how wuld one go about developing an organisation from the softer aspects...if you could throw some light.?My reply was:
The (so-called) 'softer' aspects of the organization is the actual reality of the organization. Hence what is encouraged leads to a reinforcement of behaviors that comprise the culture of the organization. To build the culture one has to constantly focus on actual behaviors and understand how to reinforce the positives and discourage the negative or unwanted behavior.
So what are your organization's "professed values" and what are the "values in practice" ? How much is the overlap? How much is the disconnect?
The more the disconnect, the less trust will your employees have with the company. The more you'll have to focus on 'external motivators' to persuade people to stay. To put it simply, people will be cynical of official announcements/communications and reasoning.
The more the overlap, the more your organization enjoys credibility and trust with the people working for you.
"The (so-called) 'softer' aspects of the organization is the actual reality of the organization."-- I haven't heard it said better.
ReplyDeleteI would only add to your advice by saying that when choosing what behaviors (norms) to reinforce-- it helps to draw a distinction between performance focused norms and secondary norms.
The former focus on how hard people work, how much timeliness is valued, what's the emphasis on quality yada yada.
While secondary norms are the whole gamut of other characteristics: how people dress, how they talk, what kind of music they like etc.
Its best for the management to focus on performance norms. Focusing too much on secondary norms (often done in the name of "uniformity") only draws away from the actual tasks and breeds discontent.