Culture works for businesses, culture works for employees, culture works internally in companies to facilitate organizational change, stop churn and make productivity soar.
We solve the problem of churn, lack of productivity and inefficient or noncompliant internal processes. We are experts at implementing organization-wide value and role alignment. We are not like other HR companies. We think and live outside the box. Our team fits into your culture.
Your purpose creates our success. Our focus is culture infused QGPs. Our team impacts culture & talent by aligning & integrating people and processes.
Our team transforms role alignment which in turn increases engagement, creating an operationalized culture, aligned values and most importantly… RESULTS.
How to Incorporate Company Culture into your ‘Corporate Gift Giving’
NewsLet’s be real: Gift receiving is everyone’s love language.
It’s the Holiday Season!
The Holiday season is just around the corner! As a company, you don’t want to wait until the last minute to figure out your corporate gift-giving plan.
It’s important to understand that there is a way to incorporate your company culture into corporate gift giving (yes, gifts for employees and clients!) Corporate gifting is a great way to continue connecting with your employees and clients during a busy season to show that you care, value your partnership, and are thinking of them.
In the past, companies might have missed the mark with cheesy mousepads, so let’s step it up! This doesn’t mean your gift has to be expensive. All it takes is some thought and planning.
The Psychology of Gift-Giving
Let’s first chat a little bit about the psychology behind giving and receiving gifts. There are many benefits to corporate gift giving—tangible and psychological.
Picture this: you’re a stressed employee around the holiday season. Work has piled up and there are personal distractions causing more stress than usual (family dynamics are SO fun during the holidays, right?)
Then, you receive an unexpected gift from your boss. Odds are, your day will move forward a lot more positively because of the gift, and more importantly, because it’s an act of appreciation.
From Boss to Staff
One primary way that corporate giving is incorporated is from a boss to an employee. While most companies do include holiday bonuses, there are a few other tokens of appreciation that can help you align company culture and corporate giving.
Again, don’t miss the mark with a mousepad with your company logo on it… Gifts like these come off as a last-minute thought and don’t show true appreciation.
A more thoughtful suggestion is a leatherbound notebook. A notebook can be used for planning work or as a personal writing tool. Either way, if your company focuses on the continued education of employees, this is a great way to show that their mental health is also important to the company.
If you’re unsure about what to give, try and listen to office chatter, hear what they might need or want. It could be something as simple as their favorite bottle of wine or chocolate!
Another great idea: If your company has a favorite place around the corner to get lunch, a gift card is a great, practical gift.
Gifting to Clients
Sending gifts to your clientele is a different story. You might not know them on a personal level like an employee, but don’t fret—there are still ways to show your appreciation.
One thing to avoid is sending tacky merch with your company logo. They already hired you, you don’t need to try and sell them anything.
Perhaps a personalized bottle of wine, fancy cheese, or something else that is specific to your expertise? Gifting something useful is a win. Because let’s be honest, how many branded stress balls have you received, that you still use or even have? Our guess is none.
Another idea is to add personalized touches to client gifts. For example, if you opt for the wine bottle, a wine opener with your client’s logo or name on it would show that extra level of effort and appreciation.
Company Culture
The act of corporate gifting can also provide the opportunity for team bonding. Worried about having boring team bonding exercises? Learn five team bonding exercises that don’t suck, here on our blog!
One example of a bonding exercise that doesn’t suck is a ‘white elephant’ event with a set price limit. This brings the office together for a laugh and takes away the pressure of getting gifts for multiple coworkers.
Small Businesses: How to Know When You Need HR
NewsSmall Business Saturday just happened, so we’re giving all the love to our small businesses! As a small business owner, it’s very important to know when you need HR.
Some of the questions that Culture Works receives on a regular basis are:
We’re going to break down some of these answers, and hopefully, guide you to understanding the role that HR can play in your small business.
What Is the Purpose of Your HR Department?
Before investing in an HR fractional team or hiring new employees, it can be helpful to gauge what your new team members would be doing for your small business.
Whether you decide to hire a fractional team or HR Manager, these are some of the roles and responsibilities they might cover:
When Should My Business Start Looking for HR Team Members?
