Organizational culture—the common set of behaviors, mindsets, and beliefs that shape how people work and interact—separates the high performers from the rest. It is foundational yet complex, influenced by how a company utilizes mid-level managers, what working models it employs, how it approaches inclusion and purpose, and so on.
A number of colleagues from the People and Organizational Performance Practice recently spoke at Culturati: Summit 2C24, the premiere corporate culture event where McKinsey serves as a Knowledge Partner.
Below are many relevant resources available on McKinsey.com and the People & Organization Blog that align with the Firm’s keynotes and sessions at this year’s event, including middle management, organizational health, the “return” on talent, and more.
Middle management is a critical asset
Middle managers are among organizations’ most valuable assets. However, they are often underappreciated, sometimes even to the point of being considered unnecessary. During one of McKinsey’s Culturati keynotes, Emily Field and Bryan Hancock discussed key themes from their book, Power to the Middle, with practical insights from McKinsey Chief People Officer Katy George. The keynote recording can be watched here.
For more on this research, a great place to start is the blog post “Middle managers can succeed by simplifying the role.” The following articles offer more in-depth information: “Stop wasting your most precious resource: Middle managers,” “Investing in middle managers pays off—literally,” and “Activating middle managers through capability building.”
Culture and performance have an enduring connection
A session from Alex Camp and Drew Goldstein considered the role of organizational health in driving long-term performance, showcasing the Firm’s research that supports the McKinsey Organizational Health Index (OHI). The OHI assesses an organization’s effectiveness across nine outcomes, each playing an important role in its health and performance. The session summarization can be watched here.
In addition to the OHI webpage, the article “Organizational health is (still) the key to long-term performance” digs into the Firm’s latest findings.
Change management best practices are evolving
The principles of change management are evolving to become more human centered. Effective change requires a dual focus on performance and people, which is rarely put into practice. An interactive session hosted by Richard Steele, Laura Lynch, and Unified Women’s Healthcare’s Caroline Starner Dadras empowered attendees to develop a change plan, based on the latest best practices, for their own organizations.
For more insights on this topic, look into the article “A single approach to culture transformation may not fit all.”
Organizations can benefit from a hybrid/remote model
Shifting to a hybrid/remote operating model has presented widespread challenges for organizations, but a lot can be learned from those that have made the shift—or always operated this way—successfully. Phil Kirschner hosted two sessions during Culturati, alongside Atlassian’s Kim McHale, to discuss effective techniques for working and connecting remotely. The session summarizations can be watched here and here.
An excellent resource for more on this topic is the blog post “Hybrid can be healthy for your organization—when done right.”
Rigor is essential to measure “return” on talent
The single largest investment that organizations make is in talent. At Culturati, Neel Gandhi, Charlotte Seiler, and Citadel Securities’ Alex DiLeonardo addressed the importance of rigor in measuring return on talent and the three drivers of lost productivity: skill gaps, will gaps, and time gaps. The session summarization can be watched here.
A few blog resources to learn more about these topics include “Three steps to creating more value through talent,” “Using skill gap assessments to help future-proof your organization,” and “Getting skills transformations right: The nine-ingredient recipe for success.”
Rituals and symbols can help shape culture
Our research has found that transformations are 5.3 times more likely to succeed when leaders model the behavior they want employees to adopt—and that’s where rituals and symbols come in. During their session, John Parsons and Ran Li Phelps discussed the power of rituals and symbols in shaping culture, highlighting several real-world examples that helped clients build healthy, collaborative cultures. The session summarization can be watched here.
One of the case studies discussed, in which a client used an actual elephant figure to encourage candid conversations, is featured in the blog post “Elephant in the room: making a culture transformation stick with symbolic actions.”
Inclusion efforts should be strategic
When they are intentional and strategic, inclusion efforts support strong organizational performance. In another keynote, Visa’s former Chief Diversity Officer and Head of Corporate Responsibility, Michelle Gethers, had a fireside chat with Brooke Weddle about fostering belonging and the connection between inclusion and performance. The keynote recording can be watched here.
The conversation focused on getting strategic about diversity, equity, and inclusion and touched on purpose. The article “It’s (past) time to get strategic about DEI” offers relevant insights, as do blog posts “Making work meaningful from the C-suite to the frontline” and “Running on all five sources: Actions leaders can take to create more meaningful work.”