🇩🇪 4 years ago, I moved to Germany...
One small thing I like about living (where I live) is the greeting practice in doctor's waiting rooms, where everyone exchanges "hellos" upon arrival and "goodbyes" upon leaving, with everyone responding back.
Initially, it caught me off guard- not because it was unwelcome, but because it was just different from what I was used to.
Yet, very quickly I found myself doing it without even thinking.
… so what's the link with workplace culture (you know this is where it's going 🤣 !)...?
𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐣𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 (𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤 𝐨𝐫 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐞), 𝐰𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐜𝐮𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠- 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞:
➡ Observing how people behave & speak to each other
➡ Noting whether meetings start punctually,
➡ Identifying decision-makers,
➡ Assessing the follow-through on commitments etc.
𝐖𝐞’𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐮𝐧𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐬, 𝐛𝐞𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐨u𝐫𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐬.
𝐁𝐮𝐭, 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞?
1️⃣ 𝐆𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞: Look through official statements to understand the real, lived experience of the organisation's culture. The essence of an organisation's culture lies in what's practiced, not just what's preached.
2️⃣ 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞: It’s crucial to understand a company's actual behaviors rather than relying on idealised expectations. Observing and documenting real actions and routines provides a true picture of the existing culture.
3️⃣ 𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲 𝐠𝐚𝐩𝐬: Where there are discrepancies between the stated culture and actual practices, transparency is often missing. Addressing these gaps is essential for building an authentic culture. My example is positive, but where there is a disconnect between what is said and done, trust can really be eroded.