Company Culture: The Key for Consumers

By Matthew Dolan | May 2019

Company culture is a topic that businesses are starting to spend a lot more time on when it comes to hiring new employees. But for the consumer, it often comes without a clear definition.

Frequently, consumers will be given a rolling list of cliché and redundant buzzwords like innovative, driven, motivated and cutting edge as a definition. Company culture comes sort of implied, rather than defined. It is a topic left open for plenty of interpretation.

But for something so under explained, a company’s culture cannot be overvalued.

We live in a digital age with an endless list of choices and decisions for any product or service. The culture of an organization is the clear differentiator between the best and the rest.

Then what exactly is company culture?

Simply put, it’s everything. The personality, the DNA, the heart of a business.

The quality of a company’s guiding values and principles, and how they are observed and received by each and every employee, creates a morale, and an environment that directly affect how successful a business can be.

But why is it important for consumers?

Because happy employees deliver superior service.

In fact, Gallup’s “State of the American Workplace” report in 2017 stated that engaged and happy employees are substantially more likely to improve customer relationships (and bring on a sales increase of over 20%).

A strong work culture brings out the best in any team.

And the more in sync a team becomes, the happier they become. This in turn creates a better opportunity for consumers to develop a positive and happy relationship with a company, as all their influence comes from employees themselves.

What are the most important aspects of Company Culture?

We now know that culture matters for the consumer. But what specifically about culture makes one company better than another?

When we take a closer look, a few areas stand out.

Clear and Unified Purpose
With any team of any kind, things tend to run more smoothly if everyone is on the same page.

Knowing that you are investing in a company that knows both who they are and where they are going creates a more confident experience.

Trusting Environment
If an employee of a company can’t trust the environment they are a part of, odds are you won’t be able to either.

Conversely, collaborative, respectful and caring environments where team members feel both supported and comfortable sharing ideas are the places that nurture the best working cultures.

Genuine Relationships
Transparency and honesty go a long way in building a relationship with someone. Same goes for building a relationship with a company.

Companies that are committed to their communities, by supporting local businesses, and willingly investing their time, resources and expertise to the places they reside build the strongest relationships. They reach peoples’ lives on more than just a profitable level, and make communities better, and nurture a genuine relationship with consumers.

How can you tell a company has a strong culture?

We’ve learned what company culture is. We’ve learned why it’s important. But now we need to figure out how to identify it.

The answer is in employee advocacy.

Employee advocacy is the promotion of a business by the members of its staff. If an employee of a company is recommending their services, gloating about their brand, or talking about how great their job is, chances are they are experiencing first-hand a fantastic company culture.

Enterprise Bank is a perfect example of this. In 2018 they ranked third among large companies on the “Boston Globe’s Top Places to Work Survey.” The year before that they placed number one and have been in the top five consistently for the last seven years.

What makes this ranking so interesting is that it is decided by the employees of the companies listed. This consistent excellence from Enterprise Bank is validated by the exact thing we are looking for, employee advocacy.

By focusing on these elements of building their business, Enterprise Bank has actively created a strong cultural environment that represents their values and makes their company a great place not only for employees, but for each and every customer.