Financial

6 Ways To Build A Great Company Culture

Every business has a culture— that’s right, even yours! But what makes the difference between a healthy company culture and a toxic one? Read on to find out.

First, let’s get clear about what company culture is. It can seem kind of hazy, but culture is just the collective attitudes and behaviors of your organization. Culture is how your company does things— and it’s not one-size-fits-all. Now that you know what it is, you may be asking: Why is it important to focus on company culture? That’s a great question! And we have the answers (and some tips you can use to transform your business). Let’s get into it.

The way your team experiences your business has a major impact on how effective they are in their roles. A miserable work experience (aka a toxic culture) is bad for your business’s brand and growth potential, as well as team members’ productivity and mental health. And the opposite is true too—a healthy culture keeps your team happy and engaged in their roles and contributes to the growth of your business. According to a survey by Gallup, businesses with the highest employee engagement are 23% more profitable than those with the lowest employee engagement.

Characteristics of a Toxic Company Culture

So, what does a harmful company culture look like? It may be glaringly obvious in some areas, but other symptoms can be subtle. Here are a few signs you may have a bad company culture: • Team members don’t feel safe to communicate openly with leaders • Illegal, dishonest, or unethical behaviors (especially by leadership) • High team member turnover rate • Pressure from leaders to constantly work long hours, not take vacation days, and neglect worklife balance •Team members constantly fear failure or being fired without warning • Gossip and work-related drama • Passive-aggressive communication

Examples of Companies with Great Cultures

Every company, big or small, has a workplace culture. Here are some examples of healthy company cultures:

Zappos

This online shoe giant consistently gets ranked as one of the best corporate cultures in America—and that doesn’t happen by accident. When describing their company culture, Zappos said, “We’ve learned that if you identify your company’s core values, hire by them, onboard team members by them, and truly live by them; then your business is on a long-term path to success, profit and growth.” From its hiring practices to customer service to the work environment, everything and everyone reinforce the company’s core values.

BELAY

Named one of Inc. magazine’s Best Workplaces of 2020 and listed in FlexJobs’ Top 100 Companies to Watch for Remote Jobs in 2021, the virtual staffing firm has built a highly engaged team and award-winning culture—even while working 100% remote. BELAY attributes that to knowing how culture is really built: with values, not gimmicks. “[Our culture is] not Ping-Pong tables, fully stocked beer fridges, and nap pods,” said BELAY. “We instill our mission and values of gratitude, teamwork, vision, passion, fun and God into every one of our nearly 1,200 remote workforce team members.”

Ramsey Solutions

Not to toot our own horn, but yes, Ramsey Solutions is known for our culture. Named one of the Best Places to Work in Nashville 11 times, thousands of people apply to work at Ramsey Solutions every year. To name a few of our perks: Communication is open, every team member knows they’re doing work that matters, schedules are flexible, and work-life balance is encouraged. Add to that our amazing leadership who encourage their teams to personally grow, and you can see why it’s so popular to work here.

6 Tips for Improving Your Workplace Culture

Okay, so culture is important. But how do you make sure yours is healthy? Well, whatever your culture is like, it’s either being created or tolerated. Meaning, you’re either intentionally leading your business’s culture, or you’re just accepting whatever behaviors your team dishes out.

If you’re worried your team (including leadership) might be a bit toxic, there’s good news: Leaders get to decide what they want their workplace culture to be like and can make changes. Here are six things you can do to improve your company’s culture:

1 Lead with Values

Create your culture by leading your business with core values. These values answer the question, “What do we, as an organization, stand for?” By clearly defining what your business stands for (and what it doesn’t), you’re deciding to create a culture where people with similar values can love the work they do—and thrive.

Core values communicate:

• What you expect from your team • What your team can expect from you • How your business should interact with customers

Your core values can also help you make good hires, better deci-

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sions and a strong impression in the marketplace. So, if you haven’t already, you want to spend some time thinking about this and putting in the work to write out your company values. But remember, just defining your values isn’t enough— you have to live them out! And your team needs to do the same.

2 Give Your Team a Mission

For many business owners, a mission statement is just a checked box—something they put on their website and forget about. They don’t really use it to inspire, make decisions, or drive their business forward. But doing that has a negative effect on company culture, team member engagement and productivity.

Team members feel it when a business doesn’t have a genuine, meaningful mission. In fact, it’s so important that one survey found over half of U.S. employees said they have taken a pay cut for a job that provides more meaningful work.

People really want to do work that matters. And it makes a big difference to their performance. One study shows that people who feel like they do meaningful work are more likely to work harder and retire later in life.

Bestselling author and speaker Simon Sinek said it well: “Working hard for something we don’t care about is called stress. Working hard for something we love is called passion.” To have a highly engaged culture, you need to lead your business toward fulfilling a clear, aspirational mission. So, ask yourself: Why does my business exist?

