5 Ways to Unleash Values and Optimise Workplace Culture

A strong workplace culture has the power to define overall business success. Employees who believe their business culture is positive are 3.8x more likely to be engaged at work – and engaged teams can boost commercial performance by up to 202%. Strong culture can also result in 30% higher levels of innovation. Plus, in today’s intense candidate market, culture is a defining factor of the EVP – with 73% of candidates considering this before applying to an organisation.

So, how can employers truly optimise workplace culture to unleash their people power and boost overall performance?

Many are missing a trick.

Enter: the power of values. Whilst nearly every business will have a set of values, it doesn’t mean they are naturally ‘lived in’ by teams. To drive authenticity and optimise workplace culture, values need to go beyond featuring on the office wall or on desktop backgrounds.

Here are 5 common barriers to unleashing the power of values:

1) Communication. Values are not embedded within internal communication strategies, resulting in a lack of awareness across the workforce. For values to truly be ‘lived in’ and embodied by teams, it’s essential they are front and centre of all internal communications.

2) Alignment. Values are not congruent with policies and processes, meaning the business doesn’t practice what it preaches. To optimise workplace culture authentically, values must be ‘lived in’ in every corner of business operations, from senior leaders to frontline staff.

3) Leadership buy-in. Senior leaders across the organisation are not leading by example. Commitment from leadership teams is essential for reinforcing values at all levels. Senior managers should champion accountability by celebrating how they themselves and their teams exemplify core values.

4) Contextualisation. Values are not contextualised for each individual role. Due to lack of role modelling and storytelling, employees struggle to understand their own individual impact and how they can embody values within their role to drive the overall business’ mission forward.

5) Recognition. Examples of how teams personify values go undervalued. Effectively recognising how values are embodied across the day-to-day is not only key for raising awareness at all levels, but essential for driving authentic and desired behaviours across the business.

Real-world example.

Our partner Charlie Bigham’s deliver a monthly ‘Kings and Queens’ nomination campaign via their Rippl platform, ‘The Pantry’, to enable employees to nominate a colleague for embodying one of their company values.

Winners are chosen and awarded by internal stakeholders, but every single nominee receives a small, impactful reward. This not only brings Bigham’s company values to the forefront, but encourages tangible behaviours that employees can truly champion in their day-to-day and be celebrated for in an open, accessible environment.

Want to discover how to unleash the power of your core values and transform your business culture? Chat to one of our experts.