Strong Company Culture Imperative to Increase Profitability

As global circumstances change and technology advances, companies face different challenges. Company culture as part of the value proposal is imperative to overcome these hurdles. Good culture can shepherd a business toward a competitive business model. Both company leaders and employees play a key role in building this environment, say Human Resources (HR) specialists.

“Because of the conditions created by the pandemic, new dynamics were generated, which has driven companies toward an environment hectic competitiveness,” said Daniel Parra, HR Director, Silanes. Now, the challenge for companies is to figure out how can help to observe detrimental behaviors and break paradigms. Companies must generate culture shifts to assure better results and a good value proposal for the client, Parra added.

“A beneficial culture increases productivity and improves commercial performance,” said Paulina López, CD&I Leader Latin America, Dell Technologies. Furthermore, a growing amount of investors is starting to look toward companies where the culture is robust, which has increased the pressure for companies to build such an environment.

“Today’s working culture has to do with the everyday conducts and habits of the people in the organization,” said Ricardo Combariza, Chief People Officer, Covalto. Culture and strategy are the same and therefore cannot be separated. "To operate profitably, you need to keep the people working toward key objectives, as well as motivated and happy,” he continued, adding that “If your value proposal is centered around the business culture’s success, companies are will have highly engaged employees that give their best. There is where innovation thrives and companies can attract the best talent of the market,” said Carlos Andrés De Silva De Silva, HR Vice President, DHL Express Mexico. Conversely, displeased workers rarely achieve their objectives.

“If a company focuses on improving its culture, it can have more engagement, less rotation and better results,” concurred De Silva. Moreover, if staff feels motivated, it will deliver a better performance and offer a great service, which will then lead to happy clients and enhance profitability.

“The goal is to hear the conversation inside the company and turn this knowledge into an internal superpower, which helps to accomplish targets and enables what the company wants to be in the future,” noted Miguel Castuera, VP of People, Conekta, adding that collaboration is key and that company culture needs to be adaptable above all. “Companies should link their culture and identity to what the market is demanding, but this should also make a company more flexible,” agreed Combariza.

However, these efforts are about more than good marketing and PR. The goal is not just to appear to be a company with strong culture, it is about creating a connection what the company looks like and the company it actually is. This is a challenge many have been afraid to tackle, agree the experts.

“Listen to the voice of your culture if you really want to transform your company,” said Castuera. After all, the true culture of an organization strongly influences its behavior that ultimately determines the public perception of the company. Therefore, it is key to understand how this culture generates value and adapt business processes accordingly.

If company culture is to be strong and enduring, leaders must lead and direct it. “They have to be able to see what others do not see, say what others do not say and do what they have to do. More importantly, leaders must stimulate everyone else to see, say and do, too” said Combariza, adding that “enterprises have to connect their purpose with the purpose of each person working there.”

“If company leaders do not have the capacity to deeply understand what is happening internally, this is a consequence of their behavior. It will hinder their ability to change and develop culture they want to build. Only when you listen to the voice of employees, you can make a real change,” concluded Castuera. Business culture is an added but fundamental value for companies. Staff needs to collaborate successfully and have a shared sense of purpose if the enterprise is to truly succeed.