Sustaining a Culture of Care in the Messy Real World: Part 5, Conclusion
Welcome to the grand finale of our journey through the transformational power of a Culture of Care. In this series, we’ve shared four pillars that inject vitality into this ethos, sparking meaningful conversations rather than offering step-by-step instructions. At Vigilant, our dedication to cultivating a Culture of Care is rooted in our core value – “Others Before Self.” We embark on this mission with the understanding that our attitudes and actions fuel the creation of such a culture. The pillars are:
- Embracing a caring mindset, part 1 and part 2;
- Practicing mindful caring;
- Going beyond the ordinary; and
- Sustaining a Culture of Care in the Messy Real World.
This is where the rubber meets the road in the real, messy world of business. Running a business is no easy feat. It demands mental toughness. It requires the strength to calmly and confidently lead and care during the myriad of messy situations that unfold in the real world.
Protect the Culture
In the pursuit of a Culture of Care, we must be willing to make difficult personnel decisions swiftly and with love in our hearts. This may mean:
- Not hiring someone with the exceptional technical skills we desperately need because the person does not exude the values associated with a Culture of Care. Hires that don’t align with the culture undermine it and are painful to correct.
- Separating respectfully from someone who is excellent at their job but consistently diminishes the caring culture because we know keeping them will be toxic for the organization.
- Separating from someone who passionately upholds the culture but is unable to successfully meet job requirements. In a caring culture, there is always the duality of cultural alignment and job performance.
Protect Financial Viability
Ensuring the financial health of the organization requires making hard business decisions with appropriate transparency and love. This might mean:
- Closing a business unit that is not contributing sufficiently to financial goals and is unlikely to contribute in the long term. Make every effort to minimize the personal impact but protect the greater good.
- Not hiring additional headcount for a hard-working, stretched-thin team because you don’t have the resources to fund the hire.
- Increasing employees’ costs for health care benefits because premiums rise above the company’s ability to pay and remain healthy.
- Suspending salary increases if the company financials cannot sustain them. Communicate this decision openly, aligning it with a Culture of Care to, again, minimize personal impact while preserving the greater good.
Be Mindful of the Environment
In an era of increasing environmental disruptions, staying grounded in core values is paramount. When faced with these disruptions, stay grounded in your core values and use them as a filter for decision-making. Take a moment to pause, reflect, and breathe before moving forward. Monitor your responses to customers and stakeholders, being a consistent Culture of Care role model in the toughest situations.
Our Journey Concludes
In business, culture truly devours strategy for breakfast as Peter Drucker so eloquently put it. The temptation to prioritize competitiveness over compassion, let speed overshadow culture, and glorify cutthroat tactics are ever-present in the relentless pursuit of success. As we conclude our exploration of a Culture of Care, I encourage us to embrace compassion and care with the same fervor and commitment as we do sound strategies, high-performance standards, and tangible results. A Culture of Care is the secret sauce that transforms businesses from mere entities to thriving, rewarding, productive communities. Please continue to use this space to share your thoughts and experiences in cultivating and sustaining a Culture of Care so we can all continue to learn and grow. This concludes our series.
