Summary
Instead of trying to “fix” culture with communications campaigns, ask “What are our systems reinforcing?” Change that and the culture will follow.
Culture is the result of systems, incentives, and governance, not slogans.
Changing culture requires restructuring teams, workflows, and decision-making processes.
Companies that design their systems around agility, transparency, and accountability see culture emerge organically.
Real-world successes (Netflix, Spotify, Toyota) demonstrate that cultural change works when it’s system-driven.
Failures (GE, Wells Fargo) show that misaligned systems and incentives will override aspirational values.
I remember John Pluthero’s painful ‘culture change’ programmes at both Energis and Cable and Wireless over 20 years ago. I fell victim to both.
Although he wrote in big letters on a board behind his desk “CHANGE THE CULTURE”, he instinctively knew that corporate culture, like all culture, is a product of the systems, processes and behaviours embedded within an organisation. It isn’t something you impose from the top down, it isn’t a poster by the water cooler or a cleverly worded talk given by the HR Director.
And because of this, your organisation can never get the culture you aspire to unless you understand where culture comes from and how it’s shaped. In short, culture is an output of your company processes, systems and management. If systems prioritise process over progress, no amount of rhetoric will fix the underlying dysfunction.
Replace Slogans with Systems for Better Cultural Transformation
Organisations launch cultural transformation initiatives with mission statements, vison and values statements, all backed up with shiny internal communication campaigns.
But then they’re surprised to report back that little tangible change is taking place. That’s because culture isn’t the starting point, it’s the result of operational design, decision-making frameworks, and leadership behaviours.
A well documented example of a failed culture transformation is General Electric (GE) under Jeff Immelt. While Immelt spoke extensively about cultural change, internal systems remained bureaucratic, slow, and fragmented.
When I just Googled more information to check my recollection, it reports ‘management practices were misaligned with its culture’. Respectfully Mr Google, I disagree. Its culture was matched exactly to its management practices BUT this was misaligned to the messaging, which is why is failed to adapt.
On the flip side, Netflix’s approach to culture is rooted in systems and incentives. By designing policies around transparency, autonomy, and accountability (such as their now famous “Freedom and Responsibility” model) they embedded a culture wasn’t just a buzzword. Employees behave in alignment with culture because the systems reinforce the right behaviours.