Javelina’s 3-step process to aligning your organization’s culture and brand
You hear a lot about the importance of culture in the workplace. And at this point, you’ve probably heard the sentiment that “culture is about more than beer in the fridge and ping pong tables in the break room.” That’s truer than ever after a year largely defined by remote work.
At Javelina, we’re known for working with change-making organizations to develop powerful branding and marketing strategies. One of the most powerful lessons we’ve learned is that the strongest organizations that make the biggest impact are those with a consistent brand and culture. After all, brand and culture are two sides of the same coin. Have you ever loved a brand from the outside, and then gone to work or volunteer with them and found the experience to be completely different from what you expected? That’s a sign of an organization whose outward brand is disconnected from its inward culture.
But what exactly do we mean by culture?
Defining Culture
Simply put, organizational culture is the core values, behaviors and practices that guide what actions are accepted and expected among your team. For example, it may be part of your organization’s culture to intentionally praise employees in group settings, or to incentivize volunteering as a team out in the community. Another way of thinking of this is that your culture is your organization’s personality.
Culture Meets Brand
No matter what kind of organization you’re with, its culture and brand must extend from purpose, mission, and core values. When those foundational principles are documented, clear, and truly operationalized within the organization, your culture and brand will feel consistent and each element will reinforce the other.
Here are the three steps for achieving that:
- Start by defining (or refining) your purpose and mission. If they need some work, we’ve got you covered. Check out The Power of a Purpose and Don’t Be Missin’ the Mission for some guidance.
- Next, work on your core values. This is a meaningful process, and we recommend dedicating between three to six months to really get them right. Our Finding Your Values series (Part 1 & Part 2) will show you how to get there.
- Bring those foundations to life by ensuring that all of your organization’s decisions, big and small, are made through the framework of your purpose, mission and values.
If you can do these three things, you will succeed. But give yourself time. Aligning your brand and workplace culture is not an overnight process. Also, this is a part of your organization that constantly evolves, so it’s not a task you can handle once and then cross off your to-do list. But do it right and you will see and feel the positive difference.
As always, I would be honored to work with you in any of these areas – from establishing a powerful brand, to discovering your organization’s core values, to bringing it all to life. If you’d like to talk or have questions about building a powerful workplace culture, please feel free to reach out to me at catherine@javelina.co.