pixelfit/E+/Getty Images
Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.
In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, culture has emerged as a critical determinant of organizational success. Far from being a soft concept relegated to employee satisfaction surveys, workplace culture now sits at the intersection of employee productivity, operational efficiency, and bottom-line performance.
For chief human resources officers (CHROs) who are navigating pressures from distributed workforces, digital transformation, and the ongoing quest for productivity growth, culture represents both a strategic imperative and a practical challenge that demands immediate attention.
Also: 3 ways AI agents will make your job unrecognizable in the next few years
A recent Aberdeen research surveying over 200 HR leaders across companies of all sizes reveals that employee productivity and engagement top the list of concerns keeping CHROs awake at night. This concern is closely followed by the ability to support quality and reliability in products and services, data quality for informed decision-making (especially critical in today's AI-focused workplace), and financial planning. Just as crucial as other challenges, collaboration and communication difficulties rank among the top five struggles, signaling that HR leaders recognize the importance of these elements yet struggle to drive them effectively across their organizations.
What's keeping CHROs up at night?
Defining culture beyond the buzzword
Before addressing culture improvement, organizations must first grapple with what culture actually means. Too often, culture is perceived as an abstract concept rather than what it truly is: the collective set of desired behaviors that define an organization. The critical disconnect occurs when desired behaviors fail to align with experienced behaviors. This mismatch represents the fundamental challenge CHROs face before they can even begin implementing culture programs.
Also: 5 ways business leaders can transform workplace culture - and it starts by listening
... continue reading