In my last blog I talked about the ‘culture deficit’ – the difference between what you think your organisation is doing versus what it is actually doing. In summary it discussed the fact that the behaviour and actions of people, within an organisation, don’t always reflect the vision, purpose, values and expected behaviours of the organisation.
In a post recession economic environment in which increased media scrutiny, regulation and competition are ever present, the behaviour of people within an organisation is key to its success. I say this because behaviour drives actions which will dictate how risk decisions are made, how the customer is treated and this will ultimately have an impact on how many new customers an organisation attracts or loses.
So establishing a culture that is trustworthy, innovative, competitive and peak performing is key but how do you know if that is what you have?
In my view the culture needs to be reviewed in the same way that the company accounts are audited and on a regular basis. As with a financial audit, this can be done internally but if you want to know how you are really doing it should also be done externally.
An external audit conducted on an annual or bi-annual basis will give you a clear indication of whether you are on track with your vision and strategy and if you are not it will give you recommendations of how you can get back on track.
How do you do it?
I believe a 5 stage process will give you the results you need:
- Stage 1 – Definition
- Stage 2 – Measurement
- Stage 3 – Analysis
- Stage 4 – Results
- Stage 5 – Recommendations
For more information on the Kintail Consulting Culture Audit please contact us at info@kintailconsulting.com
