4. Define your company culture
‘Define your company culture’ is the fourth chapter of Understand, the first book of The Hiring Playbooks, 5 ebooks that will turn all your hires into wins. Created by the Homerun team.
This chapter will help you hire people who fit your company, will be happy and engaged with their work and select people based on soft skills instead of just work history.
Every part of this playbook is important, but defining your company
culture really matters. We said earlier that hiring is a team sport — well,
once you’ve established what your company culture is, it makes it a
lot easier to attract the right people to join your team. Identifying what
your company culture is — and that’s what you’re about to do — will
empower you to hire people who will fit seamlessly into your company.
This will make them happy and productive, the team happy and
productive, and the whole world happy and productive.
But if you want use your company culture to your advantage, you first
need to understand it. And to understand your culture, you first need to
define it, which is exactly what we’re going to do.
How do I define my company culture?
Research, research, research. Go through your hiring process review,
employee surveys, and any culture or brand-related content that
your company has (e.g. mission statement, code of conduct, manual,
handbook.)
Take it all in, make notes, then use the information you’ve gathered to
summarize the following four key aspects of company culture into a
handy document that you’ll be able to reference when hiring or making
any changes to your hiring process.
Four key aspects of company culture:
1. Mission
Your company’s mission statement explains why your company exists,
drives where it’s going and how it’s going to get there. As you can
gather, it’s pretty important, so it’s vital that every employee and new
hire should understand, relate to, and be inspired by your company’s
mission.
To do this, you need to document your mission statement and the ways
it translates to the work that people at your company do and how they
do it.
For example: UsTwo is an award-winning digital product studio.
Their mission statement is:
“We’re on a mission to launch products, services and companies that
make a meaningful impact.”
If, like UsTwo, creativity and impact is at the heart of your mission, then
this could translate to a workplace where people have the space to take
risks with their work and value innovation over easy wins.
2. Values
Your company’s values are a guideline for how your employees behave,
treat each other, approach their work, and handle clients, customers,
and/or stakeholders.
List your company’s core values in your document, along with how
these values translate to the work that the people at your company do
and how they go about doing it.
For example InVision’s values are:
• Question assumptions
• Think deeply
• Iterate as a lifestyle
• Details, Details
• Design is Everywhere
• Integrity
If, like InVision, you value questioning assumptions, then this could
translate to a relaxed management style where employees are
encouraged to question their superiors and experiment with out-of-thebox
methods for problem solving.
Thomas Moes, co-founder Homerun:
Besides job security, everyone now wants fulfilment and purpose from their work. If your competitors are also offering great salaries and perks, you’ll need to put something else on the table — your company culture- to make you stand out.
3. Practice
Everything you do as a company, whether it’s an action or a policy,
expresses your company’s culture to employees and to potential
employees. This includes things like how you treat employees, as well
as how you sign off emails and handle staff departures.
It’s really important to get this right, as Thomas from Homerun is keen
to point out: “People are switching jobs more than ever, so if everyone
is offering great salaries and perks, you’ll need to put something else
on the table as another reason for your employees to stay. As well as
standard benefits (healthcare, childcare, parental leave) and perks
(vacation, flexible hours, fresh lunches) you should think about how you
practice what you preach in terms of matching your company culture
to employee benefits. If you don’t, that’s a big turn off — and people will
share that information as much as a job post, believe me.”
So what can you offer staff to develop their personal growth? Here’s
Thomas again: “At Homerun we really believe in the importance of
taking care of your body and mind so you can grow as an individual. As
well as free gym membership, we offer a subscription to a mindfulness
app, Headspace, as well as a museum pass, e-reader and book budget.”
To see if your company practices what it preaches, summarize the ways
in which your policies, practices, and structure embody your company’s
mission and values in your culture document.
4. People
All of the theoretical and organizational stuff listed above may drive
your culture on paper, but it’s the staff at a company who actually make
culture happen.
Think about your team (and future team):
• What soft skills do they need to be successful?
• What personality traits align well with your company’s mission
and structure?
• What values should all of the people working at your company
share?
Don’t focus on specific (hard) skills as these will vary based on each
person’s position. Instead, think about the broader characteristics that
help people succeed at your company (staying motivated, achieving
their goals, and working well with others).
For example, if your company operates in a flat hierarchy, then your
people will need to be assertive and self-motivated. But, if your
company values seniority and a strict hierarchy, then your people will
need to be happy working by the book.
How do I use this information?
Your new culture document should be used as a reference whenever
posting a job, writing out interview questions, and selecting new hires.
It will also come in handy when defining your employer brand in the
next chapter of Hiring Playbook #1 Understand.
All Images by Studio Spass.
