Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish American businessman and philanthropist. \u00a0He led the expansion of the steel industry in the United States and became one of the richest men in the world. \u00a0During the last 18 years of his life (which ended in 1919), he gave away the 2022 equivalent of roughly $10 billion to charities, foundations, and universities. \u00a0Carnegie-Mellon University? \u00a0United States Steel Corporation? \u00a0Carnegie Hall? \u00a0That\u2019s him.<\/p>\n
Always chatty and eager to share his wisdom, Carnegie once said,\u00a0\u201cYou must capture and keep the heart of the supremely able man before his brain can do its best.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n It\u2019s a savvy assessment of the vital connection between heart, mind, results, and retention. \u00a0How do we capture and keep the hearts of those we lead so they perform at their fullest potential year after year? \u00a0A good place to start is curating an exceptional organizational culture.<\/p>\n Culture is horizontal gravity. \u00a0It is what draws individuals into an organization, and it is what keeps them there. \u00a0More simply put, culture is why people join, and it\u2019s why they stay. \u00a0Culture is a mindset, rooted in philosophy. It\u2019s a mission in action.<\/p>\n Every organization has a culture. \u00a0It exists in the presence or absence of leadership. \u00a0If there is a lack of leadership, the organization creates conflicting dynamics, and that becomes the culture. \u00a0It is impossible to eliminate culture. \u00a0Like matter, it simply changes form.<\/p>\n Create a Culture Code<\/strong><\/p>\n As important as culture is, if you ask ten employees to define their organization\u2019s culture, you\u2019ll likely get ten different answers. \u00a0Culture should be easily understood and articulated. \u00a0A great way to achieve that is by creating a Culture Code.\u00a0 For example:<\/p>\n The Culture at ABC Corporation Is:<\/p>\n Once you have the Code, bring it to life. \u00a0Create laminated copies for everyone and turn it into a piece of office wall art. \u00a0Put it to work for you. \u00a0Use it as a cornerstone of your talent acquisition efforts. \u00a0Make it a tangible, visible part of your organizational ecosystem.<\/p>\n Get Aligned<\/strong><\/p>\n Once culture is defined, we need to align. \u00a0Alignment requires two important shifts. \u00a0The first shift happens within leadership.\u00a0 Leaders must realize it \u201cisn\u2019t about them.\u201d \u00a0The second shift is even more important and depends on the success of the first. \u00a0This shift happens within the organization itself. \u00a0Everyone must believe\u2026that\u00a0leadership<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0believes\u2026that it\u2019s not about them. \u00a0Why? \u00a0Because in the end, it\u2019s what\u00a0they<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0believe that matters. \u00a0What they believe determines how they behave.\u00a0 How they behave will determine how they perform.<\/p>\n Make the Investment<\/strong><\/p>\n Making it about them requires consistent, focused investment of time and attention. Start with understanding purpose. \u00a0Purpose inspires and drives people. \u00a0What is important to them personally? \u00a0Professionally? Financially? Paint pictures of how exceptional performance will lead to outcomes serving the very things that are most important to them. \u00a0The historical boundaries of location and time relative to work are forever blurred. Work \/ life balance has dissolved into\u2026life. \u00a0Listen. \u00a0Learn about people. \u00a0Within reason, the things that are important to them should become important to you.<\/p>\n Quit Managing. \u00a0Start Leading.<\/strong><\/p>\n Leadership Guru Warren Bennis defines leadership as, \u201cthe capacity to translate vision into reality.\u201d \u00a0Let\u2019s add to that. \u00a0The leader\u2019s role is to cast vision, provide resources, remove obstacles, drive execution, and deliver results. \u00a0Most people would much rather be led than managed. \u00a0What\u2019s the difference? \u00a0Visualize standing over someone versus walking beside them.\u00a0 Don\u2019t just tell them you\u2019re in it with them \u2013\u00a0they need to feel<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0that you\u2019re in it with them.<\/p>\n How? \u00a0Here\u2019s something simple. \u00a0Ask people,\u00a0\u201cWhat can I do for you today?\u201d<\/em>\u00a0 Ask it daily. \u00a0And when they need something, do it. \u00a0Promptly.\u00a0 This doesn\u2019t mean you are going to do their work, nor does it mean they aren\u2019t accountable for their results. \u00a0Rather, it demonstrates to them that you have made that oh-so-important shift.<\/p>\n Keep Things Simple<\/strong><\/p>\n The world is a complicated, noisy place. \u00a0Inputs assail us all day long, competing for our attention and challenging our ability to focus. \u00a0Culture creates clarity. \u00a0Leaders who curate culture are consistently on-message. \u00a0They remind everyone of fundamental truths about the culture and the business to keep people grounded during challenging periods of time.<\/p>\n Be the Cultural Immune Syste<\/strong><\/p>\n Curating exceptional culture also means protecting it. \u00a0Threats must be identified and eliminated. \u00a0In \u201cA Failure of Nerve,\u201d author Edwin Friedman likens organizational culture to human organisms. \u00a0Our bodies are programmed to protect us from harm. \u00a0Infection is met with an assault of white blood cells. \u00a0Pepper in our nose triggers sneezes. \u00a0Bad sushi is met with\u2026. well, you know. \u00a0Friedman draws a parallel with organizational culture and declares that leaders must serve as the immune systems of their organizations.<\/p>\n Few organizations have an exceptional culture. \u00a0That\u2019s because it\u2019s hard to do. \u00a0But if you want to capture and keep the heart of supremely able people who perform at their very best, it is absolutely worth the effort.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Andrew Carnegie was a Scottish American businessman and philanthropist. \u00a0He led the expansion of the steel industry in the United States and became one of the richest men in the world. \u00a0During the last 18 years of his life (which ended in 1919), he gave away the 2022 equivalent of roughly $10 billion to charities, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1169","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n