A
Archaeologists live for artifacts. As they unearth fragments
of the past – a shred of fabric, a silver pot, a crumbling wall, an
ancient writing – they slowly begin, piece by piece, to build their
understanding of a culture long gone.
These artifacts are keys to the past. Without them, we know
little – or nothing at all – of the people who preceded us. With
artifacts, however, we come to understand the beliefs, values,
customs and behaviors of these people. In short, we come to
understand their culture.
As any archaeologist will tell you, artifacts are essential in
understanding culture. If it weren’t for a little artifact called the
Rosetta Stone, for instance, we might still be scratching our heads
at those funny drawings on Egyptian walls. And if it weren’t for
those “funny drawings” themselves (i.e., hieroglyphics), we might
not know a thing about ancient Egypt.
I’ve always thought it would be exciting to go on an
archaeological dig. Just imagine having the chance to help unearth
artifacts that told a story, that conveyed culture! This would be very
rewarding.
Alas, the closest I’ve come to experiencing an archaeological
dig was through watching “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” But even this
was enough to keep me on the edge of my seat! Sure, the fight
and chase scenes were exciting, but when Indiana Jones found and
explored the desert chamber, I felt like I was right there with him.
What a thrill it must be for archaeologists, I thought, to discover
something that’s been hidden for thousands of years ... to find an
object that holds cultural keys to the past.
For that is exactly what artifacts are – cultural keys.
Corporate Culture or Corporate Wish
“But we communicate our culture
through stories, not stuff!”
Where most companies fail to live out their corporate wish
is in their lack of lasting, applicable artifacts. The company that
claimed to be customer-centered, for instance, simply didn’t have
the stuff to back it up. If they were to start posting customer photos
on the walls, among many other actions, perhaps their corporate
wish would start transforming into an actual corporate culture.
“What about stories?” you ask. “Isn’t storytelling an important
part of perpetuating culture?”
Yes, it is. I agree that storytelling, dialogue and face-to-face
interactions are all important in establishing, building and
sustaining corporate culture. But let’s face it, a physical artifact
provides evidence that storytelling cannot, evidence that an alleged
value really is hardwired into a company’s culture.
How? Because artifacts aren’t easily changed by executive
whims, changing markets or shifting economies. Artifacts are more
constant, more permanent and more quantifiable than dialogue.
Tremendous amounts of time, thought, planning and money go
into aligning physical artifacts with a desired culture. To remove
these artifacts, and the culture they represent, takes considerable
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Just as the Egyptians and other ancient civilizations had
unique cultures, your business has a culture. This culture is made
up of the beliefs, values, customs and behaviors of your company’s
employees.
Corporate culture is a very real thing. The question is not,
“Do we have a culture?” – trust me, you do – but rather, “Have we
defined our culture, and do we reinforce it with everything we do?”
Many companies have the first part of this question down pat.
In taking great care to write mission statements, visions, values and
the like, they have eloquently defined their corporate culture.
Or at least what they want their culture to be. You see, often
there’s a wide expanse between perceived culture and actual culture.
A company can define its culture until it’s blue in the face; if
the men and women of that company don’t live the culture out,
however, their defined culture is nothing more than words.
A culture must be more than defined. It must be reinforced on
a daily basis. It must leave artifacts behind as proof.
I once consulted with a company that claimed to have a very
customer-centered culture. “The customer is everything,” said the
CEO, “and everyone’s main focus is the customer experience.” Yet
I found no physical evidence to support this claim. Everywhere I
turned, corporate artifacts evidenced a culture that really valued
company procedures, process manuals and rigid rules not the
customer experience. I couldn’t even find a photograph of a
customer in the entire company headquarters.
Was this company’s main focus truly the customer experience?
Or is that just what they wanted it to be? This is the difference
between a corporate culture and a corporate wish.
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