While innovation and progression are crucial for business growth, companies still need to recognise the significance of traditions and culture in the workplace. With the festive period reminding us of the traditions within our businesses, it’s important to consider their unique value and the benefits they can offer staff and the whole company.

The significance of workplace traditions

No doubt that your company wants to leave a positive first impression – and a lasting one – on your clients, suppliers and customers. However, you should also think about your employees when creating those impressions.

Business owners have a vision and unique values that they uphold dearly and integrate within their organisations and their products’ evolution. These ideas might also form the basis of the entire workplace culture, ethos and practices with this vintage magic evolving to capture the modern values upheld by that business.

A company’s unique values can become ‘traditions’ the longer the company stays in business and may prove pivotal to their legacy and ongoing reputation. Think of it like upgrading a generational car like a Mercedes-Benz. You can bring this vintage vehicle into the 21st Century but at the end of the day, it’s still a classic Mercedes-Benz. With its desirable interiors, superior quirks and specialist features, it is the ultimate designer car with advanced technology and interior upgrades to suit its modern owners.

Tradition and culture go hand-in-hand

Culture is vital to employees because they’re more likely to enjoy working in an environment where they feel valued. The culture is often what sets a business apart from others, but that company’s traditions are also responsible for this.

The people and the things that they do together as part of the business are often some of the biggest and most significant selling points when hiring and retaining employees. By creating traditions that align with – and support – a company’s culture, employers are creating a place where their staff can enjoy working for years to come.

With 76% of employees agreeing that culture affects their productivity, it is important to get this right. Happy employees are productive and provide long-term personal and professional benefits for themselves and the whole company.

Types of workplace traditions to consider

Whatever your particular company values may be, the traditions are – or could be – the driving force behind your company’s growth and prosperity.

While the best company traditions will be influenced by factors such as the size of your business, the average age, interests and habits of your staff, location, and others, the best ones will emerge naturally. If you are stuck for inspiration, here are some ideas that you could take influence from:

• Team-building activities – To inspire working together, strengthening a team, building trust and improving communication, you can set up some regular team-building activities. These might range from escape rooms, paintballing or sports, to creative ones like puzzles, brainstorming sessions or mindfulness exercises. Networking, volunteering, charity and community work can also be mutually beneficial. The opportunities are endless.
  
  
• Recognition and rewards incentives – Employees love recognition, be it in the form of announcements, awards or bonuses, or anything in between. You could create traditions for onboarding new employees or staff anniversaries, such as a day off or a team lunch at a restaurant of that employee’s choosing.
  
  
• Holidays – Recognise and celebrate holidays throughout the calendar year, not just Christmas and Easter. You can establish traditions for Diwali, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, Ramadan, and Thanksgiving (among many others) within your company, to promote inclusivity and diversity. Annual holiday parties or lunches tend to go down a treat.
  
  
• Commemoration dates – Establish a tradition to mark a special occasion in your company’s history. This could be your founding date, a significant milestone year in operation or hitting a financial goal.
  
  
• Other ideas – Small traditions go a long way, whether it’s casual dress days, early Friday finishes, company breakfasts or lunches, post-work drinks, barbeques, bringing pets to work, and so on.

Benefits of workplace traditions

Meaningful company traditions might take some work to get off the ground, but over time they will lead to numerous benefits for your staff and your company.

In summary, they:

• Bring people together and create a sense of belonging for everyone.
• Create memorable, timeless and fun experiences for people to hold onto and remember.
• Improve your company’s identity in the eyes of your team, stakeholders and people you help in the community, if applicable.
• Build valuable and meaningful connections between you, your business and your team.
• Become regular and integrated parts of the routine that each employee enjoys.
• Set your company apart from others in and out of your sector.
• Create a positive energy and work environment.
• Raise morale and boost productivity.

If you are to take anything away from having read this article, make sure you prioritise establishing your company culture and traditions. With the right traditions in place, you’ll be truly unique and not just another business, and you’ll have a plethora of happy employees as a result.