There are many reasons that a business may feel it has to make changes to its employee culture. After all, as we have previously explored, the influence that culture has over the success or failure of a business should not be underestimated and it is therefore incredibly productive to occasionally take a step back, review your own organisational culture, and reflect on whether it is working for you.
In the past, taking the time to appraise your company culture may have been seen as the domain of the forward-thinking – or ‘woke’ in today’s lexicon - businesses; a nice but not entirely critical activity, just something of an indulgence for those that have the time and inclination. But in today’s climate, one of activism and people power (think of the #MeToo or Extinction Rebellion movements) businesses are finding that turning their attention to their employee culture is far more important than ever before.
We are living through a period of significant change. Practices and behaviours that were once just accepted and tolerated are now being outed and exposed as unacceptable and intolerable. And it is critical that your business and its employee culture are in tune with the times. We have already seen some high-profile victims, with companies that have failed to address systemic problems within their culture paying the (share) price - such as Ted Baker, which recently issued a profit warning following the very public airing of concerning issues in this regard.
If you believe the time is right to make some changes in your own business culture, here are some key pointers to help guide you.
