How would you describe your compay's culture -- and would your colleagues give the same description? Culture may be in the eye of the beholder, but to bring everyone together you'll need to take a closer look at what they all see and experience.

1. The Company Culture Confusion Conundrum

2. • A solid organizational culture
encourages good work and happy
employees while making retention
and recruitment easier.
• So, most businesses are on
board with the idea of having a
company culture.
• The problem arises when there
is company culture confusion.
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3. • It’s an all too familiar situation:
• The C-suite has one idea
of the company’s culture
• Employees have another
understanding of company culture
• New hires are getting a
different perspective, too
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4. • It’s not that culture is missing,
but rather that it means various
things to the diverse stakeholders.
• First, we’ll quickly cover
what workplace culture entails.
• Then, we’ll explore the causes
of culture confusion.
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5. The Value of Work Culture

6. • Company culture is a competitive
advantage today.
• Author Richard Barrett notes: “Who you
are and what you stand for have become
just as important as the quality of the
products and services you sell.”
• Work culture captures the vision
and values of the organization
in behavior and intent.
• These attitudes and beliefs shape:
• How employees are treated
• The working environment
• Relationships with customers
• Overall policies in place
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7. • A focus on company culture brings
many advantages:
• Encourages employee investment in a
shared goal, which can bolster
productivity and drive innovation and
creativity
• Provides a healthier environment for
employees, reducing stress and improving
well-being
• Increases employee retention —
an important point when a 2020
Work Institutestudy tells us voluntary
turnover increased by 88 percent in the
last decade
• Drives higher revenue since the
business benefits when employees feel
that people are put before profits
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8. • Every company’s workplace culture is
uniquely influential.
• It is much more difficult to realize the
benefits of positive work culture when
each stakeholder has a different view of
the company’s culture.
• Think of it this way: what does the word
transparent mean to you? It can mean
quite different things to various
individuals.
• To the employee it might mean
being apprised of the factors going
into decision-making around
benefits, promotions, or raises.
• Yet, to the manager making the plans, it
might only mean letting people know a
decision is made.
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9. The Company Culture
Confusion Conundrum

10. 10
• Creating a cohesive company culture
is further challenged by factors like:
• Management style
• Internal procedures
• Onboarding processes
• Multiple office locations
• Department silos

11. • So much of business success boils
down to management style:
• If one senior leader has a collaborative
bent and works hard to cultivate
individuals, people in that business area
will have one view of culture.
• The team working for someone with
low emotional intelligence who has
difficulty delegating will have another
experience of culture.
• It won’t matter at all what the C-suite or
HR says about culture: Lived experience is
more impactful than words.
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12. • Internal procedures are a hot spot
for company culture confusion.
• But the beliefs, assumptions, and
norms, and values that underpin
culture are made visible through
business processes.
• If a business intends to be inclusive
and respectful of all employees, this
value only becomes culture when
the written code of conduct is
enacted in behavior, complaints are
heard, and staff are involved in
decision-making processes.

13. 13
• Start communicating culture on day
one – if not sooner. Candidates and
new hires are looking to gauge
culture.
• It’s how they decide whether they
will “fit” and “feel comfortable”
working with you.
• Include culture in your onboarding
process by providing employees with
a sense of organizational norms —
both formal and informal.
• Cultural onboarding is 69
percent more likely to retain
employees for three or more years.

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• Work culture is generally viewed as
a company-wide element.
• But even within a single work
environment, individuals with
different roles may have their own
cultural conclusions.

15. Avoiding Culture Ambiguity

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• “Customers will never love a company
until the employees love it first,”
notes work culture author Simon
Sinek.
• That’s where a strong culture comes
in: A consistent, shared view of
company culture will improve
interpersonal relationships among
staff and between leadership and
staff.

17. 17
• Now that you’re convinced company culture
confusion needs to be addressed, you’ll want
to know what to do about the problem.
• Stay tuned for more on this subject,
including strategies to help get everyone in
the organization on the same page regarding
workplace culture.
• In the meantime, it's a good idea to survey
employees at all levels to better understand
how your company climate is viewed.
• Our Company Culture Survey Template can
help: https://www.sogosurvey.com/survey-
templates/employee/company-culture-
survey/

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20. Thank you!