FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Developing BC's Culture for 2010:

Two years to go, and our athletes are getting ready for the 2010 Winter Games;
but how should the rest of us prepare to welcome the world?

Vancouver, BC (February 12, 2008): We’re now two years away from the start of the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver and Whistler; and it’s time for us to ask ourselves what kind of impression we want to make upon the guests to our city and province when the world arrives.

“Anyone who travels abroad knows the first thing you notice when travelling in other countries is the difference in culture – so what will be the ‘BC culture’ that people see in 2010? How do we put our best foot forward?” asks Eitan Sharir, expert on corporate culture and leadership and President of Vancouver-based Dynamic Achievement Group.

"Culture" here refers to norms of behaviour and shared values among a group of people. Sharir contends that visitors to other regions or countries instinctively sense the prevalent cultural attitudes, values and behaviours of the place and form their impressions largely on those factors alone. “Thinking back on your own travels, you will be aware that even one person in a country you visited – be it a taxi driver, a shop vendor or a friendly person on the street – could have been instrumental in shaping your whole experience of the place. For this reason, each one of us needs to remember that we are all ‘the face of Vancouver’,” Sharir says.

When preparing for the Olympics, counsels Sharir, we can apply similar principles to those used by companies and organizations with constructive cultures. Such companies have found that by better engaging their employees, their revenues can exceed by nearly four times those of companies with defensive cultures (Kotter and Heskett study – Culture and Performance).

Cultural change, however, whether within an organization, or on a larger scale, is not something you can effect overnight, nor can it come about through coercion. Rather, it is a transformation that occurs as people realize what results a change in behaviour can bring. Changing or enhancing cultures – corporate or otherwise - involves defining the organizational purpose at the outset and informing employees in advance what the ‘prize’ is for the ‘price’ of change.

Likewise, hosting the 2010 Winter Games is a golden opportunity to engage all of us and re-define our purpose as hosts of this significant event. “We need to involve everyone in the city, even those not officially involved in the Games, in preparing a friendly, warm and welcoming face,” Sharir says. “The ‘prize’ for a welcoming city is more tourism and a boost to our economy. Each one of us is responsible for the success of the Olympics and can contribute to the prosperity of our city,” In our effort as a city to make the Vancouver 2010 pleasantly unforgettable for our guests, each of us need only take some small yet significant steps such as:

• Be sensitive to the needs of visitors and assist where possible.
• Be respectful, courteous and friendly toward visitors, regardless of their different cultures.
• Exhibit pride in our beautiful province.
• Accept that there will be longer lines everywhere and display patience and understanding.
• Be patient on the roads.
• Encourage children, friends and all those around us to be hospitable.
• Take this opportunity to connect with visitors and make new friends from around the world.

Finally, concludes Sharir, if corporations who focus on developing high performing cultures can significantly enhance their bottom line results, so can we, as ‘The Best Place on Earth’, create a positive and long-lasting ‘WOW’ experience for our guests that will stay with them for many years to come..”

About Eitan Sharir and Dynamic Achievement Group

Eitan Sharir is the President and founder of Vancouver-based Dynamic Achievement Group and an expert on workplace culture and developing stronger leaders and teams.  Since 1994, he has been helping the world’s top corporations achieve superior results by focusing on both the individual and the organization, with the aim of achieving immediate, significant and long lasting success.

Media contact:
Eitan Sharir, President
Dynamic Achievement Group
Phone: (604) 926-6465
E-mail: eitan@dynamicachievement.com
www.dynamicachievement.com