Connect Winter 2016 | Page 19

CONFIGURE WORKSPACE to Reinforce Company Culture
Workspace that symbolizes your culture reminds employees of what the company , brand , and its people stand for . Plus , it echoes your organizational purpose to visiting clients , directly affecting how your brand is perceived by key stakeholders .
Innovative office design is becoming the norm rather than the exception . So much so that employees often expect to work in conditions that simultaneously comfort and inspire . As companies have become aware of this , office space and its related benefits have emerged as key differentiators in winning the right talent and brand followers . One way to use space to your advantage is to engage employees in the design process . Flexible space configurations enable employees to re-tailor the layout , height , and configuration of their desks in ways that make them more productive . Likewise , teams can also adapt work stations to support their projects — moving desks into a circular break-out space or a long row in order to suit their needs through each phase .
CASE STUDIES A Study in Excellence Zappos ’ culture attracts talent — people who genuinely enjoy their work and are good at it — allowing other aspects of the business to develop naturally . Famous for stellar customer service and unique core values , Zappos ’ leadership strives to offer its workforce the same level of attention and benefits its customers enjoy . So much so that management teams from other companies visit Zappos regularly in order to learn from its internal methods . This likely wouldn ’ t happen if it didn ’ t have a culture that resonates deeply — both with other business executives and its own employees . Ten core company values — publicized on its Web site , in job postings , and its CEO ’ s book , to name a few — thoroughly define the company and its mission . The contemporary language is human and intimate , not to mention inspiring :
Î ÎDELIVER WOW THROUGH SERVICE .
Î ÎEMBRACE AND DRIVE CHANGE .
Î ÎCREATE FUN AND A LITTLE WEIRDNESS .
Î ÎBE ADVENTUROUS , CREATIVE , AND OPEN-MINDED .
Î ÎPURSUE GROWTH AND LEARNING .
Î ÎBUILD OPEN AND HONEST RELATIONSHIPS WITH COMMUNICATION .
Î ÎBUILD A POSITIVE TEAM AND FAMILY SPIRIT .
Î ÎDO MORE WITH LESS .
Î ÎBE PASSIONATE AND DETERMINED .
Î ÎBE HUMBLE .
When quizzed , managers attribute the intense employee loyalty to a culture that celebrates and cultivates the passion , purpose , and humanity of its employees .
CASE STUDIES
Minimalism That Speaks Volumes Much like its blank search page , bearing only a logo and search box , Google ’ s culture is direct and to the point . Based on the mission statement — to organize the world ’ s information and to make it universally accessible and useful — its culture is about minimizing distractions , personal and otherwise , so that employees remain focused and committed . Observe their Googleplex in California , which treats employees to free gourmet food , including sushi and espresso . They also have access to fitness centers , shower facilities , video games , on-site child care , and doctors . Going above and beyond is nothing new for Google . They even provide four months of paternal leave at 75 % of full pay , while offering $ 500 for take-out meals to families with a newborn . The aim : to keep employee focus on Google . Google is also all about simplifying complexity . Accordingly , decisions are processed in teams — within which employees use rational persuasion and data to influence each other . Carrying this cultural trait further , all processes are aligned in a system , including risk-taking and innovation . This allows them to act quickly and react responsively even while accepting costly mistakes — a natural consequence of working on the cutting edge . This willingness to absorb the cost of innovation can be found throughout its business . For instance , in order to promote new ideas from within , it encourages all of its engineers to spend 20 % of their time actually working on new ideas — time that might appear wasteful on the balance sheet , but which can offer dividends in maintaining competitive advantage . Such a strategy is particularly crucial as the tech innovator addresses the challenge of expanding its business beyond its core Web search engine business .
CONNECT CULTURE WINTER 2016 // SNB . COM | 19