Developing and sustaining a championship culture and program takes relentless effort from everyone involved. Excellent leaders consistently reflect on the culture surrounding their programs and organizations. They know that achieving success is always a work in progress, and they continuously search for ways to improve it. Here are five reflective questions to sustain a championship culture:
- How does our ideal culture look, sound, and feel? While this question is important early in the process, it can be asked at any moment in time. It provides unique insight to what is most important for the program. Analyzing this question later in the process offers an opportunity to change direction on certain areas that don’t align with the ideal culture.
- What actions do we implement to reach the ideal? Consistently reflecting on the actions needed to develop and sustain excellence is critical for teams and leaders. Some actions work early in the process while others make an impact later. It’s also important to decide what actions may not serve the process any longer. Leaders should delegate duties to others and hold them accountable for following through.
- What is our process for sustaining our culture? Although reaching excellence requires significant sacrifice and effort, sustaining a championship culture is even more challenging. Sustaining excellence requires auditing each aspect of the program or organization to determine what will sustain the culture. Determine when and how you’ll audit aspects of the organization.
- How do we evaluate the success of our actions and systems? Clearly setting out strategic goals early in the process helps evaluate the legitimacy of the actions and systems. Schedule regular times to analyze the systems to determine whether the actions move the team closer to its goals.
- How do we respond when we don’t achieve our culture? It’s inevitable that at some point the team won’t reach the desired culture or achieve the standards. Elite leaders consider how they will respond if the culture doesn’t align with where they want it to be. They might utilize other strategies, conduct tough conversations, or shift their thinking on specific topics.
The most effective leaders develop and sustain cultures that impact end results. Those leaders are very strategic in developing the strategies for success while also auditing the process to ensure that it’s moving them closer to the end goal. One characteristic of effective leaders is their ability to continuously reflect on their process and adjust as necessary.
What reflective questions do you use to improve your process, systems, and culture?