First-time entrepreneurs are usually not experienced enough to understand how important it is to start their new business in the right “mood”.
Here are ten reasons why company culture is so important for startups.
1- The Stage for the Future
The first thing you should understand about company culture is that by focusing on it, you will be setting the stage for the future. Every big and successful company has some kind of “feel” or “atmosphere” to it that cannot be ignored because it is an essential part of that company’s brand image.
Think of your company culture as a kind of foundation for your business’s future. Relationships between your employees and between them and you are what will promote teamwork in the workspace and improve the performance and dedication of your team.
2- Investor Expectations
There are thousands if not millions of startups just like yours if not better. You might have an innovative idea with enough demand on the market for your business to set off quickly. This is why investors have higher expectations than you might initially think. After all, you are competing with entrepreneurs just like you: enthusiastic and hardworking.
Investors will expect you to have something special in your team that will show that your startup is set up for success. They want to know that they are investing in a company whose team is incredibly dedicated and passionate about what they do, so even if there are challenges on the way, they can be overcome with enough effort.
3- Passion and Risk-Taking
As a first-time entrepreneur or even as a seasoned one, you probably know about the risks of starting a new business. There is a lot of money involved, so losing it and going bankrupt is probably the number one fear for many startup owners. Nevertheless, risk-taking will remain a part of having a startup and company culture can really help you manage it.
At the same time, there is always a lot of passion involved with startups. This is because having an idea and working towards it will require you to stay inspired by and dedicated to it. Company culture will have to take into account this passion aspect.
4- The Cost of Compensation
How are you paying your employees? Did you know that some people can leave even a high-paying job if it doesn’t satisfy them in other ways? For example, if they feel like they are not valued and their work is not appreciated, then they might as well quit because they will constantly be feeling down.
All of these things – both material and abstract – are a part of the cost of compensation. Of course, your company culture is also a part of it, so forming it from the start will help you to make your employees satisfied (and your investors will probably also feel more satisfied).
5- Teamwork and Individuality
If you think about it, company culture is all about teamwork. And if you have teamwork, your employees will be more likely to work together towards a common goal. There will be fewer arguments and more chances for success because of how well your workers will be treating each other and coordinating their tasks accordingly.
As for individuality, good company culture will ensure that your employees can also express themselves and show their uniqueness. If there is not enough time for it, you can outsource some tasks. For example, using an online translation service like The Word Point will reduce the translation workload. It’s all part of the company culture you want to create.
6- The Profile Boost
As discussed earlier, standing out of the crowd will significantly improve your chances of being chosen by investors and getting more financial support. Obviously, good company culture will give the necessary profile boost which will improve the way your startup looks in the eyes of investors (and pretty much everyone in the industry).
Of course, this mostly relates to every point in this article, because anything and everything you do to improve your company culture will boost your profile, even if it is something small and “local”.
7- Flexibility
In the world when everything is constantly changing and you can’t know what will happen tomorrow, being flexible is perhaps one of the most essential characteristics of good company culture. If you can’t be flexible with managing your startup and your employees can’t adapt, your business might fail quicker than you think.
That being said, flexibility is dependent on company culture just like company culture is dependent on flexibility. They work with each other and improve each other just like your employees and you work together for one cause.
8- Company Values
Company values are the pillars of company culture. They are the beliefs and values shared inside your company that unite your team around a common cause. These company values will also be transferred outside of the company to your customers who will share these values and want to support you because of them.
In other words, company values form company culture, but they are also formed by company culture. They influence both the inside and the outside of your company and might even affect your profit in the future.
9- Communication
Company culture will always positively impact relationships between your employees, and if you have good relationships, you will have good communication. It is incredibly important that you know the true value of good communication because this is what your employees’ productivity will depend on.
Imagine this: one employee says something and the other one misinterprets it. What will happen next? Probably a chain of unfortunate events that will result in disaster. Work on your company culture and improve your communication to avoid such situations.
10- Productivity
Last but not least, with all the previous points taken into account, increased productivity will be the end result of it all. One thing leads to another and positive company culture will lead to happier employees.
And, of course, happier employees will work harder and the performance and productivity of your startup will grow exponentially. This will also be especially helpful in the long run and not just for short-term projects.
Final Thoughts
All in all, creating a good company culture from the start is important if you want your startup to succeed and your company to grow into something big. Always put company culture into your priority list, so that you don’t forget about its importance and focus on it more.
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Based in Chicago, Ava T. Jones is best known for her contributions to writing. She entered the writing world to explore her passion for contrastive linguistics, adaptation and lexicography. Ava also enjoys skiing, social media management and vegan parties.