14 - Creating a Winning Culture: Lessons from the NFL Combine

In this episode of the Lucky 13 podcast, co-hosts Mike Lantz and Josh Hauser delve into the NFL combine's interview process and its parallels with corporate interviews. They transition to discussing organizational culture, with Josh introducing a quadrant model of different culture types and the importance of intentional culture. Mike shares insights from his time at Defender Direct, highlighting how a performance-based culture that aligns with business objectives can attract and retain motivated employees. They discuss the necessity of aligning cultural initiatives with measurable business outcomes and the pitfalls of command and control leadership. The episode concludes with a call to action for business owners to assess and intentionally shape their company culture.

Welcome to the Lucky 13 Podcast (00:00:07) Introduction and discussion about resuming the podcast after a hiatus.

NFL Combine Interview Preparation (00:00:50) Discussion about the recent trip to partner with a sports agency to help NFL athletes prepare for interviews at the combine.

Understanding the NFL Combine Interview Process (00:02:28) Explanation of the interview process for NFL athletes at the combine, including physical evaluations and team interviews.

Pressure and Preparation for NFL Interviews (00:04:31) Discussion about the pressure and preparation required for NFL interviews, emphasizing the potential impact of one's responses on their career.

Learning from Mistakes and Positive Spin (00:05:41) Emphasis on learning from mistakes and providing positive spin in interview situations, with an example of a positive response from an athlete.

Importance of Culture in Sports and Business (00:09:38) Transition to discussing the impact of culture in sports, specifically women's basketball, and the importance of culture in organizations.

Types of Organizational Culture (00:10:11) Explanation of four types of organizational culture: chaotic, command and control, happy accident, and intentional healthy culture.

Creating an Intentional Healthy Culture (00:12:30) Discussion on the importance of intentional culture in organizations, using an example from a previous role, and the need for intentional planning for culture.

Business Planning and Culture (00:14:46) Emphasis on the need for business owners to intentionally define the kind of culture they want and align it with their business planning.

Retaining and Attracting Employees Based on Culture (00:15:15) Comparison of business planning to a three-legged stool, emphasizing the need for companies to focus on retaining and attracting employees based on their culture and values.

The talent plan (00:15:51) Discussion about the importance of a talent strategy in achieving business goals and the impact of not having the right people.

Measuring culture (00:16:35) Exploring the challenge of quantitatively measuring culture and the importance of aligning culture with business numbers.

Culture and business success (00:17:39) Linking culture to business success and decision-making, using the example of giving employees a day off for the eclipse.

Aligning culture with business goals (00:18:32) Emphasizing the need to align culture with business objectives and the impact on recruitment and engagement strategies.

Cultural alignment and accountability (00:20:19) Discussing the importance of every employee understanding their role in achieving business goals and the impact on culture.

Creating intentional culture (00:21:46) Emphasizing the need for intentional culture creation and ensuring alignment with organizational objectives.

Avoiding command and control culture (00:22:20) Questioning the practice of hiring good people but then implementing a command and control culture, emphasizing the need to let capable employees excel.

Assessing organizational culture (00:23:19) Encouraging business owners to assess the existing culture and make intentional decisions about the desired organizational culture.