Workplace culture has moved beyond being an administrative concern for human resources departments and has become a strategic business imperative, culture architect at Sifa, Oluwarotimi Dada, has said.

According to her, the way organisations treat, recognise and engage employees increasingly determines their ability to attract and retain talent in a highly competitive global labour market.

Speaking on the Asaase Breakfast Show on Tuesday, August 4, ahead of the Global Conference on Human Resources in Africa, Dada said culture influences how quickly organisations innovate, how leaders make decisions, and how effectively teams collaborate.

She said the traditional view of workplace culture as something discussed mainly during employee onboarding or annual retreats was no longer adequate.

“Culture has truly moved from just being an occasional HR conversation to a boardroom conversation,” she said.

Talent can work from anywhere

Dada said African organisations were increasingly competing for talent with employers around the world because technology allows professionals to work remotely across borders.

She noted that a software engineer based in Accra or Lagos could work for a company in London without relocating.

This, she said, meant organisations could no longer rely solely on salaries and financial benefits to attract and retain employees.

“The new currency of work is definitely beyond salaries or compensation,” she said, highlighting recognition, rewards, belonging, and a sense of purpose as increasingly important factors.

According to her, employees want to feel “seen,” valued, and connected to the purpose of their organisations.

Employees can mentally check out

Dada warned that one of the major mistakes organisations make is assuming that employees remain engaged simply because they continue to report to work.

She said some workers may remain physically present while having already disengaged mentally.

“People don’t leave organisations just because of compensation. They leave because they stop feeling seen and visible,” she said.

She recalled her own professional experience, where she worked hard but felt that her contributions were not sufficiently recognised.

That experience, she said, reinforced the importance of creating systems that deliberately recognise employees rather than leaving appreciation to the discretion or memory of individual managers.

Recognition must be intentional

Dada recommended that organisations make recognition timely, consistent, and embedded in their workplace culture.

She also urged leaders to listen deliberately to employees and act on their ideas rather than merely giving workers opportunities to speak.

She identified timely recognition, intentional listening, consistency, and peer-to-peer recognition as four practical habits leaders can adopt to create workplaces where employees feel valued.

She argued that recognition should not be limited to annual performance reviews or come only from senior management.

“Most of the meaningful appreciation comes from colleagues who work alongside each other every day,” she said.

Ms Dada said intentionality would also be critical in managing multi-generational workforces, as organisations seek to build cultures that can be understood and embraced by employees of different generations.