Focus on Culturepreneurs to Drive Performance

By Nicole Bendaly

Culturepreneurs are leaders who put culture first and intentionally work to craft a high performance culture within their teams and organizations. They know that because culture is the number one differentiator for organizations, that it belongs at the centre of organizational strategy, not as an afterthought or a tactic to achieve an organization’s goals.

You can build the best strategies in the world, but if the culture necessary to make that strategy a success doesn’t exist, that strategy will fall flat. That’s why organizations looking to stand out from the crowd – especially in today’s highly-competitive talent market – need to focus on attracting, retaining and developing culturepreneurs if they’re going to achieve their culture and performance goals.

The Five Attributes of a Culturepreneur

Start by identifying those leaders and team members who display the attributes of a culturepreneur:

1. Psychological safety. This is the foundation of any high performance team and high performance culture. Culturepreneurs understand that it’s important to craft an environment where people can be themselves, ask questions, ask for help, make mistakes, and share or challenge ideas in the best interests of the team and the organization. Psychological safety lives at the team level, not the organization level, and it’s most directly influenced by the leader. Culturepreneurs know how to intentionally build a psychologically safe environment and, importantly, know why it’s important to do so.
   
2. Accountability. Culturepreneurs ensure their team members know why they’re there and what their responsibilities are, and they empower people to make decisions, stick to commitments and follow through. It’s about having (and encouraging) a mentality where people are committed to the vision of the organization.
   
3. Meaning. People need to know their contributions matter and make a difference to the organization. Culturepreneurs understand if leaders expect their people to be wholly invested in the team and the organization and give their all, that leaders need to show that they’re just as invested in their people and in developing and supporting them.
   
4. Impact.  Gone are the days where people feel satisfied just being recognized for achieving big goals. Culturepreneurs actively recognize their people for their contributions and effort as well as for their achievements. In today’s world, it takes far more effort for people to achieve a goal than it did pre-pandemic (for many reasons, including burnout overwhelm, adjusting to hybrid work, etc.). People need fuel to cross that finish line, and what energizes people more than meaningful recognition?
   
5. Continuous learning. This is a commitment to evolving and continuous improvement. Culturepreneurs know that it’s important to question what they are their teams are doing and what they need to know, learn or do differently to grow and achieve even more.

The five attributes of a culturepreneur will set your organization apart, and are key considerations when it comes to attracting, hiring and developing high performance people and high performance teams.

Learn more about the five attributes by downloading Waterstone’s free ebook.