Commit to these six steps to repair and anchor a healthy workplace culture:
Step 1: Clarify Mission, Values, and Vision
When everyone agrees on the “what,” the “how,” and the “where,” you gain a checklist with which you can filter all future words and actions. Without this consensus, anything goes. Get clear about norms, roles, rules, and boundaries.
Step 2: Endorse Respectful Difference of Opinion
The richness of difference should be built into the norms. If everyone agrees to act like mature and responsible adults, constructive conflict has the potential to fuel exciting growth.
Step 3: Embrace Shared Accountability
Even if some members of the team can self-police their words and actions, a referee is often needed to remind those who slip that we all agreed to a respectful set of norms. Call yourself out when you say or do something that hurts the culture. Call your teammates out when you see it in others. Whether by accident or intent, ignoring regression sanctions the return to previous broken ways.
Step 4: Practice New Behaviors Collaboratively
Every time a collaboration that models agreed upon values takes place, a new root is sent down to anchor the organization. While initial efforts might begin awkwardly, repetition eventually makes respectful interchange normal.
Step 5: Celebrate Evidence of Change
Tell stories of success. Begin each staff meeting with a moment for mission. Describe an exchange with a coworker or client that illuminates the organization’s mission, values, and vision. Make it real by recognizing what has changed and rewarding courageous behavior.
Step 6: Adapt for Continuous Improvement
Avoid complacency. Improvement never means a job is complete. All relationships, teams, and organizations cycle through phases of growth. The successful elevation of a workplace culture creates a platform for the next level. Go from good to great. Move from great to greater. The cycle only ends when the team chooses to stop adapting.
What you tolerate you sanction. The words on the mission statement only have meaning if the actions of all teammates are aligned. Every workplace has a few disengaged employees. Don’t give them the power to define the culture.
