The 3 steps of cultural transformation

What exactly is a culture, and how can we evolve it within our organization?

It’s hard to pinpoint the exact essence of a culture, in part because what defines it is not always visible and tangible. It’s often something you can feel, but can’t explain very well. Here we will try to provide some insight into the concept of culture to help you develop it within your organization.

Demystifying culture

Culture is defined by first identifying the values or beliefs and behaviours of a community (family, work team, sports club, etc.), and then the values, beliefs and behaviours endorsed by individual members of that same community. Here, we seek to identify what is important to each member of the community, and what is important to the community as a whole. Similarly, we also seek to determine what behaviours are important to individuals on the one hand, and to the community on the other.

Cultural transformation: 3 key steps

Step 1: Involve your community

The first step in initiating a cultural transformation is to involve all members of the community. First of all, we need to know where we are, in order to understand where we are going. To do this, it is very simple to survey the team members. You can ask questions like:

• What is most important to you?
• What are the values in place in the organization that you hold most dear?
• What behaviours currently present in the company should be eliminated?
• What values should the organization develop?
• What should be the company’s priorities?

Step 2: Give the right tools

Now that you’ve received, compiled, and analyzed the survey data, you can see how far you have to go to move the culture to the destination of your dreams. Now it’s time to get the right tools to get there.

Information sessions, focus groups, team retreats… There are many tools available to employees. What is crucial here is to actively work together. This is how we can develop new reflexes and put an end to behaviours that take us away from our objective.

Step 3 : Take action

This is where special attention must be paid. We often see companies with elaborate action plans, only to find out over time that they have been forgotten and little has changed. Instead, we encourage you to engage your teams with actionable challenges that will mobilize and stimulate everyone to integrate what has been learned.

For maximum impact on cultural transformation, challenges are advocated that are time-bound, around 30 days, and have individual or group scope. Post the challenges publicly, to add a motivational element by making participants accountable.

These challenges should build on the strengths of the team members. We always feel stronger on our own two feet when we draw on our strengths to tackle new challenges. Also, take a moment to identify at the outset the various elements that could constitute obstacles or pitfalls to the achievement of your challenge. Being aware of them before you start will allow you to deal with them much more effectively if they arise.

Finally, keep your troops motivated by encouraging them. There’s nothing like a dose of positive reinforcement to help us move forward!

Cultural transformation happens from the inside out. By involving all the players, by giving ourselves the necessary resources, and by taking concrete action, the results will quickly take hold.