Creating A High Performance Culture
Culture.
It’s a word that many see as wishy-washy but it’s arguably one of the most important things you can build in your company or brand. If you have employees that stick with you through thick or thin, who speak their minds openly and share ideas without fear – that’s because of culture.
The same applies if you are losing employees and always having to hire new ones.
Company culture is the foundation for future innovation. The job of a high-performing entrepreneur is to build that foundation.
Creating a high performance culture is such a game-changing factor for your business. Not only will people enjoy coming to work, but they will have higher output, relate better as a team, and have fewer conflicts. When you’re not waiting for your day to end, it’s amazing what you can do.
So how do you go about creating a high performance culture? Well, I’m glad you asked.
- What’s A Motto With You?
Mottos are not frilly things you decorate your corporate stationery with. They are powerful values that define your brand. The values that you create and repeat to your team should echo and reverberate in every part of your business. Once you figure out your company’s motto, values – whatever you want to call it – ensure that every part of your organization operates in alignment with it. If people live the values that the company strives for, their energy and commitment levels will soar. - Be Positive. Rinse. Repeat
To get the most from your team, reinforce positive behaviour and consistently applied habits (the good ones!).Creating a high performance culture is very much like instilling a habit. If you want certain things from your team you need to consistently and regularly reward those who represent your company’s values.Imagine being regularly appreciated for your good work. Wouldn’t you want to keep performing well? And what happens when you get those accolades – don’t you want to see if it keeps going?Positive reinforcement is a win-win situation. It means that your company performs consistently at the top of its game and is always growing. More importantly, your staff is also growing and are being rewarded for their effectiveness. - Power To The Employees
If you’re reading this you’re probably a leader in your company or strive to become one soon.As a leader, you intrinsically understand that your team comes to you for your expertise. They trust you and your ability to make decisions that will positively impact them. But beware creating a dependency! Teach your team to think for themselves and they will come to YOU with ideas, strategies and more.Empower your employees by showing them that you trust them as much as they trust you. Give them freedom with boundaries to grow in their role, help them with any training they may need. Communicate your vision and their goals clearly, and don’t be afraid to talk big and small with them! You’ll be impressed with the results. - What’s The Word?
Creating a high-performance culture needs a few key ingredients. One of those is collecting feedback. Part of empowering your employees is giving them the opportunity to give feedback. While you may think you are doing what’s best for the team and for the company, you might be surprised at a few things. Let them tell you what’s good and what’s not working for the business.This will give them ownership to want to be part of the positive change. Taking their feedback seriously and acting upon it means fewer bad reviews on Glassdoor, higher retention and a lot less pain in the ass for you!People tend to avoid soliciting feedback because they’re afraid it will be negative. I look at negative feedback as a gift! At least someone has the balls to say something so I can fix it. Otherwise, it can lead to issues festering in the organization, making people miserable and feeling unheard and undervalued.So go get that feedback, grow a spine, and don’t take it personally. It’s all testing and learning, right? If you’ve messed up, fix it and start again.
Creating a high-performance culture doesn’t happen overnight. It also isn’t created with just these four things. But these blocks are fundamental and will help you focus on what matters. Because as long as you have a vision and you carry these tools in tow, you’ll be amazed at how far you can soar.
For more information on how to transform your culture into the highest performing organism you’ve ever seen, check out our programs. It’s what we do.