3 Perfect Your Hiring Process

The people you invite on your team can have a big impact on the health of your culture. Think about it, have you ever made a bad hire? If so, you know one killjoy can undermine morale, slow things down, and put your business’s reputation in jeopardy. And turnover is expensive, whether a team member chooses to leave, or you show them the door. In fact, the Work Institute estimates that employers lose $15,000 every time a team member leaves—and that’s a conservative number.

So, tighten up your hiring process. Don’t just look for skills and experience alone. Look for character qualities that align with your company’s core values—and take your time! We know when you’re in a bind that it can be tempting to get anyone with experience in the door. But the biggest mistake leaders make when hiring is rushing the process. It takes time and conversation to really get a sense for a person’s personality, values, and passions—all of which are important for figuring out if a candidate is a good fit for the culture.

We recommend a thorough approach when it comes to adding new members to the team—our hiring process has 12 steps. That may seem like a lot of time and effort but hiring the wrong person can cost you a lot more.

4 Stop Tolerating Office Gossip

Most people accept workplace gossip as par for the course. People talk—no big deal, right? Wrong! Gossip is destructive—it can kill team unity dead. We define gossip as: saying something negative about anyone or anything to someone who can’t do anything about it. It’s better when team members only tell their leaders about the bad stuff— not each other. In fact, we follow a rule: Negatives go up, positives go all around. Celebrate with everyone, but if someone has a problem, they need to take it to someone who can do something about it. Otherwise, it just creates drama, speculation, mistrust, confusion and the like. So, get rid of gossip!

Are you guilty of gossip? Your first step to turning things around in your business is to make sure you’re setting the example. Then communicate to your team that gossip won’t be tolerated at work anymore. Finally—and this is the hardest part—stick to your guns. You must follow through and hold people accountable to your no-gossip policy if you want to remove it from your culture.

5 Communicate with Transparency

Lack of information can lead to confusion and frustration, and many people just have a bad habit of assuming the worst. That’s why companies with winning cultures have high levels of communication with their teams. You don’t have to share everything, but you must be transparent with your team to build trust. It may seem simple but communicate early and often with your team. And not just about the bad stuff—be proactive about celebrating too.

Here are a few topics to cover with your team regularly:

• The mission of the business

See COMPANY CULTURE on Page 40

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Christian Money Management

By John Dillard

ONE OF THE most widely discussed issues in all the Bible is money, covering its gathering, storing, and use. In the New International Version of the Bible money is mentioned one hundred and fourteen times. Knowing how to properly use money and to understand how God views money is your best defense to preclude money's rule over your life. Reviewing these words will help you to know what money was intendd for and what it is not. Money, like all good and perfect gifts, and be misused. Money is a method of currency established by God to help us transact business, buy needed wares and foodstuffs, and as enumeration for services. Money when used wisely can be a great asset for both your family, your physical well-being, and the Kingdom. Keeping these time-tested precepts at the forefront of your mind will help enable you to use money the way God had always intended.

Money as a Tool

Money was never intended to be used as anything but a commodity. Like wheat or any other tangible item, it can be measured and valued, it can lose as well as gain in worth and as we have seen in the dramatic recent fall of stock markets nationally and abroad. Though all of us have basic money concerns when our stock values fall, inflation and bankruptcies soar, home values decline, we are encouraged to keep all in perspective.

If we fail to keep money in its proper place, to use and see it as a tool rather than an end, we are prone to its idolization and therefore our own personal spiritual demise. Just as we are called to be content in all things so should we be content with the resources God has granted us by utilizing them wisely. In (Proverbs 17:16) we are told that a man who has money and does not seek wisdom is a fool and God offers wisdom liberally for all who seek it. "Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless." (Ecclesiastes 5:10)

Live Below Your Means

Living below your means is totally against all that the world would have us do. With credit card debt, home equity loans, car loans and second mortgages being readily available it is difficult for all of us to exercise restraint. Keeping in mind a few simple ideas will do much to help eliminate unnecessary spending. Never use a credit card if you can't pay the balance in full when the bill arrives or unless it is an absolute emergency. Regardless of how you feel or the extent of your desires, having the latest technological gadget or latest fashion item is not an absolute and critical need.

For most all of us, buying a car is the second largest purchase we will ever make and therefore the second most essential that we make a wise and judicious decision. Car companies will offer longer re-payment periods, leases, and sweetheart deals to entice you to buy whatever your heart desires. Many of the payment periods are so long that many vehicles will have no substantive working or monetary value at the time of the last payment, necessitating that your next vehicle purchase also be over an extended payment period. To avoid falling prey to the constant "money trap" of car payments it is generally better not to lease cars, but to buy and own them outright and to finance a car over a shorter rather than a longer payment period.

