By: Shawna Wright
Dr. Clotaire Rapaille is an internationally revered cultural anthropologist and marketing expert who has spent decades studying cultures, observing consumer behavior and advising companies in their marketing efforts. His book, The Culture Code, reveals his groundbreaking insights on how people act and interact with businesses and each other. Dr. Rapaille is the chairman of Archetype Discoveries Worldwide and is the personal advisor of ten high-ranking CEOs. Fifty Fortune 100 companies keep him on retainer.
Rapaille’s “Culture Code” is the unconscious meaning we apply to any given thing via the culture in which we were raised. Each culture has a different interpretation for the same word. All these codes create a reference system that people unconciously use. “The Culture Code” offers an understanding of why people really do things. To be “on Code” is to tap into the unconscious meaning behind the word. Being “off Code” may logically make sense, but it runs contrary to the primal understanding.
According to Rapaille, the American code for work is “who you are”. Americans tie their sense of self to their jobs. When we are unemployed the logical concern is wondering how the bills are going to get paid. On a deeper level, when we are “doing” nothing, that means we are nobodies. If our jobs are meaningless, then “who we are” is meaningless as well. Contrarily, when we believe our jobs have value and we are doing something worthwhile, our identity is positively enhanced. This is the most fundamental reason that it is important for employers to keep their employees content and motivated.
Rapaille uses The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company as an example of an organization that understands the value of positively identifying employees. The company refers to its employees as “ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen.” Ritz-Carlton understands that if it wants to create an enjoyable atmosphere for its guests, it has to start with its own employees. Rapaille mentions that if a cleaning person were to encounter a guest with a problem, Ritz-Carlton gives the cleaning person the power to offer a free meal or free night to improve the guest’s experience. This power gives the cleaning person a “strong sense of motivation” and instills in them the belief that they are part of the corporate mission.
So what does this mean from an employer’s perspective?
By understanding that employees relate their jobs to their own self worth, employers should continually strive to keep their staff inspired and engaged. Regular staff meetings are “on Code,” they connect with the “who you are” idea. Involving employees in the direction of the company gives them a stronger sense of identity, the feeling that they are critical components of the company’s success.
We put a lot of emphasis on progression. No one wants to feel that their journey is over and they will remain in a stagnant career for the rest of their lives. According to Rapaille’s code, we want to keep working (sometimes even after retiring) because we need to keep working in order to feel like we still exist. Helping your employees understand their career paths would also be “on Code.” When an employee believes that they are “going somewhere” in the company, their sense of self-importance is heightened.
Rapaille claims that looking at a team of employees, as a “Homogenous group that rises and falls together” is a mistake. Offering incentives to the team is “off Code” because it fails to recognize the individual. He doesn’t deny the importance of teamwork, but insists that the team should serve as a support system that allows individuals to become champions.
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