5 Ways to Move a Culture to a Community

“At Facebook, Boss Is a Dirty Word” announces the headline in a recent Wall Street Journal article. Facebook has a majority of Millennials working within their company. The median age is 28. Why does this matter? The simple answer is their leadership does more than lean into the changes desired. They embrace and drive workplace changes.

Some of the workplace changes include:

• Understand individual strengths and put individuals in roles that appeal to their strengths
• Encourage questions and critiques of managers by employees at any level
• Give little credit to titles; focus on results and talents

Facebook states people are not given free reign though. There is “a balance between keeping young workers productive and doing what’s practical.” A good balance no matter anyone’s age.

Let’s add another perspective. Trulia provides information on homes for sale, apartments for rent, neighborhood insights, and real estate markets and trends. They recently consolidated office space and designed their office like a tree. How great is that!

As a recent article highlighted, the “arboreal influence stems from the fact that the real estate website sees itself as a place where people find homes, build and strengthen their communities one ring at a time, from the inside out — like a tree….”

Yes, one ring at a time, experience is gained and shared. Through it all, growth and results grow. A sound design to ensure a better way to work together.

Workplaces Are Communities

What Facebook and Trulia highlight is that workplaces are really communities. Maybe work and life have become more blended so there is no longer a workplace and a separate external community. The important question may be: When did workplace turn into a hierarchical place for people to stay in their little box and do what they are told? This is unsustainable regardless of the generational change.

We need to get rid of “workplace” as a term. We need to treat where we work like a community. When community is the model, we can tap into the creativity, talents, and desire to make things better for everyone present.

Think about it. A community is a group of people with shared interests with a desire to work together toward common goals. There is a sense of pride within a community as well as a sense of responsibility. Although there is a structure, it changes, adapts, and forms to solve specific problems, engage in new possibilities, and comfort when unexpected misfortunes arise.

Community is a mindset to adopt in the places where we work. We should ditch workplaces for communities, bringing generations together to collaborate and lead forward.

Embracing a Community Mindset

Developing and leading with a community mindset creates a new view of how to organize work and engage team members. Let’s discover five ways to move organizational culture to this community way.

Citizenship

Citizens have a responsibility. Good citizens participate and work together toward a common purpose. Citizens spend time listening to different viewpoints and then find common ground on which to cultivate and build. Citizens are the new employees.

Citizenship is not perfect. Nothing is. But there is a framework for what being a good citizen means. When citizenship is embraced with the responsibility and civility required, much good happens.

When leaders treat citizens with respect, empathy, and accountability, people respond. People respond by participating. People respond by challenging leaders to step up their game. People respond by getting involved deeply in initiatives that will make the community better.

Work should be no different. Treat people like citizens and much good can happen.

Serving Approach

Communities serve. In general, there is a serving mindset to communities. When trouble strikes, people come together to help. When good things happen, people come together to celebrate. When someone needs a hand, people pitch in. A community inspires each member to do something beyond just themselves. Community inspires empathy within and translates this empathy into meaningful action.

The key question for business leaders to answer is “why is serving an important principle to embed within your culture?” We know our team members serve outside the four walls of work, so why not embrace the same idea within the four walls? With this mindset change, engagement will shift. Today’s engagement rates are nothing to be proud of so transforming to a community way of culture may produce better results.

Lead from Anywhere

Another engaging element about communities is people are unafraid to lead from wherever they are. If another leader is doing something wrong or questionable, they are challenged. If an issue needs to be resolved, there is a healthy debate. When an area needs to be improved, people stand up and motivate others to do more. Although there are titles, the community itself rises above position and power. A higher purpose in the work creates a sense of leadership responsibility within each citizen.

Organizations generally want people to step up and lead yet they really confine them to organizational and political rigidity. A community mindset can change this dynamic with greater openness.

Accountability – Large and Small

Many years ago, I worked in a mayor’s office. When a pothole went unfilled, we got a call from one or more citizens. When money was not going to where it was intended, people asked questions. When initiatives were not happening fast enough or with enough results, people showed up to ask why.

In communities, not much escapes the watchful eyes of citizens. Again, the word “engagement” comes to mind. More than this, commitment happens. A community mindset empowers people at any level to hold all levels accountable to the mission, goals, budgets, and results. This is a solid cultural element required in any business and organization.

Organizations generally want people to step up and lead yet they really confine them to organizational and political rigidity. A community mindset can change this dynamic with greater openness.

Local to Global

Communities can be thought of local only. Although many good things begin locally, many community members think bigger than their immediate surroundings. Citizens generally know their responsibility within a 60 mile radius but they also know there are many elements outside this circle that can impact them and vice versa. Community members know how different communities are really intersecting circles, each making one another better by learning from each other.

Having a broader perspective is important in any business. However, a wide perspective cannot overrun what needs to happen nearby. A community perspective delivers the right rhythm between the two.

A New World of Community at Work

Let’s ditch the workplace mentality and replace it with a community mindset. A functioning community produces more value than what a confining workplace can. Millennials may drive this change but we all want this change to happen now.

How can a community mindset change workplace culture? What community elements are required?

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Jon Mertz

Jon Mertz is a vice president of marketing at Corepoint Health. He was named one of the Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business by Trust Across America in 2014 and 2015 and highlighted as a “Leader to Watch” in 2015 by the American Management Association. Jon recently published “Activate Leadership: Aspen Truths to Empower Millennial Leaders.” Jon’s background consists of an MBA from The University of Texas at Austin and working for companies like Deloitte, IBM, and BMC Software. Outside of his professional life, Jon brings together a community to inspire Millennial leaders and close the leadership gap between two generations.