SaaS-based Payroll and Human Capital Management Software: Culture Articulation
The Need
A payroll and human capital management software company was growing rapidly and intended to go public in the near future. At the time, the 30-year-old company had over 1,500 employees in multiple locations across the country, 23,000 clients from small and medium-sized organizations, and 1.7 million active user accounts.
The company engaged gothamCulture because they wanted to be proactive about shaping the culture of their company to support growth. The company desired to understand and articulate the unique culture that had made them so successful by identifying elements that would be critical to preserve as the company continued to grow. They also needed to understand which elements may no longer serve them well in the future.
The company’s leadership team also wanted to review and refresh their “nine guiding principles” in order to make them more relevant and inclusive. The goal of this work was to enable the company to be intentional about their culture as they grow, preserve and honor the past while making sure they could evolve and succeed in the future.
The Intervention
gothamCulture worked with the company’s internal Culture Ambassadors which was a cross-functional group of leaders nominated for their enthusiasm, creativity, and commitment to culture.
gothamCulture conducted a brief onsite culture data assessment at the company headquarters, then developed a longer-term data collection process that would engage all of their offices across the country.
gothamCulture also conducted a number of focus groups in the company headquarters and three major markets with employees across levels, tenure, and team. That data was used to identify aspects of the culture where the organization was aligned and misaligned.
Next, gothamCulture conducted a workshop with the Culture Ambassadors to develop new language and evolve the guiding principles, which leaders then refined. The data from the workshop was used to present recommendations on how to evolve the guiding principles and ultimately change the company culture.
The Impact
gothamCulture combined all of the findings into a customized Culture Book.
The Culture Book incorporated the newly articulated guiding principles, minimizing the number of guiding principles to those that really mattered and being used, and a messaging that describes the company’s culture. The content was then transitioned to their internal communications and marketing team to create a tangible artifact that will enable members of the organization to preserve and manage culture as this company grows.
About gothamCulture
gothamCulture is a management consulting firm that draws on our associate’s comprehensive expertise and experience in the areas of culture, leadership, and people strategy to provide innovative solutions and client-service excellence. Our work is guided by our deeply held shared values, including a commitment to each other and our clients, unwavering integrity, the maniacal pursuit of excellence, relatable expertise, and authentic community.