NFIB

Company Culture: Your Face to the World
05/ 18/ 2004

by Jim R. Sapp

The way you treat and reward employees is one part of your company's culture. Culture is the company's way of life. It is how the business functions, operates, handles stress and reinforces its staff. It is the company's general attitude toward the world.

As the owner and leader of a small business, you create the culture for your organization. It spreads to each employee. Whatever you want your staff to be like, you have to be like that yourself. If you expect deadlines to be met, you and your leadership must adhere to those deadlines, too. You should be the last person to break a rule. That does not mean you should work the longest hours or not take time off -- it simply means you should adhere to the parking rules and the dress code just like everyone else in the organization. Your culture is the momentum that pushes sales or creates new products and services. It is the attitude for establishing good customer service, the follow-through on sales closings or the drive to continue looking for production efficiencies.

A cohesive culture doesn't mean everyone always gets along or gets his or her way. You want your staff to speak intelligently about their areas of expertise, to give you solid information and honest opinions. However, you may have differences of opinion, or your staff members may not understand the big picture. There will be times when you, as the owner, have to say no to a business request or expense. You have to make decisions that propel the company forward. It's important for you to create a culture that allows disagreements -- an environment in which your staff will "agree to disagree" with you, then move forward and support your decision.

You create your company's culture with everything from your corporate logo, to your business cards and letterhead, to your office setting, to the products or services you provide. It is all company culture, and it's vital to your overall success.

If you fly frequently, you can tell there is a difference among the various airlines. The culture of Southwest Airlines is unlike that of United. United is business oriented, whereas Southwest has built a reputation as a fun, light-hearted and irreverent airline with a happy staff. It is said that Southwest's biggest hiring criterion is whether an applicant smiles during his or her interview. Southwest feels it can train anyone to do the job, but it can't teach a person to have a positive attitude. The airline industry regularly faces many unhappy, hurried passengers. With flight delays, lost luggage, increased security issues, weather problems and mechanical failures, Southwest Airlines has recognized that smiling staff members can handle negative issues skillfully and still satisfy their customers. Their culture obviously works for them. Southwest receives consistently high ratings for on-time performance and customer satisfaction, and it was the only U.S. airline that did not lay off employees after the September 11 tragedy or during the early 2002 recession.

Remember, however, that there are a number of successful corporate cultures. One is not necessarily better than the other -- they're just different. As a company owner, you must be careful to decide what view you want your customers, staff and stakeholders to remember about your business. It is not one issue but all the issues of the company together that create its culture. You want to portray an image that fits with you and your employees and is right for your organization.

You may decide that the corporate image you want is that your company cares about its employees, that it recycles and is environmentally responsible, and that it is fair and honest with its vendors. As the owner, you have the awesome duty of creating the environment to foster this success.

The following is a short list of both major and minor issues that you can control to create the culture and traditions for your company.

Major Issues
Mission statement
President's attitude
Quality of product or service
Company performance/profitability
Bonuses and benefits

Minor Issues
Company logo
Stationery colors and paper
Location
Office decor
Company dress code

You should make the decisions on the major issues affecting your corporate culture. The minor issues are important, but they can be handled in part by your staff. You do not have the time to decide the weight of your stationery paper, or the weekly objective for the production department. By delegating responsibility, you begin to build a company that encourages staff to try new ideas.

Jim R. Sapp is an international business consultant and speaker with more than 25 years experience as a business owner and entrepreneur. He is founder and director of the American Small Business Institute, and recipient of both the "Entrepreneur of the Year" award and "Blue Chip Enterprise Award" for inspirational achievement in business. His book Starting Your First Business is available from www.sappbiz.com or by calling 800.570.5436.

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