How to Create a Company Culture that Thrives

It is easy to underestimate how a strong culture can contribute to a company’s success. The cross-cultural expert and world-touring rock musician, Pellegrino Riccardi gives his top advice to help you get there.

Meet Pellegrino Riccardi. He’s a cross-cultural expert, motivational speaker, teacher, communications consultant, and even a world-touring rock musician. On April 4, he will be the moderator for Business Talks at the Oslo Business Forum conference, Digital Leadership.

First things first, let’s get to know Riccardi a bit better. He was born in the UK in an Italian family but has lived in Norway for the past 23 years. “I’ve spent the last 30 years traveling the globe connecting with people,” Riccardi says. On his trips, he has been working on making a connection between him and his audience – also when it comes to helping others to improve their company cultures.

Great company culture doesn’t come for free

But how can companies establish a company culture that has a positive output?

“The word «culture» comes from Latin and means to grow (as in to cultivate) and like any growing organism, if you want it to thrive, then you need to tend to it on a daily basis. Also, if the culture is not healthy internally, customers will sense it externally,” Riccardi says.

Follow Riccardi’s top three pieces of advice for establishing a successful culture in your company:

1. “Focus on providing a sense of safety and security for your employees; you can do this by adopting a communication strategy with your employees that are honest and candid – «fat-free communication. This is especially important in today’s working environment where change and new technology dominate the landscape.”
   
   
2. “Ensure that your employees are connected with each other – both on an operational level, a physical level and on an emotional level. Create forums where people can share their ideas, hopes and  fears about their work environment.”
   
   
3. “Make sure that all your people know and understand that they share a common goal and a common future together, a real purpose, a real reason for why they should come to work every day.”

Surviving the fourth industrial revolution

A strong company culture will help organizations survive this disruptive age. “Stay in tune with the rapid advances in technology and keep all options open,” Riccardi says.

He believes that those who deal best with changes, are open, curious and – most importantly – brave. “Although they may not have all the answers today, they have a grounded belief that they will find them in the future.”

Politicians and leaders are facing many challenges as they are entering a new world of emerging technologies. “Both business and politics thrive in a stable environment where investors and organizations can think and plan long-term,” Riccardi says.

Digital Leadership in 2020

When Riccardi hears the term Digital Leadership, he is reminded of the dot.com-”hysteria” of the nineties when many businesses focused on technology and forgot about content.

“Technology without real and practical content will fail, in the same way stock prices for those companies fell. I hope that Digital Leadership will harness the wonders of the digital world and combine it with a deep understanding of the people part of business. This has the potential to create a more efficient and meaningful workplace,” Riccardi says.

Read more: How to Maintain and Manage a Multi-Generational Workforce with generational expert, Eliza Filby.