Building a Strong Company Culture: A Strategic Approach
Cody Candee, the founder and CEO of travel tech startup Bounce, shared his thoughts on building a strong company culture.
In the fast-moving world of tech startups, maintaining company culture as you scale is a delicate task. As a founder, I’ve learned that nurturing our company’s ethos is as crucial as our product or any line of code. From the early days of shaping our vision to managing a large team, the cultural development journey is both demanding and rewarding.
Culture isn’t just a superficial aspect of a company; it’s an environment that must be thoughtfully crafted, nurtured, and protected. As we grew from a small team to a larger organization, I realized that culture must evolve alongside our expansion. Here are some insights I’ve gathered that can help any tech founder.
Be Deliberate and Clear: Culture must be intentionally defined and communicated. From the start, our core values were more than words—they guided every decision. As we expanded, this foundation acted as a compass, ensuring every new team member understood and contributed to our shared vision. We make it a point to celebrate those who embody these values, reinforcing our culture.
Moreover, during pivotal moments, our culture serves as a reliable guide. For example, establishing our office in Lisbon was a strategic move that reflected our culture of empowerment and decision-making. This alignment allows us to stay agile and learn from mistakes while remaining true to our values.
Hire for Cultural Fit: Hiring is another critical aspect of culture. In a competitive tech landscape, it’s tempting to prioritize skills over cultural fit, but we’ve learned that misaligned values can disrupt team cohesion. By prioritizing candidates who resonate with our culture, we’ve built a team that thrives on shared passion and mutual respect. It’s better to take time and hire the right person than to rush and risk a poor fit.
Empower Your Team: Empowering our team is central to our cultural strategy. Fostering ownership and autonomy is crucial in a fast-paced environment. By encouraging creativity, innovation, and open dialogue, we’ve created a place where every idea matters and everyone feels a sense of impact. When team members can offer insights, ask questions, or challenge decisions, it fosters an environment of continuous learning and improvement.
Transparency Builds Trust: Transparency is a key component of our culture. Keeping the team informed about company matters unites everyone around a common goal. This open approach builds trust and fosters a sense of unity. Open communication is a powerful motivator, encouraging collaboration to overcome challenges.
However, culture is not static; it must adapt and evolve. As we’ve scaled, we’ve revisited and refined our cultural norms to reflect changing dynamics. Maintaining alignment and integrating culture across departments and time zones has been a significant challenge. Still, by fostering cross-functional collaboration and promoting belonging among remote teams, we’ve strengthened our cultural fabric.
Finally, every employee plays a role in embodying and safeguarding our culture. Leading by example and nurturing our values from the top down is essential. By living our values in daily interactions and decisions, I aim to instill a culture of integrity, transparency, and empathy.
In the previous article, Cody talked about scaling for tech entrepreneurs.
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