Organisational Culture in Times of Change: How Working for a Company with a Purpose Can Help!

Kirsten Yperman, HR Director Belgium, Renewi

It is widely recognised that when employees are connected to the corporate culture, they will feel more engaged and aligned - so corporate culture can be a strong value proposition for an employer. Among the qualities illustrating a functional organisational culture, we traditionally find values such as alignment on vision, purpose and goals, appreciation and recognition, trust, performance, teamwork, resilience, integrity, innovation and psychological safety.

Renewi is facing a twofold transition, which makes the issues related to organisational culture doubly challenging.

On the one hand, there is a structural transition. Renewi was formed in 2017 from the merger of the British Shanks and the Dutch Van Gansewinkel. This merger brought together two companies with strong historical roots, each with a very specific corporate culture. Over the years, the employees of both companies have developed certain work habits and ways of doing things that do not necessarily align.

A second, more recent transition concerns the transition of the business model and strategic positioning. Renewi, via Van Gansewinkel and Shanks, has historically been a waste collector. However, a strategic shift has been underway for some time, aimed at positioning the company not upstream, with waste collection, but downstream, with the production of raw materials. In doing so, Renewi aims to be a waste-to-product company and a fully invested player in the circular economy.

Developing a strong organisational culture in the context of change is certainly not an easy task, but it is one of Renewi’s priorities and one in which I believe very strongly.

Alignment of vision, purpose and goals

Firstly, special attention is paid to aligning with Renewi’s vision and mission, which are truly the pillars of the company. Our efforts are aimed at ensuring each employee feels fully invested in these key values, so they underpin their daily work.

We are working on alignment with our mission and vision through clear integration and repetition in our communication across various internal channels.

“We devote special attention to aligning with Renewi’s vision and mission, and our efforts are aimed at ensuring that each employee feels fully invested in these key values, so they underpin their daily work.”

Branding efforts also directly support this goal. For example, the “Renewing Earth” campaign, which we launched a year ago, has an external component, of course, but it also aims to unite all employees and get them working together towards a common goal.

This alignment with the vision and goal is also reinforced by the initiatives we take to encourage our employees to use materials or products sustainably, for example by electrifying our fleet or encouraging carpooling.

We are seeing these efforts pay off with our current employees, but also in our recruitment efforts. Devoting time and energy to an employer who is committed to sustainability is a growing priority for tomorrow’s workers, as shown by many studies.

Teamwork

Secondly, a value we emphasise a lot at Renewi, one which should help strengthen our organisational culture, is the focus we place on teamwork. The heritage of both Van Gansewinkel and Shanks plays an important role, as both companies have quite different backgrounds: where Van Gansewinkel could be described as a family business, Shanks was more of a centralised company, based on an Anglo-Saxon model. Another challenge, which also faces every company active in Belgium throughout the national territory, is the diversity of languages, French and Dutch, which implies de facto diversity in terms of culture.

Our ambition at Renewi is to create a big, close-knit family, where everyone feels content. This goes hand in hand with the harmonisation of practices at the various sites in Belgium. Nevertheless, we wholeheartedly value differences and are convinced that diversity brings enrichment. Achieving things as a team is fully embedded in our value “together”.

One concrete action to which I attach great importance is this: we expect all our employees, at least once a year, to work with someone in the field or another position and/ or department, so they can learn from each other and be encouraged to pursue the same goals together.

Safety and Integrity

Finally, safety and integrity are key values we insist on every day. It is crucial for us that our employees feel safe and healthy when they are present on the sites, but also in their interactions with their colleagues.

We generally cultivate an informal and non-hierarchical culture at Renewi, even more so when it comes to safety. Each employee is free to speak to anyone in the organisation on matters related to behaviour and safety. We also regularly ask for feedback from our employees via Pulse surveys, in which these questions feature prominently.

The existence of a team dedicated to integrity, which can be called upon by anyone in the event of a related issue, should also ensure everyone feels safe in their activities.

Changing the culture of a company takes time, it is long-term work – It requires repetition, leading by example from the management, living your values by showing the right behaviour and good communication. Nevertheless, I remain convinced this is something we must constantly strive for and work towards every day.

What I can attest to from my experience is that giving your company a clear, identifiable purpose that every employee can relate to can help get everyone moving in the right direction and thus help build a strong company culture.