The most critical asset for an organization’s long-term success is a healthy culture. A healthy culture is challenging and restorative, trusting and compassionate, and people centered and growth oriented. It is committed to excellence and to the creation of value for all stakeholders.
When an organization’s culture is focused on humanity in the workplace versus the mere transactional nature of work, employees become highly engaged, present their best selves, and truly thrive. It is not only the right thing to do, but research also proves it leads to higher performing, more successful organizations.
While healthy cultures have many characteristics in common, here are some specific areas every culture should embrace:
Trust and Transparency
The most critical element of a healthy culture is trust. Trust is built on a belief in others, shared common values, and authentic relationships. Transparency is key to trust, as it empowers senior leaders and individuals to share openly in a constructive way. When team-oriented people work within an environment of trust, they experience safe and secure teams, which leads to better collaboration, higher performance, and more innovative, productive, and positive outcomes.Connection, Inclusion, and Engagement
Trust requires the development of authentic relationships, which start with connection. Authentic connection opens hearts and minds to a broader inclusion of people with diverse backgrounds, perspectives, and cultural practices. When individuals are thriving and can be the best versions of themselves at work, they can assist their teams and engage in the broader high-performing organization. Greater connection, belonging, and inclusion lead to stronger employee engagement.At TiER1 Performance, we’ve created tools that get to the heart of connection. Our free Coffee Talk program matches people within an organization for virtual or in-person talks that foster greater connection and engagement. Learn how you can integrate Coffee Talk into your organization.
Well-Being and Mental Health
Work is a complex combination of our talents, skills, and context, plus our relationships, connections, mindsets, and overall wellness. Work can be challenging in healthy ways, but it can also induce stress. Healthy cultures reduce stress by prioritizing employee well-being, which includes physical, spiritual, relational, and mental health. While many organizations address some aspects of employee well-being, there is not a single issue that affects business performance more than mental health.We’ve created a free toolkit called Start the Conversation that’s designed to help employees increase knowledge, access resources, get support, and encourage discussions about mental health conditions.
Employee Experience
At the root of business performance and culture is the experience of employees. From before their first interview to beyond their final day, individual experiences shape culture. But some aspects of the employee journey are more critical than others—the “moments that matter” are the pivotal points for engagement and performance. Identifying these specific make-or-break moments, and then intentionally designing them, can have a positive impact on people’s lives while elevating the performance of the organization.The trustworthy, attractive, and engaging employee experience you desire can be designed. Taking time to document and intentionally craft the moments that matter when designing the employee experience is a critical step in transforming organizational culture.
Through extensive research, we have identified 35 key moments that matter in the employee experience. Download our 35 Moments That Matter Tool to reflect on how these moments affect your employees.
