The most effective and successful business leaders recognize that they set the tone and create the climate in their companies that affect every employee and every activity they undertake. Shaping a strong culture in an organization is as important as the company’s business goals. Leaders who want to encourage innovation in their companies and help employees work to their maximum potential know that creating a positive and supportive culture is the foundation.
Professionals who are motivated to gain knowledge and skills to become business leaders and advance their careers can do so with an MBA from Northern Kentucky University. This is a completely online Master of Business Administration program that is designed to fit the schedules of working professionals who can complete the program in as few as 12 months. Courses like Managing in Organizations and Strategies for High Performing Organizations teach how to establish a foundation for driving innovation.
What Is Organizational Culture?
Harvard Business School defines organizational culture as “the collection of values, beliefs, assumptions, and norms that guide activity and mindset in an organization.” It’s a comprehensive atmosphere that affects all aspects of a business from the way employees interact, balance their work-life time and how they feel about their work to how challenges and mistakes are handled.
Since culture impacts employee motivation, it also affects quality of work and efficiency. These, in turn, affect the company’s bottom line. Employees who have clear goals and are encouraged to innovate are happier and more creative. If leadership doesn’t actively establish a positive culture, a negative one can emerge.
Leadership Behaviors That Influence Organizational Culture
There are three ways senior leadership can influence organizational culture and they are all dependent on clear communication. First, ensuring that everyone is aligned with the company’s mission, purpose and vision helps employees understand how their daily work affects the company’s success. Frequent clear communication from leadership makes employees feel connected and valued.
Second, the way leadership handles challenges and times of uncertainty has a direct impact on employee morale. In times of crisis, clear communication becomes even more critical. Silence or panic in the face of a challenge will set the tone for how everyone handles challenges and will quickly affect productivity.
Third, recognizing that mistakes will always be made, it’s important for leadership to embrace and learn from mistakes. Using failures to encourage creativity and experimentation keeps employees from fearing innovation. Failures and mistakes provide a chance to learn what works and what doesn’t.
Creating a Culture of Trust and Innovation
An atmosphere of teamwork, innovation and action starts at the top. Leaders who recognize the importance of culture in the workplace are successful when they share their goals, values and strengths as well as the company’s vision and purpose.
“As a leader, to scale a company and keep the culture intact, you must build and nurture leaders,” advises BZI Steel CEO James Barlow in a Forbes Business Council post. “To do that, you need to assess the strengths and weaknesses of your leadership team and use their talents to the best advantage.”
While technical skills are important, Barlow feels it’s more important to cultivate good people skills. This is especially critical when a company is trying to scale. Investing in leadership development programs helps build strong teams that support cultural values.
Rewarding Creative Thinking and Experimentation
Innovation and experimentation need to be directed by the company’s business strategy and priorities. Executive consultant Stephen Hinch, who has more than 20 years of experience in senior management, says innovation starts with the CEO. He emphasizes how important it is to educate employees on the company’s mission, priorities and core values.
“Employees often imagine that innovation is only about inventing new products or services,” Hinch explains. Innovation that is in line with a company’s strategy and priorities can improve customer experience, improve profitability, or both, he emphasizes. When employees are clear on target goals, priorities and company strategy, their innovative ideas will be in line with leadership goals.
Cultivating an Exponential Growth Mentality
According to Thomas Birr, Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer for E.ON, innovative leadership comes from exponential growth mentality and failure culture. The role of failure culture in exponential growth centers on allowing people to make mistakes as long as they talk about them, learn from them and grow. Even if an idea is ultimately a failure, fostering a culture of creativity and experimentation produces successful growth and change.
Birr says leadership must be forward-thinking and not rely on old models of linear, incremental change and growth.
The exponential pace of technological advancement today, and the globalized, decentralized nature of business, call for new and innovative thinking. Breakthroughs in technology used to come every few decades. Now they are occurring almost daily and leadership needs to keep pace.
Becoming an Innovative Business Leader
The online MBA program from Northern Kentucky University prepares professionals to be innovative business leader in any industry. Students learn from real-world practitioners who bring their wealth of experiences to the classroom.
This AACSB-accredited program allows students to choose an MBA emphasis that best aligns with their career goals. Students graduate with the skills and knowledge needed to become strong leaders who can successfully tackle today’s business challenges while building a culture of innovation.
Learn more about the online Master of Business Administration program from Northern Kentucky University.
