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Jina Couture, who is responsible for Leadership Coaching, Development and Training at OnLogic, has one key piece of advice for all the participants at #TheCultureFactor Conference 2024: "Start your cultural awareness journey early". The benefits for OnLogic have been clear and include improved retention, enhanced efficiency, and significant savings in time and resources.
“It’s worth it. People are worth it,” Jina says. She is speaking at the 11th edition of #TheCultureFactor Conference, this time taking place at Niagara Falls, Canada, and is excited to share OnLogic’s ongoing journey with The Culture Factor Group, including how we have helped OnLogic continue to cultivate their culture without changing who they are.
"We don’t want to change who they are, right? We want to help them adapt to the situation, the team member, the customer, and let them find their own voice,” Jina Couture describes her approach to culture and leadership development, profoundly describing exactly what cultural awareness should be about. It is not about changing who you are. It’s about being better equipped to adapt to different, sometimes unexpected, situations. “The great thing about working at OnLogic is that we have such a wonderful recruiting team, because they seek out leaders who will adapt to our culture, and what we need as a company. So they’re already hiring the leaders that we need. So that makes my job a little easier, right? I don’t have to change who they are. Because they’re already fantastic leaders. So, I get to help them adapt to certain situations.”
But let’s go back to the beginning. How did OnLogic begin their journey? When working on creating an Inclusivity Team, they realised they needed external help. They have five offices in four different countries, and the idea was to create a team relying on the strengths of each office. “So, we have a team that’s made of different representatives of the different offices. And they give perspective on how things feel, and how we could be more diverse in our hiring, how we could make things more comfortable, and make sure that everyone feels the same. The great thing is that they recognised that, yeah, we’re experts in how this feels in our culture, and we have an idea of what each other are going through. But we also recognise that we’re not the experts,” Jina says, shaking her head. “We’re a team that is going to help deliver,’” Jina emphasises, spreading her arms, “the expert message, but we’re not the experts.”
“That’s where The Culture Factor Group came in.”
Jina describes perfectly the very common misconception regarding culture, and cross-cultural awareness. While many think familiarity with their own culture is enough, true cross-cultural competence requires structured training to identify and adapt to key differences effectively.
The process with The Culture Factor Group started with training the leaders, and the Human Resources team, of OnLogic, about the 6 Dimensions of National Culture.
Jina laughs out loud as she shares her favourite dimension, “Uncertainty Avoidance. This one is actually really really big in our company. I see people nodding, so it’s big in yours too?” she asks, still laughing. “This one has actually played a huge part. This is like, the most fascinating one. It’s.. uncertainty - you know - how comfortable do people feel, do they need the details, or can they just run with ambiguity.”
One of the eye-opening steps was the first look at the Country Comparison tool. “If you haven’t done this, I highly, highly, HIGHLY recommend you do it, it’s very fascinating,” Jina says when she shares the cultural differences that they might have underestimated within the company. “When we saw this, we were like… oh my gosh.”
The story so far is a common one. With the best intentions in mind, a multinational company begins to think about how they can take culture into account a bit better. As they explore their situation further, they come to realise that their cultural alignment might not have been as strong as they initially thought. “And that’s when we put our cultural lenses on,” Jina pauses, and describes this revelation. “And once we had those lenses on, we started seeing everything differently. We thought we were doing a good job, and we were in some respects. But we also realised - wow - there’s so many opportunities here to improve.”
This exemplifies the two views that companies tend to have perfectly. They tend to either:
1. Give up. They see it as too much of a challenge, and so they simply won’t do it. This might not always be a conscious decision, and often happens simply by postponing taking any action, and then postponing it again, and again.
2. See the opportunities, and start immediately envisioning how the future could be. They realise they need help, but also recognise that it will be worth the investment.
Needless to say, OnLogic joined the second group. How did they adapt, without changing who they were? They relied on the core values of the company, established by the founders more than two decades ago:
They also leaned into many of the core behaviors that they've cultivated, clearly documented, and worked hard to encourage and exemplify, including:
As Jina points out, from the beginning it was clear that it is entirely possible to adapt for a more inclusive culture without conflicting with any core values. In fact, embracing a cultural transformation would even serve to strengthen those values.
Already the initial training was a revelation, shifting perspectives in profound ways. “My mind went wild with this information,” Jina laughs. “WILD, I’m sure a lot of you can relate to this! But I was thinking about the little things we can change, and the big things we can change, and - oh my gosh - how am I gonna do this?” With this enthusiasm, OnLogic started small, focusing on building foundational changes.
Initially, only leaders and HR staff received cultural awareness training. Recognising the need for a broader approach, OnLogic expanded this to the entire workforce. “We need to get this out there, we need to make sure that everyone in our company knows,” Jina emphasises.
A team of 13 Cultural Ambassadors from diverse backgrounds led the change, participating in a train-the-trainer program to foster understanding and identify areas for improvement. They then conducted company-wide training sessions, embedding cultural awareness across the organisation. The initiative is set to extend further through the Cultural Executive Ownership program, where global management will explore strategic cultural integration. “They are the leaders of our company. People follow them,” Jina notes.
Collaboration across offices became a focal point, with managers sharing experiences, best practices, and even failures. “We’re a high-performance company, we’re go go go go GO,” Jina says, “but when we slow down and give space for a topic, the things that come out are absolutely amazing.” Encouraging open dialogue has generated invaluable insights and strengthened global connections.
Recognising disparities in support between headquarters and smaller offices, OnLogic increased regional office support by empowering site directors - local leaders whose task was to ensure their teams' needs are met. “That has made a huge difference, and I know for a fact that we have saved some very valuable team members, just from him [the site director] being there,” Jina reflects.
Effective communication tailored to cultural nuances became another area of focus. For instance, with people in the Netherlands, a more direct communication style is commonplace and effective. People just want the feedback, and to move forward. Whereas in the US, people do want the feedback, but they want it with perhaps a bit more empathy. “YES, give me the feedback! I want the feedback - absolutely - but can you by the way, you know just let me have it gently please, just a side of empathy would be really nice right now,” Jina demonstrates, laughing. But in the end, you still need to be aware of who you’re talking to, and someone in the Netherlands could potentially appreciate empathy even more than folks in the US office.
Re-evaluating how meetings were conducted also led to significant changes at OnLogic. Providing information beforehand allowed participants to prepare, while encouraging post-meeting reflection fostered more thoughtful contributions. These adjustments ensured that everyone’s voice was heard. “With these changes, we actually hear their voice now,” Jina concludes.
OnLogic’s initiatives now permeate training and coaching sessions, ensuring these practices remain integral to the company’s culture. Tailored training sessions have been particularly impactful. “They told me that was the BEST training they’ve ever had. They’d never felt more accepted, more open. That’s really powerful,” Jina shares.
As the journey continues, Jina reminds us of the ongoing nature of cultural integration. You simply need to keep going back to the beginning, making sure that the practices that have been implemented are still necessary, and to review if new opportunities have emerged.
Watch Jina's full presentation from #TheCultureFactor Conference 2024 for a detailed look at OnLogic’s story and actionable insights to help transform your workplace culture.
For expert guidance tailored to your organisation’s needs, reach out today!