Unwritten rules, values, beliefs and stories
Workplace cultures form over time.
When people work together to solve problems and adapt to their environment, they develop familiar and consistent ways of working and relating. These patterns are reinforced by systems, practices and the stories we share.
So culture is much more than what we do. Less tangible aspects of culture, such as unwritten rules, values and shared beliefs, are often deeply ingrained and shape the way that teams and organisations operate.
For example, in an organisation where collaboration is the norm, it’s likely there’s a whole system of interacting elements that can explain why ‘We tend to collaborate’ such as:
- Stories are told of the collaborative early years
- Rituals and work systems consistently bring teams together
- Decisions are made by consensus
- Newcomers are selected for their collaborative traits
- Informal and formal processes weed out the lone rangers
I could go on. The point is that you have the culture you have for a reason.
However, whether it’s the workplace culture you want might be a different story. The challenge is to deliberately shape the type of culture that enables your groups and organisations to realise ambitions.
So what can you do?
Start with deliberate intention
Well, here comes the really interesting part.
Your workplace culture isn’t a thing that can be designed and changed, like your office layout or IT system.
It’s continuously unfolding and evolving and emerges from the thousands of daily interactions between your people and their environment, your practices and systems, and the stories people share.
Here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Raise your awareness – Your workplace culture is all around you, but do you notice? Get curious. ‘What patterns do you observe’ and ‘Why do they keep showing up?’ ‘What stories do people tell?’ ‘What’s the deeper meaning?’ and ‘How is it all connected?’
- Take an experimental approach – Every group and organisation is unique. What works with one group might not work with another. All we can do is stay curious and take an experimental approach. With increased awareness, we can experiment, collect feedback, and learn as we go.
- Support formal leaders – Often, formal leaders are the success stories of the current culture. So, they’ll likely need lots of feedback and support to change how they relate to others and lead their teams on the journey.
- Build momentum – Shifting workplace culture takes energy. You need a way of mobilising and energising people. Find the informal leaders and groups that want things to be different and support them. Start small, build momentum and keep on building.
Shifting workplace culture is a journey
All groups and organisations have a culture. However, whether this supports or hinders your strategy and ambitions is the pertinent question!
Organisations with cultures that energise members to explore opportunities, work together and continually improve are the ones that thrive and survive.
Shifting workplace culture, however, is complex, and the journey is different for every group and organisation.
It takes true leadership to mobilise and support groups of people to raise their awareness and engage in a process of learning new ways of working and shaping a culture that enables everyone to contribute to success.
Reach out to us if you’d like to chat about how we could work together on a program to shift your workplace culture.