Culture Matters: Seven strategies for building community and connection

A strong, healthy culture can be a powerful hedge against turnover. While many people leaving their jobs over the past year have cited issues such as not feeling respected at work and a lack of flexibility, some companies have been able to retain talent by building cultures of respect, flexibility and more.    

A recent B:CIVIC panel discussion called, “What Great Resignation?” explored innovative approaches that some leading Colorado companies have taken to build thriving cultures.   

Jami Duffy, executive director of Youth on Record; Jim Licko, managing partner and co-founder of GFM|CenterTable; Geri Mitchell-Brown, co-owner and senior director of employee experience and social impact for Namasté Solar; and Ronda Vitrano, managing director, shareholder and head of people and culture at Crestone Capital, all shared the culture-building strategies that have enabled them to avoid the worst impacts of the “Great Resignation.”   

Here are seven strategies for fostering culture and connection:  

• Communicate: Build compassion and empathy through social events that encourage open and honest communication and active listening 
• Ask for input: Conduct regular engagement surveys, at least once or twice a year 
• Host quarterly, “What’s on your mind?” sessions to hear from employees in a less formal and more conversational setting  
• Share the work: Co-create values with the team so employees are invested in them and have a voice 
• Be considerate: Care about employees as people, but also have an off-boarding process if the employee is no longer aligned with the mission 
• Be authentic: Stay true to your mission 
• Stand up for what you believe in: Decide what you stand for, what you will negotiate on and what you won’t – and be ok with the fallout  

 To learn more, check out the video of the panel discussion, “What Great Resignation?”