Defining Good Office Culture

By: Judy Shaffer, Principal

CULTURE: “a way of thinking, behaving, or working that exists in a place or organization, such as a business.” So says Merriam-Webster. The best companies define it, and usually early in the game. It becomes synonymous with their name and their brand. Think Zappos, Google, Nordstrom or Netflix and you know them by who they are as much as what they are. And if you know us at FORM, you know that our culture is what sets us apart. You feel it when you walk in the door and see it in the way we interact as a team.

If you own or lead a company, the culture you define becomes the guiding star for your employees. It picks up where the corporate policies leave off. It doesn’t just sustain employee enthusiasm (clearly important in itself), but it teaches them how to react and behave in any given situation on behalf of the company. Culture is also an extension of your brand. Remember the old saying that “perception is reality?” Think of this: you meet someone who tells you that they work at XYZ.  Your perception of XYZ is instantly altered based on your opinion of that person. And if you’ve never heard of XYZ? Now that experience has defined your perception of it completely.

The best companies are really just the strongest teams. Teams that work and compete well together do so because they’re well coached. Sometimes it takes a whole coaching staff, but what they teach by word and example becomes the culture of that team. The best part is that it becomes self-sustaining. Teamwork is an integral part of strong office culture and strong office culture is an integral part of a company’s success as a whole.

Understanding Workplace Strategy

By: Judy Butler, Principal

My first exposure to workplace strategy involved implementing a plan determined prior to my involvement. It was for a large, well established consulting firm that took a lot of pride in its people. After a year of research and a pilot program, they set out on an endeavor that would forever change the organization, but unfortunately not in a positive way.  Being on the forefront of this undertaking made me understand how workplace strategies can go wrong and how important change management really is.

I don’t believe you have to physically change your space significantly in order to implement a workplace strategy, although it does help. Providing more transparency, access to natural light, and allowing people to choose the type of space they want to work in greatly impacts people’s desire to come to work every day. Ensuring that people have the technology tools to stay connected and be productive is an important part of a strategy, but communication is the key factor and something that needs to be an integral part of the workplace strategy from the start. It is important to educate your people and establish advocacy among all levels of employees. By providing transparency of the goals for the change, the importance of your organization’s culture (establishing, changing, or keeping it intact), setting expectations, and providing management tools that support the strategy, holistic change can be very successful, increase productivity, and better the company’s culture as a whole. It can also help better position the organization’s flexibility for change in the future.

No matter what size your organization is, positive change can happen. Employees at all levels need to be reached and heard. In the case of the firm I worked with, there was very little communication or education directed at middle management and the buy-in at that level didn’t really occur. They were the ones who communicated directly to the levels below them, and many staff were left to their own devices when it came to understanding this enormous change. Having no real context or education of the company’s mission and goals, there was a large disconnect. The negative cultural shift that occurred afterwards took its toll and many of its prideful employees were lost.

Every organization has the power to implement change, but how you go about it is the key for success. When exploring any type of change, especially if it impacts culture, put change management at the top of your agenda.

FORM makes Best Places to Work list!

Recently, we were named as one of the Best Places to Work in the Greater Washington, DC area by the Washington Business Journal. To be recognized among other great businesses in the area is an honor. As a company driven by creativity, we are constantly striving to bring a unique perspective to the industry landscape in both our design services and business culture. Commonly seen as two separate entities; our goal is to provide seamless connections between the two worlds for the benefit of our team and our clients. As if this year wasn’t off to a great start already, this acknowledgement has really provided a new sense of excitement and inspiration within our team. From philanthropy, to projects, to events, we genuinely enjoy being together and when you’re in good company, you’re always having fun!