What the heck does corporate culture mean anyways?

Culture. One of my most favorite business buzzwords.  Everyone always talks about culture in the light of how many happy hours you have as a team, whether or not you have a pinball machine and bean bag chairs in your office, and how many PTO days you give your staff. But what really is culture and what is its importance?

When you are in a hyper-growth company or leading a hyper-growth company, it is easy to fall prey to the notion that “culture will happen naturally once we win more work.” As if the stress will magically disappear then and we can start focusing more on team outings. I’ve been there.  But one of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite books “The Power of a Positive Team” is this:

“What they don’t realize is that it’s not the numbers that drive the culture and process; it’s the culture and process that drive the numbers. The fruit is just a by-product of how well you invest in the root.”

If you pay attention to the root of the plant you are growing, then it brings more fruit. Disregard the root, and the plant ultimately withers down.  

 But how do you actually do that? Do you simply allow more work from home and casual Fridays? Sure, perks help. However, what I truly believe is the source of creating a strong, positive culture is ensuring the team carries a deep sense of trust for each other and continuously empowers each other. Easy right? :)

Wrong. Building trust doesn’t happen overnight. It comes from time spent with each other- during the fun times AND during the challenging times. It comes from supporting your teammates when they need it, offering extra help, lifting each other up, and knowing that your team has your back. When you have that sense of trust, then the culture happens naturally. I am not saying everyone has to be best friends with each other- but when you know that your colleagues will support you, uplift you, challenge you, empower you, and pick you up when you need it, then the culture of your organization is rooted in that positivity and strength. Then the root of your business is strong, and the fruits will come naturally from that.

 Furthermore, it’s important that your team not only trusts each other, but also trusts its leadership. That type of trust is built both ways. If leadership doesn’t exhibit trust for the team, why should the team trust the leader?

When you create of foundation of trust and positivity, people will then know they are in a supportive business that will grow them professionally and personally and in return people will work hard to support the business and their team.

I have seen it personally and am truly blessed to have one incredible team.