\u201cFoundation provides an explanation of workplace culture: what it is, what it isn\u2019t, why it is important, and how you can begin to examine your own,\u201d argued Razzetti.[1]<\/a><\/p>\n Culture has been the up-and-coming buzzword among organizational gurus over the last decade. So, what does Gustavo mean by culture? He argues that culture is not defined as workplace fun, yoga classes, game rooms, casual dress, and the like. Instead, he compares culture to an iceberg, with some of it visible, but a bunch of it is below the waterline and out of sight.[2]<\/a><\/p>\n Gustavo argues that culture is not a strategy, but the two mutually benefit one another. He indicated that culture supports results, creates teams, gives employees meaning, adapts better to change, and boosts motivation. He provides The Culture Design Canvas<\/em> as a mapping tool to understand and grow an organization\u2019s culture.<\/p>\n You know that old saying, \u201cDistance makes the heart grow fonder?\u201d It might ring true for how Gustavo compels organizational leaders to consider how well their core purpose and values connect with each person within the organization, not just from an intellectual standing but on an emotional and cognitive level.<\/p>\n I experienced this firsthand after the initial shock of the COVID-19 pandemic had settled. We were entering a new phase of learning and adapting in the congregation I was serving. Some of my staff seamlessly pivoted throughout the process, eagerly coming to the proverbial table with a desire to cultivate new ways to adjust how we worked and how we were going to serve our congregation. However, at the same time, other staff turned inward into survival mode, focusing on their personal needs and slowly detaching themselves from the organization.<\/p>\n Was the answer forcing people to return to the office? Certainly not. The local of their work was merely a triggering mechanism to their existing relationship with the church, with blame to be shared by the employee and me as their leader.<\/p>\n As Razzetti argued, \u201cMost companies have jumped too quickly into fixing mode. They want to land on an answer and move on \u2013 often because they want to avoid difficult conversations.\u201d[3]<\/a><\/p>\n Remote Not Distant <\/em>offers tangible strategies to cultivate a thriving culture, whether an organization faces a once-in-a-generation disruption, like a global pandemic, or something else altogether challenging. He lays out six modes of collaboration during a time of disruption, including:<\/p>\n Taking a step back and looking at the social and cognitive challenges of disruption is critical for understanding what motivates and leads to thriving within an organization. However, at the end of the day, Razzetti believes that the strength of an organization\u2019s culture will either be the iceberg that sinks the \u201cTitanic of Disruption\u201d or lightly pelts it with ice balls as it blows through your organization with no impact to the hull. Maybe I could have used global warming as a metaphor there too.<\/p>\n [1]<\/a> Gustavo Razzetti, Remote Not Distant: Design a Company Culture That Will Help You Thrive in a Hybrid Workplace<\/em> (Highland Park: Liberationist Press, 2022), 9.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/global-uploads.webflow.com\/5fa4aac1f837ef5fa264e521\/6070849497ecc7599119cf44_Culture%20Design%20Canvas%20by%20Gustavo%20Razzetti%20small%20size.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\n