Blog
The importance of living your culture
Deciding on a set of values for your company can be an exciting and inspiring process – especially if the process is inclusive, honest and frank.
But after the ‘quick hit’ boost in morale, it’s important to back up your values with behaviour. A brand ethos has to be more than a poster pinned on a wall: it has to be a living, malleable culture brought to life through the actions of the entire team. To plan an idea is good, to live a culture is great.
Take Skift, a global travel industry intelligence and marketing platform. Skift prides itself on staying ahead of trends when it comes to travel. That’s why CEO Rafat Ali took his whole team from New York to Iceland for Skift’s first ever company outing.
Picking a cool and unusual destination showcased Skift’s “intense-but-fun” culture to the wider world (the trip was extensively covered on Skift’s social media channels), but also gave employees a chance to learn first-hand about the changing business of travel in a country Ali describes as a “crucible of a lot of global travel trends.”
Explaining the trip, Ali said: ‘[employees] aren't motivated by workplace comforts or feel-good HR policies. They're motivated by the opportunity to do their best work, to understand their customers better, to discover new ways to think about markets and opportunities, to connect with their peers more effectively around their core work.’
Eco-friendly outdoor clothing firm Patagonia is another example of a firm that brings its values to life. Patagonia encourages its employees to test its gear and hike, cycle and climb whenever possible. Its offices have designated areas for aerobics and yoga during the working day; in the same way other offices have designated meeting areas.
Patagonia understands that it’s one thing to preach about the outdoors from inside an office and another to experience it first-hand.
It offers employees flexible hours, giving them the time off needed to enjoy a comfortable and productive work/life balance. Staff are also encouraged to volunteer for non-profit environmental organisations. Patagonia’s people can often be spotted out in the wild – probably in one of the company’s ethically made, heavy-duty jackets – whilst taking action to preserve the environment.
You don’t need to fly your whole company to Iceland or climb a mountain to bring culture to life – with a little thought and planning any business can find a way to match values with behaviour. Understanding and living your culture will empower your employees; strengthen your brand and drive real business impact.
Image: Skift