Company Culture: Creating Your Organization's 'Secret Sauce'

When I think about company culture, sometimes I think about the way my parents used to cook. They were improvisational chefs, so no two recipes were precisely the same - though they would invariably include some of the same ingredients, especially care and love. My parents would taste and re-season, and sometimes they would be creatively inspired to add a new ingredient. And anyone in the family could participate in the cooking process, taste what was being cooked, and suggest - or just go ahead and add - some spice or flavor.

As went cooking in my parents' household, so it is with company culture. No two cultures are exactly the same. Care and intense personal investment should be in the flavoring. Companies should test and evolve their culture. And everyone in the 'family ' - leaders and employees alike - should have a hand in flavoring the culture.

Just as no two cultures are precisely the same, there are many ways to think about culture and how to evolve it. And Bonfyre has compiled a wonderful 'culture recipe book' with insights from 17 leaders and thinkers in the space (including yours truly, starting on page 34).

What ingredient is needed to make your company's culture irresistible? Authenticity? Community-building? Employee recognition? Alignment with data and the employee lifecycle? Season, taste, improvise, evolve, add love and care - and always let your employees help season your secret sauce.

Want to talk culture or shape and evolve the culture in your organization? Drop me a line.