Developing a Company Culture in Your Growing Start-up
There’s a lot happening as a start-up, as New Millennia know only too well, we have been working with recruitment start-ups for over 15 years now. You have many plates to keep spinning and your main focus is not always going to be keeping morale high and workforce invested and happy. However this has a bigger part to play than you might think and a good company culture could even reduce staff turnover.
There are a number of factors to consider for your successful, recruitment start up to remain successful as it grows. What works in the beginning; the way your small team works together, the practices and protocols are obviously working for you if you’re experiencing growth. These are the things you want to nurture for a prosperous company culture. They may be things that you’re aware you want to keep and build on, but here are some core practices and values you might want to consider for your own company culture.
Lead by example
This seems like a fairly obvious statement, and one that may be thrown around quite a bit, but in building yourself a sustainable and strong company culture, your current staff and new recruits need to see and experience your company’s expectations from the top.
If you are the first to arrive in the morning and the last to leave at night, this sets the tone of a hard working office or business environment, with a leader who puts in the hours and is always hard at work. You can’t ask the best of your workforce if you aren’t giving the best of yourself, your staff will be aware of this even if not consciously, and hopefully follow your good example. This can really be applied to all aspects of your company culture.
Team Building
Team building; the tried and tested way of bringing your workforce together to develop working relationships. To make this more effective and build a culture that doesn’t say ‘all work, no play’ – take it outside of the office. Take your staff away from your usual working environment to develop your teams. It’s a good idea for management to be present and involved in these events, linking back to point 1.
To develop a sustainable company culture your staff need to feel valued, we have two points in this vein:
Open-Door Policy
Open-door policies within companies are often boasted, however to really make it work, your staff need to feel and experience that this is really how your start up is run. Are they able to approach the head of their team, or any member of management?
This is again a good way to lead by example, if you practice honesty and transparency among your management team, and information and communication flows easily from the top, staff are more likely to respond and follow suit.
You’re also offering and encouraging a way for new recruits to contribute with ideas that could well benefit the company.
Maintaining Company Traditions
You can choose which traits you take with you when your recruitment start up first begins to grow. If you and the small, core team who built your start-up have always, for example, had a beer on a Friday afternoon, brought cakes in on a Wednesday, or openly congratulated the person who has achieved the most at the end of the week, try to bring these traditions with you as you grow. By sharing these traditions with your team you instil a sense of inclusion and belonging and they, in turn, feel a little more invested in your start up and company culture overall.
Encourage new recruits to not only get involved but to contribute to your traditions. If they have an idea they are passionate about, which could benefit the team or company, look at including these in your current culture, your new recruits will feel valued and welcome.
Get to know your employees
Getting to know employees is beneficial for management and staff alike. A visible effort to get to know staff promotes a caring recruitment start-up that is showing a genuine, interest in their workforce. This also allows you more information about your employees, you can see personal strengths and weaknesses, allowing staff to be well positioned and placed to get the best from each member.
