As someone at the helm of a corporation or organization, you likely have a clear vision of what a smooth team work-flow looks like. You know that when executives and employees fall into a synergistic rhythm of getting things done, mountains can be moved. However, when that cohesive energy becomes elusive, it can be difficult to know what to do next. What causes that optimal functionality to flourish or fail? Fundamentally, the answer lies within shared culture. When productivity starts to sour, pin pointing how to improve corporate culture is just the ticket for getting things back on track.
What Is Corporate Culture?
When we describe company culture or organizational culture, what exactly do we mean? In essence, this type of culture can be defined as the personality of any given organization. It is the values, attitudes, beliefs, and motivations that are shared by everyone involved. The impact of this can be found within the way coworkers connect and collaborate, the way customers and external associates are treated, and the efficiency and innovation seen across the board.
The last decade has been abuzz with talk of businesses striving to improve their corporate culture. Driving this trend is data indicating that stronger internal culture delivers enhanced employee engagement, greater talent attraction and retention, and a powerful boost to the bottom line. Some businesses fall into the trap of imagining that culture can be corrected with the sweeping introduction of new perks or a change in office aesthetics, but in truth the key is more human than that. Forging unstoppable culture means strategically empowering and uniting employees. So, let’s explore how to improve corporate culture from the ground up.
Corporate Culture by Design
Before tackling existing culture and identifying how to shift it for the better, it is vital to lay out a blue print. This begins with revisiting the core values, mission statement, and employee value proposition of your organization, and confirming that they align not only with your business goals, but also with your corporate culture goals. Strong organizational culture is built upon both shared intentions and a shared sense of identity. Defining each of these clearly serves as an optimal launch point for infusing your team with a solid sense of direction.
Engage Your Team in the Creation Process
If your current corporate culture road map is lacking, deviations from optimal practices can become predictable, and the need for costly corporate investigations may follow. An effective way to encourage your most tenured team members, executives, and HR personnel to invest on a personal level in correcting this is to invite them to participate in the creative process required. Surveys and interviews will allow you to enlist the help of your human assets as you identify the current strength and weaknesses of existing culture, and the values that will serve as guiding lights moving forwards.
Modeling Corporate Culture
When it comes to both forging and reinforcing company culture, leaders must never forget that all eyes are on them. “Do as I say and not as a I do” will not stir motivation or emotional investment, but leading by example certainly will. In practical terms, this means not only modeling the behavior and attitudes that you want to see in your team, but also recognizing and elevating positive behaviors, and constructively calling out negative ones. Celebrate team wins, and take advantage of the potential 59% reduction in turnovers that employee recognition can provide.
Forge Trust With Operational Transparency
When it comes to employee satisfaction, morale, and motivation, communication is essential. Keeping employees abreast of targets through timely updates allows them to see the strategy behind their daily efforts. When open communication, clear objectives, and employee recognition are combined, leadership and team members alike are given the ingredients required for cooperative and innovative thinking. Implementing dependable opportunities for employees to both give and receive feedback allows you to track employee engagement, stay ahead of problems, and utilize opportunities that would otherwise remain unseen.
Call On an Expert
Whether you are wondering how to improve corporate culture in order to strengthen your organization, or are facing down an impending corporate investigations crisis, external expert assistance can provide an immediate path towards favorable outcomes. Specialists in corporate culture from Lauth Investigations are primed to objectively analyze the current cultural landscape within your business, and help you lay out a game plan that delivers transformative results. Learn more about corporate culture audits, the support we provide for workplace investigations, and more, by contacting us today.
Every organization inevitably aims to attract the best possible talent, and invests heavily in training new hires. In making these efforts, hopes lie in building a cohesive and dynamic team ready to take on the world. To some extent, a degree of employee turnover is to be expected—a frustrating but realistic aspect of running a business. However, when that turnover begins to escalate, costs mount quickly and progress becomes dogged by a sense of “one step forwards, two steps back”.
So, what drives a ramped up rate of employee turnover? More often than not, the core issue is the health-status of existing corporate culture. Here, we’ll dig into exactly what that means and the warning signs that you can watch for, before examining the value of a corporate investigation for illuminating an effective turnover and retention recovery strategy.
