4 Ways to Build a Company Culture that Thrives

April 11th, 2017

There’s one thing that infiltrates every part of your business. Your people. Whether you are a solopreneur or have a staff of thousands, humans impact your sales, your service, your profits, your success. Since your people impact your business in so many ways, it’s a great idea to be thoughtful about ways to build a company culture and ensure that you’re taking care of your vital human resources. So, we know we NEED to do it, but how do you build a company culture that makes your business thrive?

Managing a Multigenerational Workforce

There’s no doubt it’s challenging to build a company culture for a multigenerational workforce in 21st-century corporate America. It’s probable that you have a Baby Boomer working alongside a Millennial on the same project. They have different communication preferences, styles of working, methods of motivation and training needs. And, your team is “learning how to dance with one another.”

As they figure out the balance and the tempo to get the job done, they also want to enjoy the process rather than pull their hair out due to frustration. Worse? They fall prey to disrespecting one another’s unique approaches to work. Rest assured, you’re not the only one dealing with the challenges of how to build a culture that makes your business thrive. And some companies have successfully figured out the elixir to motivate their employees, build their culture and create success despite the challenges.

Build a Company Culture that Makes Your Business Thrive

The good news? There’s nothing magical about the concepts embraced in the examples that follow. In fact, they’re simple. They just require the commitment of leaders to train and recognize their team’s dedication to the new ways of thinking and doing.

  1. Disney
    Disney University is the training stop that churns out excellent customer-centric cast members (employees) year after year for the “Happiest Place on Earth.” New employees learn the Four Circumstances of Innovation, Support, Education and Entertain that are critical to the values of the Disney enterprise.
  2. Red Shoes Living
    When Lonnie Mayne was the president of InMoment, one of the world’s largest customer experience optimization companies, he developed the framework for “standing out in the way you live, the way you interact with people and your overall contribution in the world” that ultimately became Red Shoes Living. Guiding his team to become Red Shoes Leaders helped the company grow 817%. Today, he speaks around the world about how the five pillars of Red Shoes Living (Awareness, Gratitude, Everyone has a Story, Respect and Put Yourself Out There) are not only a great way to build a company culture, but also has a tremendous impact in our personal lives.
  3. Twitter
    Twitter has been near the top of best company culture lists for years. Like many tech companies, they boast amazing workspaces that are innovative and inspiring, plus perks such as weekly happy hours and chef-made meals in their café. But it’s the framework of their 10 core values that allow for any person to help drive the business and make it better that is most responsible for the company’s success.
  4. Zappos
    Online shoe store Zappos was very intentional when it created its 10 Core Values that inform business development and operations and define the company’s culture. From the hiring process to training to daily operations, these values are reinforced and supported so that all employees get the same message and are expected to live the values daily. No exceptions. In fact, all employees train in the call center for the first few weeks and after that time they are offered $2,000 to leave the company if they are not fully committed to the company’s goals and culture.

Spending time and energy to build a company culture is well worth it. As these examples show, despite the challenges, it’s possible to build a company culture that makes your business thrive. You don’t need to do it all. Give yourself time to focus on your key result areas by outsourcing some of your content marketing needs to Teriva Solutions. Give us a call today at 303-829-1382 or contact us online.

What do you think are essential elements for a thriving company culture?