There are different factors that contribute to the level of HR needed for any company. In the next year, under the Affordable Care Act, the IRS is planning to increase employer penalties. As a small business, there is not much room for a financial error or blow.
One key element that is important to acknowledge is the update in the Employer Mandate:
“In accordance with the Employer Shared Responsibility Provisions (ESRP) of the ACA, employers with 50 or more full-time employees and full-time equivalent (FTE) employees identified by the IRS as Applicable Large Employers (ALEs), are required to offer Minimum Essential Coverage (MEC) to at least 95% (70% for 2015 only) of their full-time workforce and their dependents whereby such coverage meets Minimum Value (MV) and is affordable to the employee or be subject to penalties.”
Depending on the size of your small business, this would be a reason to make your company either partner with a fractional HR team or hire a HR manager to monitor employee benefits and payroll in compliance with the new ACA standards.
What HR Roles Do You Need?
As mentioned above, an HR manager or HR fractional team is your best bet as a small business. There is a difference in cost and outcome in fractional or outsourced HR, but, of course, this all depends on your specific situation.
Fractional HR tends to be more cost-friendly because hiring a fractional HR team can help reduce the cost of full-time employees while optimizing your existing team’s functionality. The cost of one full-time employee can be the equivalent of receiving a team of employees’ expertise!
Outsourcing, on the other hand, can mean a variety of things. It can mean completely relying on the outsourced team instead of hiring an in-house team, or it can be a partnership between your existing team with a company that performs similar or complementary functions. An outsourced team is often a replacement for an in-house team or role.
Still wondering if you may need to invest in an HR Manager or Employment Law Attorney? Read on.
What Culture Works is Grateful for This Year
NewsIt’s the season of gratitude, and the Culture Works team wanted to express what they’re thankful for. Read on to hear their responses, and get to know the team a little better!
At Culture Works, we love our team! Interested in learning more about them? With the holiday season coming up, now is the perfect time to read about their favorite holiday traditions (including secret mistletoe and boozy dreidels!)
How to Nail your Remote Company Culture
NewsIf you think that working remotely as a company automatically means that positive company culture is out the door, then think again.
There are steps that you can take as a company to ensure that your employees feel heard and understand that they are valued, even when working from home (WFH).
Defining your Purpose
At Culture Works we believe that defining your company’s purpose is one of the most important foundations for a positive culture.
Would you be surprised to hear that your company culture is actually defined by your purpose?
There’s a statistic that states, “¼ employees are either indifferent or don’t know much about their company’s mission.”
The numbers speak for themselves, and if an employee has no level of commitment or passion towards the company’s purpose, then fostering a positive work culture will become a more difficult feat.
If employees are working from home and don’t fully understand the company’s purpose, then the odds are they aren’t going to seek it out. This is the role of the higher up’s to implement constant purpose-driven actions.
One way to define your purpose is to ask yourself some questions:
Although those are some big questions to tackle, it’s necessary to define your company’s purpose and improve the remote work culture.
Defining your Culture with a Hybrid Work Model
Defining your culture through Zoom has proven to be a challenge for many companies. Theresa Larkin from Zoom posted a blog highlighting ways to maintain company culture through a hybrid workforce.
One of the key tips as many companies are returning to a hybrid model is to “create equity between on-site and remote workers.”
Some of the ways listed to create a common ground and culture include:
These are some tangible action items that will hopefully jump-start the defining of your company culture.
Role Alignment in a Remote Workforce
Understanding each employee and their skillset on a deep level will help the whole team dive into positive company culture, this can be done with value and role alignment.
Forbes speaks of role alignment highly claiming that role alignment can be “getting everyone on the same page” as a long-term goal, or even “understanding everyone’s role.”
While companies commit to staying remote or moving into a hybrid model, there are bound to be changes in employee roles. People adapt and change, and as a higher-up, it’s important to keep company culture at the core of change.
Do you dread making mistakes at work? You should actually embrace them! Learn more about why you should make mistakes at work here.
What should be top of mind for your HR Manager
NewsThere are constant changes happening in the Human Resources space, so it can be important as a higher-up to acknowledge the constant changes and how those changes can impact your company.
What does an HR Manager do?
The role of an HR Manager might look different every day, but in general, their role falls under anything to do with:
Not sure what a Learning and Development program is? Learn more here.
