the four pillars of culture
Purpose:
Understand the importance of your business culture by encouraging your team to identify and prioritize the strengths of your culture and the behaviors that influence it.
Background:
There are many forces that impact a culture – some visible and others invisible. It is important for a team to become aware of the elements of their own culture, and how their daily behaviors and attitudes constantly influence and interact with their environment. Culture is an enabler of performance, and by maximizing the effectiveness of a strong culture, every employee enhances their personal performance. (Note: Have all participants read “Either You Create the Culture or the Culture Creates You!” featured in this month’s Rapport Connection prior to starting the process.)
Set-up:
Step 1: Explain that the shared values, attitudes, beliefs, behaviors, language and traditions that influence our organization create our culture. For five minutes, have your team brainstorm a list of strengths of your organization’s culture.
Step 2: Give the team five minutes to narrow the list down to their top four cultural strengths. (Note: Let the top four cultural strengths be the team’s opinion, the facilitator avoids influencing the outcome.) Tell them that the strengths that they select will be considered the pillars of our business culture for the purpose of the exercise. These pillars define the way we do things around here – the uncompromising strengths of our business culture.
Step 3: Tell each person to choose the pillar that they most closely identify with and instruct the group to move to four different corners of the room according to their selected cultural strength. (Note: The groups do not need to be evenly balanced, yet ensure that at least two individuals are in each of the four corners. If no one selects a pillar as their number one choice, ask the group if anyone would have selected this pillar as their second choice.) Give the team 5-10 minutes to flip chart the actions and behaviors they demonstrate daily to live this cultural pillar.
Step 4: Instruct everyone to turn their chairs toward the center of the room (yet remain in their four assigned corners). Share the following fictional scenario: “The Board of Directors has come to the conclusion that our organization must make a drastic change in order to survive. Due to economic and competitive forces, our business culture must change to implement a new strategic plan. One of our pillars must go away – it no longer serves the business!” Your group feels strongly about the pillar that each of you selected. You must defend the value of your pillar by passionately expressing the importance of your pillar’s strength to the ongoing success of your business. The board of directors will be the other three groups that did not select your pillar.
Once everyone understands the scenario, the facilitator will open the floor for a passionate discussion. One at a time, individuals stand and share their thoughts and feelings to the Board (the other three groups). Remind the groups to remain focused on why their selected pillar is absolutely essential to the culture, rather than criticizing another’s pillar.
Step 5: Stop the discussion after 10-15 minutes and begin debriefing the following questions:
- What did you learn about our culture?
- What internal and external factors contribute to and influence our culture the most?
- What is the difference between a cultural pillar and a behavior that demonstrates that pillar?
- Are our clients aware of our cultural pillars?
- How does our culture impact your desire to come to work each day?
- What other pillars represent the strength of our culture? How do we reinforce and live these strengths?
- What actions compromise the strength of our culture?
- What influence does executive leadership have on our culture? What influence does everyone’s leadership behavior have on our culture?
Conclusion:
Everyone must understand the importance of culture and the influence it has on decisions, morale, productivity, customers and results. Each team member plays an important role in the ongoing strength of a culture, and everyone has the responsibility to eliminate the behaviors that do not positively serve the business. Remember, either you create the culture or the culture will create you!
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