Corporate Work CultureIntroduction
Corporate culture refers to the underlying beliefs , value, and
assumption held by individuals within an organization, and the
particles and behaviors that demonstrate and support them.
Cultures reflects what the company considers important and what it
considers unimportant.
What is Corporate Culture ?
Innovation and risk taking
The specific steps are taken to define the intended culture
It is codified and used as the foundation for the development of
business strategies
The employees can better understand what is expected of them in
relation to the company and how they can contribute to the big
picture
The public has clear information of what is expected from the
company
Unconscious
The culture develops organically based on the actions,
communications and personal values of the senior leader or business
founder
Inconsistencies between actions and communications in the
perceptions of the employees and public can lead to a culture
different than the one assumed by the leaders
Inconsistencies can lead to reduced engagements levels
Success Behind Strong Corporate Culture
Clear understanding of what the company’s mission, vision and
values are
Pervasive and consistent messages supporting the mission, vision
and values – communications, business strategies, actions and
behaviors
Alignment of employees personal values with corporate values
Benefits of a strong corporate culture
Employee engagement
Customer loyalty
Financial growth
Strong Corporate Culture - Example
A strong corporate culture derives its power from specific
practices that employees understand as symbolizing and representing
the culture
A strong corporate culture sets out an intended experiences for
your customer
Strong cultures have powerful effects on how a company’s people
work together
Creating a Strong Corporate Culture
Conscious codified culture
Creation of strategies
Communicate to employees
Who are we / what do we stand for ?
What is our purpose ?
What is the objective of the company ?
What experience do we want our customers to behave ?
How do we want to differentiate our self from our competition
?
Codifying your Corporate Culture
Mission Statement
A corporate mission statement should state the current objectives
of the company – what are we currently working toward achieving
?
Mission statement should be brief, clear and succinct
Mission statement should provide opportunities for growth
Vision Statement
The vision statement refers to where the organization sees itself
in the future
A vision statement should provide inspiration, excitement and
invoke a compelling change of impact
Corporate values
Corporate values define the behavior and philosophies that guide
the organization’s internal conduct as well as its relationship
with outsiders
Values must be well defined to enable employee to understand
expectations
Corporate Values – Example
Maple leaf Foods(excerpt of values) Do what is right – By acting
with integrity, behaving responsibility, and treating people with
respect Do to be transparent, passionate and humble – By having the
self–confidence and courage to be completely candid and direct;
willing to communicate openly in a trusting manner; acting with
passion, conviction and personal humility, especially when
delivering winning results
Other Formats
Corporate Mission
Walk the talk
Create the standards
Build a powerful and consistent message to employees and the
public
Communicate
Meet the staff and explain the meaning behind the words. Have it
connect to their hearts and take on a personal meaning to
them
Communicate strategies
Customer Experience
Employee have a high level of understanding of the culture to
translate it into the desired customer experience
Employee model specific practices that symbolize and represent the
culture
Customer experience will differentiate your business from the
competition
Monitor and Evaluate
Questionnaires
Turnover
Inconsistencies between the intended culture and management’s
actions that create new beliefs by the staff and public
Management’s perception vs staff / public perception
25
Communicate
Corporate Culture and Financial Success
Companies with strong corporate cultures have been found to
experience 3.5 times the three-years average revenue growth a
compared to the S&P TSX 60 Composite Index (56% versus
16%)
The three year average asset growth was nearly five times as
high(63% versus 13%)
Corporate Culture and Financial Success
WestJet’s culture has helped the company have an average three-year
revenue growth of 105% prior to the recession
Employee engagement as a result of the culture has saved the
company money on expenditures such as advertising, recruiting and
customer reward programs
Corporate Culture and Financial Success
Manulife Financial
Three year average asset growth 140%
Boston Pizza
Three year average revenue growth of 69.25% in an industry that
typically sees growth in the 4% range
Corporate Culture and Future Trends
Savvy Gen Y and Z kids
Customers will control the business relationship
Social networks will fuel the participatory economy
Sustainability becomes a competitive requirement
Work shifts from full-time to free agent employment
Working in the cloud
“A diamond is a lump of coal that stuck with it”
Anonymous