Tonushree Mondal is the Founder & CEO of Tonushree Mondal Consulting, a leading boutique HR consulting firm.
getty
Organizational cultures have the latent power to galvanize or disrupt businesses. They exist through good times and bad, at small- or large-sized entities. But changing culture is hard, and recent societal shifts and market conditions have shaken business continuity for many organizations.
The technology industry has experienced a blood bath. From the start of 2024, layoffs in large numbers have dominated the news. Between inflation and job loss, many families are distracted and worried. It’s hard to bring one’s best self to work amid this uncertainty. Employee trust is eroded, fear dominates and organizational cultures get tested.
Meanwhile, the way we work—and the way we think about work—has changed considerably since the Covid-19 pandemic. Hybrid working is here to stay, though it continues to generate debate as organizations grapple with productivity, culture and how many in-office days feel right to enforce. The simultaneous explosion of the gig economy in recent years means many people who are integral to an organization’s talent pool aren't full-time employees. Beyond that, many employees are moonlighting with other gigs. Organizational boundaries become more fluid as a result, and culture becomes more amorphous.
Finally, with multiple generations in the workforce, there's a greater number of employees' priorities to consider. Newer generations care far more about purpose, sustainability and work-life balance. They’re often unwilling to put in the extra discretionary effort that prior generations did because they don’t see its incremental value to their lives. So building culture that connects such diverse thinking can be a challenge as well as an opportunity.
These trends, and many others, shine a spotlight on the impact of external changes on organizational culture.
3 Strategies For A Resilient Company Culture
Considering all the shifting dynamics in today's work landscape, here are three strategies organizations can take to ensure their culture stays resilient and continues to mobilize their business growth.
1. Ruthlessly prioritize leadership behaviors in challenging times.
Leadership caliber and team dynamics are what enable organizations to weather the storm. However, executive teams often focus on technical solutions instead of rising culture issues. They often think they can wait until after a business emergency to address internal challenges. This short-term thinking has tremendous long-term consequences because it can further erode employee morale and productivity.
Culture is typically based on a set of core values or leadership behaviors, whether explicitly stated or not. A challenge emerges when core values and behaviors aren't well articulated, understood or modeled. Fissures surface when the implicit and explicit cultures conflict, causing productivity to suffer. In a hybrid world, culture is much harder to establish, and there are significant risks of the cracks widening.
Organizations should clearly articulate their core values and leadership behaviors, then expect leaders to walk the talk. Strong signals can be sent for those who don't demonstrate these behaviors, such as putting them through coaching or even taking a stance and not having leaders on board who don't demonstrate alignment with core values. Those who exemplify the right behaviors should be recognized and suitably rewarded.
2. Actively work on levers that ignite energy and excitement.
Individuals are unique, and different things ignite their passions. For some, it’s a steep learning curve; for others, it’s creative innovation. People may flock to analytical work or collaborative work in a team. Understanding generational needs while exploring different approaches is also key.
Organizational commitment requires finding ways to unleash employees' passion, such as job crafting and creative career development. This is the role of every people leader, and the more time they spend balancing individual passions with business needs, the better off they'll be.
This is harder to accomplish when the job market is tough and business continuity is at stake. But it's an opportunity for truly resilient leaders to differentiate themselves and help their organizations see the glass as half full. When people are recognized and incentivized, they can drive real change.
3. Create systemic breathing spaces.
If we take a good hard look at how society has changed in the age of digitization and through the pandemic, it's clear that we've lost a considerable amount of breathing space. As the tsunami of work deliverables washes over us, we try to stay afloat. We’re hurtling from one meeting to another, responding to emails and chat messages in between, and we don’t seem to have the time to savor our morning coffee or reflect on our day. When employees lose breathing space, they’re more likely to simply see their deliverables as a checklist they have to complete.
We may not be fully aware of how difficult it will be to reverse or slow this trend. But organizations are trying their best to help employees take a breath through wellness initiatives like health days, mindfulness sessions and mental health support. We must be willing to take a harder look at goals and objectives, shift expectations and more systemically create breathing space for our workforce.
Strong Cultures Are How We Stay Resilient
Society and market conditions will always change. As the captain of a ship amid stormy waters, leaders must concentrate on the mental and physical focus of all crew members, ensuring they can stay on course. Adopting these three strategies as part of business and people strategies can help develop an organizational culture that survives through challenging times.
Forbes Human Resources Council is an invitation-only organization for HR executives across all industries. Do I qualify?
