Most leaders acknowledge the importance of culture, yet few treat it with the same rigour they apply to strategy or operations. In many organisations, “culture” is treated as an abstract quality, a backdrop to the real work, something to be addressed later, or perhaps delegated to HR initiatives.

This view is a fundamental error. Culture is not a backdrop; it is the system through which the work actually gets done.

When we strip away the corporate values statements and the off-site exercises, we are left with something far more concrete and confronting. Team culture is simply the shared pattern of behaviour, meaning, and expectation that emerges when a group works together over time. It is not what we intend to happen; it is what actually happens. It shows up in the speed of decision-making, the quality of debate, and the willingness to surface risks early.

Crucially, culture becomes most visible not when things are going well, but when the pressure is on. It is the behaviour the team repeats when deadlines are tight, when resources are constrained, or when guidance is unclear.

The unit of  culture change

While we often talk about “organisational culture,” that is too broad a canvas for most leaders to paint on effectively. The real engine of performance, and the real unit of change, is the team. While the organisation sets the broader environment, it is the micro-culture inside the team that determines how people behave day-to-day: how they speak to one another, how they handle mistakes, and how they prioritise their energy.

Evidence from decades of research points to the same conclusion: team culture is one of the strongest predictors of consistent, high-quality performance. Teams with healthy cultural norms share information quickly and learn from mistakes. Teams with fragmented cultures experience avoidable friction and struggle to execute, even when individual capability is high.

Therefore, understanding how to shape this environment is not a “soft” exercise. It is a core leadership responsibility.

Moving beyond “fixing” people

A common mistake leaders make when a team is struggling is to treat culture as a collective attitude problem. They try to motivate, persuade, or inspire the team to behave differently. But this ignores a basic human truth: people usually adapt rationally to the environment they are in.

If speaking up leads to dismissal, people will stay silent. If speed is rewarded over quality, shortcuts will become normal. If we want to change the culture, we cannot just demand different behaviours; we must change the conditions that make those behaviours rational.

Shifting a culture does not begin with a new mission statement. It begins with looking at the system we have created, the meetings we run, the questions we ask, and the behaviours we tolerate, and asking if they are producing the results we claim to want.

The six leverage points

If we accept that we cannot ‘fix’ people, we must instead look at the environment they operate in. Culture is not a single attribute but a system. Research suggests that strong team cultures rest on six core components that reliably shape behaviour and performance.

When these elements reinforce one another, teams develop coherence and clarity. When they pull in different directions, people receive mixed signals about what is expected.

To shift a culture, leaders should focus on these six interconnected areas, using specific strategies to move from intention to practice.

1. Shared purpose and meaning

A strong team culture begins with a clear sense of why the team exists and what it contributes. Purpose acts as an interpretive anchor. It guides how the team understands its work, how decisions are taken, and what success looks like. When the purpose is vague or fragmented, culture becomes reactive because people make different assumptions about what matters.

Strategies for practice:

  • Translate purpose into concrete outcomes: Do not rely on abstract mission statements. Set aside a dedicated discussion to identifying the two to four outcomes that would most clearly demonstrate the team is succeeding over the next 6–12 months. Push the conversation away from activities and towards impact.

  • Use purpose as a decision filter: When a significant decision arises, slow the conversation deliberately. Explicitly test each option against the agreed team outcomes by asking, “Which option best supports our purpose, and why?”. Doing this out loud teaches the team to use purpose as a tool, not just a slogan.

  • Connect individual work to the team’s contribution: During one-to-ones, draw a clear line between an individual’s tasks and the team’s agreed outcomes. When assigning new work, explain not only what needs to be done but why it matters in the broader context.

  • Re-anchor purpose during periods of change: When priorities shift or pressure increases, pause before moving into execution. Acknowledge that the context has changed and restate the team’s purpose, clarifying what still holds true and what needs adjustment. This reduces uncertainty and helps the team stay aligned.

  • Test for shared understanding, not assumed alignment: Periodically check how the team understands its purpose by asking individuals to describe it in their own words. Listen for differences in interpretation and discuss them openly rather than correcting them immediately.

2. Behavioural norms

Every team develops unwritten rules that govern how people interact, challenge one another, and make decisions. These norms often carry more weight than formal processes because they represent the behaviour that is actually rewarded or tolerated. Norms determine whether disagreements are explored or avoided, whether information is shared openly or held back, and whether meetings are collaborative or performative.

