Company culture is an organization’s distinct personality, according to Bamboo HR’s “The Definitive Guide to Company Culture.” A company’s culture should align with its mission as an extension of its core values. It is unique to each organization and cannot simply be a copy of another already-successful company.
There are many benefits to strong company culture. These include increased employee engagement, morale, productivity, retention, creativity, and innovation, as well as increased customer satisfaction. This is true across all other industries, including the fleet industry, and for companies of all sizes.
See also: Fostering creativity in trucking
In assessing or strengthening company culture, these nine considerations can help:
- Know where you’re going. Understand your core values and mission and use them to establish your vision for what you want to become in the future.
- Find people who fit. When hiring, screen for aptitude as well as attitude. Employees who mesh with your culture and share your company’s values will buy into your vision.
- Help new employees fit in. The onboarding process should help employees acclimate to the company’s culture and show how they fit in with the bigger picture.
- Set the right example. Managers need to lead when it comes to living the values of the company’s culture and encourage open communication across the organization.
- Integrate your values into everyday activities. Every decision made, no matter how small, should be based on your company’s values.
- Provide rewards and recognition. Recognizing employees fosters a sense of belonging and rewards a job well done according to cultural values.
- Foster feedback. Listen to your frontline employees, who are great sources of information and can provide keen insight into areas that need improvement.
- Monitor key performance indicators. Use unique metrics to gauge success and monitor them to see how actual performance compares to desired outcomes.
- Fix what’s broken. Listen to employees and the data. Then, take appropriate action.
A company’s culture needs nurturing to ensure it still reflects what your company stands for. Ben Peterson, CEO and co-founder of Bamboo HR, summed up the importance of a strong company culture best: “If you create a great place to work, great work takes place.”
Jane Clark is vice president of member services for NationaLease. In this position, she is focused on managing the member services operation, as well as working to strengthen member relationships, reduce member costs, and improve collaboration within the NationaLease supporting groups. Prior to joining NationaLease, Jane served as Area Vice President for Randstad, one of the nation’s largest recruitment agencies, and before that, she served in management posts with QPS Companies, Pro Staff, and Manpower, Inc.
