Written by Heather Haas, CEO of ADVISA
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At ADVISA, we define culture as: A system of shared beliefs and values, modeled and reinforced by leadership’s communication and behavior, that shapes the employee experience.
But how do you operationalize the mindsets and behaviors your business needs to succeed?
Your leaders need to be clear on exactly what “effective” means for your organization – and they need an environment that sets them up for long-term success.
After almost four decades of helping organizations transform their cultures, we have found there are 5 essential drivers for creating cultural competitive advantage. To make this framework easy to remember, we use the acronym ATLAS:
Activation from above
Trust and shared purpose
Leader effectiveness
Actionable people data
Systems that support leaders
Activation from above
It’s critical that your executive team owns the intentional culture that fuels value creation for your organization’s employees, customers, and communities.
Culture must be nurtured from the top. Its ownership can’t be delegated. And it’s never “finished” – it’s a relentless pursuit, fueled by aspirational leaders.
Trust and shared purpose
If you want employees to emotionally commit to your mission/vision/values, they must:
Trust that they matter.
Trust that their work makes a difference.
Trust that leadership has a plan to prosper the organization.
Trust that leaders and managers will do the right thing – even when it’s difficult or unpopular.
Leader effectiveness
To create cultural competitive advantage, your leaders must be clear and capable. That is, they need to:
a) Know the mindsets and behaviors that will help them effectively carry the culture and develop their teams.
b) Participate in customized programs and coaching expressly designed to help them develop their individual skills and capabilities over time.
Customized learning experiences, programs and coaching are the most effective way to equip leaders to propagate your intentional culture.
Actionable people data
It’s critical that you understand your employees’ motivations, needs, and experiences in qualitative and quantitative ways if you want to create (and maintain) cultural competitive advantage.
Data provides insights as well as a way to measure your progress. By informing decisions, it reduces the burden on you, your leaders and managers to know the right thing to do.
Systems that support leaders
Culturally healthy organizations invest in tools, technology and systems to support leaders in connecting with and coaching others to drive performance and nurture potential.
You’ve made a significant investment in your leaders’ salaries. Make sure they have the tools to be efficient and effective in discerning job fit and inspiring performance through 1-on-1s and performance reviews.
ATLAS – A.T.L.A.S.
Activation from above, Trust and shared purpose, Leader effectiveness, Actionable people data, and Systems that support leaders.
If your organization actively fosters all five of these drivers, you’re destined for greatness. Both today, and well into the future.
Want to see how your organization is doing today?
Our ATLAS Navigator tool gives you a snapshot in time of how your organization is doing toward each of the 5 drivers.
Most people complete it in 5 minutes or less. When you’re done, you’ll get immediate access to a simple, customized report with the specific drivers that present the greatest opportunity (or opportunities) for your organization. You’ll also get access to a list of free tactics your organization can implement right away.
Success is always in reach, if you just know what to focus on.
About the Author, Heather Haas:
Heather's passion for fueling others’ success drove her from her beginnings as a teacher and principal to her role as Owner + CEO of ADVISA.
She leads a team of bright, caring people who help clients transform their work cultures into sustainably loved workplaces through leader development.
Heather loves the mountains, singer songwriter music, curling up with a book and being active outdoors. Her family and her faith are her greatest sources of strength and joy.
About CultureCon:
CultureCon, a Certified B Corporation®, is on a mission to inspire positive change around organizational culture. Through large conferences, online courses, consulting services, and certification programs, we deliver experiences that provide practical tools and motivation for our customers to become cultural change agents within their organizations. Our customers include business owners, CxOs, HR leaders, senior management, individual contributors, and anyone who wants to build more uplifting, inspiring, and healthy workplaces.
Learn more about our upcoming events.
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