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Organizational culture is on every leader’s mind as they make the shift to the digital age. Even as more workers want more flexibility in time and space, they still want a positive environment. Culture can’t lag behind or remain cemented in ideals from the ruins of a traditional office.
It needs to be adaptive. It needs to be fast-moving. And most importantly, it needs to resonate with your employees.
Yet developing the right type of organizational culture for your digital workplace isn’t exactly a no-brainer. In many regards, it might feel foreign altogether.
So what’s a manager or leader to do?
Thankfully there’s not just one option anymore. There are lots of types of organizational culture, and you need to find the one that fits with your team.
Why organizational culture is a necessity in a digital workplace
Ping pong tables? Out. Beer on tap? See ya later. Casual Fridays? Please.
Those days are dead even for businesses like Google and Dropbox that transformed working culture from a rigid cubicle farm into a creative wonder zone.
In many ways, the virtual office has turned into a vast wasteland of organizational culture. But it only has to remain if you let it.
The key to transformation then becomes why you need certain types of organizational culture. Most of the reasoning lies within the morale, happiness, and productivity of your staff, such as:
- More effective onboarding practices
- Lowers stress and improves happiness
- Reduction in turnover
- Stronger brand identity among potential employees
- Better employee engagement
- A shift to transformational leadership and power on your end
Without organizational culture, your staff might be using 10% of its total capacity or abilities. Flipping the “on” switch with culture can have a firestarter effect that permeates every aspect of your business. So when you think of culture as a necessary evil or something you can put on the backburner, remember that you risk losing a vast amount of productivity to indifference, burnout, or miscommunication.
Yep. It’s that important.
What types of organizational culture can I apply?
In the spirit of decision-making, you may not want to focus on singular types of organizational culture. Instead, comparing two different options may bring you to a more swift conclusion. To spearhead your initiatives, think about these differing types of organizational culture.
Self-managed teams vs. directive leadership
If you have a group of employees that are motivated and have worked with you for years, you may have already harnessed the power of self-managed teams. By giving the team a goal and then letting them choose how to achieve it, you give them a sense of achievement and empowerment.
In contrast, directive leadership may be a more effective tool in your digital realm. If you have low-skill workers or those that need direction, directive leadership is a straightforward approach. However, it’s how you apply the direction that counts. Avoid being overbearing or George Steinbrenner-esque to maximize productivity and workflow.
Democracy vs. specialization
In a true democracy, everyone has an equal voice and votes on every issue that comes up. A different approach would be one of specialization where the specialist in an area makes the decision independently.
Both options have ups and downs. A democracy means everyone is aware of what is going on, but it can be crushing to have to make every decision this way. Specialization puts more power in the hands of people closest to the issue, but it can also lead to siloed thinking.
Constant communication vs. Catch you next week
Some virtual leaders love meetings day, noon, and night, every day. In some cases, this can bring your team together in a virtual setting that was once only thought attainable in person. It can also provide direction to workers, provide an opportunity to showcase someone’s achievement, or get updates on projects.
Conversely, other a “Catch you next week” type of organizational culture puts more emphasis on individual work. You might check in once weekly, but otherwise everyone is on their own. While communication is necessary, the need for a “morning show” or “late night show” becomes obsolete unless absolutely necessary, giving you more time to focus on your business operations or personal job tasks.
An important takeaway
These are just a few of the many types of organizational culture you can employ in your company. However, an important key to success is all about the perception of your digital organizational culture and the measurement of that perception.
In particular, you may see your organizational culture as strong while your employees feel disjointed and isolated. Feedback, surveys, or just an old-fashioned virtual Q&A can iron out these misconceptions and provide the insight you need to bridge the gap. Only then can you truly decide what types of organizational culture will improve your business.
You can’t have it both ways
While finding the right types of organizational culture is a bit of give-and-take and trial-and-error, the most important aspect to take away is that you can’t have it both ways. Deciding on self-managed teams and then switching to directive leadership a few days later has a counterproductive effect. The same goes for creating an open-door workplace only to shut it a few days later.
So stick with your decisions and stick to your guns. Like many other things about business, making the tough choices and adhering to them is perhaps the hardest thing of all. But it’s a necessity to maintain the type of organizational culture that fosters productivity, creativity, and one exceptional, cohesive unit.
