Culture: The questions to ask
When asked, most leaders and team members are comfortable describing the culture of their organisation. I feel the more important question to ask is: “What are we doing for this to be our culture?”. This question can be more challenging.
Culture is not simply a set of words placed in the company policy. Culture, albeit a noun, is all about “doing” – it is in your actions. For example, if an organisation wants a culture of continuous improvement, you expect to see initiatives such as: Training budgets for each team member; 6 monthly goals for team members supported by leaders; regular meetings discussing opportunities for improvement; Career Development Plans for team members. These initiatives all support a culture of continuous improvement. Without the actions, you fail to create the culture.
If you’re looking at culture change, the first 2 questions you should ask are:
1. How would we describe our culture?
2. What are we doing for this to be our culture?
This helps you understand your current state - your “as is”. Every team member should be asked these questions, particularly newer team members who will provide their first impression of your culture.
The next questions to ask are:
1. What do we want our culture to be?
2. What will we do for this to be our culture?
You will note I did not say “what will we do to get this culture”. This line of questioning suggests an ending once you achieve your goal. You cannot ever stop those actions - Your actions are critical in achieving and maintaining your desired culture.
All employees impact culture however leaders have the greatest impact. Leaders should be demonstrating the behaviour they wish to see in their team. People tend to conform to behaviours within groups (ie social norms). If a group of Directors demonstrates a certain behaviour, such as collaboration. The team will also adopt this behaviour and collaborate with one another.
Remember, changing your culture takes time. You cannot simply start a few initiatives and expect a new culture. It needs time to become the subconscious way of operating. I often refer to culture change as a “slow renovation”, not a transformation. Transformation suggests a dramatic change, but culture change is iterative and requires time to become your way of operating.