To create a great organizational culture, you first need to establish your mission, vision, and values.
But it doesn’t stop there.
Leaders also need to find ways to consistently communicate those values in both words and actions.
In this episode, BELAY CFO Lisa Zeeveld joins me to break down the process of building culture, from defining your values to integrating those values into your team’s daily routines.
We also share some creative examples of the ways BELAY has implemented the core values of gratitude, fun and vision.
Here are some takeaways we shared:
1. Mission, vision and values are the foundation of a great culture.
And it’s OK if those values evolve over time, so don’t be afraid to update them.
Great culture includes collaboration, encouragement and support.
And great culture, at its core, is about instilling a sense of belonging in your employees and ensuring that they identify with the greater mission and vision and values of the organization. This is a shared vision as opposed to a shared space.
Create an environment that isn’t cutthroat. Your team members should be helping each other do their jobs better.
2. If you want your team members to buy into your mission and vision, you need to repeat them.
Your team members have so many messages competing for their attention; make sure you’re over-communicating the most important things.
Your mission, vision and values are the foundation of your culture. Identify your core values and demonstrate them to your team.
As a leader, I know that our six core values at BELAY need to show up every day in my conversations and meetings because I am creating the foundation for them to breathe and grow — so that they can be modeled and mimicked throughout our organization.
3. Guiding principles determine how you live out your values.
Outlining those principles can help you turn your values from ideas into action.
Guiding principles are the non-negotiables and the fabric of who we are and how we show up as an organization — ranging from the type of service we want to provide or be known for and how we represent ourselves in our day-to-day work.
For example, one of our guiding principles at BELAY is that we start our meetings on time and we end our meetings on time.
These are simply our standards of operation that we believe are important for our team and our organization.
This episode’s resource is BELAY’s eBook, Lead Anyone From Anywhere — a guide to learning more about building a great culture and leading a hybrid team.