“Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” This famous saying by Peter Drucker underscores a simple truth: even the most brilliant strategy will struggle (or fail) in a toxic or misaligned culture. On the flip side, a strong, intentional culture can propel a company to greatness even in tough times. As a CEO, building a high-performance culture that endures is one of the most impactful legacies you can create. It’s also a continuous leadership challenge – culture isn’t set and forgotten; it needs to be nurtured. In this post, we’ll explore how you can shape a vibrant culture that drives performance not just this quarter, but for years to come.
Why Culture Matters to Performance: Culture is often described as “how we do things around here.” It’s the unseen force that guides employees’ choices when no one is watching. A positive, high-performance culture leads to engaged employees, and the numbers make it clear why that matters. Organizations with strong, engaged cultures have been shown to significantly outperform their peers – highly engaged teams achieve 21% greater profitability on average (The Leading Employee Communication App | Workvivo). They also see lower turnover and higher customer satisfaction. In short, culture is a competitive advantage. Conversely, a weak or negative culture can act like an anchor, dragging down morale, productivity, and eventually your bottom line (disengaged workplaces see lower productivity and profit (The Leading Employee Communication App | Workvivo)). For sustainable success, culture and strategy must work hand in hand.
Leadership’s Role in Culture: Culture flows from the top. Leaders, especially the CEO and executive team, set the tone through their actions and decisions every day. It’s not enough to write down core values and put them on a poster – those values have to be lived. For example, if “innovation” is a stated value but employees get penalized for mistakes, the culture will quickly turn risk-averse and stagnant. Consistency between what leaders say and do builds trust and credibility. Wilts Alexander often advises that organizational culture is shaped less by proclamations and more by the toughest decisions leaders make – who gets promoted, what behaviors get rewarded or corrected, how transparently bad news is handled. Every one of those moments either strengthens or weakens your desired culture.
Strategies to Build and Sustain a High-Performance Culture:
- Define Core Values and Behaviors Clearly: Start by identifying 3-5 core values that align with your vision. But don’t stop there – translate each value into specific behaviors that are expected. For instance, if “customer focus” is a value, a behavior might be “we respond to client issues within 24 hours and treat feedback as gifts.” These give your team a clear picture of what the culture looks like in action.
- Walk the Talk – Lead by Example: As a leader, embody the culture daily. If you want a culture of openness, be the first to admit a mistake or ask for feedback. If you want hustle and ownership, show up prepared and accountable. Team members take cues from you; nothing will undermine a culture faster than leadership hypocrisy. On the positive side, when employees see leaders making decisions that align with the stated culture (like prioritizing a customer need over short-term profit if customer-centricity is a value), it galvanizes everyone to do the same.
- Embed Culture into Hiring and Onboarding: Bring in people who not only have the skills but also share the values that define your culture. During interviews, ask questions that reveal how candidates align with your core values. Once hired, socialize them into the culture intentionally – share stories of employees who exemplify the culture, assign them a culture buddy, and make expectations clear from day one. Early alignment prevents cultural drift as your organization grows.
- Reinforce and Refresh Continually: Building culture is not a one-time project – it’s ongoing. Recognize and reward behaviors that reinforce the culture (shout-outs in meetings, awards for teamwork, etc.). Conversely, address behaviors that violate cultural norms swiftly, even if the person is a high performer; toxic high-performers can poison culture. Periodically, gather feedback on the culture through surveys or listening sessions. As your business evolves, be ready to refine cultural practices while holding core values steady. For example, a startup culture of “move fast” may need to add “with process discipline” as the company scales – it’s an evolution, not a contradiction.
A high-performance culture is one of the greatest assets your organization can have. It drives execution, attracts talent, and builds resilience in the face of change. But it’s also an asset that requires active cultivation. As a CEO, you are the chief culture officer by default – your influence is profound. By defining what your company stands for, living those principles, and weaving them into the fabric of daily operations, you create a self-sustaining engine of performance. The true test of your cultural legacy is this: will it continue to thrive even when you’re not in the room? If you build it right, the answer will be “yes” – and that lasting culture will continue to unlock success year after year, far into the future.