Employees For Culture Innovation
Small project experiments started by employees can spark meaningful changes in workplace culture.
This website and the experiments are free, compliments of Cultures In Action Corporation. For more information, contact Dr. Jerry Wagner at [email protected].
Company Employees
Our goal is to inspire employees, alone or with a small group of colleagues, to start simple grassroots experiments that might lead to companywide workplace culture improvements. To help achieve our goal, we suggest experiments with actionable guidance.
When a team of employees demonstrates positive results from small-scale projects, it creates a sense of validation that helps other employees feel more comfortable and confident in embracing the idea. Essentially, the efforts of a few employees act as “proof” of concept to other employees, including management.
There are many papers, blogs, videos, and conferences on “how to build a thriving culture.” One example is “Creating an Innovation Culture: Key Characteristics and Examples You Can Model.” However, that article and nearly all these resources are repetitive generic ideas and fail to provide actionable guidance.
College and University Students
Most graduating college and university students will begin their careers as employees, and the culture of their employers will be a part of their daily lives. We suggest that teachers and professors use our experiments as part of their classes to better prepare them for that time. This could also lead to outreach projects, where students and their teachers work with local companies and their employees to implement the experiments. We would also welcome a collaborative effort with teachers to create a teaching module for Company Workspace Cultures that could be adopted in various classes.
Dr Wagner had a University Support Program with hundreds of campuses worldwide at his first company, Execucom Systems Corp. He would be delighted to work with students and their teachers on this new intitiative.
Experiment Number Two
Title: Building cohesive teams with team centered values
Team-centered values refers to each team having specific values, actions and details for how to realize each value. Teams with values might be for projects, products, departments, locations, or an entire company.
Team centered values resonate with employees because they reflect their everyday work lives. One size does not fit all and teams will have both shared and distinct values. All will in some way support the company core values.
The experiment will use an online self-guided software template. When you are ready, we’ll have a short Zoom meeting to show you just how the template works. Then, you can decide whether or not to proceed.
Reading this short introduction might seem daunting, but as you will see, the process is straightforward and enjoyable. Cultures in Action corporation the experiment’s contributor provides free consulting along with the software.
Here’s how it works
- Facilitator Setup: A company employee acts as the facilitator and organizes a test team of about five people
- Introductory Session: There is a one-hour online introduction to the Culture Quest software and process.
- Data Assembly and Input: The facilitator receives a login link for Culture Quest, and the test team provides the following information for input:
- Value Names: For the test, we recommend using two values. The team may use company’s published core values or use values which they think represent a desirable workplace culture.
- Value Definitions: Clear definitions for each chosen value.
- Actions: Specific steps that represent the values such as events, activities, guidelines, protocols, procedures, and policies. For the test, we recommend one action for each value.
- Implementation Details: This includes a summary, and details for how each action will be exemplified, measured, and managed. For the test, we suggest minimal details
- Other Employee Participation: The facilitator shares the Culture Quest session link with a larger group of employees, who will:
- Rate each action and explain their reasoning.
- Suggest additional actions for consideration.
- Results and Adjust: The test team evaluates the feedback and decides whether or not to modify the values and/or actions and update the Culture Quest input. If changed, the revised session is posted online for all employees to review.
- Final Recommendation: The test group, along with the facilitator, determines whether to recommend Culture Quest for use with individual teams within the company or possibly for the entire organization as a team.
Call for Examples
We love to hear stories about employees taking initiative with small, bootstrapped projects to enhance their workplace culture. If we feature your example, you can choose to stay anonymous or be recognized. Just click Submit an Example and send us your story.
Cultures In Action: The Visionaries
Cultures in Action is a non-profit benefits corporation that provides Culture Quest, Fast Vote, and Employees for Cultures for Innovation.
www.cultureplanningmodel.com
www.culturesinaction.com
www.fastvotesurveys.com
www.employeesforcultureinnovation.com
www.timelessvalues.com
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