Team Culture Explained
Unraveling the Essence of Team Culture and Unveiling the Key Questions for Creating Engaging User Experiences
What is ‘Team Culture’?
Team culture can be defined as the ideas, customs, and social behavior of a team within an organization. Essentially Behaviours + Beliefs = Team Culture.
Behaviours + Beliefs = Team Culture.
Misconception about a ‘Good’ Culture?
“We’ve got a great culture here. We have a ping pong table and bean bags.” Having the above-mentioned activities does not ensure that your team culture is good or your employees enjoy being at the workplace because of these activities.
Ping Pong Table ≠ Culture
Hence, a good culture is one where team members are able to communicate well with each other, they’re able to share knowledge while respecting each other and maintaining an environment which is built on supporting each other.
It’s important to understand that a good culture can only be built if there are 3 main things present, Equality, Empathy, and Autonomy. Having equal opportunities in the workplace helps the employees remain comfortable knowing that they’ll receive their due rights. Secondly, being considerate of your peers builds a sense of trust, and hence, people work together for great results. Lastly, having the liberty to carry out certain tasks and decisions builds confidence among teams and should be promoted.
What’s a ‘Toxic’ Culture?
Leaders acting inappropriately, Gossip being promoted, Lack of communication, policies over people, and groups in the office. All these things can add to a toxic culture.
Criticism + Contempt + Ignorance = Toxic Culture
Good Culture Empowers You!
If someone feels uncomfortable they can speak up because they know their company and peers will support them. Your voice is heard in your teams and actions are taken to confront the problems that you face.
Your Voice = Heard!
Good Culture makes you Culture Fit
Ability to work comfortably in an environment that is in line with people’s beliefs, values, and needs. This boosts a healthy work environment which ends up creating good outcomes.
Happiness + Productivity = Culture Fit
At the same time, a good culture avoids bias towards a certain direction. Different people can have different viewpoints and it’s important that everyone’s viewpoint is heard and respected. This creates a good team culture.
This is what you need to build a strong team culture. Are you doing something I didn’t mention but it’s working for your team? Mention in the comments below.
Thanks for reading! If this article adds value to you, please give it as many claps 👏 as possible! Clapping is free and helps me get the content out to more readers 🙌