C u l t u r e C h a n g e a n d I n c l u s i o n : I n - H o u s e P e r s p e c t i v e s o n M a k i n g i t H a p p e n

Leading in the Age of Culture

OUTCOMES

PEOPLE

CONTEXT

CULTUREDIRECTION

ROUTINESSTRUCTURE

ENERGYPERFORMANCE AGILITY

LEADERSHIP

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Spencer Stuart on organizational culture in the January-February 2018 issue of Harvard Business Review

Culture as a Foundational Business System

Culture Defined

Culture is the shared assumptionsthat drive thinking, behavior and

action within an organization.

Spencer Stuart’s Culture Model

A culture can be described by how the organization responds to change and how people interact and work together. IN

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F L E X I B I L I T Y

S T A B I L I T Y

LEARNING PURPOSE

CARING

ORDER

SAFETYAUTHORITY

RESULTS

ENJOYMENT

Culture Alignment Framework

Four levers for cultural change

CULTURE TARGETING

Articulating an aspirational culture

ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN

Supporting the aspirational culture

through organizational design

CONVERSATIONS

Reinforcing the aspirational culture

through organizational conversations

LEADERSHIP ALIGNMENT

Aligning leadership to the aspirational culture

“Leaders and managers of organizations are creators, products and victims of culture.”

EDGAR SCHEIN

8/1/2018 Cultural Transformation: The Journey from Traditional Construction Company to "Best Workplace"

https://www.spencerstuart.com/leadership-matters/2017/june/cultural-transformation-the-journey-from-traditional-construction-company-to-best-workpl… 1/6

JUNE 21 , 2017

CulturalTransformation: TheJourney fromTraditionalConstructionCompany to "BestWorkplace"BY FLEUR SEGAL

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Fleur Segal

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Perspectives on the key issues impacting senior leaders andtheir organizations

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8/1/2018 Cultural Transformation: The Journey from Traditional Construction Company to "Best Workplace"

https://www.spencerstuart.com/leadership-matters/2017/june/cultural-transformation-the-journey-from-traditional-construction-company-to-best-workpl… 2/6

Spencer Stuart recently hosted a discussion ontalent and organizational culture with recent client,Les Hiscoe, CEO of Shawmut Design andConstruction and chief people officer and SpencerStuart placement, Marianne Monte. Havingrecently been named one of the nation’s bestmedium-sized workplaces by Fortune Magazine, Lesand Marianne shared how they shifted to a morepeople-first approach and shared suggestions forwhat other organizations can do to drive asuccessful cultural transformation.

1. Make talent a top priorityWhen Hiscoe first assumed the CEO role, his maingoal was to turn Shawmut into a “forward-thinkingconstruction company.” To do that, it would take aworld-class talent organization that could attractand retain the best people. However, theorganization had a long way to go not only indeveloping its talent system, but in rethinking itsculture. “We were a rough-and-tumble, fast-pacedconstruction company focused on taking care ofclients,” he said. “The culture needed morebalance. How do we align the team to think at theenterprise level? How do we drive changemanagement, diversity and inclusion?” Asignificant part of the solution was to build uponthe already strong HR team, bringing on newleaders from other industries to inject freshthinking into the organization.

2. Embrace “future of work” trends

8/1/2018 Cultural Transformation: The Journey from Traditional Construction Company to "Best Workplace"

https://www.spencerstuart.com/leadership-matters/2017/june/cultural-transformation-the-journey-from-traditional-construction-company-to-best-workpl… 3/6

The organization solicited feedback from its people,and one comment was particularly worrying: “Youwork people to the bone.” In order to retain andattract the best talent, that had to change. Monteand the leadership team rolled out the ShawmutFlex program, which empowers staff to design theirown workdays. From working from home to shift-sharing, people are given more ownership overtheir jobs. “This is especially unique in this industryand was a big win that gained us momentum,” saidMonte. “Turnover went down dramatically duringthe first year we rolled it out.” This ownershipmentality has also spurred greater problem-solvingand innovation. Employees at every level are invitedto share ideas with members of the executive team.

