How to improve company culture

It’s something every manager and team leader wants in their organisation: A good company culture. But creating a positive, happy and productive workplace isn’t as simple as writing some inspirational quotes on the wall and offering free coffee. 

Cultivating a strong company culture requires real thought and effort, and should be at the forefront of any organisation aspiring to greater things. In this blog, we break down why your office environment is so important, and provide some key tips on how to improve company culture in your organisation.

What is a company culture?

A company culture is the environment that greets your employees when they start work each day. It’s the ‘feel’ of your organisation.

Unlike your revenue or staff turnover, your company culture can’t be quantified, but every employee will be able to judge for themselves what the culture of your workplace is like. Maybe you’ve got a fast-paced, energetic company culture? Or perhaps your office has a more casual, relaxed vibe? Whatever company culture you’re aiming for, the goal should be based around positive (and productive) adjectives. A ‘hard-working, deadline-focused’ office environment is fine, but there might be an issue if you’re slipping into a ‘manic, unstructured’ place of work.

The benefits of a positive company culture

A positive company culture can have huge benefits for your organisation. There is a clear link between employees feeling appreciated and then being more motivated and productive in the workplace. Our latest eBook, Mind the Appreciation Gap explores this link and the benefits of creating and maintaining a work culture that supports and appreciates people on a deeper level.

But even beyond employee output, your workplace environment brings many benefits, both short and long-term, to your enterprise.

Increased employee engagement

A positive company culture will have a dramatic effect on how engaged your staff is with their work. Happier staff that enjoy the environment they work in won’t be distracted by external factors. Feeling safe, secure and content in their environment will give them space to fully focus on their work.

Higher employee retention

Another almost immediate impact you’ll see from improving your company culture is a reduction in staff turnover. People are always going to be tempted by other jobs, whether it’s because of a higher salary, an industry they’re more interested in, or just new challenges. But they’ll be more likely to stay put if they love the working environment you’ve created. This is a particularly important aspect of employee retention, because a ‘good company culture’ can’t be quantified, meaning it’s theoretically priceless, giving you a huge employee incentive when competitors are offering higher salaries.

Improved productivity and performance

There’s a reason some of the most successful businesses in the world (think Google, Apple etc) have such cool looking offices – it’s all part of their strategy to create positive company cultures and get the best out of their staff. By creating a happy culture where people feel valued and motivated, they naturally feel more eager to produce the best work possible and be ‘part of the team’.

Better talent acquisition and recruitment

It’s important to remember that when you’re interviewing a candidate, they’re also interviewing you. As you walk them through your office they’ll be sizing the place up. If they’re seeing a hive of activity, with colleagues laughing and collaborating while producing great work, they’re going know that your offer extends beyond a salary and benefits – you’re offering them a chance to work in the incredible environment you’ve created! That’s why improving your company culture is so important when it comes to talent acquisition and recruitment.

Increased innovation and creativity 

An improved company culture can also have a drastic effect on the way your employees approach their work. If you’re able to create an office culture of openness, where thinking differently is encouraged and no idea is shot down, your workforce will start to respond to it. Give people the space to try new things, and innovation, creativity, and exploration will become the norm.

How to build a positive company culture

We’ve talked about the benefits improving your company culture can bring you, so now you need to know how to improve workplace culture in your organisation. It may seem like a daunting task, but below we’ve broken down and explained the steps you can take to create the workplace environment you desire.

Conduct a culture audit

The first thing you need to do is look at your current company culture and think about what needs to change. What areas can be improved? What are the issues holding your workplace back from achieving the culture you want? Turn this into a formal audit, being brutally honest with yourself about anything that needs to change.

Gather your employees' feedback

When assessing your company culture, you want to get the full picture, not just a top-down perspective. So be sure to speak to your team about what they perceive to be the company culture, and what they’d like to see changed. You could even set up an anonymous survey to guarantee complete honesty.

Identify your North Star

As you look to improve your workplace culture, you need to make sure you’re moving in a direction that adheres to your company’s core values. So what are yours? Most organisations will have their core values agreed and shared widely throughout the workforce.

Align your core values with your company's goals and missions

Now is the time to take another look at your company’s top-level goals and mission. Are your values slightly out of date, or no longer relevant now that your enterprise has expanded? Do you think they correspond to your current objectives? If you’re planning to enhance your company culture, sure your mission and company values are up to date and aligned with one another.

