Partner Article

Cultivating Culture - The Best & Worst Business Habits

The concept of workplace culture can be difficult to grasp. It seems an abstract thing, therefore hard to define, let alone quantify. In reality however, it simply means the tone that is set (originally by the leader) and maintained within the workplace; the unwritten rules that all colleagues agree to live by when at work; and the collective behaviour that that tone and those rule engender. While culture has visible components, it is attitude that runs through its core.

So how do you go about creating the right kind of culture for your company? These are the ‘rules’ (a loosely used term) I’ve found to have been most effective in my years as CEO at PeoplePerHour.

• Be consistent - Culture works from the top down, so lead by example, practise what you preach… or any other platitude of similar ilk. I expect my team to work with brutal honesty; if the numbers are bad, I need to know, I don’t want them sugar-coated or prevaricated over. Humming, hawing, waffling and fluffing are my absolute provocation. I don’t have time to listen to equivocation; I just want to know the facts. This is fine, as long as I am equally straight with my colleagues. If I demand brutal honesty I have to be prepared to give it too. This might not work for the sensitive souls, but it’s what we all expect at PeoplePerHour because it has become part of culture.
• Instil values - A cohesive company will have values at its core. If every team member understands these values there is less room for error and fewer opportunities for problems to arise. At PeoplePerHour we have a culture of ownership and accountability. I want to be able to trust my team, and for team members to be able to trust each other, therefore it’s important that each person takes ownership of whatever task they are set. Tying in with point number one, I’m not a fan of excuses - if something hasn’t been achieved, I don’t want to know why not, I want to know when it will be - this is where accountability comes in.
• Hire the right people - Ok, I’ve said that culture works from the top down, but it can only be maintained if you hire the right people. I would always rather pay more to get the person who can do the job well, fit in with the team ethos, understand and embrace the company culture, and think for themselves, rather than save a few dollars and have to hold a person’s hand. A candidate could have the best qualifications in the world, but if they lack the right attitude they’re as good as useless. Culture needs to be instilled from day one, but it will only work if your employees buy into it, so choose wisely.
• Practise openness - At PeoplePerHour everyone can and is encouraged to voice their ideas or concerns. I might not always like what they have to say, but I’d much rather they said things openly to me, than quietly brooded and griped about a situation. If staff are not afraid to voice their opinions, they will have no reason to hide problems or concerns. An open workplace is far happier than one closed off in cliques. Openness can also spawn fantastic ideas and create amazing solutions where you may not even have noticed that there was a problem yourself.
• Cut the crap - Finally, this is one of my favourites. A you may have gathered from number one, I value succinctness, snappiness and getting to the point. I expect brevity in business communication, so I try to deliver economy of time when working with my team. Paperwork is kept to the bare minimum - yes, there are legal requirements that can’t be avoided, but in everything else we have a culture of ‘less is more.’ No unnecessary memos; no pointless presentations; no time-wasting pep talks. My time is precious, but I don’t believe it to be any more precious than the time of anyone else who works for me - so I endeavour to avoid wasting it.

Every business has its own culture, and the one that I have cultivated at PeoplePerHour won’t suit everyone - I’m blunt and I know it, but I also know that it works for me. The examples I’ve given aren’t written as a list of commandments - who knows, you might find that fluffiness does it for you - but as a means of demonstrating the overarching points. Culture can be cultivated, but it needs rich earth to sink its roots into. People, values, consistency, openness, and simplicity are the essential nutrients in that earth.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Xenios Thrasyvoulou .