Keeping your employees satisfied and motivated is key to good business culture. Not only is good for the team, it is great for your bottom line. Happy employees means less turnover, which in itself can save you money. But the loyalty it provides means employees take less time off and are more willing to go the extra mile to ensure the business succeeds.

Most successful businesses understand how vital it is to create a positive business culture. They know they need to invest in their team. This may not mean investing large amounts of money, most of business culture comes from the energy or vibe of the business.

Because business culture is more about feeling, it can be difficult to quantify. How do you know if your business has a great business culture?

Employee Retention

The most obvious way to ‘vibe check’ your business culture is to look at how long your average team member stays with the company. Happy and engaged employees are more likely to stay put, even when things may be tough. If you have multiple long-term employees, it is a good sign that your business culture is headed in the right direction. If you are looking to improve the culture, ask these long-term employees. Those that have been there the longest have seen the changes that you may have missed. They are usually also very trusted in the business and you can rely on their input.

Involvement

A great business culture will allow lots of opportunities for involvement. The way to check if it is working is if your team are actually getting involved. If you host regular personal or professional development activities, are your team all showing up? If so, good job, especially if the activity was outside normal hours of operation.

The success of your business culture can be indicated by the level of involvement by each employee.

Transparency

Business culture starts at the top and the easiest way to promote negative business culture is a lack of honesty and transparency. A lack of communication will only make your team feel less valued. Every team member needs to know where they stand and where the business is headed. Communicate your vision with the team and let them know what business culture you would like to cultivate. Lead by example, be honest and you will find that your team appreciate it.

Celebration

It is so important to celebrate your business culture and celebrate wins in your business. For more on celebrating your business culture, check this out.

Simply put, celebrating your employees and recognizing their efforts and achievements is a key indicator of a healthy and happy business culture.

Accessibility

You and your management must be accessible and approachable for your team members. This goes with being transparent, leaders need to lead by example. Your team need to be able to trust their leaders and come to them with any issues, knowing they will be heard.

Comfort

Business culture is mostly about making your team members feel like they are at home within your business, like they belong. This extends to your physical environment. Think about your amenities and the comfort level of your team workspaces. It can contribute significantly to morale levels to have some great spaces to work, including spaces for lunch and breaks.

Opportunity

A sign of great business culture can also be seen in the opportunities given to each team member. Job satisfaction is tied so closely to business culture and having opportunities for growth and learning are vital to job satisfaction. Support your team members and the growth they want to take, both personally and professionally to foster a strong sense of community.

A strong business culture means that your team truly feel like a team. It removes the need for office gossip or politics as everyone is generally happy and positive. Obviously, you are always going to get days when your team members feel a little low, and a great business culture respects that not everyone is always on top of their game. By having a healthy and positive business culture, you can allow your team members to feel free to be themselves and in turn they will give you their best.