Braja Deepon Roy June 20, 2020 What comes to your mind when you think of startup culture? Is this the hustle and bustle in the work environment, flexible work timing, the restlessness among the members, or the impromptu discussions on business strategies?
It is all of the above and more. The way a startup function is different from the big corporates. Entrepreneurs in a startup culture want to expand and evolve fast with their limited resources. They believe in their ideas and form a dynamic work culture, where everyone is focused on accomplishing the same goals.
Any entrepreneur’s most important attribute is the conviction they have in what they do. And that is visible in the work processes of a startup. A startup thrives with their fast-paced work culture and being at their edges. This leaves corporates to understand and benefit from their method of management.
Here are the five things that businesses can learn from the world of startups
1. Continuous learning
You would often see millennials claiming to have great learning opportunities in startups. And it is entirely true. You get the chance to try and develop new skills in any startup work culture and also implement them.
There can be no alternative to acquiring skills other than training and development. It is seen that training is offered to employees in their initial days, but it is not sustained. However, it is vital to note that training is a continuous and never-ending process. To keep up with evolving ideas, innovation, and technologies, you need to adopt a learning culture.
In a 2017 Deloitte report, 90% of the CEO’s revealed that their companies are facing disruptive change due to digital evolution. And 70% said that they don’t have the necessary skills to adapt. Though it seems a little bit shocking, it’s true. It is also one of the significant reasons why big corporations collaborate with startups to bring more innovations and stay relevant.
It is not that big corporations do not encourage learning. They do have learning programs, but it often limits till onboarding or few initial years. A culture of continuous learning is adapting to change. Learning new skills helps in sustainability and keep you in the competition.
2. Agility
Startups are agile, and so are dynamic. They understand the rapidly changing market, the complexity of dealing with new technology, regulations, and competitors. They move along with the changes and accommodate themselves with the new wave without getting stagnant. There is less fear to change; startups adapt with ease.
With globalization taking center stage, agility should be one of the main focuses for big companies too. A few examples of businesses that used to lead in their sectors are Kodak, BlackBerry, and Ericsson. Today, but not to the same degree or size, these businesses continue to operate. The main reasons for this were their failure to adapt or adjust their product/services/business strategy according to evolving consumer preferences.
3. Unlocking Human Potential
Startups surround themselves with people who support their crazy ideas. It is more like a crazy bunch who believe in their idea and work relentlessly to shape it. Since the number of employees is less in a startup, every member contributes and wears multiple hats.
In big companies, it is not the same. They have a vision, plan, and all the resources but do not leverage it fully. You may have the most skilled employees, but if you don’t challenge or show them ways to unlock their full potential, you would have an underused workforce. Often big corporations hire the best talents and delegate them the same work every day. This makes their work-life monotonous and lack of excitement/creativity burn them out.
We have surely learned one thing, and that is nothing lasts forever. This includes our perception and motivation to do things, especially when it’s the same tasks over and over again. So it’s vital to engage your employees and keeping up the flame within themselves for driving better growth and prosperity.
4. Transparency
Transparency is a critical element of startup culture. Members are well aware of each other and the positions they are assigned to. They interact freely, and there is openness in the work environment. Low transparency is equivalent to a lack of integrity and efficiency. Startups believe in the fact that everyone should embrace company information. Prioritizing transparency gives employees a sense of trust. It is a hallmark to bring innovation and sustain it.
In a big corporation, very little to no transparency is observed — lack of transparency in the corporate culture results in low employee engagement and morale.
Maintaining transparency in startups doesn’t mean keeping all your figures intact, but it also speaks about being honest with your goals. If you want to grow big, deliver to your customers, and enhance employee satisfaction, then transparency is the key.
5. Fast-paced work culture
Rushing is another critical aspect of startup culture. Start-ups believes in working fast, failing fast and learning and evolving with it. They understand how the lack of finance, operations, and human resources could invariably affect their performance. Therefore they always look to bring the optimal output with the resources they have. Building camaraderie in the workplace is one of the core features of their successful business. Considering an office happy hour policy promotes a better work ethic and results in more satisfied employees.
Changing of coworking trend continues to flourish as both a business model and an evolution of the workplaces. While the benefits are clear, startup co-founders can hope to get the best out of it and how these trends can better be positioned for maximum team performance in startups.
Big corporations often spend a lot of time and resources while dealing with a problem. They generally have a method that revolves around coming to a definitive conclusion.
Here is the method. You must find the problem, have a group discussion, figure out the issue, meet with the boss, receive departmental approval, introduce the solution, report effectiveness, and so forth.
However, it is very appreciated in startup culture to do these things more quickly. The fundamental reason for the development of this culture is the flat hierarchy and dynamic leadership attributes.
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