4 signs you need to rethink your organization's culture

The pay and benefits are stellar. You host team-building events. Most of your team members have stayed on board for a while. Overall, your organization seems like a great place to work. But how do you really know if your organizational culture is a “good” one?

Here are signs you need to rethink your organization’s culture:

Your employees don’t seem happy to be there

No one is expected to be bursting with enthusiasm at 9 a.m. on a Monday, but generally, if people seem to dread each workday, that’s a red flag. Even the most challenging work can be exciting in the right workplace. 

No one is collaborating

If everyone typically stays in their own lane and keeps to themselves without sharing information with each other, there might be something faulty in your culture. If you haven’t built an environment where people work well together and feel comfortable with teamwork, productivity will suffer.

People don’t seem engaged

If minds are drifting towards passion projects and weekend plans and there are no questions or ideas being raised in meetings, your workplace culture might be due for an overhaul. In workplaces with low engagement, turnover is high.

No one tries anything new

Is everything routine? Is every day the same old, same old? Are people hesitant to think outside the box or offer alternative methods of doing things? A workplace without an entrepreneurial spirit, where no one is taking risks or offering innovative solutions, will create a stagnant organization with low engagement.

To take your organization’s cultural temperature and identify these red flags, assess, observe, take notes and follow up. Invite questions and ideas in meetings, and check in on how people are doing personally through one-on-one meetings.

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If you find these red flags within your organization, it might be time to get back to the drawing board and reassess your core values. 

What are they and how are they being put into practice? Have all staff been trained to follow them? Is everyone on board with doing so?  Do you need to update them to better fit the culture you want to create? 

Rethinking your organization’s culture requires patience. A culture shift can’t happen overnight, no matter how small the association. 

It might require tough calls, like firing people who refuse change because they might hinder your progress. 

But a cultural makeover can mean the difference between a struggling organization where no one wants to work and a successful one where top talent are begging to be hired.