How to Build a Stronger Company Culture

It’s no lie that at the root of what makes an organization a great place to work is a strong organizational culture. Many organizations pride themselves in claiming to be a great place to work, but behind the pool table in the break room and free lunches on Fridays, their culture is severely lacking, or even toxic. This leads to a constantly revolving door of employees, making it hard to ever truly grow. If you want to know the truth—great employees don’t stay at a company for the money or the cool perks, they stay for its culture.

Now, more than ever, there is a lot of conversation surrounding culture. What is it? How do we create a good one? Building a healthy and strong culture doesn’t just happen overnight, and it comes with a lot of growing pains along the way. The Entrepreneurial Operating System can help you on your journey to building a better company culture by providing you with processes that help you clearly define your culture.

Defining Your Culture

I often say that culture is leadership behavior when they think no one is watching. It is a set of shared values, goals, attitudes, and practices that characterize an organization. It’s the way the people in your organization feel about what they do and if they believe in the organization’s vision. And more than just the people who work there, your culture has a direct impact on everything from customer experience to recruitment, partnerships, and more. It’s easy enough to make a decent culture that people will tolerate. However, the difference between a decent culture and a great culture lies in how well the people in your organization follow your Core Values.

EOS’s Core Values are your organization’s three to seven essential and timeless guiding principles. These aren’t lofty thoughts, but ideas that answer exactly the questions of who you are and who you want to be. And in order to be successful and get traction toward achieving your vision, your core values must be understood and shared by every single person in your organization. No exceptions.

Your Journey to a 100% Strong Organization

I recently had a conversation with a friend interviewing for a new leadership position at a company. The interview was their first REAL exposure to the employees and culture. Throughout the entire interview, the leadership team told them negative things about an employee who was intentionally not allowed to be part of the interview committee. My advice to my friend? Run far away. If this toxic employee had created such a negative environment that they are sharing it externally—then imagine the day-to-day life in the company. Not only are people in the organization wasting their time dealing with this, but it is also repelling good people away. The complete OPPOSITE of what you want.

This is why changes to your culture can be hard to implement, because sometimes, whether it’s an overarching mindset or just a few people, problems with your culture can be so deeply ingrained that you might not even notice it or just think, “This is how it’s always been.”

Your journey to a 100% strong organization starts by making those hard changes. Taking a deep look into your organization, and the people in your organization, and asking yourself what changes need to be made to be who you truly are. And while these changes require a lot of time and dedication, from the top all the way down, to be truly effective. It’s the only way you will ever achieve your vision. Every decision you make, from hiring and firing to partnerships and new opportunities, must be made with your core values in mind.

Ready to Build a Stronger Company Culture?

EOS gives you the tools and resources to make sure you are staying accountable to your vision and create your true culture—a healthy work environment with a team of people who you truly want to spend time with. As an EOS Implementer, I am there with you every step of the way on your journey and to be a sounding board when you need it. I’ll help you remember the importance of staying true to yourself and what you really want from the culture of your organization.

If you’re ready to start your journey and learn how you can build a stronger company culture using the EOS Process, let’s connect and see if EOS is the right fit for you and your team.