Photo by Mimi Thian on Unsplash
Organizational culture is on every leader’s mind as they make the shift to the digital age. Even as more workers want more flexibility in time and space, they still want a positive environment. Culture can’t lag behind or remain cemented in ideals from the ruins of a traditional office.
It needs to be adaptive. It needs to be fast-moving. And most importantly, it needs to resonate with your employees.
Yet developing the right type of organizational culture for your digital workplace isn’t exactly a no-brainer. In many regards, it might feel foreign altogether.
So what’s a manager or leader to do?
Thankfully there’s not just one option anymore. There are lots of types of organizational culture, and you need to find the one that fits with your team.
Why organizational culture is a necessity in a digital workplace
Ping pong tables? Out. Beer on tap? See ya later. Casual Fridays? Please.
Those days are dead even for businesses like Google and Dropbox that transformed working culture from a rigid cubicle farm into a creative wonder zone.
In many ways, the virtual office has turned into a vast wasteland of organizational culture. But it only has to remain if you let it.
The key to transformation then becomes why you need certain types of organizational culture. Most of the reasoning lies within the morale, happiness, and productivity of your staff, such as:
- More effective onboarding practices
- Lowers stress and improves happiness
- Reduction in turnover
- Stronger brand identity among potential employees
- Better employee engagement
- A shift to transformational leadership and power on your end
Without organizational culture, your staff might be using 10% of its total capacity or abilities. Flipping the “on” switch with culture can have a firestarter effect that permeates every aspect of your business. So when you think of culture as a necessary evil or something you can put on the backburner, remember that you risk losing a vast amount of productivity to indifference, burnout, or miscommunication.
Yep. It’s that important.
What types of organizational culture can I apply?
In the spirit of decision-making, you may not want to focus on singular types of organizational culture. Instead, comparing two different options may bring you to a more swift conclusion. To spearhead your initiatives, think about these differing types of organizational culture.
Self-managed teams vs. directive leadership
If you have a group of employees that are motivated and have worked with you for years, you may have already harnessed the power of self-managed teams. By giving the team a goal and then letting them choose how to achieve it, you give them a sense of achievement and empowerment.
In contrast, directive leadership may be a more effective tool in your digital realm. If you have low-skill workers or those that need direction, directive leadership is a straightforward approach. However, it’s how you apply the direction that counts. Avoid being overbearing or George Steinbrenner-esque to maximize productivity and workflow.
Democracy vs. specialization
In a true democracy, everyone has an equal voice and votes on every issue that comes up. A different approach would be one of specialization where the specialist in an area makes the decision independently.
Both options have ups and downs. A democracy means everyone is aware of what is going on, but it can be crushing to have to make every decision this way. Specialization puts more power in the hands of people closest to the issue, but it can also lead to siloed thinking.
Constant communication vs. Catch you next week
Some virtual leaders love meetings day, noon, and night, every day. In some cases, this can bring your team together in a virtual setting that was once only thought attainable in person. It can also provide direction to workers, provide an opportunity to showcase someone’s achievement, or get updates on projects.
Conversely, other a “Catch you next week” type of organizational culture puts more emphasis on individual work. You might check in once weekly, but otherwise everyone is on their own. While communication is necessary, the need for a “morning show” or “late night show” becomes obsolete unless absolutely necessary, giving you more time to focus on your business operations or personal job tasks.
An important takeaway
These are just a few of the many types of organizational culture you can employ in your company. However, an important key to success is all about the perception of your digital organizational culture and the measurement of that perception.
In particular, you may see your organizational culture as strong while your employees feel disjointed and isolated. Feedback, surveys, or just an old-fashioned virtual Q&A can iron out these misconceptions and provide the insight you need to bridge the gap. Only then can you truly decide what types of organizational culture will improve your business.
You can’t have it both ways
While finding the right types of organizational culture is a bit of give-and-take and trial-and-error, the most important aspect to take away is that you can’t have it both ways. Deciding on self-managed teams and then switching to directive leadership a few days later has a counterproductive effect. The same goes for creating an open-door workplace only to shut it a few days later.
So stick with your decisions and stick to your guns. Like many other things about business, making the tough choices and adhering to them is perhaps the hardest thing of all. But it’s a necessity to maintain the type of organizational culture that fosters productivity, creativity, and one exceptional, cohesive unit.
Photo by Mimi Thian on Unsplash
