3 strategies to better workplace culture

Defining and developing a positive workplace culture is remarkably complex. Finding a balance of productivity, creativity and enjoyment in a corporate setting takes a deft touch and likely will have to continually be tweaked and adjusted. Creating a positive atmosphere is important both for maintaining employee morale and encouraging innovation. When things get too routine, it begins to show in the quality of work. A work environment may be far from toxic, but if you create a culture of business as usual, odds are stagnation will occur. To keep things positive, consider these three strategies to better workplace culture:

1. Align your leadership

Fast Company notes that positive workplace culture relies on key leaders being able to collaborate and unite together toward the company’s mission. To align managers, executives and other leaders, providing opportunities for peer evaluation and team assessment is crucial. This feeling of connected leadership will ideally trickle down to other employees and make things run more smoothly between departments. To create a positive culture, the leaders in any enterprise must feel connected and willing to work toward common goals.

2. Create a culture that sticks

Forbes advises that workplace culture shouldn’t exist solely as a means of luring talent. Often, aspects of workplace culture only survive on the surface level, seeming almost like an obligatory means of attracting new hires and presenting a positive public image. For example, having a game room in corporate facilities means very little if it is in disrepair and no one ever utilizes it. However, if that space is regularly cleaned and employees are encouraged to enjoy themselves, it could become an epicenter for team-building and collaboration. Don’t use culture as a guise; instead, make it a value that is naturally imbued within the company’s larger mission.

3. Encourage involvement

Positive corporate culture has to go well beyond the 9-to-5 grind. Providing opportunities to participate in volunteer activities, team sports or other outings can give employees a sense of purpose. What’s more, activities outside of work can encourage more team-building and better inspire a collaborative atmosphere. Overall, when workers feel they are a valued part of positive workplace culture, they can better perpetuate it. Business Insider advises encouraging employee participation in events outside of the office, such as a corporate-sponsored 5K.