Culture is what lays the foundation for how an organisation operates, relates to its employees and how employees relate to one another. An organisation’s culture is communicated through its values developed by business leaders. These values are further reinforced using various techniques, ultimately influencing how employees perceive their work, act, and comprehend things.   Aligning potential employees’ values with the company’s culture is one of the best ways to know if they are the best fit for the organisation.

 

A solid corporate culture enhances business performance by promoting internal behavioural consistency and supporting a successful organisation. The entire business’s performance will improve by demonstrating to each employee how their contributions affect the larger picture.

 

Due to the dynamic business environment, organisations are faced with different problems. There is, therefore, a growing need for cultural cohesion as many organisations have a dispersed workforce, employee demographics, and economic and social strata.

 

What is a coherent culture?

According to Geddes and Grosset (1999), coherence is the goal of organisational transformation that promotes individuality and ownership.

 

A coherent culture is one in which the employees feel they belong, are appreciated and are committed to personal and corporate goals. For a culture to be cohesive, the component of belonging, value, and commitment must be present. Cohesion is a key component of increased performance and organisational success, which follows naturally. Increased performance fosters engagement, which benefits the organisation and workers. Engagement promotes retention, which is a vital component of any workplace culture

 

Many companies overlook the value of a solid and coherent corporate culture or lack the skills necessary to create one. However, there is an unbreakable link between the two. Most businesses focus on activities directly attached to profit margins and tend to overlook the emotional well-being of their team members.

 

How, then, can an organisation develop a transparent and coherent culture?

 

 

  • Promote Open communication:

Create a network for fresh concepts and more effective company practices by getting staff to engage and share more. By encouraging opportunities for staff members to speak up and stay in touch with one another, you can foster a culture of openness and responsive organisation. Additionally, management can gather qualitative and quantitative feedback by frequently soliciting anonymous input regarding the employees’ opinions of their jobs, particular policies, and what could be done differently helps to reveal areas for improvement.

 

  • Foster a sense of ownership:

Establish a sense of ownership over each facet of the business, down to the precise metrics employees can own, and demonstrate how their input fits into the overall picture. Use departmental, team, and personal performance dashboards to make this evident. Every employee should be aware of what is expected of them.

 

  • Communicate the culture clearly:

It is disastrous to assume everyone is aware of and supportive of the desired organisational culture traits. Building a solid corporate culture requires an effective communication medium where employees can easily refer to policies readily available to them on the go. This can be achieved by embracing technology.

 

Over 50% of high-performing companies spend money on new tools to enhance communications. Organisations are naturally looking for more cutting-edge and user-friendly communication solutions since most workplace communication now occurs via digital channels.

 

Ignorance is no longer an excuse, as technology aids the spread of information. One way to leverage technology to drive a coherent culture is by carefully curating all aspects of the culture in digitised form. This goes beyond using mediums like the notice and billboards or a policy book sitting in an employee’s inbox where the employee needs to go through the hassle of searching each time to read it. Most policy documents are written as a legal construct, and these often do not drive home the message as employees barely understand what has been communicated.

 

It is rather better to adopt a Bespoke Content Experience (BCX) approach to digitising such content. This approach uses instructional design, blended instruction, and activities to produce short digital versions of such policies to facilitate retention and timely application. The eventual outcome is that all target audiences understand and can apply the knowledge towards adopting and living the organisation’s culture.

 

  • Live up to your words:

Top executives must uphold the organisation’s essential values and put them into practice daily. If you don’t, you can’t expect the people who work for you to do the same. Some top executives say their organisation embraces flexibility and innovation and accommodates people with different needs while acting differently. This discrepancy undermines trust and leads to irritation and demotivation among employees.

 

It may be challenging to inspire others and promote the required behaviours. Executives must fully comprehend the effects of authentic leadership and cultural coherence and create an action plan for energising their culture.

 

In conclusion, creating a coherent corporate culture requires deliberate efforts and dedication from every employee at levels. This culture should be driven by a clear vision, realistic goals, a sincere interest in staff professional development, and the need to build a brand identity of excellence.

 

Would you like to know more about the BCX approach to embedding the right culture? Please speak to one of our consultants via digitallearning@phillipsconsulting.net

 

Written by:

Edith Egbele

Analyst