Leadership

Five Ways to Create a Strong and Healthy Company Culture

frefrtwgrPicture this scenario. You call a conference to recommend a brand-new company objective and everyone nods their head in affirmation. Feels great to have everyone in agreement with your future plans and ideas for the company, right? Unfortunately, this isn’t really what inspiring leadership looks like. In any company decision, especially if it’s a major one, there will be some amount of heartache and arguments as you press forward with your goals in order to bring everybody into an agreement and to have everyone collaborate towards the same goal. Dream circumstances like everybody immediately with exactly what you’ve said should be taken with extreme caution. These situations aren’t actually very healthy for the company, as there may be little to no room for your colleagues and employees to share their opinions and feel like an appreciated member of the team.

So how do you get everyone onboard with one central, coherent, and realistic mission while at the same time make everyone feel respected and united? It all comes down to company culture and the environment you create at the office. Below is a list of five ways to improve company culture and create a warm, welcoming, productive, and satisfying work environment for everyone involved.

  1. Preparation from above. It’s necessary for all of a business’s executives to be on the same page, with decision makers from each department and/or workplace included in the talks implied for the development of the business culture plan. Preparation efforts must concentrate on defining the company mission, declaration, and worth, selecting proper communication tools and techniques, establishing ways to promote company culture, and developing interview techniques that will be carried out across the company. When there’s a feeling of stability and consistency coming from the top,
  1. Severe passion, enthusiasm, or hardness may discourage input. If your employees aren’t speaking up against any of your ideas or goals, you might want to find out why. It’s always great to have a motivated, focus-driven, passionate CEO or manager, but keep in mind your language, tone, and body language when you’re speaking to your employees. Remember that you are in charge and the employees know this, so they might not feel comfortable sharing useful opinions or ideas if you come off too strong. Try to ask them what they think at the end of a meeting, and try to remind them regularly that they are free to share their feelings about a new project or idea without repercussions. Doing this will guarantee more input, creativity, and comfort from your employees, which will lessen tension in the workplace and increase teamwork and productivity.
  1. When an employee feels strongly about something, listen closely. If someone is speaking up against something or has a critique of a new proposal, make sure not to brush them off. Everyone is an important piece of a working office ecosystem, and everyone deserves to have their voice heard. If someone is speaking very specifically about a problem they have, remember that it may have taken them a lot of courage to voice this concern, so take it seriously. Absolutely nothing disarms better than genuine listening and valuing somebody’s argument.
  1. Bring in outside resources. Sometimes when we’ve been in a workplace for a long period of time, it begins to feel like a bubble. Problems with management techniques and company culture can begin to feel normal, even when they can be toxic. Bringing in third-parties is a great way for someone from the outside to offer objective tips on how things should be structured and streamlined, in order to keep everyone happy in working steadily. If you manage a high-risk work setting, a safety talk will help to reassure your employees that these are concerns you take seriously. If you work in a 9-5 office setting, then maybe bring in an expert in communication and feedback skills.
  1. Encourage a concept pool in your business. This is a simple way that employees can let their arguments, ideas, and tips be heard while given a 100% guarantee that they will not get reprimanded. This is a great deal for both upper and lower level employees: you not just get a constant stream of concepts from people that are trying to improve the company, but these people will also feel appreciated and paid attention to when their ideas are implemented. This will create a stronger and healthier environment for everyone to feel comfortable to share and receive feedback.

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