Healthy work culture is one of the most important aspects of a successful business. A good atmosphere, a strong rapport amongst employees, and smooth communication between the boss and the team is the recipe for positive workplace culture.
What is workplace culture?
Workplace culture is the foundation of one’s business. Every enterprise builds a culture over a period of time, based on ethics, beliefs, values and attitude of the entrepreneur that reflects in the manner they interact with their employees, clients and other stakeholders. It further translates into the attitude of their employees and the overall workplace atmosphere. Healthy work culture will not have a massive staff turnover, increased productivity and a positive outlook of the entire team.
Let’s have a look at what steps a budding entrepreneur should be taking to create a positive workplace culture:
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Using your learning:
Either from previous jobs or reading through various case studies as well as observing other successful entrepreneurs, the experience and the lessons one learns can be extremely valuable in creating a great work culture in one’s own organization. Emulate the things that worked and steer clear of anything that could bring in negativity or a toxic environment.
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Instill your values and goals:
As a leader, it is important that one instills their own core values in the company’s culture and lets the employees have a clear picture of the goals they need to work towards. The first step is identifying, what is that they want from this entrepreneurship and what is the ambiance they want to create. Once that is established, inculcate that in the work culture and also hire people who have the personality to carry it forward.
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Good communication:
Having a smooth communication channel and a good rapport with the entire team leads to an atmosphere of content and satisfaction. As a boss, one should make sure they listen, come across as approachable and be open to new ideas.
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Efficient hiring:
Filling the gaps while hiring is a smart way to ensure one does not end up with an entire company with all the same weaknesses. An entrepreneurship is all about working with different personality types, and it’s always better to hire an employee that compliments an entrepreneur and other employees’ strengths & shortcomings. The easiest way to find such an employee is the personality test that reveals the psychological strengths and weaknesses of the candidate.
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Don’t forget play:
“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy!” True for organizations as well. One needs to let their hair down, have fun with the team every once in a while. Organize team-building getaways or have a dress down Friday or even once a month have post-work drinks.
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Create a sense of ownership:
Every employee needs to feel “we are in this together”. It’s important to implant a feeling of ownership within employees & build a community instead of having everyone working on an individual agenda.
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TREAT your employees:
One needs to remember to show the employees a good time and feel cared for and appreciated.
We have all seen and experienced, happy employees mean better performance at work, resulting in great output. Entrepreneurs who can create a positive work culture are also the ones who have their businesses listed under “The best places to work”; this should be the goal of every new and upcoming entrepreneur! However, one needs to keep in mind that building a positive work culture is an ongoing process that will evolve with time.
