10 Ways to Create a Positive Work Culture

This is a free chapter from our workbook for teams, STRETCH – 26 Weeks of Leadership Exercises. Learn more and purchase the book here.

“If you get the culture right, most of the other stuff will just take care of itself.” - Tony Hsieh

Walk into any medical office, restaurant, church, or government office and you can usually get a sense of their culture within 2-3 minutes. You may not be thinking “culture,” but descriptive words will come to mind. Words like “Corporate.” “Depressing.” “Casual.” “Friendly.” “Efficient.” “Excellent.” “Ruthless.” And you have probably heard similar words used when friends and family describe their workplaces. I once heard some describe their new job after the first week this way: “This place is a disaster!” These are all samples of cultural descriptors.

Every organization, department, board, and even family has a culture – a unique climate created by the values and beliefs of either a founder or leader and maintained by the expectations and behaviors of the leader and members. One study conducted by Harvard Business School found that a strong culture increases net income by 756% over 11 years. We also know that a positive culture makes your organization more attractive to potential employees and adds to the retention of your top team members.

The following are 10 ways you can shape the culture of your team or organization.

1. Ensure a compelling vision.

We can have awesome compensation, extraordinary benefits, a fun and festive environment, and exceptional people. But if we don’t have a compelling vision for why we are even here today, it will ultimately lead to a culture that is less than exceptional. People crave meaning and purpose. It is a leader’s job to ensure such a vision is front and center, but everyone is responsible for owning it.

2. Incorporate appropriate humor and celebration into your environment.

When you step into an attractive culture, you can feel and hear the difference. You commonly hear laughter, see smiles, and discover shared meals and celebrations for special accomplishments. They like being together because they are more than co-workers, they are friends. In this type of culture, work doesn’t drain people, it fuels them.

3. Care for one another by meeting needs and showing interest.

This can be as simple as asking someone about their weekend or family or as significant as mobilizing the team to help a sick member by providing meals, gift cards, or picking up their workload. A caring culture is a sticky culture – one that people will be slow to leave.

4. Model competency in your work by being the best at what you do.

No one wants to work with a dud. A positive culture also requires talent – people showing up for work, working hard, knowing how to do their job, and doing it with excellence. Tolerating an incompetent team member will have a cascading negative effect on the other members as well as the overall reputation and culture of the organization.

5. Express positivity both verbally and in how you present yourself.

When one researcher planted an actor into different teams with the job of acting like a downer, jerk, or slacker, the performance of most of the teams declined by 30-40%! Eeyore, the donkey from Winnie the Pooh, would not make for a good recruitment poster.

6. Provide opportunities for growth and advancement.

A good culture is one where people have the chance to grow, learn, and advance. With a little creativity, this can be done even in the smallest organizations. Challenging assignments, financial incentives, and educational opportunities are just a few ways to build your culture through growth opportunities.

7. Display appropriate vulnerability.

When a manager or leader acknowledges areas of weaknesses, owns his or her mistakes, and admits uncertainty, it sets a tone of safety that says, “It is ok to be human here.” I once saw a leader share this vulnerability with his whole leadership team. It wasn’t a shock because he is known for such transparency. The culture of that organization is one where vulnerable and candid conversations are the norm, not the exception.

8. Take compensation seriously.

Money and benefits are often sensitive conversations in most organizations. And while pay and benefits alone do not set an organization’s culture, they may reflect it or at the very least contribute to it. If a leader or owner says, “Our people are our most important asset,” but fails to show this in how people are compensated, it will definitely contribute to culture… a culture of cynicism.

9. Include others by asking for their input and feedback.

The pandemic resulted in an extended season of separation. A survey by the global commercial real estate services company JLL found that 70% of office workers felt being in the workplace was more helpful for collaborating, solving complex issues, and connecting with leadership. All of these involve communication and feedback which make people feel valued and included.

10. Hire for cultural fit, not just skill.

In the typical job description, you will likely find a detailed list of technical competencies with a few generic phrases regarding being a “people person” or “getting along well with others.” Yet, it is poor cultural fit that most often results in the failure of team members. There is no infallible way to assess for cultural fit, but knowing what you value and including your best people in the hiring process can help.

Reflection & Discussion

Reflect on these questions and discuss them with your team.

1. Psychologist Adam Grant said, “The culture of a workplace – an organization’s values, norms and practices – has a huge impact on our happiness and success.” Have you found this to be true in your own work experiences?

2. Think of the best organizational culture you have ever experienced. What contributed to it?

3. If you were to assess the culture of your organization based on these 10 ways to shape culture, what grade would you give it and why?

4. What actions do you believe would improve the culture of your organization?

This is a free chapter from our workbook for teams, STRETCH – 26 Weeks of Leadership Exercises. For the full workbook, complete with 26 short chapters just like this one, purchase the book here. This is an excellent resource to grow your leadership individually or to work through with your team.

Jay Desko is the President & CEO of The Center Consulting Group and brings experience in the areas of organizational assessment, leadership coaching, decision-making, and strategic questioning. Jay’s degrees include an M.Ed. in Instructional Systems Design from Pennsylvania State University and a Ph.D. in Organizational Behavior and Leadership from The Union Institute.