Culture Matters at Heartland AEA

On March 1 all staff will be invited to take the Denison Organizational Culture Survey 

At Heartland AEA, we define culture as “the way we do things around here.” It’s about our collective behaviors that are driven by our individual assumptions and beliefs. This matters because our collective behaviors lead to our results. Culture is often confused with climate, which is “the way we feel about the way we do things around here.” Obviously, both culture and climate are important.

Is it possible to shape our culture (the way we do things around here)?
Absolutely! And we have been actively working to shape our culture over the past several years. In the spring 2012, 2013 and 2014, our agency administered the Denison Organizational Culture Survey to a stratified sample of our staff. The Denison Survey is designed to assess an organization’s strengths and weaknesses as they apply to organizational performance. We also included two modules, trust and commitment, with the survey. Click here for a brief video about the culture model narrated by Dan Denison, author of the Denison Survey.

What do we know about our results so far?
Over the three years in which the Denison survey was administered, our agency saw what the Denison consultants call “textbook progress.” In other words, our efforts have impacted our assumptions, beliefs and behaviors (the way we do things around here), which in turn is reflected in more positive survey results. This was made possible by our collective input, suggestions and actions.

What’s next for ALL staff?
It is time to update our culture (the way we do things around here) survey results once again.  

• During January, all Regional and Department Planning Councils were in favor of providing all employees with the opportunity to respond to the survey questions (versus a stratified sample as in the past).
• The survey is scheduled to launch on March 1 and will close on March 11.
• All employees will receive a survey invitation that will contain a link to the survey. This link will take you to a survey website that has been designed specifically for Heartland AEA. Please be as honest as possible when completing the survey. Your responses are completely confidential and cannot be tracked.
  

What’s in it for you?
We are glad to be able to provide ALL employees with the opportunity to complete the survey this year. By completing the survey, you will ensure that your voice is heard along with your colleagues about the way we do things around here. This input has and will continue to be very important as we look for themes and points of leverage for advantage in areas such as impact of our services, our professional relationships and our continuous improvement. (Remember the One Word chosen by APC for 2016? LEVERAGE.) We hope each and every one of you will take the time to complete the Denison Survey and provide your input. 

Thank you in advance for your time and feedback!