I highly value this topic. However, some tech executives may not share the same level of interest, often due to not fully grasping the importance of culture. As a tech executive, like a CIO, nurturing a positive culture is crucial for your progress and longevity.
Culture defines an organization’s operations, deeply ingrained in people, making change a challenge. Grasping and adapting to culture is vital for navigating organizations. Failure is inevitable without this understanding or by bypassing culture. To change culture, collaborate with like-minded leaders. It’s tough.
Gain a deeper understanding of culture with these key insights:
Culture should be aligned with business strategy and direction.
- Culture must align with and support business strategy. There’s a connection between an organization’s culture and the strategy pursued to meet challenges. There’s no one right culture; it must adapt over time.
Leaders at all levels drive the creation and reinforcement of culture – for good and bad.
- Culture is shaped by leaders who set examples, teaching problem-solving skills and instilling lasting “real values” in organizations.
Uncover the values and beliefs that work ‘below the surface’ first.
- To shift culture, start by uncovering ingrained beliefs. These mental models shape behavior, sometimes differing from stated values, and are reinforced by organizational systems and symbols.
Leverage your existing cultural strengths to change culture.
- When transforming culture, identify strengths in symbols, behaviors, and systems to shape a new culture. Assess meaningful traditions and rituals that positively connect with the organization’s history.
Changing ‘what you can see’ will help you change what’s below the surface.
- By changing behaviors and using symbols and systems to reinforce this, you can drive the changes in beliefs and values you want.
For each of your cultural initiatives, think about message, messenger and channel.
- To create lasting culture change, prioritize individuals, teams, and the organization. Modifying behaviors can drive transformative shifts across the entire organization. Adjusting symbols and systems, such as strategies and performance management, facilitates effective change.
Think integrated and focus on cultural change on all levels (individual, team, organization) and in co-ordination with other business initiatives.
- Cultural transition needs to focus on the individual, team and organization in order to shift culture and ‘make it stick’.
As a tech exec, you play a vital role in shaping the organization’s culture and driving change in shaping the future culture.
Click here for a post on how a tech exec can lead with compassion and impact culture.