Counting the Cost of Employee Turnover
You might be wondering, why does employee retention matter so much for your business? If you’ve never tallied the costs of recruiting and training replacement employees before, you may be in for a shock. Research from Gallup indicates that the true cost of filling the hole left by a departing employee usually ranges between one-half and two times that employee’s annual salary. What’s more, Gallup warned that these estimates can be considered conservative, while highlighting that they don’t take into account unquantifiable impacts such as damage done to team morale, customer relationships, and brand reputation.
The Importance of Recruitment and Onboarding Strategies
One of the simplest stumbling blocks to excise—particularly when employee turnover is running rampant in the early stages—is a flawed approach to recruitment and onboarding. This critical factor for employee retention begins at the first stage of the hiring process, with the clarity of job descriptions. Research from Allegis Group revealed a dramatic disconnect in this area, with 72% of hiring managers believing that they were providing clear job descriptions, while only 36% of candidates felt that this was the case.
Once a hire is made, the onboarding process is just as key to minimizing employee turnover. While a negative onboarding experience—or no onboarding experience at all—doubles the chances of an employee seeking work elsewhere, an excellent onboarding process can provide a 52% increase to retention rates. Nurturing new hires as they hit the ground running is a solid investment indeed.
The Corporate Culture Connection
It is well documented that corporate culture drives engagement, employee satisfaction, and productivity. When we consider the potential consequences of failing corporate culture—disengagement, poor team dynamics, and even workplace bullying, to name but a few—it is no surprise that a culture crash and soaring employee turnover are bound to go hand in hand.
According to research from Career Builder, a staggering 46% of workers who realized their new job was a bad fit cited toxic work culture as their primary cause for concern. Beyond escalating turnover, other indications that corporate culture may have taken a nose-dive include gossip and negativity in the workplace, unexplained falling profits, low employee attendance, clique-like behavior, and unhealthy competition between employees.
Getting a Handle on the Situation
When the root cause of ramped up employee turnover is elusive, the launch of a corporate investigation becomes the best possible course of action. When working between the complex and layered factors that can cumulatively trigger increased turnover, HR personnel and management can find themselves unable to see the wood for the trees. In contrast, an external investigator is optimally equipped to assess current corporate culture, management practices, and other elements at work in order to lay a path to resolution and rewards. If you would like to learn more about how Corporate Culture Audits from Lauth Investigations can help you increase employee retention rates, contact our team today.
Is it possible that the productivity and morale of your team suffering at the hands of toxic employee cliques? An uncomfortable workplace atmosphere or a downturn in performance might not lead you to think first of toxic employees. You might question the competency of your leadership or your own business strategy first, but a negative evolution within corporate culture can have a surprisingly erosive impact—often going unnoticed until substantial damage has been done.
At a most basic level, the formation of toxic employee cliques inevitably leads to a loss of profits, stalling workplace momentum, operational issues, and a rise in staff turnover. At the more insidious end of the scale, toxic culture can culminate in discrimination or workplace harassment complaints, and all of the potential legal and reputational complications that can follow.
Of course, every organization wants to see its employees get along. Strong working relationships can foster fantastic morale and cohesion when those bonds are healthy. So, how can employers tell the difference? Here, we will examine some of the tell-tale signs that a toxic employee clique may be impacting your business, and how professional workplace investigations can help you transform corporate culture for the better.
Negative Narratives Become Currency in the Workplace
While feedback is a vital progression tool within any company, a constant negative undertone is a strong indicator that toxic employees may be steering the dominant narrative within a workplace. That chronic negativity may manifest as gossip, backstabbing, or rumor spreading, or it may appear in more passive-aggressive forms—such as body language, sarcastic tones, disrespecting boundaries, cynicism, victimhood, and undermining others.
While team members of course need to vent on occasion, holding workplace narratives within a negative frame leaves no oxygen in the room for motivation, objective seeking, or innovative thinking. Toxicity tends to nourish itself, relegating the needs of others and of the company itself to the wayside.
A Tight-Knit Group Shows Signs of Ostracizing Others
Those who are embraced by a toxic employee clique may not notice the need for alarm bells immediately. However, for those left on the outside, the impact of a workplace clique’s presence will be felt immediately. Those excluded will begin to feel undervalued, dissatisfied, and demotivated. Meanwhile, the root cause of lost productivity and a dropping bottom line can remain elusive for those who don’t know the warning signs. While workplace friendships can be immensely valuable, they should never come at a cost to colleagues’ well-being, or company success.
