We didn’t really have a formal ‘culture’ for the first…many years of our existence. I had a sort of sense of what I wanted us to look/feel/behave like, but it was never committed to paper, never repeated out loud/with any frequency, and as such was basically left to the interpretation of staff and external collaborators to really define.
I was exposed to the concept of EOS (Entrepreneurs Operating System), which is a small business management approach that really takes into account people, process and profit—and how they intersect. The foundational premise of the approach is establishing CORE VALUES, which I had previously thought of as a very “crunchy” concept that didn’t have anything to do with our P&L. In taking the time to understand what being very intentional/thoughtful around our values was all about (in short order, it not only helps define how you hire, but who you work with (partners and clients), and critically, how to navigate difficult situations of all stripes), I learned that SO MANY of our previous problems were a direct result of not having our values codified and followed carefully in every aspect of our business.
So we spent numerous sessions brainstorming, thinking about what defines us—and what we want to be defined as. One rule of thumb is to think about the BEST member of the team—what makes them the best? If you had an organization full of them, imagine what that could do for you.
We try to define who we are by the best attributes they bring, and if done properly, this will attract more of the same.
It led to a collection of words—themes really—that we feel best represent who we are, who we want to be, and who we want to work/align ourselves with.
Specifically, we have so far experienced a ~50% top line revenue increase year on year for 2 years running—which I am still blown away by. Just as importantly, though, is the QUALITY of our business (in terms of WHO we work with, HOW we work with them, WHAT we do in terms of establishing (and exceeding) expectations for our staff and clients) has improved dramatically.
My advice to others who might consider changing their own culture is the sooner the better—every day that goes by with the old approach is at least a week of additional time that will be spent untangling the mess. It’s one of those things that really does take leadership from the top to enact, will almost definitely lead to push back and discomfort from folks across the organization, and might result in the short term loss of people and business.
