Workplace culture is NOT posters on the wall. But it IS buildable: And leaders would be wise to focus on doing so, Because toxic cultures ↳Drive away good people ↳Reduce productivity ↳And harm customer satisfaction Use these 16 do's and don'ts to create a strong company culture: 1) Communicate transparently ↳Do: Share goals, strategies, and information in an open way ↳Don't: Assume people know without you explicitly sharing 2) Show appreciation ↳Do: Recognize and celebrate effort and wins, and say thanks ↳Don't: Hold back - all kinds of recognition can go a long way 3) Promote innovation ↳Do: Create a culture that enables new ideas and healthy risk-taking ↳Don't: Punish people for mistakes or dismiss alternative viewpoints 4) Encourage collaboration ↳Do: Promote sharing knowledge and resources across teams ↳Don't: Fail to include employees in changes or big efforts 5) Give purpose ↳Do: Define a mission that drives the organization's work ↳Don't: Make it just about revenue or profit 6) Seek feedback ↳Do: Ask employees at all levels for feedback often ↳Don't: Fail to share the takeaways and act on them 7) Be kind ↳Do: Get to know and care about employees as people ↳Don't: Let unkind or toxic people stay in the organization 8) Show respect ↳Do: Trust people, treat them like adults, and give them autonomy ↳Don't: Treat employees like they’re dumb or unable to handle nuance 9) Support growth ↳Do: Invest in the development and goals of your people ↳Don't: Hold back high performers because of bureaucracy or ego 10) Encourage dissent ↳Do: Empower people to disagree and speak up on big decisions ↳Don't: Always have leaders share first or shut down opposing views 11) Provide reliability ↳Do: What you promise you will, by when you promise you will ↳Don't: Change expectations, roles, or priorities constantly 12) Push balance ↳Do: Encourage time away, time offline, and flexible hours ↳Don't: Have one policy on paper and a different one in practice 13) Take ownership ↳Do: Ensure leaders take responsibility for mistakes ↳Don't: Create a culture of blame 14) Demonstrate integrity ↳Do: Make the ethical decision whether or not others are watching ↳Don't: Think there’s wiggle room 15) Ensure fairness ↳Do: Pay and promote based on merit ↳Don't: Allow favoritism at any level 16) Be inclusive ↳Do: Make sure all voices are heard ↳Don't: Allow bullies or cliques Prioritize these, and you'll begin to build a culture that people are clamoring to be a part of. Any actions I'm missing? --- ♻️ Repost to help more organizations strengthen their cultures. And follow me George Stern for more content like this. | 133 comments on LinkedIn