Throughout these daily tasks, there are current adjustments and guidelines that your HR Manager should be aware of to avoid key risks.
DEI (Diversity Equity Inclusion)
Diversity Equity Inclusion covers a wide range of topics and individuals. As an HR Manager, it can be helpful to know what regulations and HR Law changes might be coming up in the new year.
Does the phrase “HR Law” send chills down your spine? Don’t worry, it’s not as scary as it sounds, Kristi Pastore explains the importance of HR law in the workplace and its relation to company culture here.
The Chief Diversity Officer at the University of Michigan, Robert Sellers, explains the difference between classifications:
“Diversity is where everyone is invited to the party, Inclusion means that everyone gets to contribute to the playlist, and Equity means that everyone has the opportunity to dance.”
Under the role of implementing DEI efforts into company culture there are many topics, groups, and identifications that could come up including:
Keeping this list of factors in mind when cultivating a company culture through HR is essential for making that culture a positive one.
The U.S. Office of Personnel Management states that as a reflection and goal for the future, “Government-wide, we have made important progress toward hiring a workforce that truly reflects America’s diversity, and we will continue to pursue that goal. But merely hiring a diverse workforce is not enough.”
This mentality is one that will lead towards a more positive workplace and one that HR managers should do their best to follow.
Technology Advancements
There are a LOT of tools out there that can assist any HR Manager in their role. GetApp outlines some of the most-used programs used in the HR space in 2021. Here’s a couple of the most popular HR technology tools:
Rippling
Rippling is a platform that lets you “Effortlessly manage your employees’ payroll, time & attendance, benefits, compliance, and more— all in one place.”
Beekeeper
Beekeeper makes reaching frontline workers easier, and also has a feature that helps, “Build a company culture that transcends language barriers through automated translations.”
Monday.com
Monday.com is committed to streamlining all of your HR processes on one collaborative platform. This includes:
It’s time to upgrade the way you manage HR and lean into the perks of the rise of technology.
Compliance
Regulatory and business compliance is difficult to manage. This is a huge topic to dive into, but in general, your HR Manager should be fully knowledgeable of the following acts.
Wages and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
The U.S. Department of Labor claims that the FLSA, “Establishes minimum wage, overtime pay, recordkeeping, and youth employment standards affecting employees in the private sector, and in Federal, State, and local governments.”
Equal Employment Opportunity
The U.S. Equal Opportunity Commission has a page dedicated to updated law that would apply to HR, which can be found here.
How we work with Internal HR Stakeholders
Culture Works believes that fractional HR relationships are built on the idea of adding another team member (or members) to your existing team. The fractional team partners with your in-house HR stakeholder and team to develop a strategic partnership.
Learn about what working with an outsourced company would look like here.
Working with an outsourcing company: What you need to know
NewsIf your human resources team feels like they don’t have enough time in the day to contribute to crafting your company culture in a profound way, you may want to consider hiring a fractional HR team. At Culture Works, our team sets out to assist your HR professionals with all their operational processes. Let’s dive deeper into how a fractional human resources team can help your organization see greater success.
Please Make Mistakes at Work!
NewsYes, you read that right.
You might not believe us at first, but read through the rest of this article and you’ll see why making mistakes at work (and in life!) is crucial for growth.
Like the brilliant Stephen Hawking once said, “One of the basic rules of the universe is that nothing is perfect. Perfection simply doesn’t exist… Without imperfection, neither you nor I would exist.”
Culture Operations vs Operationalizing Culture (say that 3 times fast)
NewsCulture Operations vs Operationalizing Culture, that’s a tongue twister, what’s the difference?
Operationalizing Culture is the active process of making your HR processes align with your company culture to improve productivity and retention.
Watch Kristi Pastore, Culture Works CEO and Founder, speak with Courtney Harrison, Partner Operations Specialist, discuss the difference between Culture Operations and Operationalizing Culture.
When do you need an Employment Law Attorney vs. HR Generalist?
NewsWhen a company is forming, an HR Specialist is at the top of the list to hire. There are many reasons for needing an HR specialist. For one, they will help protect your business in the future, and also help build a positive culture where employees feel heard and valued.