Culture and contribution

The magic word in this period of our history at work has to be “culture.” I will take a guess to say that few people truly understand it, but everyone has a comment about it as it relates to their own organization. Although I am not an expert on culture, I would like to add my few cents to the swirling conversations, posts, blogs, and podcasts on the subject. This In My Opinion post is about culture and contribution, two areas that forge a togetherness template of good or not-so-good, depending upon how leaders manage the ideas. Here are my three thoughts concerning culture and contribution.

Culture is not built from the “words on the wall”: Many corporate leaders tend to get impressed with their mission statement, their words on the wall. These statements look amazing, sound amazing, and rarely have any relationship to the work or the team members who do the work. Organizations should either dispense with the mission statement or make it relevant to their team and their customers. If the words do not relate to the people who serve or the members who are the recipients of that service, they may end up harming the culture. 

In order to build excellence, do not hire people who think like you or each other: There is a crazy notion out in the world that you should hire for culture. You somehow must therefore find team members who think in lockstep with the leadership and each other, in order to produce great work. I say the opposite just may be true. In order to get the best out of every member of the team, you want to hire independent thinkers: smart people with high energy and enthusiasm for the work who are not afraid to add their voice to the conversation. Think about it: Who wants to work with a group of people who all think the same way? Friction causes sparks where ideas can flow. Everyone should have both an ear and a voice. Everyone must feel safe in their effort to contribute. Culture is a part of every action, a part of every team member.

Because you hire a team of independent thinkers expect excellence with speed bumps: Smart people will bring their opinions. Smart people who think differently will bring many new, fresh ideas to the group. “Why do we do it this way” may be a consistent entry point for several team members. Providing them space and a voice will give the team members air they may have not felt in prior roles. Allowing all the forum to contribute can create friction, for sure—it can also build a culture like no other, where people feel comfortable, safe in opening their brains, offering commentary, thoughts, and ideas. As the arbiter, you end up deciding what ideas get to play. Certainly, you want to hire talented people who will become assets over time. Look to hire talent that will also be willing to share their ideas. It comes down to contribution for sure, but it’s also about creating change, over time, for the better.

My opinion: when talent comes from a variety of different backgrounds and experiences, that talent will see things differently. In time, having a team of smart, independent thinkers will help create change with performance. Hiring a group of like-minded people, on the other hand, will provide a great deal of compliance, with little pushback or resistance. An easier team to lead, for sure, but an organization that can become stale over time. Hire talented people and allow the whole person to contribute. The culture just might feel better than ever.

Jack Dillon writes the In My Opinion posts. Jack is an author, consultant, and speaker on most things golf. If Jack can help you build a better organization and a better team, reach out to Jack at his website: www.youdontknowjackd.com or give him a call at 407-973-6136. Check out Jack’s new book, The Grand Tug of War: buying and selling in the Real World, on Amazon.