{"id":1947,"date":"2010-04-13T22:34:24","date_gmt":"2010-04-14T05:34:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/?p=1947"},"modified":"2013-08-15T09:45:04","modified_gmt":"2013-08-15T14:45:04","slug":"defining-corporate-culture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/defining-corporate-culture\/1947\/","title":{"rendered":"Creating a Healthy Corporate Culture"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"a296a24fa2fc69ef5487857f02f111e8\" data-index=\"9\" style=\"float: none; margin:10px 0 10px 0; text-align:center;\">\n<script async src=\"\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Single Post readerboard -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:inline-block;width:728px;height:90px\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-8207522353004717\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"1144967431\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script>\n<\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-thumbnail wp-image-1948\" style=\"margin: 3px;\" title=\"shmula-defining-corporate-culture\" alt=\"shmula-defining-corporate-culture\" src=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/shmula-defining-corporate-culture-150x150.jpg\" width=\"120\" height=\"120\" srcset=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/shmula-defining-corporate-culture-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/shmula-defining-corporate-culture-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/shmula-defining-corporate-culture-100x100.jpg 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 120px) 100vw, 120px\" \/>Defining culture is difficult. \u00a0Creating a Healthy Corporate Culture is more difficult.\u00a0Most change management consultants would say that a culture is defined by our language, behaviors, and interactions. Anthropologists go a step further by saying that <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/the-profit-tree-is-not-the-only-tree\/1077\/\">culture is defined more by what is absent than what is present<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In a recent meeting I attended, a question was asked regarding culture and what exactly that meant. \u00a0In response, a very senior person in the company addressed the inquirer by name and then answered the question. \u00a0Then, people moved on. \u00a0But not me.<\/p>\n<p>I noticed something significant.<\/p>\n<p>The most senior person in the company that knows the name of a person much less senior in the company is a subtle but very important aspect of the company culture. \u00a0But, because instances like that are so common-place at this company, the subtlety of it all passed by all of us.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>a place where everybody knows your name<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>But that&#8217;s the point.<\/p>\n<p>The subtle things matter. \u00a0And, when those things don&#8217;t happen, we notice it.<\/p>\n<p>What if the most senior person int he company had said &#8220;blah, blah, blah &#8211; oh, and what was your name?&#8221; \u00a0Most of us would have noticed that because that response wouldn&#8217;t have been indicative of the culture all of us had come to expect in the company.<\/p>\n<p>Imagine if&#8230;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Your mom calls you by name; she has for 30 years. \u00a0You wouldn&#8217;t think it was a big deal. \u00a0But, what if she forgot your name?<\/li>\n<li>What if your culture was one where problems were surfaced and exposed and cooperatively worked-on together. \u00a0But, what if you discovered that some problems were hidden and protected &#8211; you would notice that; it wouldn&#8217;t feel right to you.<\/li>\n<li>Imagine if your company regularly held daily stand-up meetings as a <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/the-profit-tree-is-not-the-only-tree\/1077\/\">management ritual<\/a>. \u00a0Then, all of a sudden, you didn&#8217;t have them anymore. You notice it &#8211; it doesn&#8217;t feel quite right.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/the-profit-tree-is-not-the-only-tree\/1077\/\">A Culture is defined by what is present, but by also what is absent<\/a>. \u00a0Those subtle but important rituals &#8211; when no longer practiced &#8211; leave a vacuum in a company. \u00a0You notice it; it doesn&#8217;t quite feel right.<\/p>\n<p>Using an idea from my friend <a href=\"http:\/\/twitter.com\/matthewemay\" class=\"broken_link\">Matt May<\/a>, author of <a href=\"http:\/\/inpursuitofelegance.com\/\" class=\"broken_link\">In Pursuit of Elegance<\/a>,<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Thirty spokes join together in the hub.<br \/>\nIt is because of what is not there that the cart is useful.<br \/>\nClay is formed into a vessel.<br \/>\nIt is because of its emptiness that the vessel is useful.<br \/>\nCut doors and windows to make a room.<br \/>\nIt is because of its emptiness that the room is useful.<br \/>\nTherefore, what is present is used for profit.<br \/>\nBut it is in absence that there is usefulness.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Lao Tzu<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<!--CusAds0-->\n<div style=\"font-size: 0px; height: 0px; line-height: 0px; margin: 0; padding: 0; clear: both;\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Defining culture is difficult. \u00a0Creating a Healthy Corporate Culture is more difficult.\u00a0Most change management consultants would say that a culture is defined by our language, behaviors, and interactions. Anthropologists go a step further by saying that culture is defined more by what is absent than what is present. In a recent meeting I attended, a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12327,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[131],"tags":[338],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Creating a Healthy Corporate Culture<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Creating a Healthy Corporate Culture is defined by what is present as well as what is absent.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Creating a Healthy Corporate Culture\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Creating a Healthy Corporate Culture is defined by what is present as well as what is absent.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/staging.opexlearning.com\/resources\/defining-corporate-culture\/1947\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"OpEx Learning\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/get.shmula\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2010-04-14T05:34:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2013-08-15T14:45:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" 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