What is the optimal culture to enable or accelerate the achievement of our organization's strategic objectives? How can we implement this in practice? Time is of the essence! You and your organization are also facing these questions as your company makes a strategic shift?

New ways of working, an ever-changing VUCA environment, a strategic transformation, a new leader, a company takeover, a digital transformation... Each company has its own challenges to overcome. If its culture does not follow the curve of these new shifts, the mission, the objective, will not be achieved to the extent of the ambitions initially set. This growing awareness is forcing many large companies to invest in their raison d'être and their cultural fundamentals. It is becoming essential for them to really focus on this: What to change? And how to go about it?

What is a Corporate Culture?

It's not just about offering modern offices worthy of the largest high-tech organizations. The culture of an organization is much more subtle than that, based on a number of intangible factors that increase a sense of belonging, security and trust. Examples?

- Rather than setting up an unlimited number of vacations, how about setting complete disconnection when employees leave the workplace as the norm?

- How about privileging the result of a job well done rather than the number of hours or days spent in the office to accomplish it?

In other words, psychological trust and security cannot be bought or manufactured. They cannot be solved by providing sports facilities or free snacks alone.

How can we concretely bring it to life?

A cultural transformation requires time, patience, and resilience. It does not only belong to Human Resources but also to team leaders, to the executive committee... who must treat it as a priority and allocate the necessary resources. It is essential to be aware of the impossibility of leading a cultural transformation with an already overloaded or exhausted workforce. Last but not least, motivational levers are still needed to encourage operations to change and collaborate.

Three fundamental pillars can be identified for successful cultural transformation management:

1. Take the pulse of the organization: Understand what needs to change, what needs to continue, what needs to be stopped. Have a continuous improvement approach as we would do in production.
2. Be aware of the organization's social mapping: Who are the real influencers within the company? Who will be the major players in this cultural transformation at all levels?
3. Have a Top-Down and Bottom-Up transformation dynamic: Put in place the necessary initiatives so that the engine is not only at the head of the train but also comes from the operations.

 

Adapt or leave

It is important to remember that we are each responsible for our own actions on a daily basis. It only takes one bad element to harm the harmony of an organization, the customer relationship... It is essential to realize the impact we can have, personally, on the trust, security or performance of our circle of influence. As difficult as it may be, it may be essential to let go of those elements whose actions and behaviors would be harmful to the cultural health of the organization.

In conclusion, Corporate Culture is neither a philosophical nor a utopian subject! It is a real human subject. It's high time to deal with it properly! Do you also have new challenges that require a cultural transformation of your organization? We can help You! Contact us for more information !