Involving Employees in Shaping Company Culture has a Positive ROI

The culture within your company says a lot about how you will work with your clients. It’s more than how much vacation time you give or the kind of insurance plans you offer. It’s the fabric of your company and the way you work together to build your team up.

Value Employee Suggestions

Take the time to get your employees together for a brainstorming session. Record their suggestions for creating a company culture you all can be proud of. Incorporating their ideas will make them feel valued and let them know they have made an impact on the company. This will fuel your initiative and give you the ideas that are most important to your employees. Participating in this exercise will allow you to develop a culture that is meaningful to them.

Determine Which Suggestions Make the Most Sense

What do you want your culture to say about you? Having a workplace wellness program would demonstrate to your employees that you care about their physical (and mental) well-being. Allowing them to bring their dog to work would show that you value a dog’s ability to lower stress levels and bring some happiness to the office. But if your office environment isn’t appropriate for dogs, this doesn’t mean your company can’t still have a great culture. Perhaps instead, your staff volunteers at an animal shelter once a month as a way of giving back. It comes down to figuring out what works best for your company in accordance with your priorities.

Share Your Top Choices with Your Employees

Once you’ve aligned the culture aspects with your company, narrow down the ones you would most like to see executed and share them with your employees. Be sure to choose points that make sense, reflect the value of the company and can inspire your employees to contribute to the greater good of the world. Be prepared to explain why you chose the culture aspects that you did and how they will work. Detail any changes that will be made as a result and how employees are expected to adhere to the changes. For example, if you’re implementing a half-day on Fridays for the summer, be sure that employees know what time to leave and how to alter their schedules to accommodate their workload and client meetings, and when this program starts and ends.

Culture Facilitates Success

Companies with unique cultures can boost employee morale and make your employees excited to come to work each day. It also can help them appreciate the company even on bad days. A strong culture that shows appreciation for employees will motivate them to strive to do their best work and become brand advocates. It also makes for an interesting conversation starter to say to others, “Snow days aren’t just for students anymore…!”

Explore more ways to define your organization with our guide, Defining Your Small Business Brand to Attract Like-Minded Talent.