Demystifying Company Culture

I am a people person – an odd statement from an Internal Auditor – but I truly am! Incidentally, the term ‘audit’ comes from the Latin ‘auditus’ which means ‘having been listened to…’ I like to listen, observe and learn. 

People are the most important part of any organisation I have worked in, and understanding people is, in my view, the key to sustainable success and demystifying company culture. 

How the company’s culture impacts its people 

One amazing thing about company culture is that it has a significant impact on employee engagement, productivity, and overall success of the organisation. A positive and supportive company culture can attract and retain talented employees, foster innovation and creativity, and promote a sense of community, shared values and inclusion among team members. 

I was once told something that has always stuck with me: Diversity is a fact, whilst inclusion is a choice. Who and what we are is given, and is informed by what we have experienced. Inclusion is a choice we all make, based on various factors, to decide if we belong or want to be involved. 

So, I have always set out to understand the people I come into contact with to make how I work with them more inclusive and beneficial. 

An important factor driving inclusive acts is our values. At the highest levels of CIG these are: professionalism, integrity and passion. 

My role as leader 

We each have a common alignment with these in different ways. Beyond this, we each engage in ways that we are comfortable with. My role as a leader is to create the space for this to happen – so how do I do it? 

Modelling the behaviours – Actively demonstrating your support through your actions and decisions is key, your people see it and over time it becomes accepted and normal. 

Create challenge – create an environment where you as a leader challenge and develop your people, but also encourage constructive challenge from your team – you cannot always be right all of the time! 

Bring yourself to work – Beyond our working lives we do other things, but knowing the interests of your team, what they do beyond work is important as you see them more as a person and less as a resource. One of the ways I approach this is to rotate the chair role in our team meetings, each member of the team takes a turn and the first part of the sessions is about them presenting something about them to the rest of the team – you learn a lot about your people this way. 

ALWAYS be approachable – your reactions as a leader are key, how you deal with challenges or difficulties is observed by your people – so remember to model the right responsive behaviours. I remember reading that great leaders deal with difficulties calmly and respond to them with action – this has worked for me. 

So, why facilitate company culture? Is it worth it? 

I have found over my working life, and beyond, that people are more supportive when they feel included, more engaged when they feel empowered and more driven when they feel some ownership. There is better communication, collaboration, and teamwork, which can lead to higher levels of job satisfaction and employee well-being. 

Beyond all this, having an inclusive company culture generates a tremendous amount of goodwill – and when things go wrong or the arrangements are not perfect, it is usually the goodwill of people that is the glue that holds things together. 

What other comments do you have on company culture? Put them in the comments below. Then head on over to the CIG Learning Corner on the Civil Service College website to learn more.