Brainpark

Culture is one of those things that companies recognize as important, but struggle with knowing how far to take it. Executives admire the idea of having an engaging culture that is unique to them, tying the company together, and creating a barrage of synergy, but to what cost? At what point do we sweep culture under the rug to increase productivity? Or is culture reserved for larger companies with bigger budgets?

We’ve all seen the pedestals that Google and Zappos sit on. Their importance to us resides in giving the rest of us something to strive towards. Without the bar set high, we will never reach great heights, accomplish incredible feats, and move to becoming the trend setter.

During the Romantic Era, German philosopher Immanuel Kant formulated an alternative definition for “enlightenment” similar to the German concept bildung: “Enlightenment is a man’s emergence from his self-incurred immaturity.” This immaturity is not due to a lack of understanding but lack of creativity and courage to think independently. For German scholar, Johann Herder, “Bildung was the totality of experiences that provide a coherent identity, and sense of common destiny, to a people.”

Strong cultures cannot be bought or created by means of currency. Rather, money provides additional channels in which cultures are fostered and grown. Culture is deep seeded, formed around shared purpose, goals, and points of view.

Author Gary Weaver created an iceberg analogy of culture where see, hear, and touch sat at the top, above the water line. Meanwhile beliefs, values, thought patterns, and myths were the core of iceberg, responsible for the remaining, unseen 90% of cultural embodiment. Too often companies spend their time focusing on the tip of the iceberg by providing excess amenities and a luxurious work environment. While these things are all good and helpful, they fail to connect employees on deeper issues that are responsible for interconnectedness. They fail to reach what motivates employees and challenges them to bring their “A” game.

Each company is made up of unique individuals, spanning from across the globe. There is no single means of building culture that works across the board. The key to building culture is focusing on commonalities or creating an environment in which the commonalities can surface.

Brainpark represents nationalities from 5 different continents while employing a mere 22 people; each individual bringing a unique lifetime of experiences and values to the company environment. Our challenge has been figuring out what types of culture do we want and how can we encompass the backgrounds of all members without anyone feeling stepped on or left out. Our solution: create an atmosphere which requires people to trust and share with each other, while allowing them to present their ideas as they feel comfortable without fear of negative criticism.

Like most startups, budget is tight and room for wiggle and waste is minimal, but this does not provide an excuse for overlooking company culture. Every quarter our disparate company comes together on a retreat which allows us maintain and grow our culture. As a collaboration software company focusing on disparate workers, this next statement comes with much humility. No amount of software can ever replace the combination of face-to-face and physical presence. Not Facebook, Apple’s Face Time, Cisco’s Telepresence, nor Brainpark (we are just the next best option). For us, these retreats are essential because they allow our teams to learn and understand each other’s values and thought patterns, exposing the underbelly of the cultural iceberg.

Most of the Brainpark staff will agree that our last retreat’s most memorable moments were the campfires and making the video about our culture. At the end of the day, finished with brainstorming sessions and group activities, sitting on log benches around a stone circled campfire, cracking open the beers could not have been more fitting. It was at that point we were able to look back at the day and reflect on our time working together. Taking time to step back and reflect at work is just as important for company success as reflection is in your personal life. It allows you to take pride in your work as well as critique for the future. For us at Brainpark, without the campfires and time to look back at our day, we would never have had the chance to open up and learn about one another. We would have never learned what is important to our colleagues and how it affects us.

Below is a fun video we made at our last retreat about our company culture. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did making it. We believe in creating an open culture, comfortable with people outside the company seeing how we operate. What would it take for your company to feel comfortable with outsiders seeing your culture?

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