Shawmut is also trying to tap into the millennialtalent base. It has developed a successful college-entry program that rotates students throughvarious disciplines, which is helping to build thecompany’s talent pipeline. The program is also away for leadership to gain insight into what trulymotivates this cohort. “We Googled ‘millennial’ andshared the most common results with thestudents,” said Hiscoe. “Eleven were positive, andthree were related to ‘entitled’ and otherstereotypes. We’d read them to the group and askfor their reactions.” One learning was thatmillennials are looking for mentorship and careermobility, which led Shawmut to rethink itstraditional silo approach to talent development andidentify ways to combat negative stereotyping.

8/1/2018 Cultural Transformation: The Journey from Traditional Construction Company to "Best Workplace"

https://www.spencerstuart.com/leadership-matters/2017/june/cultural-transformation-the-journey-from-traditional-construction-company-to-best-workpl… 4/6

Discussing how organizations can drive a successful cultural transformation at

Shawmut in Boston. Photo: Shawmut Design and Construction

3. Commit to improving diversity andinclusionMost organizations know that diversity has atangible impact on the business. According toMcKinsey, companies in the top quartile for genderdiversity are 15 percent more likely to have financialreturns above their respective national industrymedians. In a traditionally male-dominated industry(Catalyst reports that women make up only 9.1percent of construction industry employees in theU.S.), Shawmut had an uphill climb to improve itsdiversity.

“If I put out a goal to be a world-class talentorganization, then that doesn’t exist withoutinclusion,” said Monte. “We needed a real focusand definitive action plan and within the last year,we’ve done our best work: 53 percent of entry-levelpositions are female. But, less than 10 percent ofexecutive roles are held by women. This is a realproblem, and this is why we need to change.”

8/1/2018 Cultural Transformation: The Journey from Traditional Construction Company to "Best Workplace"

https://www.spencerstuart.com/leadership-matters/2017/june/cultural-transformation-the-journey-from-traditional-construction-company-to-best-workpl… 5/6

To improve diversity, the chief human resourcesofficer (CHRO) has to be a vocal proponent, butdiversity can’t just be an HR initiative. The entirecompany has to be aligned on that goal. “There isno silver bullet, no magic — just deepcommitment,” said Hiscoe “You need to createenvironments where people can succeed and failand grow their careers.”

4. Encourage mobility within theorganizationFlexibility and mobility shouldn’t just apply to day-to-day work, but to overall career growth. Earlier,only the most successful people within a disciplinehad an opportunity to advance or move outsidetheir silos; today, talent is exposed to different areasof the business. “We have a historic culture ofasking permission,” said Hiscoe. “I came up as adivision head. I had to change my attitude as Icame into the CEO role. I like to move peoplearound a lot more.” Talent development planninginvolves meetings with the entire leadership team,who discuss assignments to different verticalswithin the organization. The exposure to differentparts of the company imbues key talent with asense of ownership over the broader business, notjust their specific discipline.

5. Ensure a strong rapport between theCEO and CHROA culture that focuses on flexibility, innovation andtalent development cannot be sustained withoutstrong alignment between the CEO and CHRO.Hiscoe said he was looking for a human resourcesleader who would be his “right hand” and lift theentire team. For Monte, the opportunity to advance

8/1/2018 Cultural Transformation: The Journey from Traditional Construction Company to "Best Workplace"

https://www.spencerstuart.com/leadership-matters/2017/june/cultural-transformation-the-journey-from-traditional-construction-company-to-best-workpl… 6/6

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the talent agenda with a newly promoted CEO wasa perfect challenge for her. “I knew this was aunique chance to make a great company intosomething extraordinary. Everyone has some skinin the game here.”

Fleur Segal is a consultant in Spencer Stuart’s Bostonoffice and a member of the firm’s Human ResourcesPractice. She brings nearly two decades of experienceto her role, specializing in recruiting chief humanresources officers, senior talent management andrewards leaders, as well as fulfilling HR generalist andspecialist positions. Reach her via email and follow heron LinkedIn.

