The Influence of Company Culture On Employee Engagement

Employee productivity is the most crucial factor for any business to succeed. And their productivity depends on the company culture. That’s why companies tend to improve their work culture, and they also apply different ideas to increase employee engagement to boost the workforce’s productivity. Wellness programs, work flexibility, incentives, mentorship, and celebrating employees’ achievements are the trending employee engagement ideas in modern corporates.  

However, company culture is the most influential factor compared to others in determining employee engagement and productivity. How? We will discuss it here: 

🫶 The Importance Of An Employee-Centric Organizational Culture

We are all aware of the quote, “an employee-centric organization is indeed a business-centric organization.” It’s nothing new but a broader concept of customer-centricity. If a business wants to create a great customer experience for its consumers, it must focus on its workforce first. Because employee centricity creates a strong feeling of belongingness in the workers, they are likely to give their best. And also, they feel proud of their work and company. It empowers the right people in the right roles. So, it all results in the organization’s good reputation. 

If a company fears the costs, then it has to rethink because studies reveal that companies that establish an employee-centric work culture outperform companies that don’t. And also, they get a great employee retention rate that eliminates the timely recruitment and training processes. And productivity boosts profitability unexpectedly. So, ultimately, it will cut various business costs and increase profit. A satisfied workforce will contribute more and more toward business development. In modern HR practices, “Happy employees ensure happy customers, and happy customers ensure happy shareholders.” When a business puts its employees first, all the other people related to different processes will be satisfied soon. 

From the above image, we can easily understand why employee-centric work culture is mandatory for a company to get better output. 

👉 How Does Company Culture Improve Employee Engagement?

Company culture is indeed an influential part of building a successful organization. As a result, it has been arguably a point of discussion in the past 20 years. And since the digital transformation of HR departments, the concept is constantly growing and evolving. Modern workplaces have redefined the definition of organizational culture. In a well-organized organizational culture, workers feel connected. A high-performance culture outlines behaviors and standards that are beneficial and supportive. This way, employees clearly understand their role in the procedure and what the organization expects from them. Workplace culture and employee engagement are linked. 

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If an organization implements specific changes in its work culture, then its impact is reflected on its employees, subsequently affecting the organization's workforce. Employee engagement depends on how happy and satisfied they feel about the organization's culture, what the organization stand for, its values and what value that brings to each employee – professionally. A high rate of happy and satisfied employees leads the enterprise to its success path; but also, it has a significant positive impact within their roles and the work culture through their daily actions as they have well-rounded ethics and commitment to the company goals. And when everyone contributes their part with the utmost efficiency, every person connected within the organization feels encouraged to do their best. 

So, the prevalent culture affects the employees in an unexceptional way. A positive and open culture can create an environment where everybody trusts each other and brings loyalty to each person. This way, transparent working culture is established, and every employee is engaged with others.  Studies show that disengaged employees are costly. A survey by Gallup found that teams with high engagement show 21% more significant profitability in comparison to disengaged teams. The report stated that most successful organizations set employee engagement as the central goal of their strategies. Therefore, we can say that corporate culture defines the success and sustainability of the company. 

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✨ Tips For Establishing A Better Culture 

As we discussed the significance of work culture and its impact on employee engagement, we can say that it is crucial to implement an engaging work culture for employees. But now the question is how to establish one. Maintaining and creating a healthy organizational culture is not easy, for sure, but it can be less complicated by following these tips: 

1. Focus On Employee Wellness

As mentioned earlier, highly engaged employees tend to contribute more and more toward the company's goals. So, managers must keep their workforce happy and engaged. For that, they should focus on employees’ wellness. 

Employees should be at their best physically and mentally. Managers should offer employees sufficient resources and tools to get their work done without difficulties. And they should constantly be on the lookout for methods by which they can reduce their employees' stress. 

2. Right People At Right Places (hire the right people) 

An organization's recruitment will directly affect its productivity. So, it is mandatory not to look for the skills and needs of recruiting but to look at how the candidate will fit into the organization overall. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure that the recruitment process is compatible with the company's culture. 

Employing a proper candidate for a particular role will automatically reduce some costs for the organization. And if the new employee’s behavior is suitable for others, then it will take no time for them to get involved in the process and culture. 

