Corporate or company culture is becoming a buzzword. Job seekers tend to gravitate towards companies that are well-known for its strong work culture. Especially with millennials, a dry list of the company’s values just isn’t cutting it anymore. Potential job candidates want more: they want companies to live up to their values, that’s often listed on their website. A job seeker will not only consider a company for what it does or what the job entails, but for what it stands for. This is . It enforces this belief by calling its employees “cast members.” In doing so, employees feel as if they are putting on a show and are there to entertain guests, no matter their role.
Retention
A company that believes in and practices its strong values will have a much higher rate of retention, compared with one that doesn’t know what it stands for. People generally like knowing that they are part of a solid, like-minded team, which gives them a sense of community and belonging.
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Looking outwardly, your corporate culture coincides with your brand identity. Clients can get a sense of your businesses based on how your employees feel about your company. When employees are treated well and are part of an exciting work culture, your company’s morale and image improves. This in turn gives clients more reasons to support your services or products.
At 9thCO, a Toronto digital agency, company culture is a large part of the success of the brand. Communicating and practicing openness, commitment to providing excellent service, and ensuring the team works together in an inspiring way is critical in not only brand identity, but for retention and keeping employees happy and engaged.
Mapping out your employee and customer journey is an important practice that should be reinforced. Take the recruitment process for example. When looking to hire a new candidate, you want to ensure that your potential employee exhibits those very ideals that you wish to uphold. Because of this, the interview process may take longer than usual, but you will be left with a much better suited candidate in the end. To help you better structure your interview, here are two things to consider:
#1. Situational Questions
It helps to assess the things you are looking for in terms of behaviours and responses. How does or did a candidate react to a situation, and based on those answers, does it fit in with the expectations of your company’s values?
#2. A Checklist
It’s always a good idea to have a checklist. List out incidences when your company’s values are being practiced. Bringing this into an interview will help you see how your potential candidate fits in and where, and thus gives you an indication if their values are reflective of your company.
If you feel that the overall culture of your business needs improvement, source ideas from your employees. They are the best people to help you see where changes need to be made because they are the people who make up your company and its culture. Additionally, asking for their insight works wonders for team building and strengthening relationships. If your employees feel like they are being given a voice, they will not only feel valued, but they will take ownership of new ideas, making them stick even better.
Furthermore, instilling a social committee is a fantastic way to crowdsource ideas and strengthen relationships. 9thCO does a great job of this, and really places a heavy importance on their social committee. It gives everyone something to look forward to, helps them stay involved, and brings the team together outside of work.
On top of creating a great culture at the office, companies can showcase the office and its team using social media. This strategy work especially works well among millennials, a generation that grew up in the digital age. In fact, millennials consider culture fit as one of their top influencers when it comes to decisions to stay with an employer.
There are many ways companies can use social media to attract job seekers, clients, as well as engage with current employees. Here are a few examples:
- Feature a new employee on social: This is a great way to share your HR news. It also gives clients and job seekers alike a personal feel of your company by introducing a new employee. 9thCO has taken the extra step to not only mention its new members on Instagram, but also used photoshop to create a collage of interests, activities, and scenarios to tell a visual story.
- Share pictures of company events: People don’t want to work for a boring company. A great way to communicate that your company values work-life balance and fun is by sharing pictures of company events on social. Whether it’d be a dinner party or a pumpkin carving competition, these activities have lots of picture perfect moments that can be shared on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
- Join the conversation: Not only should companies bring life to the office, they should also stay involved in the community by participating in conversations on social media. This can include commenting and sharing posts on LinkedIn, Tweeting about industry news, and taking part in the latest social media movement. While it’s important for companies to remain engaged, they should also use social media with discretion to avoid damaging their brand.
While investing in your company and employees starts with defining your values, it’s also important practice these values in various context, including the hiring process, company events, and social media. Creating a strong company culture and being able to communicate this to the world will greatly benefit your company and employees in the long-run.
