Five Steps for Leading Lasting Organisational Culture Change
Dedicated leadership and mindset shift are at the core of lasting organisational culture change. Strategies that place employees and stakeholders at the core can lead to sustainable transformation.
Organisational culture plays a central role in business performance. It can increase engagement, strengthen your brand, boost performance, and increase retention.
No wonder, then, that building a strong organisational culture is a priority for many business leaders and executives.
However, crafting and embedding organisational culture requires more than just a decisive mind; it involves framing a clear vision and instigating a mindset shift among employees towards embracing new organisational goals and values.
The details of how to steer your company through culture change could fill a phone book. That said, the following checklist can help guide business leaders and executives in effectively initiating and managing lasting culture change within their organisations.
1. Create a compelling vision
A vision that speaks directly to the challenges and opportunities of the desired change will provide a strong starting point for all parties. Lay out where your organisation finds itself and formulate a vision that resonates with stakeholders. Consider an employee-focused approach involving them in developing future goals and improving their daily experiences. Make the vision relevant, ensuring it speaks to immediate employee concerns rather than generic organisational objectives such as 'Improving Company Sales'.
2. Encourage clear communication
Promote an environment where change is communicated transparently and proactively. Consider using multiple platforms such as emails, company web pages, and open forums to share information about the why, what, and how of changes. Remember that communication is a two-way process. Encourage stakeholders and employees to give feedback. Address the direct impacts of the changes, outlining the expectations and future benefits. However, be aware to be transparent and honest regarding potential obstacles and difficulties along the way.
3. Control the speed of change
Change should be introduced at a pace that matches your organisational context and capacity. In this case, you are like the organisation’s personal trainer who assesses its fitness level and customises a suitable training regimen – i.e., the pace of change.
4. Commit and keep going
Resistance and challenges are inevitable aspects of change. When confronted with opposition, maintain a steadfast focus on the vision, modifying strategies where necessary. Resistance should not lead you to abandon the mission. Demonstrating a resilient commitment to the vision helps foster trust and convince the stakeholders of the need for the proposed changes. Building a shared, compelling mission will prove invaluable in this context.
5. Mindset shifts and change ownership are key
A shared vision for change and an embedded, shared mindset of supporting change are key to lasting organisational culture changes. If you build teams of individuals who embody the vision, have a change-positive mindset, and feel ownership of the changes, you have a potent combination of factors to drive organisational transformation.
Read more about organisational culture change here and here.
