1. Driving Culture in
Today’s Marketplace
Nereida (Neddy) Perez
Founder & Principal
D&I Creative Solutions
www.DIcreativesolutions.com
www.linkedin.com/in/neddyperez
2. About: Neddy Perez
20+ years of experience in Human Resources and Diversity & Inclusion
Management
Built and executed strategies/programs at Fortune 100 & 1000 companies (i.e.
Shell, Sodexo, KPMG, National Grid & Ingersoll Rand)
Has worked in Asian, Latin American, US, and European markets
Trusted Coach & Executive Advisor to CDOs and executives at major
companies, nonprofits, academic institutes and government agencies
Owner D&I Creative Solutions
Social Entrepreneur and co-founder of two organizations
STEMInnovationForum.com & MightyChicks.org
Has won several awards and recognition for work in diversity, leadership
development and STEM talent pipeline development
Serves on the board of Diversity MBA Magazine, Central Piedmont Community
College, University of Southern California’s Elevate Program, SHRM Political
Advisory Committee, i4cp think tank, etc.
Blogger/Writer and Speaker
3. Question: Tell us about you?
Why are you here today?
Have been asked to revamp or build our culture strategy
Already own the culture work in our company
Am in Human Resources and curious about topic
Am in Diversity & Inclusion and am curious about topic
Am just curious
4. Question: Tell us about you?
How many years have you worked in your company?
1-4 years
5-10 years
11- 15 years
16+ years
5. Objectives
Our goals today are to help you understand :
Why do many corporate culture initiatives fail
What are the 7 major workplace trends that will impact
your company culture
How to leverage internal resources to identify, embrace
and reinvigorate your company culture
How can you align Diversity & Inclusion to support
Corporate Culture transformation
Walk away with a one page overview to help you
revitalize your corporate culture
6. Why Corporate Culture Matters
“The company’s Brand
Image will attract
candidates but the Culture
is why they stay or
comeback”
7. Why Corporate Culture Matters
It is the heart and soul of the company
It provides the framework for why the
company was founded, continues to exist,
and continues to grow
It is what people believe internally with
regards to :
Behaviors (Trust vs Competition; Integrity)
Treatment (fairness)
Leadership (only at executive level or certain
groups)
Externally
It carries over to customer interactions
Impacts and influences customer loyalty
8. It’s About the Numbers
Impact the bottomline
Reduce Turnover cost
Attraction costs – make it easier to attract people
Reduce safety costs and medical leave
Improve productivity
Customer Satisfaction
Competitiveness
10. Why Corporate Culture
Initiatives Fall Short
Small group of senior leaders
assigned to “project” but no
long term process owner
Work tends to be done or
commissioned by Human
Resources or the Strategy
Group
Efforts may not go deep
enough
Efforts may not be linked to
founders’ vision
Objectives don’t link to other
major initiatives (i.e. Diversity,
HR or Business Strategy)
11. Why Corporate Culture
Initiatives Fall Short
Workforce trends may be discussed
and reviewed but not incorporated
Method used doesn’t take into
account subcultures (i,.e.Trane)
Voice of employee and middle
management may not be
incorporated (i.e. Ascend)
The company culture is not
translatable (i.e. We have a
“Winning Culture” )
Fail to communicate and imbed into
every nook and corner of the
organization
12. 7 Workplace Trends You Need to Know
1. Data provides the foundation,
People’s experiences tell the story
2. Listen and incorporate my
voice
13. 7 Workplace Trends You Need to Know
3. Don’t promise what is not true
or do not deliver it at all
4. Don’t just say it …“Live it, Be It”
(i.e. Do it & Zappos)
14. 7 Workplace Trends You Need to Know
5. Loyalty is Dead unless
Ongoing learning/growing
There is a belief in the purpose
Failure is allowed without being
hurt (i.e. experiment)
Work is flexible – I am not tied
to a location (i.e. CCL offices)
Allow me to comeback after I
leave (Think “Boomerang” –
Deloitte’s Alumni Groups)
15. 7 Workplace Trends You Need to Know
6. Communicate in Short Bytes
Visual is better with a caption
Snap Chat it or Text it (140 to 250
characters)
i.e. Two Words : Service &
Commitment - National Grid (10 million
customers 1 blizzard)
7. Be socially thoughtful and responsible
(humanitarian causes, environment/sustainability,
animal rights)
16. How to Leverage Internal Resources
to Drive Transformation
Connect to History: Really understand the
founding individual’s rational behind the
company values
Identify pivotal transitions in the company’s
history (i.e. merger/acquisition, shift in
strategy)
Identify the main elements of the culture that
align to the core values
17. How to Leverage Internal Resources
to Drive Transformation
Look for internal subcultures and identify what are
the core values that resonate with them
A sub culture is any group that has it’s own identity
which over rides the parent company/corporate
culture (i.e. engineers, supply chain, or a subsidiary,
or business acquisition)
Look at internal data (i.e. National Grid tablet)
Turnover – why did people leave what did they say
about the culture
Use the employee engagement survey; what
patterns exist
Look at ethics complaints filed ; safety records; pay
equity patterns; rewards and recognition handed out
Leverage external social media sites like Glassdoor to
find out why people left or what they don’t like about the
company
18. How to Leverage Internal Resources
to Drive Transformation
Interview people (senior leaders,
employee resource group leaders,
hold focus group meetings in the
native language of employees)
Leverage tools like Yammer, or
Corporate Linkedin or Google
Groups to learn more about what
employees say about the
company and leadership (i.e.
Google Story)
19. How to Leverage
Internal Resources to
Drive Transformation
Review the company’s Learning & Development
Strategy
Incorporate the core values into all learning
Ask to speak to high potentials who have
completed leadership programs to get their in
put on the culture/subculture.
Look at your Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, what
progress has been made.
Ask to meet with the employee resource or
business resource groups to get their input
Look at key questions on the engagement
survey around trust, respect, work culture,
diversity (i.e. I feel respected by…)
20. Align Diversity & Inclusion
with Culture Strategy
Building blocks of Diversity & Inclusion are
grounded in
Valuing people’s skills & talents
Understanding & navigating the corporate culture
Helping to breakdown silos and biases that limit
collaboration
Addressing/Improving policies, processes and
behaviors that prevent an organization from meeting
business obligations or finding solutions business
problems or prevent a company from tapping a
particular market of business opportunities
Increasing the talent pool of diverse candidates and
improving retention
21. If You Don’t Have a D&I Program
Some tips:
Form a committee of high potentials -
diversity council
Check for how language is used …
hidden meanings
Review your demographics
Understand why people stay or leave
Resources:
www.humancapitalmedia.com
www.dicreativesolutions.com
www.linkedin.com
22. One Page Road Map Checklist
• What are the
core values?
• What’s been
done?
Communicate
&Engage
• Make it easy
• Make it
accessible
• Make it active
• Embed it in
everything
• Keep it simple
Eliminate & Track
• Forget the employee value
proposition
• Establish & measure goals
• Hold the leadership
accountable ..imbed in
business scorecard
Anchor
Efforts
• Learning
• Diversity
&Inclusion
• Operations
• Management
& employees
• Performance
System, etc.
Collect Data
• Engagement
Survey
• Demographi
c data
• Conduct
focus groups