On our last Reset Show we were joined by the brilliant Dr Bill Mitchell. Bill is a clinical psychologist, author and speaker, and he works with companies to help them put their employees’ health at the heart of what they do. It’ll come as no surprise to hear, that most recently he has been advising business leaders on how to bring staff back into the office, and having their mental health at the heart of the move. Our conversation on the Reset Show was definitely one of my favourites this year and if you haven’t had a chance to listen, I would highly recommend it.
I wanted specifically to share with you one of the topics we talked about on the show, which really resonated with our live audience, and with me too; ‘micro-cultures’.
I often work with teams changing the culture of their organisation, and they’ll talk about the undesirable behaviours of some senior people as a significant barrier to change. I have heard this numerous times over the years. Now in an ideal world, senior teams would be, and should be, the first to role model your desired culture. They should be pioneers for how you want things to be. But of course in the real world this is rarely that case (and hit me up if you know otherwise, we’d love to share your story). But could a few (hopefully only a few) executives who aren’t behaving in the right way really stop wholesale culture change? Are they really that powerful? In short, I would say the answer is no. And this is where micro-cultures come in.
The definition of a micro-culture is
A distinctive culture shared by a small group that is often based on location or within an organisation.
Every company has micro-cultures and they are often looked upon as undesirable, given they can look and feel different and separate to the rest of the organisation. Companies want to create a strategic narrative and consistent culture for a host of very valid reasons. But let’s imagine for one minute that we can use these naturally occurring micro-cultures as a force for good. They could help to protect individuals and teams against the impact of those senior people who are not role modelling the right behaviours. They might create some space to make a positive difference. They can help to ensure the behaviours of any rogue senior executives do not get in the way of positive change and developing your desired culture.
And here is how.
A micro-culture which is a force for good is reliant on your leaders. We need to help them create and influence the culture in the right way. And we need to make this as simple and easy for them as possible. We must ensure they are bought into our strategic narrative, that they understand the culture we are trying to create, or the change we are looking to bring about. We need to involve them as early as possible in any change, and give them the space and autonomy to figure out how they can contribute. And we have to appreciate those leaders getting it right – and share their stories for others to learn from. As micro-cultures develop, they can gain momentum. What was once a lone voice starts to become more common place and eventually establishes new social norms.
We would love to hear about your views on micro-cultures and if you believe they can be a force for good? Get in touch today and share your story with us.