Toxic Employee Clique Behavior Slides Into Bullying
While some forms of bullying are obvious, workplace bullying can be surprisingly hard to spot—especially when toxic employees resort to covert or manipulative behavior. While hostility to colleagues can take place within the workplace, cyberbullying can become pervasive before management even notice a blip on the radar. When toxic employee cliques demand conformity, both those within and outside of the group can start to avoid creative thinking, out of fear or reprisal. This waste of professional talent means less innovation within your business, and less work satisfaction for your employees.
Toxic Employee Cliques Thrive When Left Unaddressed
Failing to call out toxic employee behavior inevitably validates and emboldens the clique mindset, while further disempowering those outside of that unhealthy inner circle. Valuable and committed employees may well seek a better work environment elsewhere, while new recruits will be vulnerable to getting sucked into quickly-entrenched patterns of damaging behavior. As the performance of others begins to suffer, those within a toxic clique may respond competitively, showcasing their comparative strength and actively sabotaging co-workers.
Tacking Toxic Employee Cliques Head On
Many leaders and company owners don’t consider the value of corporate investigations until a major incident occurs. However, conducting a thorough investigation at the first point of suspicion—or even as a maintenance strategy—can allow organizations to nip toxic behavior in the bud before it begins to spread. Tactics such as breaking up cliques by asking employees to take on projects in different groups, or reworking—and re-training—codes of online and in-office conduct can be effective. However, it is essential to understand the scale of the problem in order to resolve it effectively. The impartial assistance of an expert investigator can be invaluable in revealing an honest picture of the current corporate culture within your organization. Learn more about the Corporate Culture Audits and Corporate Investigations offered by Lauth Investigations. Not only will we help you uncover the true state of play, but we will aid you in drawing a road map towards the type of workplace culture that will allow all of your employees to shine.
As never before, today’s consumers expect the brands they buy into to lead by example when it comes to equality and social justice. Any organization that allows workplace discrimination to run rampant is not only going to face the potential of legal repercussions, but also substantial reputational damage that is hard to bounce back from.
In contrast, when companies choose to take a hard moral line, express their values openly, foster strong corporate culture, and tackle any internal challenges head on, they can come out wearing a badge of honor in the eyes of their audience. So ask yourself, is your organization setting a shining example, or are you asleep at the wheel?
What Is Workplace Discrimination?
While workplace harassment of any kind should always be taken seriously, discrimination carries a particular weight. In essence, discrimination describes the unfair treatment of an applicant or employee on the basis of their skin color, race, national origin, religion, gender, sexuality, age, marital status, or handicap. In dealing with an issue that lands under both Federal and State employment and labor laws, employers are responsible for ensuring that discrimination does not find a home within the teams for which they are responsible.
Discrimination may arise in the behavior of a single rogue employee, or it may present as a pervasive aspect of a corroded corporate culture. It is also vital to be aware that prejudice and discriminatory behavior can emerge upon any rung of the corporate ladder, from low-level recruits right up to the C-suite.
Swift and Appropriate Action
In many cases, an employer may be entirely unaware that a member of their team possesses problematic qualities. However, ignorance can be unforgiving; when a complaint arises, the fallout can escalate quickly. If alleged discrimination is reported as a crime, those at the helm of HR for the company may find that they are not only navigating their own internal workplace investigations, but that law enforcement agencies are on the scene as well. Pressure to arrive at a fair and just resolution can mount even further if the workplace discrimination complaint arrives in the public eye.
When employers navigate discrimination complaints poorly, they not only risk untold damage to team morale and company perception, but also legal culpability for allowing discrimination to go unaddressed. In the midst of such a challenging situation—particularly when the accused is in a leadership role—HR personnel and upper management can find mounting an impartial workplace investigation particularly challenging. In this scenario, calling on the aid of an external expert can ensure the integrity and legal solidity of each step yet to be taken.
