Culture Without the Fluff: Pragmatic Levers for Executives

Uncertainty fatigue is real. Anxiety around change is slowing execution. Many organizations say they’re evolving—but their cultures and systems aren’t keeping up.

And yet, in times of challenge, the key to adaptability is an organization’s ability to change fast and build the capability to continuously and rapidly iterate and shift again as conditions and strategic priorities evolve. This requires creating a culture that supports and enables fast, iterative change at scale.

The prospect of intentionally evolving culture, in service of strategy, remains an intimidating prospect for leaders. We often see top-down culture initiatives launch with a wave of excitement, only to later wither on the vine. Presenting their own challenges, bottom-up culture efforts often over-index on individual leadership development and neglect the vital role played by groups, teams, and organizational norms. Consequently, we see a disconnect between emergent strategy and organizational culture which can create fatigue, confusion, and sub-par execution.

We believe that leading organizations can carve out a competitive advantage by intentionally evolving their culture. And we recognize that organizations are flooded with competing priorities so it’s important to know where to focus and prioritize your efforts to really make an impact.