Workplace Culture

Tiffany Bliley, Director of Talent Acquisition at EQ Bank | Equitable Bank

Modern business demands our attention at every turn: sell more, innovate faster, adjust more easily, and find new ways to do more with less. It’s a cycle of success and productivity that often leaves out the most critical part of a company’s success: its workplace culture.

Workplace culture is often mistaken for the after-work socials and celebratory lunches held periodically within an organization. Yet when we look at how innovation happens and how change permeates through an organization, the single most crucial factor is having a strong base culture. There is much more to it than socializing.

 An organization's culture epitomizes the collective beliefs, values, and behaviors that permeate across individuals, teams, and locations, shaping an organization's identity and ultimately determining whether it succeeds or stagnates.

So, what goes into creating a culture of success that fosters creativity and creates a sense of belonging that transcends the individual and ultimately sees a way to drive innovation and progress in line with an overall pride of belonging?

 I believe it comes down to micro-actions – small steps that can and should, be taken every day. In my career, I've seen how micro actions support a macro culture, and this thinking-small-to-think-big approach will bring monumental change in an incremental way. So, while having a corporate culture strategy is one thing, the key to seeing that culture succeed and thrive is in how you support it day-to-day through those micro-actions.

 Supporting anything every day means an investment in time and deciding where to spend that important investment is a critical decision. This means not grasping at shortsighted wins when the focus should be on building a long-term foundation from which to innovate and compete.

Seeing a workplace culture succeed is also not about molding your employee base to be what you want it to be but rather enacting a solid talent and learning strategy. It's about attracting and hiring talent who inherently mesh with the core of a company's culture while providing training and learning opportunities for existing employees to thrive and meaningfully contribute to that culture. You see exceptional success only when you put people at the root of your business plans.

In my career, I’ve seen this people-first mindset succeed by trusting that your employees are caring people who also feel cared for. By having HR leaders who believe in that mindset and lead by example. By having a psychologically safe workplace where a failure is viewed as an opportunity to learn and grow without any shame attached to it. Ever. Calculated risks are given a chance, and failures happen quickly, with the team ready to lean in and support, pivot, and move on. Finally, an organization's culture needs breathing room – space to feel safe and free to express innovative ideas and different points of view. Companies that adopt a 'hierarchy has no place' mentality see first-hand that when the layers melt away, the ideas flow.

Culture can feel amorphous, intangible, and sometimes hard to focus on in the face of real, in-the-moment data; however, when we treat our workplace culture like a critical pillar of an organization’s success, the bedrock of our organization becomes stronger, engagement rises, and productivity soars. The intangible becomes tangible.