Despite what you read, the concept of corporate culture is NOT difficult to understand. Corporate culture is shaped simply by people’s perceptions of ‘this is the way we do things around here’. It’s the ‘unwritten ground rules’ or UGRs that constitute a corporate or team culture.
How are UGRs created and sustained in corporate culture
There are three key ways:
1. People watch what gets noticed
If someone gets into trouble for speaking up, then a UGR shaping that corporate culture might be ‘Around here, you’re better off not to speak up, even when you’re asked’. Conversely, if leaders say that safety is vitally important and someone gets into trouble for not conforming to safety procedures, then a UGR shaping this value might be ‘Around here, we’re serious about safety’.
2. People watch what doesn’t get noticed in a corporate culture
If the corporate culture when someone speaks badly of a manager is that nobody suggests they shouldn’t talk that way, then a UGR shaping that corporate culture might be ‘Around here, it’s fine to criticise bosses’. Similarly, if a person goes out of their way to help a colleague and no one recognises that extra effort, then a UGR shaping this value might be ‘Around here, it’s not worth your while to help others out’.
3. People watch for any differences in terms of what people say and what they do
If a manager says ‘In this organisation, we care for our people’, and soon after, that same person treats a colleague without respect, then a UGR shaping that value might be ‘Around here, the bosses say one thing and mean another’.
Measuring the UGRs
Helping to expose these unwritten ground rules within an organisation and reframing them in a positive light that builds an uplifting corporate culture and team cohesiveness is our specialty.
We have developed a proprietary tool, UGRs Stocktake, that measures these UGRs, shifts culture and builds your business.