Achieving a Great Culture is as Simple as Having the Right Conversations

Leaders are asked to implement culture programs as a business imperative, which begs the question, what is the potential impact of improving culture and what’s the most effective way to get a great result?

 

In 2015, the manufacturing division of Viridian Glass, who runs Australia’s only glass manufacturing ‘floatline’, implemented a culture program. They wanted to engage their workforce to support process improvements. Two years later they had achieved a nine per cent improvement in production which almost doubled their profit. It was a fantastic result.

 

Conversely, what is the impact of a poor culture? Mr Larry Thompson, the US Justice Department–appointed monitor after the ‘Dieselgate’ scandal, stated ‘there was a corrupt corporate culture at Volkswagen … it was not a culture marked by honesty and openness.’ It’s an extreme example, but he suggested it contributed to illegal and scandalous decisions which cost VW billions.