Business culture trends: 2022 and beyond

With Covid expediting digital transformation for businesses, it can be hard to keep up.  Business culture is rising the ranks in terms of business priorities, and there has never been a better time to keep pace and start making some changes. Here’s our hot take on the top business culture trends for 2022.

social impact is on the rise

There is an undeniable shift to demonstrate the impact a business has on the world around it. Purpose may have been a buzzword for a while, but organisations must now evidence how their values, sustainable and social activity will have positive outcomes. For those that have considered CSR largely a tick box exercise to date, this will be a huge step change. It will require a whole organisation to bring social impact to life in a meaningful way, and therefore require a culture change approach.

There’s further evidence to suggest that social impact has a huge impact on recruitment and retention. It can be a tricky thing to do, so we’ve put together a handy guide of 5 top tips on how to embed social impact in your business.

 the great resignation

While much has been lorded about the ‘Great Resignation’ transforming business, the impact on the UK appears to have been softer than for our cousins across the Atlantic. The UK’s work culture has always had a greater focus on wellbeing and balance than the US which is perhaps the reason we’ve not felt the full force of a talent mass exodus.

That said, now is not the time for complacency from business leaders. With an estimated 42% of people leaving roles due to toxic work culture, it’s worth thinking about how much of a factor that will play when it comes to retention. Especially as another 63% say they’re looking for more balance, camaraderie, and, lo and behold – a better culture.

There’s no doubt there is a mindset shift and expectation that employers will create a culture to support work/life balance. Investment in upskilling and embedding values will also be key to retaining top team members.

hybrid working set to continue

Hybrid working isn’t going anywhere, even as restrictions continue to be rolled back, this way of working is here to stay as it’s given opportunities for employees and businesses to really flourish.

But, companies need to consider how they want their teams to work and create environments and structures that work for the majority rather than assuming they have all the answers. Experiment with what works for your company culture and your people. You might want to pilot ways of working within departments or across the board. But what you need to do, when experimenting or once you’ve found the formula that’s right for your business culture, be clear about expectations from your people so they have clear parameters in which to operate.  

think local

Global consumption of resources has been brought into sharp focus following COP26 and the pandemic. As such there is shift to a more considered approach to what we consume and how we behave. Business travel is likely to be under the microscope for its environmental impacts – in-person training, socialising and employee experiences will be limited to where they have the most impact. Whilst in-person activity can be an important part of your business’ culture, better technology will continue to fuel hybrid events and networking. We will see a trend to onshore supply chains and partnerships built closer to home.

working in the metaverse

The reality of the metaverse may be some years away, but savvy employers will begin considering their approach to working in it now and you should consider how this may impact the future culture of your business too. Conferences and networking events hosted in the metaverse via virtual and augmented technology will become commonplace in the next few years. Once the technology becomes widely attainable global teams will begin utilising it to operate day-to-day business. Employers should consider it an evolution of the technology they’re already using rather than entirely new way of working but consider the culture they need to embed to make the productive and effective now.

create an inclusive culture

While the importance of Equality, Diversity & Inclusion has been on the rise for the last few years, we are beginning to see clients take it seriously at board level across all industries. There’s plenty of evidence to show that a business’ culture impacts the bottom line. The focus for 2022 and beyond is to build inclusive cultures where everyone can thrive. This is often hard work which takes a lot of inward reflection. Often when businesses start out on their D&I journey, they begin trying to fix one specific area when, in reality, they need to support diversity in its broadest sense in order to provide an inclusive culture.