Did you know that according to research, company culture is a top concern for 46% of new job applicants? Studies also show that 15% of new job seekers turned down a role because they were concerned about the company culture, too.
It’s not just about attracting new talent to your law firm, either. You need a great work culture that continues to support the people in your firm for months and years if you want to decrease turnover.
Don’t be surprised when culture comes up in your interviews with new employees and remains an important fixture for their whole relationship with you.
Certainly, work culture is more important now, and, especially in light of more hybrid and remote work environments where employees have choices about where to work and can easily find another position. From encouraging collaboration, setting up best practice communication systems, and continuing to grow your own leadership skills, work culture requires attention and care from you. Investing in personal development books is an excellent way to show your team you care and continually improve on your own.
We recently chatted with Paige Risley, Director of Operations at We Recruit Well, about her favorite team culture books. If you want to build a great place to work, get started with these resources.
Think Again, by Adam Grant
The best thing about the book Think Again is the introduction to the idea of relearning. Often, past lessons feel ingrained and as leaders, it’s easy to resort to the same way of doing things over and over again.
Disagreement in a team is a given but relearning how best to react to it is key for building a workplace where people can share their opinions and question the status quo. Disagreement shouldn’t be a threat to your ego, and you don’t always need to jump into defense mode. Grant breaks it down into the steps to follow to implement this with your own team.
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, by Patrick Lencioni
You know that your team is capable of achieving more, but you’re not sure where things are going wrong. Is it one person? Is it a breakdown in communication? Is it the way two people on the team perceive one another? Start digging in by looking at Patrick Lencioni’s classic The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.
Lencioni says the main dysfunctions that can damage your entire team are:
- Absence of trust
- Fear of conflict
- Lack of commitment
- Avoidance of accountability
- Inattention to results
The Ideal Team Player, by Patrick Lencioni
Patrick Lencioni is a leading writer on work and culture, which is why his books made the list twice. When you’re trying to build your law firm team, a lot of the work comes down to how you hire and who you hire. Your hiring process should always consider the most important qualities in a new team member: hungry, humble, and smart, according to Lencioni.
At Woven Legal, we always think about all these qualities when looking for the perfect team member to support our law firms.
Building the right team is hard but always important, especially in the remote world. In this book, Patrick Lencioni guides business owners through the hiring process to help find not only the right skill set but the right culture fit. It’s a quick read that will change your hiring process.
The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, by John Mark Comer
Do you ever feel like you’re running around in a rush and not able to enjoy the present? This can bleed into both your personal and professional life. If this feels like you and you want to break the cycle, check out this book.
Working remotely can be a blessing and a curse. It’s a blessing because you can work flexibly around life. The curse is that you are always attached to your phone, email, text, and computer. Comer shares how important it is to eliminate the unnecessary and make room for what is important. It’s a great read for any team who is trying to maintain a work-life balance.
Bring Your Human to Work, by Erica Keswin
Author Erica Keswin puts forth a relatively simple premise: make sure that you have routines and empathy at the forefront when making connections with your employees. In Bring Your Human to Work, Keswin says that it’s very important to authentically relate to your entire team, remote work or not. In the remote world, this might require more regular intention, but it’s just as important.
Reculturing, by Melissa Daimler
One of the newest books out there about work culture, Reculturing is a great one to add to your bookshelf. Many companies have not intentionally thought about building a strong work culture. Even if you know you need to work on these aspects, where do you start?
Authored by Chief Learning Officer at Udemy and culture expert Melissa Daimler, this hands-on resource helps you take a deep look at building a workplace worthy of celebrating. Daimler says it’s time to “take culture off the walls and into the halls”, so this book is perfect for you if it’s time for a revisit of your mission, vision, and values.
Paige Risley is the co-founder of We Recruit Well. With over 10 years of experience in the remote and hybrid staffing industry, she oversees all aspects of client onboarding and operations. Paige is a certified Enneagram Coach which she utilizes to facilitate workplace communication and collaboration. Paige holds a BA in Elementary Education and a MA in Education and Curriculum.
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