One question that I am asked—and ask myself routinely—is how to build and sustain a meaningful culture in an organization. While leaders may aspire to somewhat different traits in a culture (trust, productivity, engagement, a service orientation, etc.), all who are serious about the quest look for resources, tools, etc., to be successful.
There is good news and bad news in this search. The good news is that it is possible to build and sustain a positive culture that embodies the traits a leader seeks, through hiring well, building systems and processes, and defining a vision that connects what people do with why they do it. The recent book by Simon Sinek, Start with Why, gives a basis for the “why” as a foundation to get to the “how.”
The “bad news” is that any leader who believes s/he can build and sustain a meaningful culture with a set of tools, processes, techniques, or even compelling vision, without embodying the aspired culture is mistaken. Such a leader may have a shell of a culture, but without the leader infusing the desired traits and qualities into her/his own life, it will never become part of the DNA of the leader’s organization.
The bottom line is that like an artist regardless of medium (paint, performance, music), the primary instrument any leader has to define and instill a culture is the person of the leader him/herself. There is no way to avoid that reality, and leaders who try to avoid it never achieve the culture building success to which they aspire. Given that fact, here are three critical aspects a leader must continually cultivate:
- Clarity of intention. Leaders are pulled in many directions, and sometimes values clash in desired outcomes or culture. The leader’s first task in building and sustaining culture is to be very clear about the qualities one is trying to build and sustain, and to examine every initiative, action, etc., in light of those qualities. When qualities or dimensions of culture seem to conflict, the leader must determine which dimensions are bedrock, and build actions that reflect, in relative importance, the dimensions of culture that matter most.
- Personal character that is congruent with the desired culture. Put simply, leaders “get back” what they “are.” If you want a culture of trust, reflect trust in your team. If you want a culture of engagement—engage! And so on. The key for this aspect is to be unsparing (although kind) of yourself in continually examining how you can better reflect the culture you are trying to build and sustain. Creating 360 mechanisms to discover if what you are intending to communicate is what is being received is critical.
- Consistency of application over time. If a culture is to be changed, built, and sustained, above all else, the leader must be committed to the aspects of culture consistently—actually, constantly—over time. It is perhaps here that most culture change efforts fail. People get busy, other priorities intervene (culture can seem nebulous in the midst of a crunch of quantifiable measures and deadlines), and culture grows like a garden untended. No matter how well manicured it may have been at one time, without attention, weeds and pests arise. Leaders must commit to culture building and sustaining as a focused process that is “someone’s job to worry about at night.” And yes, that job ultimately belongs to the leader, as the primary culture builder and culture bearer.
If you want to change, build, or sustain a culture in an organization, not only must you start with the why—you must start with yourself. Find honest mentors/advisors, and begin the quest. Everyone in the organization will benefit—and you as a leader will the most.
Executive Director's Toolkit 