Stop Trying To Change Your Culture

A business without profit doesn’t survive for very long – I know, I know, I’m a genius. So, it’s no surprise that leaders who want to generate more profit want to improve culture. Here’s the problem – you can’t change a culture.

Any leader who believes they can draw up a plan to change their culture or hire a team of consultants to assist with a culture change is sorely misguided. Culture is not something that can be changed. Culture is not a ‘thing’. Culture is a result.

Instead, the focus must turn to behaviors. As leaders, we must first understand the existing collection of behaviors. How do our people behave with one another? How do our people behave with our clients and customers? How do our people behave with our vendors and partners? How about the new VP you just promoted, is his/her behaviors supportive of the behaviors you expect or was s/he promoted based purely on performance?

Perhaps the most important question of all, are the behaviors your senior leadership team displays every day a shining example of the behaviors you want from everyone else? The days of the “do as I say, not as I do” approach to leadership has outlived its usefulness.

If a culture change is what you’re after, turn your attention to your everyday behaviors and those of your people. If you don’t like what you see, hear or feel, at least you’ll have a good idea of what behaviors you need to change. Once the behaviors change, a new culture will begin to emerge.