A veterinary service provider, facing significant retention challenges and employee burnout, embarked on a comprehensive cultural transformation. Using surveys, focus groups, and actionable frameworks like CultureTalk, the organization identified cultural strengths and areas for growth. Initiatives included fostering transparency, improving communication, and aligning personal behaviors with organizational goals. These efforts resulted in reduced burnout, improved retention, and a more collaborative, engaged workforce, demonstrating the power of culture-driven change.
Client Background:
Balancing Animal Care with Organizational Wellbeing
A leading veterinary service provider tasked with protecting and improving animal health, quality of care, and the marketability of agricultural animals faced significant internal challenges. Prolonged emergencies and failed culture change initiatives had resulted in burnout, retention issues, and distrust, highlighting the urgent need for a structured cultural transformation.
Project Scope:
Laying the Foundation for Cultural Renewal
The project aimed to rebuild trust and engagement by assessing the current culture's strengths and challenges, defining a clear vision for the desired future state, and implementing actionable solutions. This involved creating a comprehensive framework to enhance collaboration, reduce burnout, and improve retention while aligning organizational behaviors with strategic objectives.
Key Initiatives:
Driving Culture Transformation
Culture Audit: Conducted organization-wide surveys, interviews, and focus groups to uncover cultural strengths and shadow behaviours, creating a baseline for change.
​
"Become the Change” Initiative: Encouraged employees to align their personal behaviours with organizational benchmarks, fostering ownership and accountability.
​
Action Planning: Developed a detailed Culture Change Action Plan with phased, measurable steps to address strategic and operational gaps.
​
Story-Based Framework: Identified nine actionable culture themes to guide transformation efforts and foster alignment.
Improved Communication Channels: Established new methods for feedback and transparency to rebuild trust and engagement at every level.
​
Rewards and Recognition Program: Created a Culture Code to reinforce positive behaviours and celebrate employee contributions.
Results & Impact:
Creating a Collaborative and Resilient Workplace
Improved Engagement: Voluntary participation rates exceeded 40% and continued to grow, signalling increased employee investment in the culture shift.
​​
Enhanced Communication: New feedback systems promoted transparency and trust, strengthening team dynamics.
​​
Burnout Reduction: Phased initiatives addressed key drivers of burnout, creating a more supportive work environment.
​
Retention Gains: Efforts to align culture and operational practices reduced turnover, improving overall organizational stability.
Unified Direction: The organization rallied around shared values and clear cultural goals, fostering collaboration across teams.
Conclusion:
Building a Sustainable Culture of Engagement
By addressing systemic challenges and creating a clear roadmap for cultural transformation, the veterinary service provider established a more collaborative, inclusive, and resilient workplace. With CultureTalk’s tools and frameworks, the organization successfully reduced burnout, improved retention, and aligned its culture with its mission to protect and care for animals.
