Page 10 - KZN Business Sense 8.4
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ORGANISATIONAL CULTURE IN THE POST-



        PANDEMIC WORKPLACE



        NEW WAYS OF WORK



        Contributed by Everest Strategic   an unprecedented increased   a strong brand identity tend to     with others. When employees    organisation’s values will be
        Communications                adoption of digital technologies.   attract more business and job     have the resources and tools    critical in maintaining company
                                      These changes are not only in the   candidates with similar values     they need to succeed, there    culture in the post-pandemic
              s a result of the turmoil   physical and tangible aspects of   who support their mission.    is increased productivity and    workplace. Moreover, many of the
              caused by the pandemic   work, but also in the unseen ones   How will the new workplace     performance.          cultural initiatives that companies
        A– and the consequent         such as organisational culture,   affect organisational culture?   ■   Decreased employee turnover.    adopted before and during
        impact it is having and has had   collaboration, teamwork, and   How can businesses reinvent their     When employees feel valued    the pandemic may continue
        on how we work – the culture of   socialisation.            cultures for the post-pandemic     and respected at a company,    while others will evolve or even
        organisations is potentially under   Reputation and public image  workplace?                they are less likely to leave    completely change.
        threat. Or the culture will be                                                              it. Happy employees mean less
        adversely affected, if organisations   Organisational culture refers   Culture is a spirit, it is intangible,     turnover, which saves    Business leaders need to
        don’t embark on a culture journey   to an organisation’s mission,   but organisational culture is not     companies time and money in    remember that organisational
        to onboard the ‘new ways of   objectives, expectations,     something that can be enforced.     the hiring process.     culture does not come down to
        working’ going forward.       and values that guide its     Since it is not a compliance issue,                         physical proximity, it is more
                                      employees. Organisational     it is more about conversion;   ■   Effective onboarding.    about developing an attitude
          As our economy starts to fully   culture is also a representation   converting your employees to your     Onboarding practices that    of care and more so in today’s
        open after the Covid-19 pandemic,  of a company’s reputation and   organisational beliefs, employee     include orientation, training,    pandemic world. Business leaders
        the workplace has tremendously   public image. People will make   engagement and campaigning     and performance management    need to constantly find new ways
        changed with remote work,     assumptions about businesses   organisation values. Translating     programmes help new    to support their employees even
        remote employees, hybrid work,   based on their interactions within   organisational values from the     employees access the right    when they do not see each other
        and the officeless organisations.   and outside of the company. On   wall to the heart of your employees     resources and better transition    physically daily.
        All of which have brought about   the other hand, businesses with
                                                                    is what makes the company’s     into their roles. Onboarding is    It is recommended that
                                                                    culture work.                   also a good way for companies    organisations reset, refocus,
                                                                                                    to ensure new hires understand    and replay a culture journey to
                                                                    Organisational culture is       the core values of their business.  enlighten employees that leaders
                                                                    Important                     ■   Healthy team environment.    are there to assist them to reinforce
                                                                     Here are several reasons why a     Having a clear and strong    the organisation’s values into their
                                                                    strong organisational culture is     culture that unifies employees    everyday work practice. 
                                                                    important:                      and promotes organised work
                                                                    ■   Increased employee          structures which helps people    Source: Poppulo.com and from LinkedIn:
                                                                      engagement and productivity.      work together with purpose.  Communication Professionals.
                                                                      A work environment with a    The workplace is continuously   For more information contact:
                                                                      strong organisational culture    evolving and thus the need   C: +27 (0)82 218 5205
                                                                                                                                E: natalie@everestcommunications.co.za
                                                                      is driven by purpose and clear    for business leaders to keep   W: www.everestcommunications.co.za
                                                                      expectations. This motivates    reinventing the company culture.
                                                                      employees to be more engaged    Going forward, creating a firm
                                                                      in their duties and interactions    foundation by focusing on the




        DURBAN ICC A FRONTRUNNER IN THE


        WORLD TRAVEL AWARDS




               aving just hosted two   America, Africa, Indian Ocean &   lockdowns forcing the Durban    “This will create more jobs   strives to maintain the Durban
               successful major events–  Caribbean) will go head-to-head   ICC to mothball itself, when   and generate positive economic   ICC strong inherent culture of
        HAfrica’s Travel Indaba       for the world awards.         restrictions were eased, we worked   impact for KwaZulu-Natal and   warmth and hospitality that
        and the Global Conference on    Travel industry professionals, the   diligently to reduce the impact   South Africa. Winning awards   we are known for and strives to
        the Elimination of Child Labour                             of the COVID-19 pandemic and   is a visible demonstration of all   ensure that each guest leaves the
        – the Inkosi Albert Luthuli   media and consumers are invited   maintain business continuity   the behind-the-scenes hard work   Durban ICC happy and satisfied
        International Convention      to cast their votes for travel brands   as far as was possible under the   from the Durban ICC teams and   with the service received,” said
                                      – such as Durban ICC - that they
        Centre (Durban ICC) is in pole   consider to be the very best in   dire circumstances. We have just   people whose principal focus is to   Rakharebe. 
        position to clinch the crown as                             completed two major back-to-back  continuously provide world-class
        Africa’s Leading Meetings &   Africa. The nominee gaining the   events which tested all our systems  customer service to clients, both   Cast your vote now for the Durban
        Conference Destination.       most votes in a category will be   and the verdict is that the Durban   local and international. It is for this   ICC by clicking on this link:
                                      named as the winner.
           Nomination has opened for                                ICC is ticking over like a well-  reason that the close-knit team   https://bit.ly/39bnkbS
                                        Durban ICC has been nominated  oiled machine.”
        the 29th World Travel Awards™   as Africa’s Leading Meetings and
        (WTA) which rewards and       Conference Destination 20 times    She said the Durban ICC
        celebrates excellence across all                            met all its performance targets
        key sectors of the travel, tourism   and has been voted the winner   and exceeded targets in many
                                      in this category no fewer than
        and hospitality industries. The   17 times. The state-of-the-art   instances. “Competing and
        WTA brand - also known as the   venue has also been nominated   winning – be it for events or
        “Oscars of the travel industry” – is                        awards – is in the DNA of the
        recognised globally as the ultimate   the World’s Leading Meetings &   Durban ICC. We are thrilled to
                                      Conference Destination for the
        hallmark of industry excellence.                            have been nominated in the Africa
                                      past 10 years.
           Voting has opened in the various                         round and hope to also vie for
                                       Lindiwe Rakharebe, Chief
        categories for the Africa region.   Executive Officer, Durban ICC,   the global award as it will raise
                                                                    Durban’s destination profile for
        Winners in the regions (Europe,
        Asia, Oceania, Middle East, South   said the convention centre will be   business tourism and will help
        America, Central America, North   going all out to bring the trophy   the Durban ICC to attract more
                                      home, yet again.  “Despite the   international events to the city.



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