DESIGNING AND COMMUNICATING A CORPORATE MINDSET THAT CAN EFFECT CHANGE IN YOUR ORGANISATION
What is as important as designing a culture is communicating it the right way
When Peter Drucker said, “culture eats strategy for breakfast”, I guess what he was saying in essence is that for organisational growth to take place, a new kind of mindset has to be embraced. The kind that enables an adaptation to new demands. One doesn’t simply strategise without considering the culture of the time. Culture is evolutionary, therefore, strategies that effect any tangible change have to evolve as well. The right mindset will however drive this culture/corporate change towards the success of the organisation.
New Perspectives for Corporate Development
Most organisations would use powerpoint slides whenever a strategy update is being presented to their staff. In a lot of cases, these presentations are filled with obscurities and vagueness. They are filled with lots of figures which bear virtually no meaning to the people they are intended for. They tend to address the need of an organisational change by using the imperative as a direct language. Despite these, we hardly see one CEO advocating for cultural change.
It is as if most of today’s leadership assume that their employees can understand business strategies on presentation slides. One thing we should never assume is that corporate or cultural change gracing the pages of presentation slides actually do translate to any real effective change. If the culture changes, so must our methods of communicating said changes.
Will More of the Same Get the Job Done?
The reception of such an approach is quite weak and this is backed up by multiple researches we have conducted. Therefore, we developed visual mindsets based on the strategy, vision and mission of the companies we work for. During these exercises, we found out that visual elements are very well accepted by the staff. Once the mindset is developed through intensive workshops and interviews, specific materials are developed for the implementation phase. A rollout is often combined with a larger visual campaign, training and facilitator guides.
Doing the same thing over and over will not yield a different outcome. Since we are dealing with change in mindset and culture, doing more of the same thing will unfortunately not get the job done. Communicating the strategies to achieve this will also have to be different.
The Mindset is the Basis for your Strategy
Your organisation is facing a major change on how to engage with customers, employees and stakeholders. Facing the demand for major shifts on how to drive your business forward, on how you manage your portfolio and how you develop, train and recruit your staff. Then you need to give some serious thought to the culture you’re operating in.
However, you have to first have a good grasp on what culture actually means. The definition of culture has to be first set and the expectations of said culture. Another powerpoint slide will not get the job done until you address the cultural barriers. The best way to do this is by defining a mindset and communicating this in a clear and positive language.
The We Factor — Building Bridges and Breaking Barriers
The mindset has the potential to enhance your business in various areas.
- Once the mindset addresses cultural barriers, you get into a dialogue with the leadership in which you find new insights. The mindset will give your staff a clear direction and the right tools will give your leadership a strong instrument with which to engage their staff on a deeper level. How do we engage with our customers, business partners and stakeholders? Which kind of behaviour do we need? What kind of attitude do we embrace? In what areas do we need development and where are we already excelling? These are some of the numerous questions that the leadership will have to ask if cultural barriers are to be broken.
- The mindset will give your HR strategy a new set of requirements for recruiting the right employees, avoiding bad hiring and terrible promotion decisions which lead to high cost.
- The mindset will give you a strong tool and wording for your employer branding. With your specific corporate mindset, you can develop a unique asset for your HR marketing which goes far beyond buzzwords and erroneous claims that is used by your competitors too. The mindset will demonstrate to your partners, investors and clients that you are really willing to face change on a deeper level and finally, that you care about your staff and you take responsibility for your organisational development on a cultural basis.
- Addressing a mindset requires foresightedness. It will challenge your leadership but will present you the opportunity of getting everyone on the boat. This helps the leadership face the organisational challenges in unity and with commitment. Doing this guarantees a major positive impact for all your strategic initiatives.
Mindset change is not about picking up a few pointers here and there. It’s about seeing things in a new way.” — Carol S. Dweck, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success
Written by Klaus Motoki Tonn for Lumen Partners