8/1/2018 Nine Tips for Building a Diverse and Inclusive Law Firm | Section of Litigation

https://www.americanbar.org/groups/litigation/committees/diversity-inclusion/articles/2016/winter2016-0116-tips-to-build-diversity-and-inclusion-at-law-f… 1/3

Nine Tips for Building a Diverse and Inclusive LawFirm

January 28, 2016

Robert K. Dixon is an associate with Wilson Turner Kosmo LLP inSan Diego, California. Ghenete Wright Muir is a senior attorneywith The Florida Bar.

There are numerous benefits of having a diverse and inclusive lawfirm. For example, “diverse and inclusive law firms perform better,relate better to clients, courts, juries, and other decision makersimportant to their clients’ success,” according to Gary L. Sasso ofCarlton Fields. These benefits push many law firms to builddiversity and inclusion in the workplace.

In light of the emphasis many firms place on the issue of diversityand inclusion, we asked influential attorneys from a variety of firmsfor their insights on this issue. Here, these elite attorneys offer tipsfor building and sustaining diverse and inclusive law firms.

Diversity-Aligned Recruiting Law firms use a variety of approaches to build diversity—one ofwhich is recruiting. As Mollie F. Benedict of Tucker Ellis LLPexplained, “Diversity-aligned recruiting is key to organicallyproduce a diverse culture within a law firm.” As such, to build adiverse law firm, the firm’s diversity objectives and recruitingobjectives must go hand-in-hand.

Invest in Diverse Attorneys To build and sustain a diverse law firm, it is important to identifyand develop diverse lawyers. Tiffani G. Lee of Holland & Knight LLPduring the early or “investment years,” firms should “make surediverse lawyers are getting good training, constructive feedbackwith opportunities to correct, equitable work distribution, realclient-facing opportunities, stretch assignments, increasingresponsibility, and access to key decision-makers.” But this is not aone-sided investment. Lee notes that “diverse lawyers have to

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8/1/2018 Nine Tips for Building a Diverse and Inclusive Law Firm | Section of Litigation

https://www.americanbar.org/groups/litigation/committees/diversity-inclusion/articles/2016/winter2016-0116-tips-to-build-diversity-and-inclusion-at-law-f… 2/3

similarly view their early years as ‘investment years’ and makesure they are doing all within their power to take advantage ofopportunities for growth and development.”

Consider Diversity for Internal Roles and Positions To build and maintain a diverse law firm, diversity considerationsmust go well beyond the interview stage. As Nancy Faggianelli ofCarlton Fields explains, firms should “consider diverse candidatesfor every role (e.g., client teams, case assignments, leadershiproles, committee or task force responsibilities, businessdevelopment initiatives, and social events) before making a finalstaffing decision.” Ms. Faggianelli suggests that consideringdiversity “should not displace anyone from these opportunities,”but rather, gives the firm “more options to consider.”

If You Develop Associates, Diverse Attorneys Will Come “Firms must create an environment that fosters the professionaldevelopment of all associates,” according to Al De La Cruz ofManning & Kass, Ellrod, Ramirez, Trester LLP. De La Cruz says thatsuch an “environment will attract diverse individuals withoutsingling them out; thereby creating inclusion rather than division.”Thus building a well-rounded associate development program willnot only attract diverse candidates but will also build an inclusivefirm.

It’s as Easy as “Let’s Do Lunch” Building and fostering an inclusive environment can be achievedwith expansive firm-wide programs, but it can also be achievedwith small acts. Inviting diverse lawyers to lunch only now andagain, said Faggianelli, is a simple act that will help all attorneys inthe firm “feel truly welcome in the firm and part of the fabric of thefirm.”

Celebrate Differences to Create Inclusion Vernã Myers, Esq., principal of Vernã Myers Consulting Group, LLC,often says, “Diversity is being invited to the party and inclusion isbeing asked to dance.” While improving a firm’s diversity statisticsmight be somewhat simple, it is somewhat more difficult to createan inclusive firm. In other words, how can firms create anenvironment in which everyone is asked to dance? To answer thisquestion, firms have adopted a variety of different approaches.Tucker Ellis LLP, for example, hosts an annual Stone Soup Potluckduring which the employees “are encouraged to bring a dishunique to their background/culture and share with others,” saidMollie F. Benedict of Tucker Ellis.

