“Culture”: What is it and how can leaders use it to improve their organization?

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Helix is committed to improving the quality of today’s workplace by proposing a 21st century business model.

Being a 21st Century business means having a multicultural environment, with a focus on both ethics and innovation, and increased productivity. How is that even possible? The answer is straightforward: a leadership that focuses on both the individualistic needs of each of its employees and on the group’s dynamic.

This might sound complicated, I know, but it is not.

There have been many approaches to leadership and management theories which have dramatically shifted in the last few years. 30 years ago, the one-size-fits-all management model was very effective, but nowadays in the context of globalization, practitioners and scholars are focusing on diversity management. Diversity in the workplace is often characterized in terms of ethnicity, gender, and/or age which implies a distinct understanding of the world, different cultures, beliefs, and values.

Building a working mechanism from so many different pieces is something that Swiss watchmakers are known for, and making a business work as smoothly as a Swiss watch, a leader has to do exactly the same. Managers need to understand, that although hard to achieve, a working multicultural workplace comes with significant advantages and is worth the struggle.

According to Investopedia, among the benefits of a multicultural organization are: a higher level of innovation, greater success in marketing, better distribution of opportunity, a broader perspective that might help identify and exploit new markets and customers. Having more perspectives can also help prevent the phenomenon of “group thinking”. From this, we can conclude that, even though challenging, the advantages of having a multicultural workspace exceed the side effects.

“Is it possible for an organization to be both high-morale and productive?”

This question arose a long time ago, and if back then people were talking about its possibility, nowadays we talk about its necessity. Social responsibility is essential, and a good leader should be able to balance profit-making with activities that benefit society.

Business’s relationship to its society and environment is a critical factor in operating efficiently and effectively.

In the past, the lack of competition made business entitled; nowadays, considering the competition, firms have to be more assertive to their customers' needs. Taking into account that not only are employees more ethically and culturally diverse but customers too, adds yet another challenge for business owners.

Moreover, the internet and social media have given the customer the tools to engage more in the “inside activities” of a business and at the same time the possibility to take actions against unethical behavior. (see Nestlé boycott )

At the same time, the management literature focusing on employees has evolved from Maslow's pyramid of needs which implies that one needs more than just money to be pro-active. They need good social interactions, they need to be respected, understood and be part of something that matters.

Working for the greater good, or at least for something that is significant to them, makes people work with passion, challenging them to give their best, which for a business translates into better productivity, which at the end of the day results in a higher profit.

Helix provides an excellent case study for this article because it is a company that focuses on technological innovation and education, has a multicultural workforce and subsidiaries around the world and at the same time is consumer oriented.

Helix’ employees are always eager to help each other to accomplish every single task.

The fact that the team is very multicultural is both a challenge and a blessing, even though we come from different countries and have different backgrounds (cognitive scientists working with business majors) we work together as a team because we believe in the objective of the company which is to provide cognitive security and to educate the world about technology. Having the opportunity to shape the world is a motivator that makes us give 110% every single day.

“A friendly environment is not necessarily a productive one”.

This can’t be further from the truth; the fact that everybody enjoys coming to work is giving us the motivation we need to achieve every milestone. Every accomplishment is celebrated within our team, and that is why we wish to better ourselves every day.

“The market of cryptocurrencies is oversaturated” some might say, but when you know that you bring something new and better to the table, why not work really hard to offer a truly decentralized future?

There are different levels of business morals and ways to elude being genuinely ethical or doing the right thing. Helix believes that in order to compete and stay on the market, you have to always be true to your customers, comply to the written and unwritten laws, and always remain loyal to your cause.

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An article by Ioana Lunescu - Helix Cognitive Computing GmbH, originally posted on Medium