Open culture

What is open culture:

society is constructed by the culture it inherits. The culture of the society gives it shape for the members of it to live with satisfaction. Today’s businesses and their offices are no different. Open culture means creating a space where the employees can talk freely and don’t have to worry about their colleagues’ judging them. In an Open culture, people can talk more comfortably. And when they feel the comfort in conversing, they feel more like home.

How it works:

It creates trust between the employees of different layers. Their work reflects more honesty as they feel they are truly part of the company they work in and not an employee whose effort is being hired with monthly payment. Open culture helps the employees make believe in the company’s vision more effectively and also helps create a sense of true loyalty as it makes them truly feel that they are part of the company—nobody wants to betray the space that makes them feel homely, that too possibly in a city so far from their hometown. Open culture can be very useful morally and strategically because of the reasons discussed further.

Why is this a crucial time to practice open culture more and more?

Well, that’s because we are just starting to recover from an era of companies’ exploiting their employees for more and more profit. Companies have always focused on the end result. It is of their least concern how the target has been achieved. Whether it has been achieved by taking any unethical measure or not. None of the companies used to look into that matter even a few years ago and a large number of companies still function that way.

A company that stands different amongst this kind of companies will definitely draw employees who want to work in a better environment.

How open culture can be beneficial:

Open culture provides a surrounding for the employees to have a feeling that everyone around them is having their back instead of making them believe that it’s a dog eat dog kind of competition. Consequently in this kind of environment teamwork sprouts like a wildflower. People are more nurturing to each other. One person’s mistake is being rectified by others. All of the employees work for the betterment of the company and not just feel alienated and working for money only. They believe in the company’s beliefs. And when it happens the employees stay loyal to the company.

What are the examples:

A good example of this can be Apple.inc. Rarely a person who is an employee of Apple goes to find a job in other companies. Because of the work environment Apple creates for its employees. It’s constructed upon the basics of Open culture. Apple makes each employee believe that they are a part of this symbol of innovation of a company. They are not just hired employees working for money, rather they are a part of it. Their effort is what makes this company great and keeps this company innovative and world changing.

More examples:

Open culture is a tool to productivity. The world’s most high performing organization is US Navy Seal and we can learn so much from them about open culture. In Navy Seal the officials discuss two types of trust level. One is ‘do I trust you with my life’ and the second is ‘do I trust you with my wife’. The moral of that is, they choose anyone who is more loyal than to a person who is the most qualified. In many companies we discard the idea of even merely considering this. Companies easily go for the most qualified person regardless of how toxic a team member that person would make, when they should really follow the model of Navy Seal. This is one of the main reasons why open culture is so necessary in today’s world.

Open culture’s contributions:

How open culture can contribute to an employee’s overall health is another amazing point. Looking from a psychological viewpoint, it seems clear that getting a friendly environment while staying miles away from home definitely contributes to mental well being. In open culture, as the employees of different levels can bind themselves in a brotherly relation, the strength of the team grows. Consequently, grows the strength of company. A company that has such cohesion amongst its employees certainly defeats its competitors in the long run. While the companies don’t practice open culture and exploit their employees might have a short term more gain but in the long run they are bound to lose.

Footnote:

Thus the conclusion goes, open culture is a very very important tool to create productivity and trust amongst the employees, which ultimately help the company in its performance for years to come. Open culture creates a better work experience for the employees thus help them maintain a healthy mind. This is a moral and strategic urgency that we practice open culture more and more for the betterment of the society.