Unleashing the Power of Culture: Living Your Values at Work

It’s time to dispel a common corporate myth: culture isn’t the amorphous backdrop of a workplace. Rather, culture tangibly permeates each and every aspect of a workplace — whether leaders and employees know it or not. A strong workplace culture is essential for organizational success, employee satisfaction, and long-term resilience. Culture also shapes the daily work experience, affecting engagement, productivity, and innovation. But an influential culture doesn’t happen by chance — it requires intentional design to support the organization’s purpose, align with strategic goals, and adapt alongside a changing workforce. In today’s rapidly evolving world of work, building a culture that resonates with employees’ values and aspirations is more crucial than ever. Intentional culture-building means not only defining values but also ensuring they’re felt in everyday interactions. It involves setting clear behavioral expectations, creating supportive systems, and consistently demonstrating these values in action. Effective culture-building goes beyond policies, engaging both hearts and minds by fostering social connection, aligning personal and organizational values, and creating an environment where employees feel emotionally invested. Additionally, understanding power dynamics within the workplace helps ensure inclusivity, as leaders play a pivotal role in setting the cultural tone. In this article, you’ll explore what culture is, why it’s so important, and how organizations can actively shape and sustain it. From defining culture to implementing frameworks that bring it to life, you’ll learn insights that will help contribute to a workplace that supports both organizational success and individual well-being. Keen to dive in? Let’s get started!

Defining culture

An organization’s culture is like its personality — a unique blend of values, beliefs, and practices that influence how employees behave and make decisions. While culture is often complex and misunderstood, when it aligns with the organization’s goals, it becomes a powerful force for engagement, productivity, and cohesion. A clear and intentional culture sets expectations and offers employees a shared sense of purpose, helping drive both individual and collective success. On the other hand, a misaligned or stagnant culture can lead to disengagement and poor business outcomes. Culture provides a foundation for clarity and inspiration, helping employees understand what the organization expects and rewards. Despite its impact, many organizations fail to actively design their culture, leaving it to form without guidance, which often results in a fragmented or unclear environment. Without a defined cultural foundation, employees may feel disconnected or uncertain about how to contribute meaningfully, significantly limiting the organization’s potential to succeed. Organizational culture is closely connected to workplace climate or the everyday experiences employees have in the workplace. Culture sets overarching values and priorities, while climate reflects these values in action through policies, behaviors, and interactions. The two are interdependent: a positive culture supports a healthy climate, and a strong climate reinforces cultural values. For instance, an open layout in a physical workspace may encourage collaboration, while private areas may emphasize focused work. In remote settings, organizations must rethink how managers and leaders foster connection and maintain a shared sense of “us” and “how we do things,” even digitally or from afar. That said, employees are far from passive participants in culture; they play an active role by interpreting and acting on its signals. Rather than simply absorbing the culture, employees consciously and subconsciously assess how well it aligns with their own values and respond accordingly. This active involvement means that culture is not imposed but co-created, constantly shaped by employees’ decisions and actions. When employees feel respected and empowered to contribute authentically, they help the organization’s culture evolve and thrive. Research shows a robust and intentional culture benefits business outcomes, improving employee retention, innovation, customer satisfaction, and financial performance. In contrast, toxic cultures — most often stemming from toxic leadership behaviors — can be deeply damaging to both individual well-being and organizational growth. As such, trust is central to any flourishing culture. As Warren Buffett once noted, trust is “like the air we breathe”: unnoticed when present but painfully obvious when missing. For organizations to create a healthy, thriving culture, intentionality is critical. By consciously aligning cultural values with organizational goals and ensuring these values resonate with employees’ everyday experiences, companies can cultivate an environment where both people and place are best positioned to succeed.

