Building the Culture of Corporate Excellence

Have you ever wondered why two organisations, in the same business, produce the same product or provide similar services, yet one is performing far much better both in client/customer engagement and profitability? The simple answer is the level of culture of corporate excellence that is being embraced in each organisation.

But even in organisations that are not in the same niche, it is still the desire of most of them to thrive and achieve excellence.

However, according to research by IBM and others, between 60 and 90 per cent of organizational change initiatives to inspire excellence in organisations do not work. It’s no surprise because making the changes that lead to excellence is not an overnight pursuit — it’s a long process that often means rewiring a company’s fundamental culture and systems.

Even though every organisation’s wiring is different, achieving excellence boils down to building a culture that supports it.

Today, I want to share with you what I believe should be non-exhaustive ways to build a culture or system that will enhance your organisation’s strive for corporate excellence.

Create a clear sense of corporate goal and vision

Spell out exactly what excellence means to your organisation and make it clear to every employee as they join your organisation. Be as detailed as possible and set up reasonable timelines and benchmarks for every goal that your organisation wants to achieve.

[tweetthis]People tend to work more effectively when they know what their organisation wants to achieve. It is important that people in your organisation understand the standards and what are the corporate expectations of your organisation from the word go.

This may include a clear-cut definition and explanation of tasks and roles for each member of the team. And remember well that the people in your organisation you lead expect to see the same fire in you if you want them to feel the same.

Hence, the first step is to create a mindset that will engage and align every employee with your vision, mission and values, and leave them speaking a common language of excellence. You will build a new capacity for growth. Your employees will think in more creative and innovative ways and will be more able to deal with challenges and change.

Create an environment where innovation thrives

In some organisations, the top executives always make the mistake of thinking he or she is the only ones that every idea for business growth must come from them. This not only creates a monotony of ideas but also leads to mediocrity.

The essence of having people in your organisation is also to leverage on individual ingenuity and initiatives. In a company where people are allowed to innovate and present ideas for consideration, it is more likely that excellence would be achieved faster, considering that a product and service can be delivered in a better way when you filter through several ideas pointing toward such.

If you do not want to involve the entire team, simply get a few trusted ones on board and let them know they are free to ‘think’ for the organisation.

Reward contribution of personal excellence

Motivating your people when they make an excellent achievement toward the overall goal and vision of your organisation is one sure way of ensuring continuity in such a form of commitment. I recently read of a Chinese businessman that organised a surprise getaway for around 6000 of his workers, just to reward them for their efforts.

[tweetthis]One mistake here is that most organisations think money is the only key to motivating employees. [/tweetthis] However, money is important but it is not always the case when it comes to rewarding employees for performing excellently. Understanding their individual needs becomes very important.

Bob Nelson, an incentive specialist and author is of the opinion that rewards such as days off, long lunches, face-to-face recognition or in the organisation’s email/newsletter, promoting work-life balance, and office-wide rewards can transform the approach of your employees to work.

Inspire and encourage regular personal development

One thing I have observed with several organisations is that the level of work-related exposure possessed by a group of employees with respect to the organisation’s goal and vision for excellence determines how much of the goal would be achieved.

The willingness to ensure that workers receive regular personal development in areas where they are expected to function and they invest in it can translate to more efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of their job descriptions.

This is because new knowledge and the acquisition of skills relevant to a job have a way of inspiring commitment and better performance.

Aligning corporate and personal aspiration

This was mentioned briefly in the first point above. People who feel that the organisation’s vision is in line with their dreams are more likely to stay longer with the organisation and give more to it, knowing that the organisation’s success has a high likelihood to translate to theirs. They are able then, to deal with change, uncertainty and adversity, and they interact and collaborate to make things happen, creating excellent performances at all times.

On the other hand, if people feel that the organisation’s goal is not relevant to their long-term life goal, they will only come in, and give a little of their commitment, while secretly building their life and planning an exit at any time. There is no way an organisation can achieve excellence with this class of people.