Actions and attitudes make up the culture of a business.  None of us like working in a business that has bad culture. We all can recognize bad culture.  The question is what makes a great business culture and how do we make a great culture?  Having a good culture in business will help a good business become great.

The values that make up a business will either be directly chosen or will take shape on their own.

Force Culture

When you fly most people have a carry-on bag.  This bag needs to be stored in the overhead bin.  It never fits well. You have to force the bag to fit.  Fairly often the contents of the bag have to be forcefully shifted around to go into the bin. Culture is not any different than the bag; to reach the desired culture people may need to be shifted around or out.

Teach Culture

Teach what you want your business culture to be.  If you want incredible customer service to be part of your business, that has to be taught.  Businesses that have a great culture have high levels of communication.  Overshare what you are thinking about your business and what you want your business to be.  Understand what your team member’s personalities are and how your customers see your team. Don’t be afraid to communicate the obvious to teach the desired culture.

Recognize Culture

Too often we find what is wrong with our team members. That comes easily.  Too often that is the way leaders we worked for were taught.  To promote a great culture in a business find what is right.  If a team member takes care of a customer well, recognize them for doing a great job.  People repeat what they are recognized for.

Attack Culture

If your business has bad culture, attack the problem.  If you have a problem with someone being late sit in their chair until they arrive to work.  They will get the message.  The biggest problem is if you don’t attack a problem, by default you are sanctioning incompetence.  Champions on your team will leave.

Repeat Good Culture

The culture that you desire has to be repeated.  You can’t just stand up and say this is what I want.  The desired results have to be repeated over and over again. As you improve the culture of your business, it will become easier to find champions to employ.

To create a culture that is positive, customer centered, and focused on doing what is right in your business takes time.  From the very first contact with customers to the end product focus on teaching the desired culture. Turn your business from a good organization to a great organization.

Question of the week:  What are some of your key focus points you can implement in your business?

Quote of the Week:  “Customers will never love a company until the employees love it first.” – Simon Sinek

Hiring the right people at the appropriate time can propel your business forward.  Hiring the wrong person or hiring in the wrong order can be a drain on resources, energy, or worse.  Jim Collins, author of “Good to Great”, uses the phrase of “putting the right person in the right seat on the bus”.

Hiring shouldn’t be done quickly.  It may take several months to find the right fit. Time should be given to what the needs of your company are and when they should be added.  When adding a team member consideration of their ability to grow in the position is critical. Not just if they can fill the current job.

What is the Right Order of Hiring?

Too often a small business or solopreneur gets so busy they add someone to ease their work load without consideration of what the long term consequences will be. Adding a virtual person to do accounting, administrative work, or some other task is the great first step.  Adding someone to do sales on commission is also a good first step.

Have Clear Work Requirements

Using KRA’s (Key Result Areas) is critical to define what you expect.  KRA’s layout in simple terms what it looks like when a team member is winning.

• A good job description
  1. The position requirements.
  2. The position experience.
  3. What it looks like to win in the position.
• A clear compensation schedule.
• A non-compete schedule if needed

Where there is no vision the people perish.  This is a common phrase that when you are in church you expect that a building plan is about to begin.  In business vision is what keeps it going through all the ups and downs. Vision propels a business forward, even when the setbacks that make the rough and tumble world of everyday business life happens.

Great leaders understand that having vision and repeating what the vision is often is how companies move forward.  Leaders emphasize how the work that is being done matters and makes a difference in the lives of others.

Where is your business going in 2015 and beyond?

The first step is to know where your business has been, and where you would like business look like to move it forward.  Many businesses let events run them rather than making things happen. Know what you want your business to look like.

What are the core values of your business?

Is your core value to be the cheapest? Probably not, only Walmart has made that work.  If you strive to be the cheapest and race to the bottom you might win. Then what do you do if your product or service is below the cost of production?

Is your core value integrity?  It had better be or you won’t be in business very long.  Your business is a trust brand.

What are your core beliefs?

Is the only reason you are in business to make money?  Making a profit is important, it is how business grows, adds employees, and helps the owner build wealth. However, if you don’t have a bigger why when things get difficult, you won’t enjoy the business any longer.

Are you as a great leader repeating your vision often so it becomes part of your organization? Have you as a leader established what core values and beliefs in your organization are to sustain it during the ups and down?  If you as a leader have done these things, then 2015 is set up to be your best year ever.

Question of the week: What will your business look like in 5 years if you have vision?

Quote of the week:  “The greatest danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.” – Michelangelo