3. Bring Positivity 

Building a great culture requires a positive environment. The optimistic attitude of managers, gratitude, employee recognition, etc., are various methods to bring positivity to the workplace. 

By making an effort and creating a positive work environment, the company can show employees their value and how much they matter. This way, employee engagement can be boosted, and employee turnover can be reduced. 

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4. Establish A Work-Life Balance

To get productive output, managers must ensure that the employees are stress-free and satisfied with their job. Overworked employees often make mistakes. So, a company must set a work schedule in which the workforce can maintain a balance between work and personal life. 

Managers should encourage employees to take all of their allotted paid leaves. An open-door policy can be an effective solution to maintain the work-life balance. Employees must know that they can approach anyone from management for confidential discussions. 

5. Provide Employees With Opportunities 

People become bored of constantly doing the same job or repetitive tasks. So, their enthusiasm gets reduced, and they get unproductive. And when they feel that they are not learning new things and not growing their skills, they seek new opportunities outside the company. So, managers need to provide employees with the necessary opportunities and challenges to develop their skills and feel satisfied with their job. 

And developing workforce skills is not only a cost; it derives various benefits, too. They can be experts in the field and help to give the company an authoritative place in the market. A company can enhance employee productivity without burning them out. This way, the company can also promote loyalty among employees. 

6. Offer regular two-way feedback

When employees don't feel heard, they can become disengaged. You should listen to what your team says about the company culture and workflow so that you can improve their job satisfaction level. To do this, conduct a regular employee pulse survey. We suggest having it once a month with a maximum of ten questions to keep it short yet meaningful. 

🚀 Proven Examples

Numerous companies are implementing different methods to establish an excellent organizational culture. Here are some ideal examples of  organizations that have succeeded in establishing a healthy work culture and are still maintaining it: 

1. Twitter

Twitter employees are satisfied with their jobs and work culture. Rooftop meetings, yoga classes, free meals, and much more are offered to the workforce. Additionally, unlimited vacations are offered to employees so they can have their own time to reduce stress.

Friendly co-workers and a team-oriented work environment inspire people to give their best at the job. 

2. Google

We are all aware of the tech giant Google is – with its prominent status in the market, it has also managed to be an employee-centric company. Monetary benefits, free meals, trips, parties, gyms, open presentations, and a lot more to mention. 

A positive work environment and a uniformity of culture among its different offices make Google a great place to work. 

3. Adobe

Adobe provides the most significant work opportunities for its workforce. It assigns employees challenging projects and helps them accomplish them. In addition, it allows employees to develop their skills and keeps them hooked to the company. 

Adobe is a synonym for creativity, and so are its employees. 

4. Apple

Apple is another tech giant that proves an employee-centric work culture is a key to success. Its employees are allowed to think outside the box and bring innovative ideas to the table. The company constantly looks for creativity; that’s why it doesn’t hesitate to break the norms and standards.  

Constant efforts to improve teamwork and recognition of innovative ideas keep the workforce engaged at Apple.

5. Netflix

Everyone’s favorite digital streaming platform, Netflix, is also on the list of employee-first organizations. It focuses on providing employees with the freedom and work flexibility they need. The organization allows the workforce to get creative and make necessary decisions without going through the tedious approval process. 

Netflix trusts its employees, provides them with all the necessary information, and even involves them in building strategies. This way, it creates an excellent level of employee loyalty. 

🥳 Wrapping Up

We discussed the importance of company culture, its impact on employee engagement, tips to establish a healthy culture, and its proven examples. In modern-day business practices, organizations tend to focus more and more on employee development. However, in the process of establishing and creating an employee-centric work culture, a company must not forget to consider its core values. 

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Although we didn't discuss it in this article, company culture isn't the only element that has an impact on employee engagement. The organizational model and structure that you've got in place can also play a huge role! For example, a traditional hierarchical model can easily bring disengagement, silos and a lack of agility. On the other hand, alternative organizational models like Holacracy, Sociocracy or Teal can help improve engagement, transparency and agility. So if you haven't tried it yet, it's definitely worth giving it a go!

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