Are your cultural enablers firing on all cylinders? If not, Vizst Technology Head of HR Evonne Pemberton shares insights into how the flourishing MSP is successfully pulling all the levers of culture enablement.
A Comms Dealer survey of channel execs revealed that the power of organisational culture as a strategic lever is being underestimated to the detriment of many businesses. And circa 50 per cent of survey respondents conceded that their cultural goals only partially reflect the experience of staff and customers, indicating a disconnect. Against this backdrop, Pemberton noted that culture makes a ‘vast difference’ to the commitment and engagement of people to deliver against organisational value expectations and the broader strategy, and she put a spotlight on how Vizst Technology is acting on its cultural imperatives.
“Our priorities are interconnected with day-to-day workforce behaviours,” she stated. “It’s dynamic rather than a set-and-forget mentality. Each month our team votes for the Employee of the Month and votes are linked back to our company values. Our SLT leads by example and displays the values we want to see day-to-day from our employees. We worked with the SLT and our Culture Committee to create those values – they are not dictated at board level. This ensures that the entire business is behind them and we are clear on how we expect our team to behave. These values are then used as cornerstones for our reviews and reward processes.”
Assessing progress
To assess the strength of its cultural standing and monitor progress Vizst Technology runs quarterly employee surveys to gauge how people are feeling. “This allows us to nip any potential issues in the bud while proactively planning improvements where needed,” added Pemberton. “This is then followed up by the annual Great Place to Work survey. We carry out exit interviews for all employees to ensure we get a full and honest view of the business and can adapt accordingly. Feedback gives us a 360 review of our strengths and weaknesses, enabling us to stay on track with our culture objectives and ensure ample feedback to act on in real-time.”
Pemberton also noted that Vizst Technology’s current focus areas in terms of organisational culture are strengthening its social value proposition, giving back to the community and considering its impact on the environment. “We are also focused on people development – both personal and professional – and strengthening the connections between training, expanding roles, promotions and succession planning,” she commented.
Vizst Technology is especially pulling the lever of transparency because its employees want to know what’s happening in the business and to feel part of it. “Transparency makes the job stickier,” explained Pemberton. “We achieve this through objectives linked to our business strategy, interactive monthly updates, monthly newsletters and an open and transparent relationship with everyone in the business. Flexibility, wherever possible, is also key, giving people options that make things easier for their life outside work. We accept that people have responsibilities at home and support them in balancing those with their working week. Being flexible gives us a wider talent pool to choose from and makes people more loyal to the business. Furthermore, support with wellbeing ensures people can be themselves.”
Vizst Technology brings consistency and authenticity to its cultural efforts by rewarding good behaviours and calling out where standards are not met. “It’s also vital to keep people involved at every stage and ensure our priorities are clearly explained during the interviewing and hiring process, so we only take on staff who fit our business ethos and objectives and align with our values,” added Pemberton. “This includes diversity and Net Zero considerations. We are in a position to hold our head up high because we hold everyone accountable.”
Pemberton put a spotlight on the critical importance of accountability when deciding which cultural levers to pull, and that all business leaders, no matter the extent or limitations of their resources, can fire up their cultural journey simply by talking to their people and getting them involved. “The more you do that, the more everyone takes personal responsibility for the outcomes and the entire team becomes accountable,” she concluded.
The Comms Dealer Culture survey report can be downloaded free here: https://www.comms-dealer.com/whitepaper/gain-advantage-through-culture