Hiring a Private Investigator When Discriminations Complaints Arise
Given the gravity of this type of complaint, bringing in the cavalry in the form of a private investigator can be invaluable. Highly skilled corporate investigators from Lauth Investigations are ready to offer the skill set required to deliver a fair and moral outcome. A seasoned investigator will take the lead on corporate investigations, reviewing background histories, interviewing witnesses, and documenting patterns until a full picture emerges. With surveillance capabilities and the capacity to go undercover at our fingertips, we will find the right strategy to reveal the information you need.
Private investigators specializing in corporate investigations are adept at working delicately alongside law enforcement, while maintaining confidentiality, and sensitively safeguarding both employee well-being and brand identities alike. We are poised to aid in the navigation of legal matters, and can help organizations deliver justice while avoiding potential employee retaliation litigation. Learn more about how we can assist when workplace discrimination complaints arise, discover the bountiful rewards of Corporate Culture Audits. We are always on hand, so contact our team to discuss the unique needs of your organization.
Does your company need an undercover corporate investigator?
From time to time, corporate entities within Indianapolis and right across Indiana will inevitably face the need for some sort of internal investigation. For small business owners right through to those at the helm of vast organizations, it is impossible to know every detail of what goes on while employees are on the clock. When circumstances lead you to suspect that something untoward is occurring, recruiting the best private investigator services to resolve any issues swiftly is always a deft move. Here, we will explore why an undercover corporate investigator can be so valuable, the types of misconduct that can warrant such action, and what to look for in the best private detective for the task at hand.
Types of Corporate Misconduct That Can Warrant an Undercover Investigation
The nature of misconduct that might lead you to call in the private detective cavalry can be varied both in terms of nature and frequency. Using an undercover corporate investigator is typically called for in matters where discretion is key. At Lauth Investigations HQ here in Indianapolis, our team has certainly encountered businesses battling damage done by a single but unidentified employee, alongside those suffering an endemic crisis of misbehavior due to disastrously failing corporate culture.
The impact of issues bubbling just under the surface can span from relatively small-volume revenue loss due to employee time theft, through to major crisis following large-scale fraud or embezzlement. Whichever the case may be, the best private investigator services will provide a precise and decisive game, and a solid body of evidence, allowing you the opportunity to successfully navigate whatever lies ahead. Examples of instances when an undercover investigation may be pertinent include:
Employee payroll abuse and time theft
All forms of harassment, bullying, or discriminatory behavior
Suspected employee substance abuse
Corporate theft
White-collar crime
FMLA abuse
Asset misuse
Non-compete violations
Corruption and bribery
Workplace incident investigations
Fraud and forgery
Stealth Is Often The Most Efficient Way To Route Out A Problem
Providing a unique upper-hand over internal investigations, an undercover corporate investigator is able to discreetly uncover truths and reveal inconsistencies, all while compiling a comprehensive file of documented evidence. The best private detective for this task will be experienced and adept at going undercover in the field, as well as being able to assess all present parties with total impartiality – something that internal HR personnel may find difficult to do. Their sole motivation will be to pin point and highlight the origin of any suspected misconduct without alerting your team to their presence until their investigation is complete.
When you know that something is amiss, identifying the truth of that suspicion can be impeded simply because you and your trusted associates are simply too close to the problem. In contrast, an undercover operation as a facet of the best private investigator services will employ both neutral analysis and a broad surveillance and observation skill set. Your assigned undercover corporate investigator will begin by consulting with you to create a foundational picture of the understanding and intelligence you already have, before beginning the dedicated undertaking of building upon it.
Meeting The Unique Needs Of Your Business or Organization
Corporate entities of any scale can fall prey to those with nefarious intentions, potentially leading to a negative impact on leaders, employees, and clients alike. Talented professionals from Lauth Investigations possess the knowledge and resources required to uncover and even prevent the impact of fraud, misconduct, or deceit in the workplace. We can mount complex undercover operations, drawing on the latest in high-tech surveillance and in-depth understanding of legal factors at every step of the way. In terms of prevention, we offer Corporate Culture Audits, illuminating paths towards reducing the risk of various internal threats. We also provide expert guidance on navigating external risk and enhancing all aspects of security. Learn more about the diversity of Corporate Investigations available from Lauth Investigations – both in Indianapolis, Indiana, and beyond – or contact our team to discuss your unique needs today.
