Allay Consulting’s August Newsletter: Creating a Culture of Excellence

Here at Allay Consulting we have helped hundreds of companies become compliant and gain certifications that are above and beyond what most companies are required to be doing in the space. Because of this experience we have seen a number of perks that have benefited certified/complaint companies that we weren’t originally expecting.

Yes, getting cGMP certification has lots of benefits that directly relate to profit. It reduces the risk of recalls and disposals, creates a higher priced product, increases consumer trust, opens more selling opportunities to bigger buyers, and can help you get a better price of your overall business when exiting.

What we didn’t expect was it also helps create a culture of compliance, gives a sense of pride to employees, develops clear expectations on what each employee is responsible for, reduces turnover, attracts higher level candidates to apply for your jobs, and creates a happier work environment. Because of these hidden benefits of certification and compliance we thought we would speak about the things we believe are the benefits of creating a culture of excellence!

Creating a Culture of Excellence

We’ve all heard of toxic work environments. Some of us have personal experiences with negative conflicts at the workplace, and those jobs typically don’t last long. Displeasure at the workplace often leads to unmotivated staff, decreased productivity, errors, anxiousness, and turnover at work. These unwanted results are a clear indication the company’s culture isn’t working. An effective approach to keeping your staff happy and reducing conflicts is creating a culture of excellence.

Creating a culture of excellence is a must in any organization! At the heart of “culture” is people; people are the foundation for any culture, especially at the workplace. People are dynamic and unique in their own way; we must celebrate our differences yet still be guided by the company values and goals. This newsletter is meant to encourage our industry to create a culture of excellence at the workplace – we hope our tips and hands-on experience sheds light into creating the culture you want at your workplace.

Establishing Company Purpose & Values

A company’s purpose and values are the guiding light in creating culture. The unique purpose and values established must be authentic, just like the people who work for the company – you’re humanizing the company and its intention! Your authentic and intentional purpose and values create a common and clear goal for employees. This creates an environment with clear expectations to meet the common goal. Once the company establishes their purpose and values, each department can then determine their own department goals. The purpose and values are the core of the company’s culture but cannot be successful without pairing these with adequate leadership.

Companies who choose compliance as a value may run into difficulties with staff buy-in because of the change in process, implementation of intertwining documentation systems, training, etc. At first employees may not enjoy the new processes and documentation requirements, but many soon realize there are benefits to having compliance as a company value. Often times the employees see that the checks and balances provide structure, accountability, pride, satisfaction in knowing their duties are done correctly and documented.

Transparent & Consistent Leadership

Transparent and consistent leadership encourages a culture of excellence at the workplace. Leadership must be completely transparent and able to clearly communicate the purpose, values, and common goals to employees. To be an effective leader, leaders must communicate. While there are several methods of communication styles, leaders must remain supportive and consistent, so the employee is not left guessing. By not allowing employees to guess your next move, you’re creating a supportive environment. Clear and consistent leadership creates accountability to meet the collective goal.

Setting Clear Expectations

Since people are the heart of culture, leaders must be able to set clear expectations with their staff. In a perfect work environment, a company will have established purpose and values, each department will have formed goals, and each employee will have their own goals to achieve. Setting expectations can be a part of the company’s standard operating procedures, day-to-day management encounters, and a well-developed training program. Training gives the employer an opportunity to establish expectations, and setting expectations leaves the guess work out for employees, resulting in happier employees. Training not only ensures that all employees are on the same page, but it also promotes product consistency and quality amongst product lines. Fostering product consistency and quality reduces likelihood of errors or a recall and increases customer satisfaction. This is a great time for the trainees to ask questions and understand the “whys” behind company expectations. Generally, employees want to perform their job duties well, and a solid training program provides employees with the tools and confidence they need.

Building Trust

Trust is not given, trust is earned. Staff in leadership roles must “talk the talk and walk the walk” consistently. Each employee is unique in how they build trust, we have found that our clients build trust with their staff in various ways that include:

• As leaders, be present
• Listen and respond without being defensive
• Use clear and consistent expectations that are directly linked to the company’s purpose and values
• Create a psychologically safe work environment that encourages staff to express their concerns and issues
• Have fun! It’s okay to laugh at work

Value Employees

Feeling valued at work can make or break an employee’s success and desire to work at your company. Each employee is unique and valuable in their own extraordinary way. This uniqueness is to be celebrated! Because each person has their own perceptions based on prior experiences, we can learn more about how the company or leadership can be more efficient. For this to happen, the staff needs to feel safe speaking up, leaders must listen and provide feedback. This results in creating respect and seeing the immense value we all present. Leadership must also recognize and reward, even for the small efforts made by employees! Valuing employees can create an environment that promotes creativity, willingness to support company goals, increase production and overall increased happiness.

Need Support with cGMP Implementation?

Creating a Culture of Excellence increases productivity, paves the way for making consistent and safe products, reduction of violations, and overall happier employees! We hope sharing creating a culture of excellence provides useful insight and an opportunity to learn from our experience. If your company’s values and goals include compliance, we are here to help! Allay Consulting compliance services work one-on-one with your company to create a realistic Quality Management System that is unique to your company’s values and goals.

Contact Allay Consulting to learn more about implementing a cGMP system, written documentation, facility compliance, certification readiness, and employee education!