How Important is Company Culture to the Bottom Line?

Today, company culture is an integral part of a brand, so much so that it’s difficult to talk about one without the other. Beyond the vacation time and benefits, it’s a presentation of what your organization stands for and ideally represents an environment of transparency, enthusiasm, and support.

According to Gallup, companies with a rich culture and commitment to employee happiness consistently surpass industry benchmarks and significantly outperform the competition.

In this blog, we’ll analyze the impact of company culture on a business’s bottom line.

Productivity

High-performing employees are almost exclusively those that feel valued by their superiors. However, creating a sense of value isn’t that simple—it stems from being heard, given the power to make decisions, and receiving feedback on one’s performance. Accomplishing this is only possible by developing open lines of communication as well as a culture of active engagement and participation from the employees.

Such a strategy combats stagnation and stimulates creativity. Employees who feel appreciated tackle new challenges with positivity and energy. They’re more likely to come up with innovative ways to solve problems rather than glancing at the clock and waiting for their shift to end.

Reduced Absenteeism

Does it come as a surprise that not every employee who calls in for a sick day is actually sick? It shouldn’t. Absenteeism is a clear sign that your employees don’t love what they do. In fact, some of them probably dread coming in to work every day.

The way to combat this problem, while benefiting the bottom line, is to put yourself in your employees’ shoes. Would you feel excited to come to work every day? If not, then something needs to change.

These aren’t difficult questions; it’s just that not many businesses are asking them in the first place, so the single biggest obstacle to bottom-line profitability…..(attrition rates)  continue.

Environment

It’s no secret that employee turnover can be pretty expensive, especially if your company provides specialized services that require specific skill sets. That’s why creating an attractive and appealing environment is so important. Environments that produce excessive stress or noise and where privacy isn’t taken seriously can seriously impact employees’ state of mind.

There’s an on-going debate raging on whether open office spaces or cubicles are better. However, each workplace is different and worth investigating. Ask for feedback from your employees—after all, creating a positive environment is more about making them feel comfortable.

Strongly consider offering the opportunity for your employees to work virtually, at least part-time. There are so many benefits to this, and by being flexible on traditional 9-5 expectations you can dramatically increase your candidate pool.

In today’s candidate-driven job market, where the demand for applicants exceeds the supply, companies would be wise to invest some time into evaluating their company culture. If it is not awesome, make some changes. Time and again we see high performing candidates juggling multiple offers, and the majority of the time, culture wins.