Risk & Business Magazine General Insurance Services Magazine Spring 2018 | Page 8

CULTURE
BY: CRAIG MENNE,
PRESIDENT, GENERAL
INSURANCE SERVICES
Why Company Culture Matters
E
arly last year, we were notified
by the Indiana Chamber of
Commerce that our firm had
been named one of the Top 100
Places to Work in the state of
Indiana. We were thrilled to receive the
award and recognition, of course, but the
most valuable aspect of that designation
was the insight that it provided to our
team.
Long story short, we’ve been on a
journey for many years. A journey to
build, cultivate, and maintain a very
specific corporate culture. The Best
Places to Work award was simply a small
acknowledgement that we were on the
right track in pursuit of that objective.
We know we can always improve, and
that’s something we focus on doing every
single day. We maintain that focus within
the broader context of fostering our
unique culture. The real reward doesn’t
come from third-party recognition. The
real reward comes from achieving our
goal.
But enough about us.
If you will allow me to pose a few
questions, I promise there won’t be a
test. Does your organization have a
specific “culture goal”? I would guess
you have growth goals or some type of
8
performance metrics that you track on
a daily basis. That’s great. Those are
important. But do you have cultural
metrics that you track on a daily basis? I
promise those are just as important. In
fact, they highly correlate to your growth
and operational goals.
How about a more basic question? Can
you describe your organization’s culture?
Can you do so in one sentence? Would
your colleagues describe your culture
in the exact same way? Would they use
the same words? If so, congratulations! I
ask these questions of many people, and
the vast majority of folks aren’t able to
provide a simple, concise answer.
Is the culture described by your team,
by your customers, and by your vendors
the culture you want? The truth is every
organization has a culture. The question
is, who is setting and defining that
culture? In many settings, the “squeaky
wheel gets the grease,” and that approach
also sets the tone for much of the rest
of the team. Is that the goal of those
organizations? You can envision the
T-shirts: “Keep Calm and Squeak On.”
My point is not to try and prescribe some
specific culture for your organization.
That’s impossible. That needs to be done
by you and your leadership team. It must
align with your Mission, your Values,
your Vision, and your Strategy. It must
also be 100 percent authentic.
If you haven’t clearly defined your one
sentence Culture Statement but you
would like to start down that path, then
where do you begin? Honestly, give me a
call or send me an email. My direct dial is
219-510-6210 and my email is cmenne@
genins.com. The process differs for each
organization, but I would be happy to
walk you through some specific steps
that helped our firm and will almost
certainly help you and your organization
on your journey. +
Craig Menne, president of General
Insurance Services, was born and raised
in La Porte. He attended DePauw
University where he received his degree
in Economics and graduated as a
Management Fellow. In addition to
his undergraduate degree, Craig also
received his Juris Doctor degree from the
Valparaiso University School of Law and
his Master of Business Administration
from the University of Notre Dame. He is
presently a Board Member of IU Health
La Porte Hospital, Porter Regional
Hospital, and Family Advocates of
La Porte County.