How to build a successful workplace culture ahead of the silly season and beyond

We’re entering the time of a great workplace culture evolution. As we move beyond conversations around hybrid working and into the next iteration of workplace culture, employees are clear on what they want from employers, and organisations are grappling to adjust to create real employee culture that drives meaning and value at work.

In fact, Australians are top two in the job-seeking world for company culture. According to LinkedIn’s 2022 Global Talent Trends Report, 47 per cent of Australian and New Zealand job candidates think company culture is a top consideration (second only to 50 per cent of job seekers in the Netherlands).

A key tenet for Aussie businesses, when attracting and retaining staff, is ensuring there is a strong connection among employees and employers in the workplace. Employees want to feel part of a community, therefore forming meaningful connections at work is critical for building a strong workplace culture. Beyond four-day weeks and team lunches, organisations need to focus on what matters, and that is putting a human lens on team culture and building a new, more dynamic relationship based on trust and empathy.

We are proud of our highly engaged team. We have a human-centric approach to building culture which has cultivated an environment where employees feel they belong.

It hasn’t always been this way, and during the pandemic, we introduced various measures to make sure connection was a key priority during the turbulent time, including our 30-day Work From Anywhere initiative and our Experiences @ Work Program. Initiatives like these have contributed to Big Red Group maintaining an employee engagement score greater than 80 for 18 months, and above 78 for two years.

Our Experience @ Work program, in particular, has been invaluable in driving engagement among employees. Importantly, the experiences enable employees to have fun, face fears, learn new skills and create new memories as a community, which is important to the team and business goals.

It is worth leadership teams nationwide incorporating experiences throughout the year as a crucial team bonding activity. Gifting experiences to staff members as a gesture of appreciation doesn’t go unnoticed, especially ahead of the festive season where gift hampers and stocked drinks fridges no longer cut it.

Like any growing company in 2022, it is important to offer an inclusive suite of benefits. These can range from hybrid working to specialist public holidays to meet your employees’ needs. The goal is to create a strong sense of connection among your team which meets the needs of the community and as a result, makes all employees feel valued in the workplace.

Maddi Robins is the director of people and culture at RedBalloon and Big Red Group.