Every company has a culture, whether you’re aware of it or not. The question is, are you being intentional about building a strong company culture—or are you simply allowing it to happen haphazardly?

I don’t need to tell you that just hoping for a positive company culture is a bad approach. I also don’t need to tell you that your Human Resources team can play a big role in ensuring your company culture is robust. Let me enumerate just a few of the ways in which HR professionals can be proactive culture-builders.

How HR Professionals Can Build a Better Culture

– Be consultative. One of the best things HR leaders can do is to be in active dialogue with the C-suite. Ask your executives what their cultural vision is, and collaborate with them on designing and implementing a specific culture-building plan.

– Define cultural goals. One of the chief functions of the HR team is to communicate with the employee base, and to serve as a conduit between the C-suite and the rest of the company. Specifically, you can draft the language that explains the kind of culture you’re trying to build, and then share that vision with the entire team.

– Talk about culture during the onboarding process. Culture-building is something that starts during the hiring process! When meeting with a new hire, talk with them about the company’s values and let them know what they should expect in terms of culture.

– Listen to your employees. Something else you can do is keep your door open for any employees who want to come in and talk with you about their perception of the culture. Listen to their ideas and transfer their feedback to the leadership team.

– Build culture into job descriptions. Finally, when you write job descriptions, always connect the position to the culture. Show how each role contributes to the mission of the business. Help each employee to feel like they are part of something bigger.

Your culture is the product of a lot of people and a lot of decisions—and HR professionals are right there in the mix. Make sure your HR team is intentional about this important job. And to learn more about leading cultural change in your business, reach out to me at any time. Connect with Dr. Rick at www.rickgoodman.com or call 888-267-6098.