3 ways to improve company culture: practical approaches for leaders to build a culture of recognition and trust

In our day-to-day work training and coaching managers and leaders in the field it’s easy to spot patterns emerging.

One of these is well meaning and well-intentioned managers trying to balance increasing workloads whilst also being present and effective leaders in their organisations – and the ever-present area of responsibility to “improve company culture” – heavy is the head that wears the crown indeed…

I’ve been there myself (I once had direct responsibility for over 300 people) – and made all the mistakes and learned all the lessons the hard way. And I empathise with those leaders trying to do what seems like the impossible.

Of course, quick wins can’t solve such an important and wide-scoping topic. But here are some tips to get you started

Deliver on your promises (no matter how small)

It’s OK. As leaders we occasionally drop the ball and are often reprioritising multiple times a day at levels most of our team might not be aware of. But consistently not doing what you’ve promised(no matter how small) is a sure-fire way to not only erode trust, but also delay projects and tasks on the front end.

During a 2-day coaching with an executive there comes a moment of clarity for many that THEY have been the bottleneck all along because of their failure to respond promptly to their team – impeding their work, delaying projects and eventually sowing resentment.

One habit to start implementing right away – write it down.

Every time you promise a team member that you’ll do something (send a file, read a report, approve an annual leave request) commit to writing it down on paper or in your favourite note taking app – don’t trust your head - or believe me, by the time you’ve finished your second meeting of the day you’ll have forgotten most of the promises you’ve made.

This step in the Getting Things Done methodology is what we call CAPTURE – recognising that our head is for having ideas, not holding them - and parking our thoughts in an external place we can trust and review.

Commit to checking this list at the end of every day and actioning what’s on there as soon as you can (you’ll be surprised by how many quick wins you’ll find here – small things that keep your team moving and maintain and build trust)

Delegate effectively – use lists!

I’ve spoken about my ill-fated attempts as a young manager trying to relieve the burden of tasks from my team members before: once again, trust me. You can’t do it all and their work AND lead a team. In fact, a wise former manager of mine once told me that I wasn’t promoted to do MORE work – but rather to make bigger decisions that affect MORE people – a much-needed reality check as I struggled to complete my work and service the needs of my team too.

When taking our online GTD-Q assessment a lot of managers (who like me) have been promoted for doing excellent work in their junior roles find themselves in the Micromanager/Implementer quadrant– great at getting things completed but reluctant to let go of tasks and projects.

When most people think about GTD® they think about lists (“those GTD folks love a list” they say!). And GOOD lists(with Next Actions and proper contexts) are a great way to help us manage the complexities of our lives.

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Two Lists you need to start using today

Short of condensing an entire course into this short article here are two lists to start creating and working from now.

Projects list – a list of all the projects that your team is working on. Perhaps you have this already in a central CRM orProject Planner, but are you certain you know what they mean?  - create your own Projects list and think about “desired outcomes” – rather than just the project titles (for example “ACME project” becomes The ACME product development is finished and ready to present to the Sales team)

Waiting For list – whilst managing so many people, projects and buildings this list became a game-changer for me. Start keeping a list of everything that you are waiting for from other people – and stop trying to keep track of it in your head.

Our recommended format for this list?

Name of the person/company you’re waiting on – what you’re waiting for – date you started waiting

e.g.

Rebecca – approve 2025 budget report – 15 March 2025

The purpose of this list isn’t to beat people over the head with it, but rather to free up cognitive space in your brain and trust that you have the information to hand when you need it. Checkin at least once a week (or as often as you need to) to see if anyone needs a polite nudge or if anything has come back to you and you can now move forward from your end – this habit (and indeed having a complete Projects and WaitingFor list) also forms part of the GTD Weekly Review®.

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Praise great work

In the day-to-day melee of work, it’s difficult to take time to thank and praise people for their efforts – but you should!

You’re probably already thanking your team on internal messaging services or in email responses in real time, but taking time to do this in a one-to-one or a team meeting can make a world of difference too.

This is where Agenda lists come into play –a list of items to discuss with the person or team you’re speaking to – start keeping a list for every standing meeting you attend and direct report you manage. As well as things like

·     Reminder to complete mandatory training and

·     Ask Rebecca to lead project X

This is a great place to include items like:

·     Thank team for hard work during a tough quarter or

·     Thank David for excellent feedback from client Y

Bonus tip: map your Areas of Focus and Responsibility

Naturally, building a culture of recognition and trust within an organisation is an ongoing process that takes time and constant recalibration depending on the challenges the team is facing and other dynamics.

In the Horizons of Focus model in GTD® we call these ongoing responsibilities Areas of Focus – in a professional sense you can start thinking about your Areas of Focus by looking at your job description (and of course elaborating to include all the additional things you actually do).

Take some time to list your Areas of Focus(and include company culture as one of them), schedule some time (once every three months for example) to reflect on these. Are there any Projects that you need start to maintain those areas? Is there an action for you to take or areas that need addressing sooner rather than later?

Summary on how to improve company culture

Leading teams has been one of the most challenging and rewarding aspects of my career. If you’re a leader reading this then you probably care – which is the most important first step. Getting control of your own workflow will empower you to support your team better int he future – and if that’s something you’re interested in doing why not get in touch to learn more about our coaching and training offers.

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