How to Have a Great Conversation About Culture

5 Levels of Conversation about Organisational Culture

It's almost impossible to talk about a successful workplace environment without reference to workplace culture. 

A workplace environment might be any blend of remote, virtual, hybrid, or face to face. Regardless of the blend, decisions about the environment can only be made if there is clarity around the sort of workplace culture you want the environment to produce.

Here are 5 different levels of conversation about organisational culture. Each level brings ever sharper clarity on culture which will then transfer to decisions about workplace set up, tech, and ways of working. 

Identify which level you are currently comfortable with and then see if you might give the next level along a go.

Level 1 - You Don't Talk about Culture At All

The term 'culture' feels abstract to you. Bringing it up feels too impractical compared to the very clear and present problems that need a solution right now, so you simply don’t touch it. 

Level 2 - You Use 'Culture' to Mean 'Vibe'

At level 2, you'll say something like 'we have a great culture here' but really mean 'our vibe is very positive here.' 

At least you've started the conversation, but this level has limited insight into what makes your culture distinct. Vastly different cultures can result in a positive vibe.

Level 3 - You Start Identifying Cultural Distinctives

At level 3, you start volunteering descriptions of your ideal workplace culture and ask your colleagues to do the same. 

Ask your leadership team to each pick the three that should most clearly be true of your organisation if it's going to be successful in future. Many teams will want to choose all six, but if you can get to a list of three, you'll have started to distinguish what makes your culture different and distinctive.

Level 4 - You Can Ask and Answer the Elevator Question 

The elevator question is "if someone peered into your workplace just before the door shut again, what would they see?"

You have to answer this question with sensory descriptors - what the person would see and hear.

You can see how each of these descriptions are more actionable than their corresponding level 3 versions: "collaborative", "resilient," and "productive."

It can be illuminating to ask what they'd see/hear today vs what you'd like them to see/hear in future. You can apply this to a hybrid environment by imagining the someone accidentally joined a company call for 10 seconds.

I facilitated this exercise for a school, and the resulting phrases are showing below. The result is a far more textured conversation about culture than level 3.

Level 5 - You Define Your Signature Moments

In level 5 you crystallise the various fragments from level 4 into a series of iconic and memorable stories. These stories are fictional, but they embody truths about your current culture or your ideal future culture in a rich, contextualised way. The stories retain the sensory anchors of level 4 but add sequences of actions and sometimes internal thoughts and feelings.

Here is just one example:

The story format is memorable and vivid, so if your team can agree on even just 4 or 5 of them, you'll have built a powerfully compelling shared picture of the culture you aspire to. You'll find the stories provide an excellent foundation for answering all your hardest questions about hybrid working and how to rethink your environment.

Conclusion

Once you can identify what level you’re on, it will bring you clarity on the direction you are heading and enable you to have a conversation about and take action towards your ideal workplace culture.

Want to know how we can help with your Workplace Strategy needs? Head to our Workplace Strategy Solutions page.