The important element of social strategy is no longer what tools you use and how. Successful companies are investing in their organizational culture as a differentiator and as their key to adaptability and survival today and in the future. Find the original blog post here http://www.sideraworks.com/social-strategy-and-organizational-culture/ For more information on how SideraWorks helps build adaptive organizational culture, visit us at http://sideraworks.com or email us at info@sideraworks.com.

1. building adaptive cultures
Why Social Strategy Means
Organizational Culture in 2014
sideraworks.com
© SideraWorks LLC 2013

2. “To reap the full benefit of social technologies,
organizations must transform their structures, processes,
and cultures: they will need to become more open and
nonhierarchical and to create a culture of trust. Creating
these conditions will be far more challenging than
implementing the technologies themselves.”
- McKinsey Global Institute

3. It’s Finally Happening.
Organizational culture is becoming the linchpin for success in a social era.
!
We’re pushing past the “oh hey, we should be on Facebook!” phase to the “hey
we’re on all this stuff and…um…things are happening to our business as a result.”
!
Maybe this is finally the year that we realize the fundamental truth:
!
The true power of the social web is not in the activities we undertake – the
tweeting, the posting, the content. The real revolution is in the impact that the
activities have on our organizations as a whole, and how we adapt (or don’t) to
respond to them in the long term.
!
Here are four examples of what we mean.

4. 1. Your customers have completely
different expectations now.
They expect you to be responsive, to provide information and help on-demand,
and to do so regardless of things like geography, time zone, or business hours.
!
That means you have to empower your customer-facing teams differently,
teach them the culture of communication on the web, give them frictionless
access to the information they need, and ensure that they know how to
collaborate with each other inside the company so they can meet those realtime expectations.

5. 2. The people that do and will work for you
have different expectations, too.
Employees don’t just want a great salary and benefits with a fancy office
anymore.
!
Traditional work ‘perks’ are changing rapidly with the new generation’s rise in
the workforce, and the emergence of a new era of managers and executives.
We want autonomy and decision-making power, no matter where we sit on the
org chart. We want to be empowered with information, and we also want to
contribute information and ideas. We want to feel like our work has value
beyond the bottom line, like we have a purpose behind our work. And we don’t
want to be tethered to a desk, or even a specific office, in order to get stuff
done.
!
The nature of the entire workforce is changing, and our organizations need to
change too if we’re going to attract and retain the very best talent in an
entrepreneurial-minded era.
!

6. 3. Transparency isn’t a choice.
Everyone – from your customers to your critics to your employees – is armed
with the tools to expose your organization in one way or another.
!
It might not be something as devastating as a scandal or trade secrets. It could
be something as mundane as your employee handbook or pictures from your
company holiday party.
!
But being “transparent” isn’t something you choose, it’s something that’s
chosen for you. Which means that you cannot change that by trying to make
everything more opaque, putting up more barriers and fences and darkening
the windows. Prevention at a broad scale is impossible, because you’re
outnumbered.
!
What you can do is build an organization that, when the curtains are thrown
wide, you’re proud of. It doesn’t have to be perfect or without mistake or flaw. It
simply needs to look like the organization you say you are. We want integrity
and continuity, and a company that leaves us feeling good about their impact
on the world, however big or small.
!
The social web wants to see behind the curtain, and if they’re determined
enough, they’ll find a way. So the important investment is in building the
organization that’s meant to be seen.

7. 4. Organizational culture determines your
ability to thrive in a social era.
The tools are going to change. That’s an inevitability.
!
The one thing that will set you apart and ensure your ability to adapt to
whatever comes next is the strength and clarity of your organizational culture.
You need to know what you value, far beyond what’s printed on a boardroom
wall somewhere. Your employees need to understand the soul and personality
of the organization so that all of their decisions are make in accordance with
those beliefs and behaviors.
!
Organizational culture is the one thing your competitors can’t duplicate. And it’s
the glue that will ensure a consistent, collaborative path forward when all of the
strategic and tactical pieces shift beneath your feet because of changes in the
world or the market or both.

8. Adaptability will win.
Your goal shouldn’t be to win Facebook or YouTube. That’s way too short term
and much too superficial.
!
Your goal should be to become the organization that is best equipped at a
human level to understand and process changes as they emerge, respond to
shifting needs and demands of the market, and make agile decisions. Your goal
should be to become the business that can easily respond to the next
Facebook, Twitter, or the new currency, or a fully remote workforce.
!
Which puts an entirely different perspective on where you should be investing
your time and organizational development efforts. It’s time to consider
adaptability as a core value in itself, and work to develop it in your company.
!
Are you thinking beyond the surface, and considering how your entire
organization has to shift to meet these new demands?
!
SideraWorks can help you prepare for the realities of today, and the
opportunities of the future. Contact us today to find out how.

9. SideraWorks is a boutique firm working with a selective roster of clients. We’re a small, hands-on firm, and
we intend to stay that way.
!
Our leadership team has broad business experience, from marketing to communication, technology to
operations, customer service to social business strategy, even nonprofit management. We’ve worked with
small, entrepreneurial organizations all the way up to Fortune 50 companies.
!
All of our work is designed to put people first. Because getting the human element right in business is
more than just a boardroom mantra. It’s mission-critical.
!
Our work is based on the individualized needs of the companies we work with, not just generic maturity
models. We’re not afraid of the hard work, and if we don’t have an answer to a problem, we’ll roll up our
sleeves and find one.
!
SideraWorks engagements range from one or two day custom workshops and retreats to ongoing
advisory services and partnerships.
!
If you need to understand and embrace the new era of business, strengthen your culture and evolve your
company to meet the future, we’re the right firm to help. Contact us, and we’ll respond personally right
away.
info@sideraworks.com
!
Toll Free: +1 (855) 9SIDERA (974-3372)
Direct: +1 (312) 300-7914

10. “Change almost never fails because it’s too early.
It almost always fails because it’s too late.”
- Seth Godin

11. building adaptive cultures
info@sideraworks.com
sideraworks.com
© SideraWorks LLC 2013