Community Outreach To build a diverse and inclusive law firm, according to Alicia L.Wilson of Gordon Feinblatt LLC, “law firm leaders must be involvedin initiatives in their local diversity within their communities. If youwant to attract and retain diverse personnel to your firm, law firm

Cochairs Paulette Brown Eileen M. Letts Newsletter Editor Robert K. Dixon

Committee Leadership

8/1/2018 Nine Tips for Building a Diverse and Inclusive Law Firm | Section of Litigation

https://www.americanbar.org/groups/litigation/committees/diversity-inclusion/articles/2016/winter2016-0116-tips-to-build-diversity-and-inclusion-at-law-f… 3/3

leaders must be engaged in concrete things that demonstrate thatdiversity matters and is a firm value.”

Management Must Be Diverse Hiring diverse attorneys is necessary to build a diverse law firm,but “to truly ensure that the diversity gains actually take root andare sustainable, diverse attorneys must be reflected at themanagement level,” said Vickie E. Turner of Wilson Turner KosmoLLP. Firms with diverse management provide associates a careerroadmap to follow as well as the validation that the firm recognizesand rewards hard work.

Communication Is Key Hamilton, Miller & Birthisel’s managing shareholder, Jerry D.Hamilton, says that communication is vital to building a diverseand inclusive law firm: “Communicate your firm’s diversity andinclusion in your values statement or mission of the firm to bothemployees and clients and, and more importantly, to exhibit thesevalues in your day-to-day practice and professional engagementwith the community.”

Keywords: litigation, diversity, inclusion, diverse law firms, tipsfor law firms

Copyright © 2016, American Bar Association. All rights reserved. This

information or any portion thereof may not be copied or disseminated in any

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retrieval system without the express written consent of the American Bar

Association. The views expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do

not necessarily reflect the positions or policies of the American Bar Association,

the Section of Litigation, this committee, or the employer(s) of the author(s).

8/1/2018 Organizational Culture Framework | Spencer Stuart

https://www.spencerstuart.com/what-we-do/our-capabilities/leadership-consulting/organizational-culture 1/3

Culture Alignment Framework — a uniquely powerful tool foraligning strategy and cultureAn organization's culture can support or undermine its business strategy. Wehelp clients assess the alignment of culture and strategy, establish a targetculture and evaluate the degree to which executives are likely to fit with, adaptto and shape culture.

Applying this fundamental insight, we have identified eight primary anduniversal styles, which can be used to diagnose highly complex and diversebehavioral patterns in a culture and understand how an individual executive islikely to align with that culture. Because the model uses the same language tocharacterize culture and individual styles, assessment of cultural alignment isstraightforward and actionable.

Home ˲ What We Do ˲ Capabilities ˲ Leadership Consulting ˲ Organizational Culture

Organizational Culture

Our framework for assessingculture is rooted in the insightthat each organization andeach individual must addressthe inherent tension betweentwo critical dimensions oforganizational dynamics:

Attitude toward people,from independence tointerdependence

Attitude toward change,from flexibility to stability

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8/1/2018 Organizational Culture Framework | Spencer Stuart

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Understanding the LinkBetween Culture andPerformance

An organization's culture cansupport or undermine itsbusiness strategy. We shareinsights on how to alignpeople, strategy and culture.

The Leader's Guide toCorporate Culture

Our study published inHarvard Business Review laysout a vocabulary for talkingabout culture in a rigorous wayand a roadmap for managingand changing culture.

In a New Era for Boards,Culture Is Key

Amid growing scrutiny onboard performance anddiversity, we explore the maintypes of board culture stylesand the questions boardsshould ask when changingtheir cultures.

V I E W M O R E R E S E A R C H & I N S I G H T

““ There was incredible value in this

engagement: it reinforced what the culture is

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and what it will continue to be; it helped theorganization accept and rally around an

outside CEO. ”

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Our assessment approach: proven link toperformanceThe highest-stakes leadership decisions demand the most comprehensiveleadership assessment. The caliber of our people, our methods and ourintegrated approach to assessment combine to substantially increase theaccuracy with which we can predict a leader’s success.

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