By Jack Sims
Ebeltoft Group advises retailers and suppliers to the retail sector
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I am intrigued by what we call Corporate Culture.
I do know that we had a great one, in both of my marketing companies that I founded, and as they happened to be in two different countries, I figured that there was a bit of a pattern here. I have my own ideas of what it takes to have a corporate culture that will make the company stand out, and I will get to that shortly.
But before I share my thinking I would like to share with you the results of a short 7 question survey that I created for a bunch of business owners/CEO's/presidents about what corporate culture was and what it meant to them and their businesses.
The first question was: What does Corporate Culture mean to you"? They had five answer choices, and the number one answer with over 58% was "A way of doing things inside and outside of a company". Second with 25% was, "The way that employees react to situations".
2nd Question was "Can a Corporate Culture be Taught"? Nearly 73% of the respondents said a resounding YES
3rd Question "What are the Top Three components that make up a good Corporate Culture"? got some interesting comments that ranged from: "Ability to adjust to changing circumstances Ability to challenge assumptions without penalty Accountability for actions that contravene values" to "Leading by example, mentoring to encourage fresh ideas and momentum in both the long and short term Recognition of initiative and excellent performance"
4th Question "Should a "Best Practices List" communication be created and shared with the team, if you want a solid corporate culture"? Half of the respondents said yes and the other half said yes but in a slightly different way.
5th Question "Is it absolutely necessary to have the "Team" take ownership of the corporate culture"? 67% said yes and 25% said the same but in a slightly different way".
Question #6 What specific steps have worked in creating a successful culture in your business? Proved to be very interesting, here are a couple of examples:
"1. define it
2. commit to it as a leader
3. coach and train your people continuously
4. give and receive feedback permanently
5. track results",
2. commit to it as a leader
3. coach and train your people continuously
4. give and receive feedback permanently
5. track results",
"Culture is created/destroyed every day with every decision. Those below, follow those above. So actions over-time will build the culture".
Final Question: A resounding YES was the answer to: Does a good "Corporate Culture" have a positive effect on the value of the company?
I don't know about you but I think the answers are interesting, and the specific comments to some of the questions are very enlightening. But the overall thinking is that "Creating a Corporate Culture" is a good thing that will positively impact your business, if you do it right.
Here's what I have found to work as my version of "Corporate Culture" in my businesses.
It has to start with you, if you are the owner or senior management, you need to find out if you do not know, what your deepest values are, and then ask yourself why you started the business in the first place. It really doesn't matter what business category you are in, whether you sell cars, are a plumber, carpenter, nurse or a politician, it always comes down to your "Highest Values". In other words "Why the Heck Do You Do What You Do"?
I know in my case it was to help clients and employees be all that they could be, it's that simple, nothing complicated. It just so happened that my particular area of expertise was in marketing and marketing communications, but it would have been the same if my expertise and training was in a totally different field.
There are many differing facets that go into the creation of a positive corporate culture, but I promise you that it does trickle down from the top. Just some of the areas that you MUST be cognizant of are for instance:
- Consistently hiring the best people who share the same beliefs that you do, and inspiring them to be all that they can be.
- Educating, teaching and making sure that your company is a "No Fear" workplace.
- Making it a fun place to work and also that clients want to come to for the same reason.
- An understanding that MUST permeate throughout the business and on to the clients is that the product will be the very best it can be, there will be no corners cut, and the standards will be the highest in the category.
- Everyone in the company is in the customer service department.
- Every component, every phone call, every invoice, every delivery etc can positively or negatively affect the corporate image and impression in the marketplace, and this will affect the overall corporate culture one way or another.
- Share the wealth.
I promise you that if you get theses things right, your corporate culture will improve and it will positively affect the bottom line.
Jack Sims has literally "been there, done that" and it happened because of his conscious decision to inspire those around him be all that they could be. That included his employees and clients alike.
He just happened to be in the area of marketing and communications, and he founded one of the top five creative groups in his native England and then he did it all over again in right here at home in the United States. His marketing agency became the #1 ranked in America. Now as an author and consultant Jack speaks for companies and associations who are looking to strengthen their brand and grow their business.
Jack's meeting presentations and keynote speeches are high energy and loaded with information that he has proven to work in the real business world. You will laugh at his stories, be excited by his delivery, but most importantly you will walk away with information that will help you go for serious long-term business growth.
Jack's meeting presentations and keynote speeches are high energy and loaded with information that he has proven to work in the real business world. You will laugh at his stories, be excited by his delivery, but most importantly you will walk away with information that will help you go for serious long-term business growth.
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