Developing and communicating your company’s culture is a vital part of attracting and retaining new talent. You want to ensure that your company showcases its core cultural values as soon as a new employee starts their work there-or even sooner if possible-so that there is no confusion about expectations.
A positive and supportive workplace culture will invite new employees in. It will help to establish trust and ensure that they feel immediately supported.
So, how do you communicate your company culture clearly?
Lead by Example
As a leader, it’s your responsibility to embody your company culture. Employees will only buy into your company culture if you do too-and they’ll eventually catch on if you’re being fake, so make sure it’s authentic.
If you promote an aspect of your company culture that you, yourself don’t actually take part in, any new employees will easily see straight through this. This will send them a very clear message that you are not serious about your leadership role or the company itself.
Prove that you value your staff by asking for their advice during morning meetings. Show new employees that there are no “stupid questions.” Do this by genuinely championing their out-of-the-box thinking and ideas. Offering solid examples of ways either you or your employees have upheld company values and culture is an effective way to showcase your company’s integrity and that is a must in any business.
Introduce Them to Team Rituals and Traditions ASAP
Team rituals, inside jokes, and silly office traditions are actually a very effective way to strengthen your company’s culture to your new hires.
Often, new employees feel a little anxious to meet the team. You can help to break the ice by introducing the new hire to them and the office culture through a game or activity that gets the work done and puts them at ease.
Does your company have a quirky way that they welcome new employees? Do you have a fun way to celebrate a big sale or client acquisition? These kinds of things help new employees feel like a part of the team and help the current employees feel comfortable with the new hire. So, let that new hire in on these sorts of rituals as soon as you can!
Make Communication Culture a Part of the Training Process
Integrating company culture into the training and welcoming process is a way to get new employees involved and comfortable as soon as possible. Even the materials used throughout the training process to communicate the work and rules to the new hire, be it written, visual, etc. can have a strong tone that immediately begins to communicate and integrate the new hire’s idea of the company culture.
No matter what, there are always going to be those in your organization who communicate culture better than others. Divide training tasks among these employees so that the new hire can get to know the culture and team at the same time.
Check in to Ensure They’ve Got It
To ensure that your new hire is comfortable and finding their way, show that you trust them by asking them to give a presentation at the end of their first day or week. Nothing too stressful or demanding, just a quick and fun way for you to make sure they understand the company culture.
Good workplace culture is one of the most important aspects of a job. New employees are going to be inspecting your culture in their first few days and weeks of work to make sure you are a good fit for them long-term.
Communicating a strong, supportive, and inviting company culture is the best way to solidify any new hire’s choice to work with your organization and make them beam with pride to be part of your team!
What do you do to make your new hires feel welcome and understand the company culture? Let us know in the comments below!
If you have questions or would like more information, we’d be happy to help. Please send us an email, and someone from the team will get in touch with you!
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in March 2019 and has been edited for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
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