How To Change Company Culture In 2019 And Beyond

Despite today’s consumer influence over business politics, corporate decision-making and day-to-day operations, a genuine shift in your company culture can only start from within. For some, it’s a never-ending and constantly evolving battle that changes with the times.

Other companies establish their initial corporate culture and stick with it – through better or worse.

The Signs Of A Negative Company Culture

A negative company culture is usually the product of several different factors. Whether it’s due to a lack of workplace role models, employee stress and fatigue, or inefficient leadership, it’s a serious problem that can wreak havoc in your entire company.

Moreover, it leaves a scar on your reputation that might be too much to bear in today’s culture-focused society. Fortunately, many of telltale sales are easy to spot with a trained and informed eye. While these certainly aren’t the only indicators of a struggling corporate culture, they are among the most common in the 21st century.

• The company lacks direction. Does your company have a clear roadmap for the remainder of 2019? What about the next few years? If your answer is no, your company might be lacking in direction.
• Your staff is careless on a day-to-day basis. Careless staff will have a negative impact on your leaders, your other workers and your customers. If you find that they’re constantly taking unnecessary risks or talking down on others in the workplace, it might be time to re-evaluate your company culture.
• Employees often demonstrate low self-confidence and motivation. Even the best and most productive employees are prone to suffer from a lack of confidence or motivation from time to time. If you find these issues are consistent, or if they’re occurring throughout your entire team, consider taking a hard look at your corporate culture.
• Your company is lacking strong or consistent values. Does your business strategy align with your company’s mission statement? Are you constantly criticized for the company’s actions? If so, try to reach out to the surrounding community – including your staff – to find areas for improvement.
• There simply isn’t any growth. Most companies strive for growth. It’s critical when trying to keep both investors and employees interested in your brand. A lack of steady growth is a clear sign that your company’s culture is struggling to keep up with the times.

It’s not difficult to spot the common signs of a struggling or failing corporate culture. The true challenge comes in overcoming these obstacles and building a strong, resilient and positive culture that will help propel you forward in 2019 and beyond.

Remember, a company-wide change in culture always starts from within your organization. While it quickly grows to include industry peers and the local community-at-large, it’s an initiative that requires the full dedication of you, your leadership officials and their subordinates.

While it’s a collective effort that requires interaction from every level of your company, it’s also a rewarding endeavor that benefits your entire staff.

How To Cultivate A Positive Company Culture

According to recent studies published in Forbes, a positive company culture requires significant employee involvement, leadership consistency, organizational flexibility and a straightforward, transparent mission statement. These standards can be met in a variety of ways, including:

• Creating a set of desired values and behaviors. Start by defining your company’s core values and practices. Note that this isn’t the same as your mission statement, but the two should align with one another.
• Broadcasting your company’s overall vision. Now it’s time to make your intentions clear. Take advantage of every opportunity you have to reiterate your company’s vision – whether it’s through posters in the workplace or with television and radio advertisements.
• Ensuring alignment with the company brand, strategy and operational processes. Take some time to make sure your company’s vision matches the brand’s mission statement as well as your general business model. Not only does this make it easier to uphold your new company culture, but it can work wonders for your future reputation, too.
• Redesigning employee rewards and recognition programs. Re-evaluate any current employee rewards or recognition programs and make improvements where possible. Your staff will appreciate the extra motivation, and you’ll reap the rewards of their added productivity.
• Securing new talent to support your culture. In some cases, your current staff might need to be reworked, too. If someone doesn’t fit in with your new company culture, don’t be afraid to move them into a different department or, if necessary, let them go entirely. Forcing your employees to adapt will only cause more problems in the end.
• Maintaining accountability for your company culture. Remember, your company’s culture isn’t the sole responsibility of your staff – it’s up to you and your organizational leaders, too. Not only does this accountability give your employees someone to look up to, but it gives them a place to ask any questions or vent any frustrations they may have.
• Tracking and broadcasting the results. In order to gauge the success of your newfound corporate culture, it’s important to track your progress and compare the results against previous years. If you see an improvement, that’s a good sign that you’re on the right track. If not, you might have to make more adjustments and start the process from scratch.
• Communicating effectively and consistently. Don’t forget to maintain communications with your employees during this critical time frame. It’s unfair to leave them in the dark, and the uncertainty of change might cause them to look elsewhere for long-term employment.

Now that you have a clear path to follow, metrics for gauging your success and an avenue to broadcast your results, it’s time to move forward with your new company culture and elevate your levels of productivity, efficiency and teamwork to brand new heights with HJR Global.

Updating Your Company Culture With HJR Global

HJR Global is dedicated to helping you achieve your business goals. Whether you’re looking to revitalize your current company, invest in your future or sell your share and make a profitable exit as soon as possible, we have professionals standing by to help meet your needs. Contact us today for more information!

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