Work Environment and Culture

What’s the Big Deal About Culture?

Working daily in the labor market, I have the unique vantage point of being able to observe the practices and behaviors of hundreds of different companies around the world. While there are some differences between industries and regions, there is one common denominator that is becoming a critical challenge in today’s economy. What is this challenge? A huge shortage of talent, especially in technical and leadership positions. This shortage is what’s referred to as the War for Talent.

The best companies these days know how to combat this War for talent. How? It is simple. By having a world-class culture and work environment. What is a world-class culture and work environment? It is quite a bit different than it was even ten years ago. Demographic changes are having a huge impact on the ways that employees view their careers, and the mixture of people from different generations is creating a more complicate work environment than ever before.

Four key suggestions that I can make in terms of providing a world-class work environment and culture are:

Flexibility: The best companies these days openly encourage flexibility—in terms of when work is done, and where work is done.

Employee Involvement: The best companies these days encourage employee involvement—in the local community, and with each other.  They work to foster a feeling of family within the work group.

Health and Wellness: The best companies are concerned about the health and wellbeing of their employees. They pay a lot of attention to safety and ergonomics, and want their employees to go home after a day’s work healthier than when they arrived that morning.

Education and Development: This is the most important element of a world class work environment. The best companies these days invest heavily in ongoing employee education and development. Why?  Not to get them to work harder. But to lovingly invest in their futures, regardless of where they end up working.

Building a world-class culture and working environment is not only the job of top leaders, but can be encouraged and supported by employees at all levels within the firm. Having a great culture is big part of winning the War for Talent, and positioning a company to win in the marketplace.