Workforce leaders are responsible for managing their teams to carry out their tasks and achieve business goals. However, promoting a company culture focused on empathy, flexibility, and change management can help your team stay satisfied in their positions and united in the face of challenges. So how can leaders make changes to facilitate a more positive company culture?

On this episode of the Survive & Thrive podcast, host Jennifer Ayres is joined by guest Kate Hall to speak about company culture and leadership. Kate is a project leader primarily focused on change management at SingleStone Consulting. Kate has years of professional experience in consulting, through which she has worked with companies to help them through their business challenges. Jennifer and Kate share their thoughts on company culture, psychological safety, and the importance of change management to survive and thrive in the future of work.

How Can Company Culture Impact Organizational Success?

Introducing Kate Hall (00:38)

Jennifer opens the episode by introducing Kate Hall, a project management professional who is well versed in the impact of maintaining a healthy company culture and creating connections in the workplace. Kate describes how over her last eight years of working with SingleStone Consulting, she developed skills to help companies focus on their real business challenges - often concerning company culture.  

Activating the Workforce (1:48)

Activating a workforce can help individuals reach their full potential, bringing their co-workers and team along with them. Kate shares her thoughts on this, citing how the great resignation has shown the importance of company culture for activating the workforce. Since COVID-19, people have realized how short life is and are more focused now on spending time working in an environment where they feel valued. Therefore, company culture and team cultures are critical, now especially.

The Importance of Culture (3:10)

Kate knows the importance of culture and has witnessed it in her professional experiences as a workforce team member. She explains how failing to get to know fellow team members and their roles can damage company culture and discourage workers. As a result, workers can miss out on a feeling of unity within their teams, often leading to increased turnover.

Building Relationships and Psychological Safety (5:32)

Kate emphasizes the need for leaders to support the psychological safety of their teams by building relationships and trust with their team members. She shares a personal experience about a time when her company’s culture and strong relationship with her employer made her feel supported and valued. She and Jennifer speak on the importance of psychological safety in the workplace.

Thriving Through Flexibility (8:29)

Kate’s position as a consultant has allowed her to observe different companies and their cultures and develop a well-rounded view of effective leadership trends. She explains how companies and teams should have leaders that maintain flexibility, empathy, and engagement in their workforce to thrive and succeed in the future of work. By encouraging guided flexibility and value in their work relationships, leaders can help their workers thrive in a healthy company culture.

Why Change Management Matters at Work and Home (10:39)

Another essential aspect of positive company culture is effective change management. Kate explains how change management can help companies understand their staff and drive their work culture. According to Kate, putting effort into change management planning can help organizations stay ahead of the curve. She even explains how this can benefit people on an individual level and supports this with a story where she...