The Culture Series:...unlocking the influence of a business climate, the C5 model explained
The Culture Series:
...the C5 model explained
Achieving outstanding business performance is not just an ambition but something that all organisations strive for in today’s results driven business environment. However, attempting to balance both client and employee satisfaction can prove to be somewhat difficult whilst maintaining a high functioning company. The three-fold process, the C5 Model, measures the prevailing climate and provides leaders with data and insights enabling an effective action plan for business performance and improvement both internally and externally, providing the efficient framework for formulating an effective roadmap towards sustainable improvement. A better climate at work not only motivates “discretionary effort” in people but delivers advanced bottom line performance, which will then filter through the rest of the company creating a more motivated and productive working environment. Recent studies by the Hay Group across a wide range of sectors found that business performance improves by over 30% when employees experience a greater climate. These can be assessed through five dimensions that can be easily reflected and acted upon:
Clarity: everyone knows what is expected of them. People are clear about mission, values and goals.
Congruence: challenging but attainable goals are set that are aligned to the company’s strategy.
Control: employees are given authority to accomplish tasks and act without checking and there are no unnecessary rules, policies and procedures.
Contentment: employees are recognised and rewarded for good performance, performance management work effectively, and constructive feedback is given and well received.
Commitment: people are proud to belong to their team and organisation, give discretionary effort willingly and are committed to the common purpose.
Whilst the aforementioned factors influence largely the climate of a company it is integral that you create a process in which these can be put in place to continue to reinforce and adhere to the practices and beliefs of your company. Climate is influenced largely by;
Alignment of structure: This is the degree to which as leader defines and aligns their own role and the roles of their people toward attainment of the organisations goals. It looks at the nature of people’s jobs and examines areas of gaps or overlaps; headroom distance and compression and optimisation of spans of control.
Behaviours: Leaders who provide a clear sense of direction and purpose, encourage the commitment and enthusiasm of others, build trust, energy and momentum, and involve others in decision making, will be more successful in creating a favourable organisational climate than leaders who do not employ these behaviours, leadership behaviour has the greatest impact on climate.
Conventions and progress: these are the rules and regulations that prevail in organisations e.g. reward and recognition structures that are fair and equitable; two – way communication channels that are open; decision making is easy and there are no unnecessary rules; clearly understood business planning that is cascaded through the organisation.
To truly realise the potential and meaning behind this however each element of the process should be followed up and actioned to ensure the dynamics of a company are kept smooth and channels of communication kept open. A hugely significant factor in this failure rate is leaders not paying sufficient attention to culture and climate synergies and differences. Using a three stage approach to the previous collation of data allow for an in depth understanding of the climate prevailing in the work place.
Stage 1 – Stakeholder Interviews
The assessor conducts a series of interviews with nominated stakeholders. spending on the size of the organisation. During these sessions participant should be asked to share these experiences in relation to “What it feels like to work here”
It is important to point out both what’s going well and what should be improved on to ensure a focused balance on both parties, focusing purely on the negatives can create a negative working enviroment whereas an entirely positive focus is not accurate and does little to aid the task at hand.
Stage 2 – Leadership Assessment
Leaders should be asked to complete a predisposition inventory. Leadership behaviour has the most impact on Climate so should be a large focus. It has critical impact on a team’s performance and ultimately aids in the development of organisational capability and performance. This in-depth psychometric tool gives insights to leaders about how, and why they are most comfortable in communication with other, their preferred approach to problem solving and implementing actions, and their most comfortable and predictable leadership style.
Stage 3 – Client Feedback Workshop
An in-depth feedback workshop is then held with the client using the C5 model which will highlight what is working well in the business and enhancing the Climate and most importantly, the areas that are negatively influencing the climate.
The application of the Business Climate Diagnostic has been proven to add value and improve business performance across all sectors. It applies locally as well as globally. It delivers for Leaders and executive teams the insightful data they need to make good decisions and design intelligent road maps for their organisation. The result is a clear agenda for sustainable, profitable business improvement.
Helen Sweeney
Challenging the business consultancy status quo
New Cambridge-based advisory firm brings decades of Big 4 experience to contribute to regional Phenomenon
CAMBRIDGE (26th February 2018) –
There’s a new game-changer to Cambridge businesses and it isn’t bound by industry or technology. Catering to the most ambitious scale-ups to those established industry heavyweights, this team of innovative forward-thinkers is ready to shake things up.
Cambridge Advisory Partners (CAP) is a boutique practice of highly-experienced consulting partners who work with entrepreneurs to accelerate business growth and routinely win in the market. They’ve been quietly perfecting their craft since setting up in 2017, but now CAP is ready to take the Cambridge business world by storm, opening eyes and minds to unimaginable possibilities. CAP is all about creating industry leaders through differentiation and agile opportunism.
CAP Managing Partner Stephen Warburton said,
“Having led Big 4 consultancy businesses for as long as I have, I could see a better way of working and with Cambridge Advisory Partners I have an excellent team who all share the view of looking for answers where different industries collide, and in the spaces in between.”
Cambridge is a hub of knowledge and innovation, but amongst its expertise opportunities are missed to turn them into business strategies due to a lack of overview. CAP is addressing this problem with its industry and technological neutrality, and distributed network of international experience in various capacities.
In their new approach to consulting, CAP wants to get to the very essence of business consultancy in the ever-connected digital society we live in. The art of going slow to go fast, a part of the Business Growth Paradox they subscribe to, is a difficult one to master but as a team of experts CAP knows its strengths and plays to them unashamedly.
ABOUT CAMBRIDGE ADVISORY PARTNERS
CAP is a boutique practice of highly-experienced consulting partners comfortable with success and accustomed to ensuring clients accelerate business growth and secure market leadership.
CAP is all about creating industry leaders, ensuring our clients achieve significant differentiation and secure unrivalled market leadership, and then driving home that advantage.
CAP knows that when the most relevant insights are assembled, shared and challenged from multiple perspectives, the best opportunities and outcomes will emerge. CAP knows this is best achieved when you harness both behavioural drivers and technology differentiators to truly motivate, and when you are unbiased towards industry norms and perceived wisdom.
Are you wondering if we can do this for your business? If yes, please contact us and we'll be happy to help.
A strong, stable and dynamic base
An U12 cricket squad and business. They’re more alike than you think. The success this season of this group of able, but not unnaturally talented, individuals can be attributed to the same skills and approaches used to consistently create successful businesses.
This team has always been good. It has always performed well but it often lacked belief and consistency. Over the course of the last 12 months however, it has won every match it has played and, in the course of that, won both the winter indoor league and the main summer league. No mean achievement. So, what has brought about the change?
This team does not rely on just one or two players, it understands that mistakes happen. It accepts that no one makes them on purpose. It also knows that when something doesn’t go to plan, the player(s) concerned know it and feel it more than anyone and don’t need to be told they got it wrong or what they should have done. This team is supportive, understands it’s strengths and looks to execute against them. It also has fun and finds ways to enjoy the time it has together, exactly what a good business should do.
An experienced cricketing coach has a number of tools in their kitbag:
- Instruct
- Demonstrate
- Analyse
- Observe
- Listen
- Question (and discuss)
- Silence
In the cricket team the balance of these tools has changed over time and, as players have taken greater personal responsibility for their own growth, results have improved.
As a consequence, the coach takes a facilitator’s role, creating an environment that allows the team to succeed, shape its own future and defines its ambition. The coach helps it go further, faster and more consistently. Effectively, using tools 4 - 7 much more.
So just as the team’s mantra of “strong, stable, dynamic base” works in junior cricket, so it will in business. Do you agree? Let us know!