Despite the challenging economic climate, convention and exhibition venue manager AsiaWorld-Expo Management is confident that its corporate culture - embracing teamwork and positive thinking - motivates its staff to reposition the company for long-term growth. It believes that delegating decision-making authority to its motivated staff helps it meet the ever-changing needs of customers. 'We have a flat organisational hierarchy with a simple chain of command that facilitates efficient decision-making,' said Gladys Wong, human resources and administration director. The company has built its corporate culture by integrating its vision, mission and core values, which set the goals for all staff to adopt common attitudes and work ethics. 'Our vision is to become the world's choice in Asia. And our mission is to build sustainable and mutually beneficial relationships with customers and other stakeholders through excellence in service delivery and innovation, and to redefine business and entertainment,' Ms Wong said. Its core values centre on excellence, teamwork, customer focus, being result-oriented, creativity, innovation, integrity and honesty. AsiaWorld-Expo is able to deliver customer-focused services tailored to meet specific needs of clients thanks to its highly innovative and adaptable workforce. 'To successfully develop and enhance a corporate culture, it is important to win the commitment of all staff,' Ms Wong said. The process begins with staff recruitment. 'In job interviews, we evaluate the extent to which candidates fit our corporate culture. All new recruits need to attend a full-day orientation programme covering company history, corporate values and the functions of all units. Human resources executives will go through each corporate value in detail with the new recruits,' she said. The company also organises training courses and staff experience-sharing sessions and produces a monthly staff newsletter to deepen employees' understanding of its corporate culture. With the help of external consultants, it has conducted training programmes to align corporate values and establish communication channels that have helped improve teamwork within and across divisions. 'We plan to initiate a new round of cultural enhancement to promote teamwork and quality communication,' Ms Wong said. 'All core values are embedded in our staff performance appraisal.' In a corporate culture emphasising results, solutions and teamwork, the company motivates its employees to act in the interests of the company and put aside their personal differences in the workplace. Employees are encouraged to share their ideas through open discussion. They are expected to be open-minded and appreciate others' feedback and points of view. Meanwhile, formal communication sessions for all the staff are held twice a year in which the management team provides updates on the latest developments in the company. AsiaWorld-Expo considers its workforce as its most valuable asset and sees staff development as one of the keys to success. The company upholds a policy of promotion from within. Whenever job openings are available, the company first identifies employees who possess the competence and demonstrate the potential to match the requirements of the positions. 'Moreover, there have been many examples of successful transfers,' Ms Wong said. 'For instance, some customer service officers were transferred to the business development team and event planning division based on their individual competencies and career goals. They have performed well in their new positions and achieved satisfactory results.' Located next to the Hong Kong International Airport, AsiaWorld-Expo is a partnership set up by the government and a private consortium. The venue has played host to many international and regional meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions events. It has 10 ground-level, column-free exhibition and event halls. Culture club AsiaWorld-Expo Management believes its strong corporate culture effectively motivates its workforce The company ensures its workforce adopts its core values A flat hierarchy and simple chain of command help make decision-making efficient Employees are encouraged to act in the company's interests and put aside their personal differences at work Managers have cultivated close communication with service partners'