Recognise leadership's role in changing culture

The leadership of your organisation will always have a key role when it comes to shaping the company culture. People look to directors and C-suite as guides on what direction the company is moving in, and what sort of attitude to carry on this journey. The best way to get buy-in to a new idea or a different way of working is to let everyone know that it’s coming from the top. Which is why…

Lead by example 

It’s crucial that in any shift in culture or attitude in your company, the higher-ups lead by example. This sets the expectation that it’s a group effort and will incentivise the rest of the business to follow in their footsteps. But they can’t just talk the talk. If you want, for example, to generate a culture of openness and idea sharing, the CEO can’t lock him or herself away in a different office from the rest of the team. If you’re asking people in lower positions to be confident sharing new ideas, the people in the higher positions have to be seen to be listening.

9 tips to improve your company culture

1. Promote open communication

Companies with an open communication structure naturally end up with better ideas and employees who feel content, confident, and valued. By letting all your staff, no matter how senior or junior they are, know that their contributions and thoughts are welcome and will make a difference, you create a culture where everyone feels connected to your organisation’s mission.

2. Empower employees and provide growth opportunities

Company culture comes from the employees, so it’s important to empower them and help them grow in their roles and in your organisation. By creating opportunities for promotions and upskilling, then encouraging your team to take up these opportunities, you’ll be creating a culture where people feel positive about their future in your company.

3. Reward and recognise achievements

This one is often overlooked, but it’s vital when creating a strong company culture. People aren’t machines – they need more than just their monthly salary to feel valued. Be sure to celebrate achievements, whether it’s a milestone reached or a large project completed, to make your team feel valued and recognised.

A great way to promote recognition in the workplace is with a reward and recognition platform. This allows everyone, from front-line workers right up to the senior leadership team, to recognise good work and provide staff with instant rewards for it.

4. Promote wellbeing and work-life balance

Workers are more focused than ever on wellbeing in the workplace. It's crucial when trying to improve your company culture that you take steps to ensure employees’ wellbeing needs are met while at work. The easiest way to do this is to set up a digital wellbeing hub that centralises your wellbeing offers and ensures your team gets the help and benefits they want. 

Work-life balance will also play a large part in wellbeing. It’s good to expect hard work and dedication from your team while they’re on the clock, but you need to recognise that people have lives outside of the office. A few simple reminders that people aren’t expected to answer emails outside of work hours or that it’s fine for people to take time off for family emergencies will go a long way towards creating a company culture that promotes a good work-life balance.

5. Foster inclusivity and diversity

Creating a diverse and inclusive organisation is about far more than ticking boxes. It demonstrates that you’re a progressive place to work, and also proves you’re judging people based solely on their performance and what they can bring to the company. This is imperative when it comes to improving company culture. People want to know they’re joining a place where staff are treated equally and have the same opportunities as anyone else.

6. Promote team collaboration and socialisation 

The pandemic proved just how important this one is, with studies showing that in the post-pandemic world of working from home some young people are missing out on the social aspect of the office. Business leaders should lean into this and promote socialisation between your employees outside of work. Office and team nights out are always a winner, and they don’t just have to be trips to the pub! Find an activity that everyone can take part in and give people a chance to get to know each other.

Similarly, collaboration between workmates and different teams should be made as easy as possible, whether it’s by installing ‘pods’ for people to work together in, or creating an open office environment where people can easily walk over to a colleague’s desk for a quick chat.

7. Continuously set feedback and adapt 

People love to grow and learn. By setting up a company culture that continuously offers feedback and adapts to your employees’ style of working, you’re showing your team that you consider them to be a core part of the company. This kind of trust in your staff naturally improves the company culture.

8. Promote a sense of purpose

While a good company culture can be focused on ensuring employees get along well and feel at ease in their work. But if you’re looking for ideas on how to improve company culture, you can take it even further than this. People thrive when given a sense of purpose, which can easily be found in the workplace if the company culture pushes it. Make sure you’re constantly reaffirming your company goals and mission, sharing these with your employees, and crucially reminding them how their work is helping the company move in the right direction. By sharing the bigger picture and making everyone be part of it, you’ll create a company culture of dedication which will show itself in the work produced.

9. Build trust and accountability 

A strong company culture has to be built on trust and accountability. You need to demonstrate that everyone is accountable for their actions, both good and bad. When mistakes are made, don’t cover them up, instead fix them as a team and learn from them. Similarly, keeping your employees in the dark about any issue impacting the company is going to sow the seeds of distrust, so make openness a key part of your internal communications plan. Building trust takes time and effort, but the dividends can be huge when you’ve created a team that can rely on one another.

To find out how you can build a positive work culture through the power of appreciation, speak to one of our team today.