Workplace culture is not just bean bags

The last few years have seen a lot of companies harp on culture and the importance of it in today’s time. From providing a fancy workplace to offering high incentives, companies are offering beyond means, to build a healthy culture. While this is essential, as the majority workforce is GenZ and Millennials, it’s important to understand that while a company is made of a million different threads that connect its individual entities, the needle that binds them all together is the culture we create. This is something I believe in.

When we started Social Panga back in 2014, our ideologies were strong, and our intentions were clear: Our workplace culture was not going to be one of just aesthetics. When the Google office culture became more well-known to the public, their eyes landed solely on the bean bags the employees worked on. It was an amusing observation made in conjunction with how laid back the bean bags made their work culture seem. Aesthetics makes a workplace seem more welcome and get the conversations flowing, but it’s just one of the many layers that makes for a sound workplace culture.

As I grow in my journey of entrepreneurship, every day I learn something new. Working with Gen Z has shown me that each person around is an entity, with their own work process, thoughts, and personalities. And this, both small and big picture learning people maketh a company. Our intentions for the right workplace culture are met with the variables who make up an organisation and then we find the right middle ground to work on.

Redefining and building a good workplace culture requires a company’s biggest and consistent approach. A company is defined by the ability to make different unique individuals come together and create something of value, something that can be looked back on fondly. This does not mean that there are no last minutes redos or pitches, it means everyone works in a collaborative manner. When every person in an organisation brings diverse skills, perspectives and experiences, it together helps to achieve far more collectively.

Companies, especially in our agency space, should focus on offering space and creative freedom. This builds a better ecosystem rather than just one agency. Personally, I am conscious of setting the right intentions and seeing them through. Consistent goal setting also expands to my leadership, my decision-making and implementation. In the book No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention by Reed Hastings, the Co-founder and CEO of Netflix and Erin Meyer, a professor at INSEAD Business School, speak about how candid conversations and organisational transparency are key in achieving goals.

They also go on to describe talent density, which I think is one of the most important aspects of creating a workplace culture fueled by passion and innovation. In the realm of hiring, companies should find people who can think outside the box. The pandemic was a trying time in more ways than one. What was workplace culture… without the workplace? It made us go back to the drawing board and figure out ways to keep morale going and creativity flowing. That period taught us a lot about the value of a community within the organization. It was important to show up for each other every single day and keep the ship sailing.

It is situations like this where foundations of workplace culture comes up and bean bag culture is questioned. Workplace culture is an investment. It fosters innovation and a space where people recognize and appreciate each other’s work. It is, however, not a one and done decision you tick off your task list on a Monday morning. It requires constant work, assessments and reassessments, adjustments and continuously welcoming change. It is beyond just what meets the eye and benefits everyone, the leaders, the employees and the organization alike.

This article is penned by Himanshu Arora, Co-Founder, Social Panga.

Disclaimer: The article features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the stance of the publication.