Action plan

Document that lists what steps must be taken in order to achieve a specific goal.

Action planning

The process of identifying key issues to focus on and then determining who will do what by when; it is a subset of actioning.

Actioning

The full process of taking action to cultivate purposeful culture; includes setting a company-wide culture alignment objective, prioritizing opportunities, identifying desired behaviors, evaluating potential change approaches, determining a plan of action, engaging all levels of the organization, assessing progress, and making adjustments.

Agility

One of the seven dimensions of our Culture Framework; it includes scanning the environment to anticipate shifts, quickly adapting to external changes and proactively initiating change to seize opportunities.

Census survey

A survey in which all employees of an organization are invited to participate.

Collaboration

One of the seven dimensions of our Culture Framework; it emphasizes working cooperatively and sharing information within and among groups to achieve common goals.

Core dimensions

Two dimensions of our Culture Framework (dignity, purpose) that must be present to drive organizational growth; also known as the “table stakes” of great culture.

Critical behaviors

Desired behaviors that, when repeated over time, become habits; critical behaviors are a key component of shaping purposeful culture.

Culture

The system of shared beliefs and behaviors that develops over time to shape how people work together and how work gets done in an organization. Also known as “the way we do things here.”

Culture action team

The team responsible for spearheading strategic actioning initiatives and guiding culture change; it typically includes at least one business leader, an HR leader, a communications lead and a select group of key influencers.

Culture alignment work

The ongoing process of shaping the system of shared beliefs and behaviours to support the accomplishment of planned strategies and address emergent requirements.

Culture objective

Statement that encapsulates the goal or end state of culture alignment work (e.g., “be more inclusive and less hierarchical”).

CultureDiscovery™

Phase two of the CultureIQ approach; includes a two-step measurement process beginning with a quick baseline survey to first gauge gaps between desired and current culture, then a deep dive survey to diagnose the cause of key concerns.

CultureLaunch™

Phase three of the CultureIQ approach; includes conducting a census survey to identify opportunities for improvement and then facilitating a process to initiate actioning.

CultureTarget™

Phase one of the CultureIQ approach; includes linking culture to organizational objectives, then applying our Culture Framework to pinpoint the critical dimensions of the organization’s unique culture.

Curiosity

One of the seven dimensions of our Culture Framework; it represents the extent to which employees are expected to appropriately question, test and implement new ideas and ways of accomplishing work.

Desired culture

The dimensions of culture that are most essential given current strategic priorities and emergent requirements.

Dignity

One of the seven dimensions of our Culture Framework; it represents an inclusive environment where there is sincere concern for employee well-being, highlighted by honesty, trust and mutual respect.

Dimension

A group of related elements used to measure a specific aspect of culture. CultureIQ’s Culture Framework consists of seven dimensions.

Emergent requirement

Update: We refined the definition of “Emerging Requirements” to the following:

Unanticipated circumstances that have the potential to impact future growth (e.g., COVID-19, new regulations, economic shifts). Leadership must understand these circumstances and ensure that their culture will either mitigate or take advantage of them.

Engagement

An employee’s commitment and connection to an organization, which is comprised of pride, energy and optimism. Engagement is an outcome of culture rather than a dimension of culture itself.

Execution

One of the seven dimensions of our Culture Framework; it reflects a focus on empowering, enabling, and expecting employees to efficiently produce high-quality work.

Flex dimensions

Four dimensions of our Culture Framework (collaboration, curiosity, execution, talent) whose level of importance will either increase or decrease based on the combination of a specific company’s planned strategies and emergent requirements.

Mission

A description of how an organization’s vision will be made a reality.

Organizational purpose

The reason an organization operates or exists.

Peer-nominated team

Any team formed on the basis of nominations by employees across the organization to represent their needs, concerns, questions and suggestions. Peer-nominated teams typically provide input and participate in decisions which can lead to higher levels of acceptance and engagement in actions. May be part of the larger Culture Action Team or selected to work on specific issues.

Planned strategy

Controllable decisions leadership makes during planning periods around how a company will drive growth (e.g., launching a new product, increasing diversity, supporting greater innovation).

Progress pulse survey

A type of pulse survey designed to gauge perceptions of actions being taken to achieve a culture transformation objective.

Pulse survey

A short survey designed to quickly gather feedback on specific, timely themes. Pulse surveys can either be a census or a sample.

Purpose

One of the seven dimensions of our Culture Framework; it represents the extent to which employees are inspired and guided by the organization’s intended impact on its employees, customers and society.

Sample

A subset of individuals selected to be representative of a larger group.

Survey Champions

Employees who help support survey roll out and action planning across the business; often HR managers or HRBPs.

Survey item

Qualitative statement that reflects an observation, judgment or feeling and is used to measure an aspect of culture.

Talent

One of the seven dimensions of our Culture Framework; it reflects the organization’s level of emphasis on the development, motivation and retention of employees.

Theme

A collection of related culture topics frequently relayed in an executive briefing as storylines. (e.g., trust in leadership, open communication, performance management).

Values

Desirable principles and tenets that are agreed upon and employees are expected to abide by. Typically set by the leadership team.

Velocity

One dimension of our Culture Framework (agility) that indicates how quickly the organization can mobilize when change needs to occur.

Vision

An aspirational description of what the future looks like if the organization is successful.