In an effort to avoid conflict, leaders and team members often conceal their true feelings, withhold their opinions or outwardly agree and go along with the crowd while inside they are vehemently opposed.
For some, this lack of candour also extends to hoarding information or avoiding communicating with others entirely, in an effort to save face or get and stay ahead of the pack.
Positive corporate cultures naturally grow empowered employees. They typically breed positive experiences that transcend beyond the borders of a company. These employees self manage the vision of the company by treating their role in the organization as a critical component to the company’s success. While in most cases these employees are not shareholders or owners but rather stakeholders that act as if they were real owners of the company. When company’s have outstanding corporate culture it really shows on the outside. And the most wonderful thing occurs when employees feel a part of the vision of the company – they are more energized and they also build more cohesive teams.
It’s hard to crack the code of what mix actually makes for a healthy culture. What I do know is that companies with a culture for excellence tend to have a natural selection process for moving out those individuals that don’t fit in the jet stream. In business, a good healthy culture facilitates an easy execution of corporate strategy as companies benefit from the consistency of shared values to the greater good.
Many business leaders of companies with excellent cultures speak of their teams in terms of ‘rowing in the same direction’. It’s an easy visual and quite an agreeable one. Anyting less is dysfunctional and inefficient. From my time on a high performing rowing team in University I can wholeheartedly agree with this wisdom. Give a team vision, strategy and most importantly a real sense of purpose and then all you need to do is have them set their sights on the finish line. And like all top level athletes, they practice and reflect. As teammates in corporations we too need to follow this rigorous training to stay healthy and to reach our finish lines.
Posted in corporate culture
Tagged business, employee engagement, Leadership, Organizational culture, Strategic management
I’m a sucker for catchy book titles. 
I picked up a book yesterday called #CORPORATE CULTURE tweet. Seeing as we’re fascinated with corporate culture here at McNak, and I’m on Twitter every day, this seemed like a book for me.
The tag line is: 140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Help You Create a High Performing, Values-Aligned Workplace that Employees LOVE
What a way to hook me in. This is a book I want to read, I’m thinking.
The author, S. Chris Edmonds, is a Senior Consultant at Ken Blanchard Companies and has more than 25 years of experience working with leaders on culture change, team performance and effectiveness.
I cracked open the book last night, and was delighted to see that the format was short little snippets of wisdom. It is a very fast read, and I found myself noting down several of my favourite ‘ahas’ that I can’t wait to share with our team.
What you will find in this book is some solid advice that you can apply to your corporation immediately. Culture does take time to grow and nurture, and #CORPORATE CULTURE tweet will help you lead the way.
He shaped the way we use technology today. He made it cool. He made it beautiful. He made it fun. He made it personal.
Steve Jobs was the most innovative CEO of our time. He was a dynamic maverick who built and rebuilt Apple over the course of several decades. Apple is one of the most valuable companies in the world in terms of its market capitalization. Everybody talks about Steve Jobs’ creativity, innovation and passion. He was also a very inspiring leader, a visionary. He was known to be a micro-manager, but in a positive way.
“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on.” –Steve Jobs.
And one more thing…
3 Apples changed the World. The 1st one seduced Eve, the 2nd one fell on Newton and the 3rd was offered to the World half bitten by Steve Jobs.
Posted in Leadership and Team Building
Tagged Apple, business, innovation, Leadership, Management Excellence, one more thing, Steve Jobs
I came across this captivating talk by leadership expert Simon Sinek a few weeks ago, and it still resonates with me. I must admit, the title grabbed me at first: “If You Don’t Understand People, You don’t Understand Business” but it is the content and storytelling that pulled me in.
Although the running time is 30 minutes, I set aside the time to give it my full attention. It is definitely worth your time to watch this. You’ll be glad you did.
Posted in Inspiration, Leadership and Team Building
Tagged authenticity, business, influence, inspirational speech, Leadership, Simon Sinek, trust
Here are 4 great points from Mike Desjardins of ViRTUS. Make sure you click on ‘Read More’ to view the entire post.
via Some thoughts on strategy, leadership, and corporate culture.
