It is hard to achieve the 'right' culture and virtually impossible to quantify 'good culture' in the precise, technical terms that people who work in financial services love. Many executives struggle with the notion of culture because it is far less tangible than hard sales figures and profit margins, but struggle they must.

It is more important for financial service firms than ever before to evolve the right culture. Regulators are keenly assessing it and younger generations want to operate in workplaces that inspire them, support them in their careers and contain people from different ethnic backgrounds. It is hard to achieve the 'right' culture and virtually impossible to quantify 'good culture' in those precise, technical terms beloved by those of us who work in financial services.

Some veteran financiers might view the sharp focus that regulators want firms to have on the working environment with some trepidation, a view that one might feel temped to dismiss as out of date. However, if we dig beneath the latest buzzwords and headline-grabbing soundbites, we often see a greater alignment of views than we expected. Believe it or not, experienced leaders do care about culture and it was arguably always central to the City's modus operandi even before culture surveys and dashboards were invented.

The beating heart

In recent years, regulators have grown more and more interested in better behaviour at firms in relation to non-financial matters. The Financial Conduct Authority laid out its attitudes two years ago with the publication of a discussion paper entitled "Transforming Culture in Financial Services" and echoed its message in a 'Dear CEO' letter to the general insurance industry at the start of this year. It is now asking financial service firms explicitly being asked to take steps to improve the culture of their organisations. Culture and governance are an important cross-sector priority for that regulator and also for investors.

Culture can be thought of as the beating heart of a firm and like any heart, it needs to be cared for.

Let's bring culture into the picture

Many executives struggle with the notion of culture because it is far less tangible than hard sales figures and profit margins. Boards and senior managers are, however, increasingly bringing culture into the picture as they set out their goals and the strategies by which they want to achieve them. It is always a good start to make some pronouncements about acceptable and appropriate behaviour at work and the conditions that support the best results for the business.

Saying something and doing something are, however, separate things.

People atop an organisation are bound to fail if they simply perceive cultural change as a tick-box exercise or, worse still, undermine their words by their own actions. A beautifully crafted policy document might seem to be a success in itself, but it is vital for every board to overhaul culture — especially the type sought by the FCA — genuinely and inspire people all over the firm to accept it.

In it together!

Many firms are trying proactively to define, assess and, where necessary, improve the culture within their walls. Firms that struggle with this tend to have something in common: a lack of trust that the managers at the top mean what they say.

It is crucial that organisations look at themselves with fresh eyes and ask themselves whether the goals they have set have any bearing on the way in which they function day by day. Boards and executives have to work out whether the way their businesses operate suggests that they have not set their cultural goals clearly enough, or indeed whether the message has been lost by the time it reaches junior staff.

Furthermore, change has to start at the top. Managers must be genuine in their desire to improve their firms' culture and take publicly discernable steps that can act as evidence of this.

It might be difficult to work out all the hallmarks of a good business culture but there are some simple, straightforward and tangible strategies that firms that want to evolve can employ.

Ask the audience

Managers can no longer act in a vacuum, believing that they always know what is best for their organisations. This style of management may have worked in the past but no longer motivates today’s workforce. It is vital for them to give staff opportunities to voice their opinions on various aspects of the working environment.

For the highest success rates, firms should talk to their staff through many channels, including anonymous online surveys, 'town hall' meetings (great gatherings of employees) and well-structured appraisal processes. Each of these allows members of staff to tell managers how they are doing as privately or publicly as they wish and it also enables anyone to contribute.

As emphasised regularly by the FCA, a clear and protective system for informants to use is also essential. All staff must have a mechanism through which to pass problems upwards in all circumstances without jeopardising their own careers.

The customer is always right!

A firm's culture cannot be a sound one unless that firm takes feedback from customers onboard and responds to it with appropriate action. If it claims to value customers’ opinions but is a regular recipient of bad online reviews and ratings, it ought to take a good long look in the mirror.

Social media has accelerated the pace of communication and a bad news story about a firm can 'go viral' extremely quickly. Reputations are built slowly but can be destroyed rapidly. Robust morals and profitability truly are linked inextricably in the modern business environment.

Culture on the bottom line

Naysayers dismiss the regulator's scrutiny of workplace culture as unnecessary, usually believing that it is unrelated to their firms' financial performance and even, in some cases, that it is detrimental to profitability and progress.

Initiatives such as “culture dashboards” — aimed at monitoring culture as events occur — have a part to play but they require careful thought if they are to achieve anything meaningful.

A positive internal culture can make employees work harder, sometimes even above and beyond the call of duty. It can also influence the kind of persona that a firm presents to the public.

There is more pressure than ever on firms to act responsibly and treat their staff and customers with the same dignity and respect as one another. More often than not, this yields positive tangible results. If a firm looks after staff and responds to the changing demands of the working population, it might find itself employing happier people who stay for longer and act as ambassadors for its brand on their own initiative.

Embrace change!

It can be extremely difficult for those running an organisation to envisage how its culture will look after attempts to change it.

But this should not act as a barrier to action. The end result might not be visible, but several things make for a good starting point.