Why now is the time to refresh workplace culture and boost engagement
The changing workplace
The pandemic has forced change, fracturing corporate culture and laying bare workplace cultures that just aren’t working. In fact, figures from our Global Culture Report show that more than a third of UK workers (36%) have lost confidence in senior leadership since the start of the pandemic and 37% admit that they’ve felt unsupported by senior leaders. The same number have felt isolated and vulnerable in their job. On top of this, burnout has increased substantially (15% globally) increasing to an incredible 81% in ‘non-thriving’ company cultures.
The pandemic has created the perfect storm for employees to ponder whether their current workplace (and even their career choice) is right for them. The highest priority right now is for organisations to make sure that their cultures are irresistible – that current employees love where they work and that future employees are drawn to the company. It’s time to reboot corporate culture to match an entirely new era of work.
What needs to change?
Employers need to take a look at their workplaces with fresh eyes. First they must review their purpose. Is it inspiring, coherently communicated, well understood and embodied in what people do and how they behave, every single day? If the organisational purpose is dry and lacklustre then it’ll do nothing to drive employee engagement and motivation.
The leadership team must also be reviewed. Touching every single aspect of a business, leaders are the lynchpin of company culture and can make or break it. The pandemic has exposed the worst kind of leaders from those who lead with control, power and fear to those that fail to build connections and keep in regular contact with their remote teams. This brings to a head the need for more ‘modern leaders’ who focus on communication, compassion, understanding, shared leadership and most importantly, mentorship. Organisations that are without modern leaders must consider how they can move towards a more collaborative and caring model of leadership. This is fundamental to a thriving and magnetic corporate culture.
In addition, employee opportunities must be reviewed as the promise of a promotion or a pay rise will no longer motivate people – employees must be given regular opportunities to grow, develop and get involved in new and challenging projects. This must be combined with ongoing wellbeing initiatives, including employee assistance programmes for ongoing personal and work-related support.
Finally, there must be a laser focus on employee recognition as this alone can deliver significant cultural changes, improving the employee experience and ensuring employees feel valued and motivated.
The impact of recognition
When employees are recognised, they are 103% more likely to feel supported by their organisation. In fact, quality recognition is a phenomenal tool for lifting every culture metric. It reduces burnout and staff turnover; boosts innovation; and helps people to feel a greater sense of belonging and more connected to organisational purpose, their accomplishments and each other. Recognition is also the fastest, least expensive way to dramatically improve workplace culture.
A truly impactful recognition programme can completely transform a company culture, but it can’t be approached half-heartedly. It must have the buy-in of leaders and be supported with the right technologies that allow the quick and easy giving and receiving of recognition within employees’ flow of work. Timely, authentic and public shows of recognition are also the bedrock of successful staff appreciation, creating a workplace culture that people are proud to be a part of and are less likely to leave.
Refresh or fail
Now isn’t the time for companies to make excuses for their increased staff turnover and poor engagement levels – the pandemic must act as a wake-up call for organisations that are being impacted by a demoralised and depleted workforce. Employers must take a fresh look at their workplace culture and address any issues – even small changes can make a massive impact.
The author is Kerry Drury, culture and engagement strategist at O.C. Tanner Europe.
This article is provided by O.C. Tanner.
In partnership with O. C. Tanner
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