In an organization, culture plays an important role in many aspects, including enhancing employee engagement, boosting productivity, and maintaining good relationships between all levels of the organization. However, developing a great company culture today requires completely different strategies than in the past.
Therefore, you can read our article to learn more about workplace culture and how employers can prepare for the future, or click here to download the eLearning Industry report.
Leader-Employee Relationship Findings
Unfortunately, more than a third of employees (37%) say that there is no culture at work today. Employees and leaders are clearly at odds: half of all employees say their leaders don’t understand what constitutes a strong company culture.
In today’s world, there is a lot of talk about employees’ needs and values, and yet, as many as 50% believe that such a basic thing as an organization’s culture is not being developed by leaders. So yes, more than half of workers believe their managers don’t understand what employees want, regardless of whether they work in healthcare (54%), tech (53%), or manufacturing (52%).
Source: eLearning Industry report
Which Perks Are Popular Among Employees?
Despite the pandemic, many employees say they place more value on other perks compared to culture. 52% of employees still value culture, but 4 out of 5 (82%) value flexibility, upward mobility, and pay more than they did before the pandemic.
Happily, for some employees today, company culture is still as crucial as ever. Culture remains important to more than half (52%) of respondents, while nearly two-thirds (63%) say it has become more vital since the pandemic.
Source: eLearning Industry report
So yes – now the perks like flexibility, mobility, and pay are much more valuable than before 2020.
Employers are Slow in Taking Action
Another reason why company culture matters less than other factors is that culture changed after the pandemic, but most companies are not implementing the changes correctly. In turn, this leads to employees feeling jaded, unmotivated, frustrated, etc.
Source: eLearning Industry report
As you can see on the graph:
- almost four out of five (78%) employees say company culture has changed since 2020,
- 67% of employees think their company culture is more about offering benefits instead of team-building,
- 37% think company culture does not exist in the workplace today,
- as many as 50% of leaders are unaware of its new meaning or what workers want from the company,
- 38% of employees are “embarrassed” by the culture leaders promote,
- 43% of employees think their company culture is outdated,
- And as many as 34% perceive company culture as toxic.
Employees Should Be Involved in Culture Decisions
Almost half of the employees (48%) say leadership has not sought their input or has not considered their input in culture-related matters.
Having this disconnect makes staff feel disengaged and has the potential to negatively impact the company’s retention rates, with 46% saying decisions made by the leadership on culture have led them to consider changing jobs.
Source: eLearning Industry report
It is also shocking that as many as 40% don’t believe their leaders care/prioritize support for their mental health and well-being.
How Do Employees Feel About Growth And Advancement Opportunities?
It seems not obvious that supporting employees’ development, growth, and success is an important component of creating a strong company culture.
Most workers believe that they can advance their careers in their current role, but nearly one in three doubt they have upward mobility (29%) at their company or are denied the chance to move up (30%) because of:
- Lack of Diversity
- Favoritism
- No Learning / Development Opportunities
- Prejudicing against females/certain minority groups
- Promoting people that share the same opinions as leaders
- Using subjective metrics
Source: eLearning Industry report
Modern Work Habits
In addition to learning and growth programs, employees want more support in creating environments that are conducive to their work styles. Leaders should be more in touch with employees regarding working styles because they want employees to work in the office versus from home, say two in five (44%) respondents.
The future of work is becoming more digital, and 61% of employees believe that remote and virtual workplaces will boost their companies’ inclusion and diversity. What’s more, hiring the best and most talented candidates, regardless of if they can attend a physical office every day, raises the level of the entire business.
Therefore, leaders need to reconsider the structure of the workplace and stop assuming that people want to return to the office.
Here’s a graph to illustrate:
Source: eLearning Industry report
Last Words: What do Employers Need to Do?
So, how can employers close the gap between their leadership style and the employees’ expectations as soon as possible? Here are five takeaways:
#1. Enhance the culture of perks with a rewards and recognition program.
#2. Modernize the definition of culture
#3. Consider the priorities of employee
#4. Treat everyone equally and foster diversity
#5. Maintains employee satisfaction
If employers manage to meet staff expectations, all parties will be more motivated and enthusiastic about their jobs. Consequently, they will create a more diverse workplace.
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