The Culture Engine

The Culture Engine

by S. Chris Edmonds
Released September 2014
Publisher(s): Wiley
ISBN: 9781118947326

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Book description

An organizational "North Star," codifying valued behaviors for optimal performance

The Culture Engine shows leaders how to create a high performing, values aligned culture through the creation of an organizational constitution. With practical step-by-step guidance, readers learn how to define their organization's culture, delineate the behaviors that contribute to greater performance and greater engagement, and draft a document that codifies those behaviors into a constitution that guides behavior towards an ideal: a safe, inspiring workplace. The discussion focuses on people, including who should be involved at the outset and how to engage employees from start to finish, while examples of effective constitutions provide guidance toward drafting a document that can actualize an organization's potential.

Culture drives everything that happens in an organization day to day, including focus, priorities, and the treatment of employees and customers. A great culture drives great performance, and can help attract and retain great talent. But a great culture isn't something that evolves naturally. The Culture Engine is a guide to strategically planning a culture by compiling the company's guiding principles and behaviors into an organizational constitution.

  • Decide which behaviors and attitudes are desired in the organization
  • Secure leader commitment to planning, drafting, and implementing the document
  • Learn the most effective way to socialize the draft statement and get everyone on board
  • Model desired behaviors to boost employee engagement throughout the process

Organizational culture is not an amorphous thing – it comes down from the top, inspired and exemplified by the leadership. It can steer a company up or down, keep it on mission or force it off-course. For an organization to fulfill its potential, the culture must be on-point, truly reflecting the heart of the company from leaders to team members across the company. The Culture Engine helps leaders define the playing field, pushing performance to the next level.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Dedication
  5. Foreword
  6. Acknowledgments
  7. Introduction
    1. How Did I Learn about Organizational Constitutions?
    2. How Is the Book Structured?
  8. Chapter 1: What Is an Organizational Constitution and Why Do You Need One?
    1. What Is the Condition of Your Team or Company's Culture, Right Now?
    2. The Concept of Perfection
    3. How Civil Is Your Workplace?
    4. Who Is in Charge of Culture?
    5. Create a Pocket of Excellence
    6. An Organizational Constitution Is a “Disruptive Technology” in Your Workplace
    7. The Performance-Values Matrix
    8. The Costs of Measuring Only Performance
    9. How Does an Organizational Constitution Help Your Company, Department, or Team?
    10. Client Impact
    11. Your Leadership Legacy
  9. Chapter 2: It Starts with You
    1. Clarify Your Personal Purpose
    2. Clarify Your Personal Values and Aligned Behaviors
    3. Define Your Values
    4. Add Observable, Tangible, Measurable Behaviors to Each Value
    5. Your Values, Definitions, and Behaviors
    6. Formalize Your Leadership Philosophy
    7. Key Elements (Present Day)
    8. Desirable Outcomes (Future State)
    9. Live Well to Serve and Lead Well
    10. Servant Leadership Is the Foundation
    11. Notes
  10. Chapter 3: Clarify Your Organization's Purpose
    1. What Is an Effective Purpose Statement?
    2. Communicating Your Company's Reason for Being
    3. What Is Your Team or Company's Actual Purpose?
    4. Humans Are Drawn to and Inspired by Great Purpose
    5. Crafting a Compelling, Inspiring Purpose Statement
    6. Notes
  11. Chapter 4: Define Values in Behavioral Terms
    1. Why Do You Need Values Defined in Behavioral Terms?
    2. Your Beliefs May Not Be Aligned
    3. Build Your Values Foundation on Behaviors
    4. Step-by-Step Guidelines for Creating Valued Behaviors
    5. Define Your Values
    6. Include Observable, Tangible, and Measurable Behaviors for Each Value
    7. Your Values, Definitions, and Behaviors
  12. Chapter 5: Outline Strategies and Goals for the Coming Fiscal Year
    1. Five-Point Strategic Planning Wheel
    2. Who Is in Charge of Communicating Your Business Strategies and Goals?
    3. Measure the Right Things
    4. Build a Draft of Your Team or Company's Strategic Plan and Goals
  13. Chapter 6: Your Organizational Constitution Must Be LIVED
    1. Engage All Leaders in Your Organizational Constitution's Implementation
    2. Describe the Way
    3. Model the Way
    4. Align the Way
    5. Contribution Management instead of Performance Management
    6. The Values-Aligned Tribe Culture at WD-40 Company
  14. Chapter 7: Gathering Formal Feedback on Valued Behaviors
    1. Is it Responsibility or Accountability?
    2. Crafting Your Custom Values Survey
    3. Leaders Must Be Rated on Their Values Alignment First
  15. Chapter 8: Dealing with Resistance
    1. What Does Resistance Look Like?
    2. How Must a Leader Address Resistance?
  16. Chapter 9: Hiring for Values Alignment
    1. How Do You Hire Today?
    2. Before the Hire—Recruiting, Interviewing, and Assessing
    3. After the Hire—Orientation and Integration
    4. What if the New Hire Just Doesn't Fit?
  17. Chapter 10: Don't Leave Your Organizational Culture to Chance
    1. Long-Term Alignment versus Short-Term Results
    2. Scoring Your Culture Effectiveness Assessment
    3. Implementing an Organizational Constitution Is an Ongoing Project
    4. Keep Me Informed
  18. About the Author
  19. Index
  20. End User License Agreement

Product information

  • Title: The Culture Engine
  • Author(s): S. Chris Edmonds
  • Release date: September 2014
  • Publisher(s): Wiley
  • ISBN: 9781118947326