IMPROVE YOUR TEAM CULTURE

INSTRUCTIONS:
In a strong collaborative team culture, members support one another, communicate openly, and listen to each
other respectfully. Follow these steps to examine and improve your team culture.

STEP 1: SURVEY YOUR TEAM CULTURE.

Gather information about your team’s beliefs and habits. Some things, such as dress code, are easy to see. But
other aspects of culture, such as expectations about how people treat each other, are harder to discern.

Observe. Watch employees' behaviors and note your impressions here.

Talk informally with team members. Ask them what they like best and least about the current culture.

Learn from others. Compile a list of best practices used by high-performing teams.

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STEP 2: DEVELOP A VISION FOR AN IDEAL TEAM CULTURE.
Take what you’ve learned from surveying your culture and decide what changes you’d like to make.

Focus on gaps. Where are the biggest opportunities for improvement?

Anticipate needs. List any employee requests that you hear frequently. How might you address each of these?
For instance, would a flexible start time in the morning help caregivers?

Be specific and practical. How can you make your vision clear and meaningful?

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STEP 3: IMPLEMENT YOUR IDEAS.
Implementing culture change within your group takes time. Plan to reinforce your message over time.

Match words with actions. What specific measures can you take to demonstrate your vision? For instance, if
your employees say that the culture doesn’t embrace risk-taking, allocate part of your budget to support
employees who have well-researched proposals of something new they’d like to try.

Recognize small, initial successes. What steps can you take to recognize behavior that reinforces your
desired culture? For instance, if you are trying to build a more open, collaborative culture, publicly recognize
employees who team up to solve a problem.

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