hand, unity of command gets things done quickly but may upset those who are not at the table.

Priorities

What do you want to prioritize in your organization? Doing what’s right, beating the competition, the community, giving back, etc.? You can try and encompass all of the above, but there will be times when they conflict with one another. Incorporate initiatives into your culture that show the team the priority. For example, if you want to show your employees how important the community is, then set up a volunteer and/or philanthropic initiative where employees can do something of their choice on company time.

Growth & Development

If you want to show employees that people are your number one asset, then think about implementing a powerful learning and development framework. This shows an interest in their growth and development and indicates to the team that it’s not just about winning business but fulfilling their potential as well.

Information Flow

How do you want information to flow throughout the organization? Is email preferred or would you rather make phone calls? What about instant messages? Should employees discuss things through meetings? Think about the technology you offer and the preferred method of communication of your workforce. We’ll get into this later, but you can then use a series of rules to help influence how people spread information. For example, Amazon does not allow the use of PowerPoint and instead requires memos for meetings. Think about your own creative rules, e.g. what if you banned email and required only face to face discussion?

Work Boundaries

How do you want to prioritize work-life balance? Giving all employees a corporate phone so they can always be connected may not be the best way to ensure your staff has balance. But if you need your teams to always be connected, ready to go at a moment’s notice, then corporate phones and laptops are probably necessary.

Sense of Community

Do you have individual contributors, teams, or teams of teams? Do you need people to come into the office strictly for work, or do you want to foster a sense of community among the team members? Either way, think about how you can make that happen. If you need a sense of community to build a stronger team, then consider hosting happy hours or events to encourage non-work dialogue. Consider buying lunch for the team but requiring them to eat it together.

Workplace

What type of workplace environment do you require? Are you in a line of business that requires collaborative work? Or do you need deep thinkers who can spend hours at a time focused on a single challenge? How you design your floor plan can significantly impact this. Open floor plans tend to be more collaborative, but offices are required for quiet, uninterrupted deep work.

Leadership

The leader-leader, leader-follower dynamic is an important one to consider for your culture. Do you consider everyone to be a leader or do you need a small select group of leaders with many followers? Remember, one is not better than the other, it just depends on what you’re trying to accomplish. If you want to encourage thought leadership, then be vocal and visible with the way you treat and encourage this behavior. But if you need your teams to keep their heads out of the clouds to be execution-oriented, then ensure you’re not encouraging the opposite.

Promote from within

Do you prefer continuity in your organization? If so, then seriously consider promoting from within to demonstrate a career pipeline for more junior employees. If you have to bring in an external hire, be transparent as to why and provide the context.