Overview:
You have a Combination Culture, meaning your organization’s culture demonstrates attributes from multiple culture types. Many of your responses can be categorized as positive, but you haven’t quite reached the ideal ‘Belonging Culture’ yet. Keep up the good work, but be extra vigilant against homogeneity, excessive politeness, and fear-based leadership. Also keep in mind that we live in a fast-paced world, and businesses that fail to make an active effort to foster a positive culture will ultimately fall behind.
With a Combination Culture, you’re close to having the best culture type, but there is still some work to be done. What you’re striving for, a Belonging Culture, invites the whole employee — all their life experiences, their strengths, their weaknesses, everything — into the workplace and embraces curiosity. This type of culture encourages engagement, creativity, and open communication. Employees respect one another but aren’t afraid to have the tough conversations that quality work sometimes demands. This is a very collaborative work environment with a modern approach to power dynamics and workflow.
Weaknesses:
- Reduced Productivity
A Combination Culture can negatively impact productivity rates. Until your organization reaches the Belonging Culture type, productivity will not be fully maximized. - Lowered Engagement
When a culture is flawed, even slightly, employees can feel disengaged from the community and therefore from the work they’re doing. Even though a large majority is engaged, you are still likely not harnessing everyone’s potential. - Potentially Silenced Voices
Since your culture is combined, there’s a good chance that some people’s voices are being silenced. This can happen for a number of reasons: fear of speaking up, not feeling valued, or simply feeling excluded.
Tips for Improvement:
- Host one-on-one sessions
Speak to your team and ask them how you can improve the culture. Let them know it’s a safe space and there are no wrong answers. A lot of the time, even in a Belonging Culture, people have opinions that they won’t voice unless directly asked to. Anonymous surveys could be another effective approach. - Keep up with the rapidly changing world
The future of work is constantly evolving and only organizations that recognize and act on that will continue to thrive. Flexibility is currently the biggest priority for most individuals, so be sure to provide some modern options such as work from home, build your own hours, mental health awareness, and so on. - Be strategic with your DEI efforts
Some organizations can achieve the illusion of Belonging Culture, particularly when they look at data in the aggregate. It’s important to really understand the experience of different demographics and pay attention to embedded rituals and norms such as organization code words or power dynamics. To fully achieve a Belonging Culture, DEI has to be a part of the long-term business strategy.