Posted in corporate culture
Tagged business, corporate culture, Human Resources, Leadership, Organizational culture
I’ve chosen two books that I believe are perfect for summer reading. Both books are not your typical heavy business or career read; and the best thing – they can be read in a very short space of time. Isn’t that what summer reading is all about?
For the Manager: The Little Book of Coaching – Motivating People To Be Winners
Ken Blanchard, Author of the One Minute Manager, co-authored the Little Book of Coaching with Don Shula, former coach of the Miami Dolphins.
This is the perfect beach side book as it’s written so you can easily navigate through it and pick up at any point. It’s a series of key quotes and statements that associate with their acronym: C.O.A.C.H. This book has many inspiring ideas and stories that can be applied to both personal and business. I believe it is an essential read for anyone in a leadership or management role.
Career Reading: Johnny Bunko – The Last Career Guide You’ll Ever Need
New York Times best-selling author, Daniel Pink wrote this book in Manga format, so end to end this book should take no more than an hour. It’s visual format and strong messaging serves as the ultimate guide to take charge of your career that may actually help you get unstuck and start doing what really makes you happy and fulfilled. This book carries a universal message applicable to both those deeply into their career as well as for those just beginning.
Happy reading!
Posted in Inspiration
Tagged Book, business, Daniel Pink, Don Shula, Ken Blanchard, Leadership, Management, summer reading
Both research and common sense tell us it’s wise to invest in preparing employees to be successful at their jobs. Follow up reviews and regular feedback can facilitate a positive relationship between the employer and new hire. Higher engagement equals happy employer and happy employee.
I recently read a very enlightening article on leadership styles – Bring out your inner Prince William. Never have I read an article that caused me to stop and reflect. Leadership is key. When motivating our staff or when needing motivation should we not look at the types of teams we need to lead to success?
Great Leaders know how to communicate with everyone – average Leaders communicate with everyone the same way. What is your leadership style? And if you only have one, why? Read this and become your own king, president, prime minister or entrepreneur when needed.
People, and therefore companies, have little faith these days. Faith being the unwavering belief in another people’s ability or plan to create something great. This can be a teammate, a family member, or even themselves.
Instead, they have facts. Facts about what worked well last year, what skills someone has demonstrated, and about what experiences people bring to the table.
The interesting thing is that these facts are all based in the past. Past success, past performance, past experience. With little faith, these past-based facts can begin to drive future business decisions.
“The team tried that last year and didn’t see any results, so let’s try a different approach.”
“You haven’t proven yourself yet, so I’m not going to give you this upcoming project.”
“That candidate doesn’t come with any experience in our field, so he probably won’t be of any benefit to us.”
The past dictates our future when we solely rely on facts.
Faith, on the other hand, doesn’t need proof or evidence from the past. It doesn’t compare where we are today to where we were. Instead, it looks to where we could be and creates a path from here to there.
In this environment, be it at home, at work, or in the gym, you are surrounded by trust, confidence, and inspiration. You innovate constantly as there is always a new future to be created. You dream big dreams and then turn them into goals. You develop your people before they prove themselves “worthy enough” for that development. You hire based on cultural fit. You take big risks and see what sticks.
For some, running your life (or company) based completely on faith is unbelievable.
For others, it’s the only thing that works.
This guest post was written by Matt Corker, Leadership Development Advisor at lululemon athletica
Matt Corker has a serious addiction to big ideas, bold goals, and strong communities. After working for the University of British Columbia in alumni and student affairs, Matt was drawn to lululemon athletica – a yoga-inspired athletic apparel company that creates components for people to live longer, healthier, more fun lives. In his role of Leadership Development Advisor, Matt is responsible for delivering new-hire orientations and professional development 
opportunities that empower their great staff to achieve their dreams and live a life they LOVE! Matt has a Bachelor of Commerce in Human Resource Management and International Business from the Sauder School of Business at UBC and will be starting his MBA at the Copenhagen Business School in the fall. He has a strong background in leadership and development and a big heart for social media, inspiring minds, and giving out great high fives. More information about Matt can be found at http://thatsacorker.com.
Posted in Inspiration
Tagged business, confidence, corporate culture, Leadership, Lululemon Athletica, Matt Corker
