“If only they would do such and such.” “If only she would stop so and so.” “If only the other department would get their act in gear.” Enough, already!
Company culture, loosely defined as the regular behaviors of people in a company setting, belongs on the list of why companies fail or succeed. However, the idea of changing people’s behavior is daunting and proves futile to most. Rightfully so.
More oversight, metrics, meetings, emails, and reports don’t seem to inspire healthier behavior. Gone badly, such people-controlling focus does more to wreck company culture than all the catered lunches, town hall AMA (ask me anything) meetings, and ping-pong tournaments can ever overcome.
Imagine a scenario where the purpose of your team’s work was clear, plans were vetted, and there was transparency on the measurements used to determine what’s working and what’s not. This happens when there is alignment up and down the company’s outcome hierarchy.**
Imagine further if the outcome hierarchy were clear and communicated to a degree where others on the team could play it back accurately. What reasons would remain for reasonable, rational, and decent people to micromanage, call yet another meeting, or seemingly sabotage the company’s best interest by pursuing selfish interests?
Stop trying to fix culture by fixing people. Give structural alignment a go and watch healthy behaviors become the norm.
**The outcome hierarchy consists of an organization’s purpose, vision/mission, strategic approach, tactical action plan, and metrics.