Most initial car purchases may require some type of debt to get you started but limiting this debt, paying it off as soon as possible and paying cash for future vehicles will be a good start to limiting excessive car payments and liabilities. Also explore buying a good use car as an alternative to the often-unnecessary expense of that new car you feel you cannot live without. Living below your means will allow you to better provide for your business and family allowing you a cushion and extra margin when unexpected contingencies arrive. "Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have." (Hebrews 13:5)

Invest & Use Money Wisely

God exhorts us to earn our money honestly, investing it wisely and allowing it to grow slowly over time (Proverbs 13:11). For we can either chose to serve God or to serve money, as it is impossible to do both (Matthew 6:24). Using money judiciously requires us to understand not only money is used but also how it should be invested.

One of the most telling of Jesus parables is in the telling of the talents where a master's money is allocated to his three servants based upon the ability of the parties involved. Two of the servants invested the money well and earned even more money while the third

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servant hid the money failing to gain even the interest that could have been gained had it been invested at a bank. Upon the master returning and discovering what had transpired, he took the money from the un-wise investor and gave it to the servants who invested prudently. Then the servant who now had nothing was thrown outside into the dark where there was great weeping and gnashing of teeth. God wants his people to enjoy all good and perfect gifts He provides, and it is up to us as Believers to know and understand God's plan for money and our lives. Although I am not aware of compounding interest being examined anywhere in either the Old or New Testament, the concept of interest and its ability for growth are time tested, well approved, and documented.

Faith & Stewardship

God is best able to help us when we are in the Word, surrounded by wise counsel and are seeking after His will for our life. In (Acts 8:20), we are reminded that our money and all we accumulate will be immediately of no use to us at our death as indeed we are all saved by grace, and that no gift or any amount of money will ever help us buy our way into Heaven. In Mark 6:8 when Jesus sends the disciples out for missions, he encourages them to take no money along with them for the journey leaving divine providence alone as the financier of their work. It is usually when we are at our wits end or out of resources where our walk become more faith than self-based. "Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, serving as overseers-not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be not greedy for money, but eager to serve." (1 Peter

5:2)

We are all a work in process for which God prunes us, readying our spirit for what lay ahead. Leaning not on our own understanding but the Bible's is the most important step you will ever make in determining to use your resources wisely. Applying these precepts to your money management will help you avoid unnecessary debt, frivolous expenditures, invest wisely and to use your money as it has always been intended.

John Dillard is an author and Certified Public Accountant. To See how he takes Christ along with him to work visit www.HisCPA.com and for his latest book Overcoming Life's 9/11's: Job's Journey visit www.John-Dillard.com "Dare to Attempt Something so Great for the Kingdom of God that it is doomed to failure, lest Christ be in it!" © 2022 oChristian.com. All Rights Reserved >

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COMPANY CULTURE

Continued from Page 38 • Core values • Vision for the future • Team transitions and changes • Revenue goals and how the business is performing • The why behind business decisions • Your appreciation

All these things build deeper, stronger connections with your team and keep everyone on the same page with what’s going on in the business. And don’t worry, if communication isn’t your strength, our free Team Communication Field Guide can help you cover the basics.

6 Show Them the Money

Working hard and not getting paid well is a major buzzkill. While money isn’t the only thing that matters to team member engagement, it does matter. If you want people who are super fired up to help your business win every day, then make sure you’re not only paying them well but also incentivizing them— including non-salespeople—for excellent work.

Here at Ramsey Solutions, there are numerous compensation plans—from commission for salespeople to monthly profit sharing and bonuses. Maybe you can’t overhaul your entire payroll, but there are other creative ways you can reward your team (think: team outings, an occasional complimentary lunch, and a surprise gift card for that assistant who went above and beyond during a tough week). To get more ideas, check out The EntreLeader’s Guide to Compensation on our website.

Changing company culture is no easy feat—but you can do it. And it’ll be worth all the hard work, because when you create a company culture where people are unified and love what they do, there’s really nothing you can’t achieve as a team.

And if you need some hands-on guidance, join us for EntreLeadership Master Series. This conference will give you real-life, proven advice for growing your business and building a best-place-to-workever culture.

Remember, culture is either created or tolerated. So, get intentional and get to it!

Ramsey Solutions

Ramsey Solutions has been committed to helping people regain control of their money, build wealth, grow their leadership skills, and enhance their lives through personal development since 1992. Millions of people have used our financial advice through 22 books (including 12 national bestsellers) published by Ramsey Press, as well as two syndicated radio shows and 10 podcasts, which have over 17 million weekly listeners.

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Food For Thought

The worst-tempered people By J.R. Miller

"The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." Galatians 5:22-23

The worst-tempered people may be made gentle and loving in all their words, acts, and dispositions — by the renewing and transforming power of divine grace. God can take the jangled keys and put them in tune — if we will only put them into His hand.

But we must strive ourselves to be sweet-tempered. We must watch the rising anger — and quickly choke it back. We must keep down our ugly disposition. We must learn to control ourselves, our tempers, our feelings, our passions, and our tongues. We must seek to develop the gentle virtues — and crowd out the thorns! This discipline is not easy, but the lessons can be mastered. "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13

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