How to manage cultural change within tech teams

According to Deloitte’s Core Beliefs and Culture Survey, 94% of executives and 88% of employees believe a distinct workplace culture is important to business success.

With many businesses operating remotely, it’s important that companies try to keep a healthy team culture in order to maintain performance. With ongoing discussions about new ways of working, we could be looking at a permanent shift in office and team culture. This is particularly significant for tech teams who are perfectly suited to remote working and may not return to the office soon.

Let’s take a closer look at what companies can do to manage cultural change within tech teams:

Maintaining employee motivation

According to software company Quantum Workplace, 82.3% of new employees are engaged in their first year at work. However, their motivation drops to 74.8% in year two and 73.3% in years three through to five.

Cultural change can have a significant impact on employee engagement, so companies need to ensure that motivation levels remain high. In a previous CWJobs article, we explored how money is only a short-term motivator and looked at how employees are motivated by other factors over the long-term.

One such factor is flexible working. Employees who are able to plan their working hours around their lifestyle are more likely to maintain their motivation at work. Having the flexibility to work around childcare, for example, can boost employee morale and increase productivity.

Neil Ross, Policy Manager Digital Economy, techUK, the UK’s trade association of tech companies, shares his thoughts on flexible working:

Our ability to connect to one another at work regardless of location has formed the groundwork for many organisations’ day-to-day operations and it’s now one of the main enablers of the tech hubs springing up across the UK. For these hubs to be successful though, the UK must continue to invest in its connectivity capabilities through the adoption of full fibre and 5G. Greater levels of connectivity and adoption of digital tools will enable companies to enact work policies like flexible working. In turn, this will play an important role in improving productivity, increasing diversity and encouraging more to take up roles in tech regardless of location.

Likewise, companies should aim to provide workers with upskilling opportunities. A recent World Economic Forum report finds than 54% of all employees will require significant reskilling and upskilling in just three years. Investing in an employees’ development shows them that they’re important to the business. Workers who believe that they have a future career with a company are more likely to be motivated to perform well and remain loyal.

Recognising employees’ contributions also increases motivation. When we feel that attention is being paid to our efforts, we feel encouraged to produce our best work. According to tech company O.C Tanner, 79% of people who quit their jobs cite ‘lack of appreciation’ as their reason for leaving. By recognising employee contributions through rewards and incentives, employee motivation levels are more likely to be maintained.

Uphold company values and standards

Changing company culture doesn’t happen overnight and amidst an evolving business landscape, it can be easy for companies to lose sight of the bigger picture.

Ensuring that company values are upheld can help encourage tech workers to embrace ongoing changes. According to Deloitte’s Human Capital Trends Survey, 82% of respondents believe that culture offers a potential competitive advantage. Upholding the founding principles of a company can provide transparency during uncertain times.

Similarly, maintaining focus on quality standards can help ensure that workers embrace cultural changes. If employees can see the positive impact that maintaining standards is having on the company overall, they’re more likely to understand the underlying reasons for the changes.

Review your communication strategy

Managing culture change in any circumstance requires clear communication. Employees will want to know how their jobs may be impacted by cultural change and job seekers will want to know what future roles will look like.

A good starting point in managing culture change within tech teams is to create a communications plan that outlines how any changes should be communicated internally, as well as to customers and the wider industry.

Transparency is key to ensuring that everyone understands the reasons behind culture change and embraces the positive impact it will have in the long-term.

Onboarding new tech candidates

Employers and hiring managers need clearly defined processes to successfully manage change, especially when it comes to interviewing and onboarding tech candidates while being at home. Having a clear onboarding process that provides new employees with an insight into the company’s culture and vision can provide essential context for daily activities.

Companies should aim to provide new hires with support in the form of documented guidance and opportunities to interact with other team members and management.

Businesses should also research what software and tools will help new workers get to grips with internal processes and policies. Online workflow tools like Trello can help provide new recruits with an overview of how projects are typically managed from start to finish.

What company culture might look like in the future

In the near-future, we predict that company culture will encourage flexible working and have a strong focus on employee wellbeing. Studies show that happy employees are 12% more productive at work, take ten times fewer sick days and develop better working relationships.

We’d also expect to see companies offering more tech upskilling opportunities. In order to close the tech sector’s current skills gap, there needs to be more opportunities for employees to gain new skills.

We also believe that company culture will be more diverse and inclusive in the future. According to a recent report from analytics firm MSCI, a gender-balanced workforce is more productive. The report finds that employee productivity is higher for companies with three or more women at board level than those with a single, or no female directors.

In order to create a more inclusive culture, we’d also expect companies to be more transparent about salaries and be more proactive in removing bias from the recruitment process by using skills-based assessments.

We believe that technology will play an increasing role in defining company culture, particularly in the recruitment process. Video interviewing software like that offered by CWJobs can help personalise recruitment while companies continue to work from home. Cultural fit assesments like Good&Co can also help companies understand a candidate’s character and how they might fit into existing tech teams.

At CWJobs, companies can create a profile to help them communicate their culture to candidates through videos and engaging content, helping them stand out from competition.