Transforming culture

If a robust and intentional culture is so critical to organizational success and employee satisfaction, what can be done to cultivate one? Rather than leaving culture to develop by chance, organizations should deliberately sculpt it to construct a workplace where people feel appreciated, connected, and supported. Such a transformation requires a “hearts and minds” approach — engaging employees emotionally and intellectually. Before taking action, organizations need to define clear outcomes and questions to ensure cultural work aligns directly with the broader business strategy. Reshaping culture is unquestionably challenging work, but structured frameworks like the Intentional Culture Circle can help lighten the load, ensuring the work done is comprehensive and effective. In the Intentional Culture Circle framework, the first stage is to establish a shared vision of what the culture should look like to support the organization’s goals. This leads to the second stage, which is clarifying the specific behaviors that represent the organization’s values, making it clear how everyone should act to uphold these standards. Stage three is all about continuous education — constantly reinforcing these values and expectations to aid both new and current employees in understanding their roles in sustaining a positive culture. Accountability is the fourth stage, and another factor fundamental to success. Clear and well-communicated metrics allow the organization to measure progress, providing leaders with accurate insights into what’s working and where adjustments are needed. To truly bring culture to life, you need culture champions. These individuals can be employees of any level who actively promote cultural values, further embedding the culture throughout the organization. Stage six emphasizes the importance of regular and consistent communication, keeping the mission of culture-building at the forefront of everyone’s minds. Authentic, personalized experiences comprise step seven, allowing employees to engage with the culture meaningfully and foster genuine connections across teams. Finally, aligning organizational practices — especially those related to people management — with cultural values strengthens unity and ensures that culture is ingrained in every system. But the work doesn’t stop there. Cultivating a healthy culture is an ongoing commitment requiring continual attention and adaptation. As organizations grow and change, they must remain dedicated to nurturing an intentional culture that evolves alongside the organization, reflecting both its mission and the needs of its people. Further, acknowledging power dynamics is equally essential to successful cultural transformation. Culture and power are closely linked: employees look to those in leadership roles to understand what the organization rewards. Leaders, founders, and managers should be mindful of how their influence colors the culture and work proactively to ensure they act in alignment. Transforming a workplace culture is no small feat, but it’s an investment well worth making nonetheless. Following a structured framework such as the Intentional Culture Circle can help ease the overwhelm and provide a reliable road map. And having a reliable road map — whether the Intentional Culture Circle or otherwise — will come in handy, as cultural transformation is a journey those in power will need to make several times to see their company and colleagues thrive to their fullest potential.

Future-proofing culture

As work and workplaces evolve at an ever-accelerating pace, strong organizational culture will become more crucial than ever before. One manifestation of this is the rise in people prioritizing value alignment in their choice of workplace. This desire is backed by research — when personal and organizational values clash, real discomfort and disengagement can be experienced by employees. The organizations that will thrive in the future will understand that a well-designed culture provides unity, but also adapts as its work and workforce evolve. A strong culture doesn’t require everyone to be the same; instead, it balances core values with individual contributions, helping people feel connected to shared goals. These culture-smart organizations will recognize that regularly evaluating their culture’s effectiveness is essential, and that simply stating your values on the company website isn’t enough. Values must be underpinned by specific behaviors, practices, and systems that turn cultural ideals into daily reality. A practical way to build and boost a values-driven culture is through the Culture Care Stairs model, which outlines key aspects of a healthy, human-centered workplace culture. This model has three levels, each enhancing employee well-being and organizational resilience. At the foundation are essentials like safety, honesty, and trust. The next level builds on these by creating psychological safety and fostering inclusivity, acknowledging employees as whole people. The highest level promotes personal growth, connects employees to a meaningful purpose, and champions efforts that benefit the organization and society at large. Effective cultural work must also engage both the hearts and minds of employees. Embracing emotions in the workplace is a vital first step toward this “hearts” focus, helping employees feel valued as living, breathing individuals. Encouraging people to reflect on their personal values can further strengthen alignment, as they can then identify where their values intersect with the organization’s mission. Continuing to cultivate social connections within the organization will reinforce this cultural foundation, creating a workplace where people feel they are seen, respected, and belong. In addition, while culture will need to remain well aligned with business strategy, it must place equal emphasis on people’s well-being and growth. A strategy alone can’t succeed without dedicated, engaged employees who believe in the organization’s direction. Beyond the workplace, this people-first focus supports external success as well. Most organizations serve — and will continue to serve — human customers, and a culture that prioritizes people’s needs and values can resonate both internally and with clients and consumers. Valuing employees and customers alike will strengthen the organization’s reputation and foster long-term loyalty. In the coming years, uncertainty will be the one certainty that organizations will face. To make themselves future-proof, organizations will need to foreground culture. And to make their cultures future-proof, organizations will need to underscore adaptability, human-centeredness, and a purpose-driven ethos. Doing so will ensure both company and culture stay relevant and resilient at a time in history when these two qualities are becoming increasingly rare.

In this article, you’ve learned that culture is the heartbeat of all organizations, shaping how employees feel, engage, and contribute. Anything but a passive backdrop, culture is an active force that influences everything from employee productivity to leader innovation. When approached intentionally, culture can unify and inspire, aligning personal values with organizational goals to create a thriving workplace. But a healthy culture isn’t just about setting values — it’s about embedding them into daily practices, fostering trust, and creating space for genuine connection. By prioritizing people and purpose, organizations can build resilient, adaptable cultures that empower both individuals and the entire organization to flourish and reach their full potential.