Describing Company Culture as a Family?

By Danielle Birchard

I was speaking to someone recently about company culture. The first thing I thought of when trying to describe an ideal company culture was referring to it as a family. The person mentioned that referring to a culture as a family can mean different things to different people. Some people have great relationships with their family, so referring to a company as such can be a good thing. But some people have strained relationships with their families, meaning referencing a company as a family could bring the wrong ideas. We then went on to talk about the traits of a company culture that would better describe what we are looking for, and it came down to values.

Things like trust, honesty, support, a willingness to listen to ideas, these are traits of a healthy family that can be replicated in a healthy company culture. Having conflicts but being able to manage them, striving for the same goals, a feeling of being part of something bigger. Families also need good leaders, which is another characteristic of a healthy company culture. Families are made up of different people with different skills, the same happens within a healthy company culture. Everyone in the company should not be carbon copies of each other. Each has their own strengths and weaknesses, and that is a good thing. And embracing these differences is an important part of a healthy culture as well. After that recent conversation, I want to strive for a company culture that is modeled after the traits of a healthy family.