Conscious Culture: Insights for Customizing Your Company Culture
(Written for Know Women by Lori Harris, Managing Partner, Harris Whitesell Consulting)
Consciously creating and maintaining culture in organizations is simply complex. Culture is defined by the way people in the organization behave, what they believe and think, and what they say. It’s the realistic, silent code of conduct that plays out each day.
Culture sets the foundation for the scope of what the organization does: vision, values, mission, strategy, governance, goals, and objectives. Even though we understand that what behaviors a leader will tolerate defines and shapes the organizational culture, and that leaders play a crucial role in molding and nurturing the organization’s culture, it is widely understood that it takes everyone in the organization to align themselves, take responsibility and have accountability for upholding and justifying the company’s culture.
Internal factors are driven by the talent and their values, beliefs, behaviors, and perceptions. External factors play a slight role in influencing internal talent, such as customer decisions, competition, economy, technology trends, media, political and social conditions. Leaders are continually scanning these internal and external factors to maintain a competitive advantage.
The mindsets, attitudes, interests, perceptions and thought processes of each employee play into the total equation for high-performing and effective organizational culture. The company’s leadership is constantly challenged to ensure that the organization’s culture is not dysfunctional and does not pose a threat of liability. When there is dysfunction, there is liability.
Click to do a quick and simple culture assessment, and review key insights for an effective culture.
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