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Why Make Investments in Culture

Guest post by: Robert Whipple

Article Overview: Most CEOs are so busy solving critical problems they have no time to invest in improving the culture of their organization. This is a big mistake. The attached article explains the paradox and offers three key benefits to inventing in culture improvement activities.

Why Make Investments in Culture

When I advise CEOs how to improve the performance of their organization, I first analyze the situation, then I report back to the top officer with some advice. Quite often my advice will sound something like this:

"There is little trust in this organization, and you and your top leaders are running yourselves into the ground trying to solve problems all day. It is like you are playing Whack-a-mole, and the problems keep coming faster each day so you cannot catch up. Many of these problems are of your own making. What you need to do is carve out some time to work with your entire organization on your culture because that is the only way to get out of the Whack-a-mole Game."

They often look at me the way a dog looks at a new supper dish. They know what I am saying but just cannot imagine that it is possible to actually take time to invest in the culture. Many of them blow up at me and throw me out of their office with words like, "You must be insane. You have no idea the issues we are resolving every day. If we took time off, the we would be buried almost instantly. Get out of here and stop bothering me." I head for the door, and on my way out I say, "Well, then, I hope you enjoy your Whack-a-mole game."

What they fail to see is that four hours of time invested in the culture will save them more than 8 hours of solving problems later. The reason is three fold.

1. Taking time to improve the culture instantly reduces the most time consuming problem any leader has. That is the inability for people in the organization to get along with each other. Most managers spend from 30-50% of their time dealing with interpersonal issues. If the culture were improved, that time would be reclaimed.

2. When people work on the culture, they are also helping to chart the way forward for the organization. This means that the leader has many willing and eager hands to resolve technical issues. He or she does not have to solve every problem. Many issues can be delegated to other people in the organization who would be delighted, even thrilled, to help out. Presto - another 15-20% of time is reclaimed.

3. The ability to get away from the constant mind-numbing pressure of the daily grind and think about how we can work better together is therapeutic. Working on the culture affords the opportunity to relax and recharge the batteries. That pays off in increased energy to resolve the few problems that remain.

Consider the return on investment of taking a half day every month or so to improve your culture. You will find the quality of your life to be significantly enhanced, and your organization will function more smoothly.

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Article Tags: CEO, culture, improvements, investment, ROI, trust, whackamole



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