New WorldatWork Book Demystifies Culture in the Workplace
Culture at Work: Building a Robust Work Environment by G. Michael Barton
Scottsdale, Ariz. – Faced with a growing talent crunch, companies are expending a lot of energy trying to achieve recognition as an employer of choice in something. In addition to the usual suspects – best companies for working mothers; women of color; diversity regardless of gender; and Fortune’s list of the best companies to work for – new possibilities are sprouting up, including best companies for innovation (BusinessWeek’s new list) and best small to mid-sized employers.
What exactly is an employer of choice? Many in the industry agree an employer of choice is a company recognized for its leadership, culture, and best practices that attract, motivate and retain top talent, achieving corporate objectives.
What do these “employers of choice” know that others do not? Or better yet, what makes these companies an employee magnet?
In his latest book, Culture at Work: Building a Robust Work Environment (WorldatWork Press), author G. Michael Barton distills the culture of some of the best companies into a compact list of 10 attributes. Following is the cultural profile of companies listed in Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For:”
A commitment to development and learning
Unique people practices
Supportive leadership
Financially secure
Health and well-being are encouraged
Employees are recognized and rewarded for contributions
Work-life balancing is supported by the organization
Work environments are positive and attractive
Diversity is valued by the organization
Organization structure encourages employee input.
Many of today’s business leaders and managers are ill equipped to define, let alone influence, the culture in which they work. Culture at Workserves as a tool for assessing and managing organizational culture, making it easy to understand not only what defines culture and how it works, but also ways you can influence it.
Examples of behaviors controlled by culture include:
Innovation versus status quo
Individual versus team orientation
Process versus goals and outcomes
Centralized versus decentralized decision making
Cooperative versus competitive.
Barton, whose previous book, Recognition at Work, is a WorldatWork bestseller, has liberally sprinkled action and discussion points throughout the text, making the book both reader-friendly and accessible. Other quick, value-added takeaways, such as helpful hints, checklists and resources, make this a must-have publication not only for human resource professionals and academics but management teams as well.
Culture at Work: Building a Robust Work Environment to Help Drive Your Total Rewards Strategy by G. Michael Barton. WorldatWork. 2006. 154 pages. Softcover. ISBN: 1-57963-158-4. Member price: $29.95. Non-member price: $39.95 USD.
About Alliance for Work-Life Progress® Alliance for Work-Life Progress (www.awlp.org) is dedicated to advancing work-life as a business strategy integrating work, family and community. An entity of WorldatWork, AWLP defines and recognizes innovation and best practices, facilitates dialogue among various sectors and promotes work-life thought leadership.
