The Healthy Organization: Cultivating a Thriving Culture
This article is a part of a four-part series that answers the question: “How do I develop a healthy organization?” This is the second installment. I encourage you to read them in order for greatest impact:
Article 1 / 4: The Healthy Organization: Developing a Core Focus
Article 2 / 4: The Healthy Organization: Cultivating a Thriving Culture
Article 3 / 4: The Healthy Organization: Integrating Efficient Rhythms [Release Date: 9/4/23]
Article 4 / 4: The Healthy Organization: Implementing Effective Tools [Release Date: 9/11/23]
In 1978, John Mackey founded a small grocery store named “Safer Way” using startup capital of $45,000. In 2017, he orchestrated its sale to Amazon for a staggering $13.7 billion. The company he sold? Whole Foods.
So what set Whole Foods on the path to such remarkable success? Like any business of its magnitude, the answer is quite complicated—many factors had to align for it to reach such heights. Yet, one element appears to stand out above the rest: Whole Foods nurtured a thriving culture that fueled its expansion. People were drawn to work for Whole Foods—specifically, those who craved work with a greater purpose. With ambitious targets like “improve world health” and “end poverty,” the company fostered a deeply purpose-driven culture:
“Most of the greatest companies in the world also have great purposes… Having a deeper, more transcendent purpose is highly energizing for all of the various interdependent stakeholders.” - John Mackey, Founder of Whole Foods
Your ultimate target might not be ending global poverty. But the deliberate cultivation of a thriving culture is one of the critical components to build a healthy organization—no matter what your purpose is.
What is Culture?
When the topic of "culture" arises, what comes to mind? The conventional definition of culture is “shared assumptions and group norms.” This sounds like corporate gobbledygook. What does it actually mean?
Imagine that you ask an employee from another company “What is it really like to work there?” Whether they say “It feels like a big family” or “it’s the place where nobody trusts me,” their answer will tell you the whole story.
Culture is how someone feels when they are with the team.
The bad news is that changing culture is incredibly challenging—it takes years. The good news is that you can transform your culture. But how?
Cultural Styles
Years ago, I remember walking into my office and thinking to myself: “I don’t like it here.” Going to work, at the time, felt like a punishment. I didn’t like being there. I felt like a stranger in my own home.
I remember hearing a phrase at the time that haunted me:
“The culture of an organization flows from the heart of its leader.”
Ouch. If this was true, then our flawed culture was actually 100% my fault. I finally owned up to this. This culture problem was a beast of my own making, and I was ready to fix it.
The question “What makes a great culture?” lacks one single answer. It’s actually the wrong question. A better question is “What makes a great culture for our company?” Whole Foods’ cultural style suits them, but it might not align with your organization.
Drawing from a comprehensive study* encompassing 230 companies and over 1,300 executives, researchers identified two primary factors influencing culture:
People Interactions: Independence to interdependence
Response to Change: Stability to flexibility
Based on these factors, the same researchers mapped a taxonomy of cultural styles. Each style holds its distinct characteristics, and none is superior to another.
| Style | Focused on... | Feels like... |
|---|---|---|
| Caring | Collaboration and mutual trust | A big family |
| Purpose | Compassion and tolerance | An idealistic community or cause |
| Learning | Exploration and creativity | A dynamic project |
| Enjoyment | Fun and excitement | A celebration |
| Results | Achievement and winning | A meritocracy |
| Authority | Strengths and boldness | A competitive arena |
| Safety | Planning and caution | A meticulously planned operation |
| Order | Structure and stability | A smoothly running machine |
The key question to address about your culture is this:
“Which cultural style will best advance our vision and mission?”
Only you and your team possess the insight to respond to this question. Determining the answer will take time, energy, and introspection, but it is the first step in crafting the culture that will drive outcomes for your organization.
Once I admitted our culture was flawed and claimed responsibility, I considered these eight cultural styles. It dawned on me that the issue was not that we didn’t talk about culture—we did—it was our pursuit of an unsuitable cultural style. We perpetuated a cultural style of results. Although not an inherently flawed style (in fact, it is among the top two styles for 89% of US businesses), it was the wrong style for our company, our vision, and our mission.
Over the next three years, we deliberately transitioned from a “results” cultural style, to a hybrid style blending caring, purpose, and learning. The outcomes weren’t instantaneous, but they eventually materialized. I distinctly recall walking into my office years later, thinking, “I really like working here.” Presumably, other team members experienced a similar transformation.
Application
Transforming culture isn’t easy; it can often be quite painful. More often than not, it requires heart surgery for the leader. If the culture of an organization flows from the heart of its leader, the first step is looking inward. Ask yourself, “Do I really want the culture to look more like me, or is there a better version of myself that I need to first change into?”
Invite your team into the process. Allow their input on the most suitable cultural style (or styles) to accomplish your vision and mission. Chances are, they already possess the insights you need.
You might not oversee a $13.7 billion company sale, but you can certainly develop a healthy organization with a thriving culture. One that instills in you, and others, a sense of excitement when entering its doors each morning. A purpose like this is worth your investment—even if it takes a few years to yield returns.
*Source: The Leaders Guide to Corporate Culture by Boris Groysberg. Also available in the book “On Building a Great Culture by HBR.