Mini Culture Health Check

How healthy is your culture right now?

Is everyone clear why your business exists and what you stand for?

Yes - we talk about this all the time. We use our purpose and values as a framework for business-wide communication and decision making.

We’ve defined a business purpose and set of values, but our actions aren’t always in line with what we say we stand for.

We have written purpose and values statements, but people don’t really know how to relate them to their day-to-day roles.

No, we haven’t yet defined a business purpose or set of values.

Do you have a diverse team collaborating to achieve common goals in an environment of trust, openness, and transparency?

We have an approach to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and we talk about trust and transparency - but our actions as a business aren’t always aligned.

No, there’s little diversity across the business. People are afraid to speak up with thoughts and suggestions and there's a lack of transparency and trust for decision-making.

Yes - we have a really diverse and deeply connected team who regularly contribute new ideas. There’s full transparency in communication even when tough decisions have to be made.

The team is becoming more diverse, and the leaders are providing more business transparency. But we know we need to work harder to encourage people to speak up and to ensure a level playing field for all employees.

Are all employees supported to improve, grow, and develop, so that they make the most of their talent?

People are lacking flexibility and autonomy in their roles. And they're way too busy on the day job to have time to reflect and learn. A lot of people seem to be suffering from ‘burn-out’.

We’re pretty good at offering our employees flexibility, autonomy, and time to learn in their roles. But our leadership capability needs to improve to ensure we’re always supporting people to make the most of their talent.

We say we’re committed to offering greater flexibility and autonomy, and more opportunities to learn, but there’s a lack of evidence that this translates into real action.

Yes — everyone has the flexibility and autonomy to decide how and when to work. Continuous feedback and coaching are at the heart of our working approach and people are rewarded for proactively maintaining their health and wellbeing.

Are your company leaders serious about culture?

They are actively involved in ‘people and culture’ projects, but these are generally seen as standalone people initiatives rather than part of a core strategic agenda driving business success.

They’re pretty disengaged from all things people and culture – they're mostly focused on financial performance.

They tend to pay lip service to culture, often waiting for problems to emerge before taking action. They think problems can be solved by ‘perks and parties’ and some leaders get away with poor behaviour.

Very, it’s a big priority. They talk about people and culture all the time and when it comes to their own behaviour, their words and actions are always aligned.

Are your people leaders ‘leading with context’ or ‘leading by control’?

People leaders tend to ‘lead by control’. They give specific instructions about what needs doing, without offering the context as to why it needs doing. They have little time for their team, and one to ones tend to get bumped.

People leaders seem too busy in their day jobs to spend much time supporting others. They often offer little flexibility and autonomy, and catch ups tend to focus on tasks rather than people’s personal development.

They’re getting much better at leading with context, not control, but it sometimes feels a bit mechanical. They’d benefit from developing deeper self-awareness and coaching skills to fully unleash their team’s potential.

Leading with context. They always take time to provide deep context for tasks and let people decide how to deliver themselves. They hold regular performance and development conversations, coaching people to get better.

Is everyone in the business a self-leader, taking full ownership for their performance, wellbeing, and development?

Yes - everyone proactively takes responsibility for their performance. People have a ‘continuous improvement’ mindset, and they seize every opportunity for growth, whilst seeking support from others when required.

We have some good role models for self-leadership across every area of the business. But not everyone’s there yet. More people need to embrace a mindset of continuous improvement, seeing obstacles merely as opportunities to learn.

We reward and recognise proactivity but many people across the business don’t yet have the mindset or skills to be true self-leaders. They tend to find excuses for poor performance rather than taking full ownership themselves.

No, people tend to behave like children waiting to be told what to do. They blame others for their performance rather than seeking to take responsibility themselves.

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Your culture needs immediate attention.

You probably haven’t clearly defined the cultural foundations of your business and you’re likely to be suffering from a disengaged, under-performing team. Your workplace culture’s the one competitive advantage you have 100% control over and it’s time to sort this out. A full Culture Health Check will give you clarity on what you need to prioritise first.

Good start but there's a lot more to do.

There’s evidence of some of the building blocks needed for a thriving culture, but you still aren’t making the most of everyone’s talent and capability. There’s a lot more to do to create and fuel an environment that will lead to sustainable success. Take a full Culture Health Check and find out exactly what you now need to focus on.

Good start but there's a lot more to do.

You're on the right path - but keep going!

On the face of it, your culture’s in quite good shape – nice work! But is your assessment based on just your own opinion, or is it also how people on the ground are feeling? Take a full Health Check to find out what everyone in your business really thinks – and keep one step ahead of the competition!