Strategies for practice:

  • Make implicit norms explicit: Create a dedicated session focused on ‘how we work together’. Ask the team to describe behaviours they believe are currently expected when there is disagreement or time pressure. Where there is a gap between what is said and what is done, name it.

  • Define what good challenge looks like: Clarify how the team is expected to challenge ideas. Describe explicitly what acceptable challenge sounds like, agreeing that it should focus on the work, be voiced early, and include reasoning rather than opinion.

  • Reinforce norms through real-time intervention: Pay close attention to moments when behaviour drifts from agreed norms. Intervene early and calmly, linking the observation back to the agreed norm (e.g., “We agreed to surface concerns early…”). Consistent, low-key intervention signals that norms matter more than comfort.

  • Align decision-making behaviour with stated norms: Examine how decisions are actually made. If the team values debate but decisions are rushed or made outside the room, address the inconsistency directly. Make decision pathways visible so people understand how their contributions are used.

3. Interpersonal climate

Culture is strongly shaped by the level of psychological safety, trust, and respect within the team. This is not about comfort or harmony. Teams with a healthy climate can surface risks early, admit uncertainty, and learn from mistakes. Conversely, teams with a weak climate protect themselves instead of the work, avoiding challenge and hesitating to speak up.

Strategies for practice:

  • Model vulnerability in routine interactions: Deliberately demonstrate openness in low-risk situations. Share when you are uncertain, when you have changed your mind, or when something did not go as planned. This normalises the idea that imperfection is acceptable.

  • Respond productively to bad news: Pay close attention to your reaction when someone raises a problem or risk. Slow your response, thank the person for raising it, and ask clarifying questions before discussing solutions. Your initial response sets the tone for future honesty.

  • Actively protect constructive dissent: Monitor who is speaking and whose views are being dismissed. If someone is challenged aggressively or cut off, intervene to redirect the discussion back to the substance of their point. Show that challenge is legitimate when it focuses on outcomes.

  • Address interpersonal tension directly and early: When you notice strain or friction, address it promptly. Facilitate focused conversations aimed at restoring effective working relationships rather than assigning fault.

  • Set clear expectations for respect under pressure: Explicitly define what respectful behaviour looks like when deadlines are tight. Agree on specific behaviours that are acceptable and unacceptable, and reinforce these when pressure rises.

4. Communication patterns

Team culture becomes highly visible in communication. It is reflected in who speaks, who listens, how information moves, and how conflicts are resolved. Communication patterns determine whether insights flow freely or get stuck, and whether problems are addressed quickly or allowed to accumulate.

Strategies for practice:

  • Make information flow deliberate rather than accidental: Identify the key information the team needs and define where and how it is shared. Reduce reliance on informal side conversations by bringing essential information into common forums.

  • Shape who speaks and who listens: Observe participation patterns. Intervene by deliberately inviting input from quieter members before closing topics. Use structured turn-taking if discussions are dominated by a few voices.

  • Separate sense-making from decision making: Be explicit about whether a conversation is intended to explore ideas or make a decision. Allow space for exploration before moving into decision mode to reduce frustration.

  • Normalise early problem raising: Create regular moments where issues and risks are expected to be raised. Frame these not as signals of failure but as part of doing good work. Respond with curiosity rather than blame.

  • Close communication loops explicitly: Ensure discussions lead to clear outcomes. Summarise what was agreed, who is responsible, and what happens next. When decisions change, explain why and how new information influenced the shift.

5. Rituals and routines

Teams reinforce their culture through the practices that repeat week after week. Regular planning sessions, check-ins, and debriefs create rhythm and stability. These routines signal what the team values. When routines align with intentions, culture is easier to maintain; when they contradict desired behaviours, culture becomes confused.

Strategies for practice:

  • Design routines around purpose, not habit: Review recurring meetings and identify why each exists. Remove or redesign routines that do not support the team’s purpose. Make the purpose of each routine visible.

  • Use planning routines to create shared clarity: Establish a regular planning rhythm where priorities and trade-offs are discussed openly. Focus on alignment rather than just reporting.

  • Build reflection into the flow of work: Create short, regular moments for reflection after key activities. Ask what worked and what did not, and ensure insights inform future action.

  • Reinforce culture through visible rituals: Identify opportunities to symbolise what the team values through repeatable rituals—such as how progress is recognised or how milestones are marked. Ensure these reinforce desired behaviours like collaboration or risk-raising.

  • Protect routines from being crowded out by urgency: Notice which routines are dropped when pressure increases. Consciously protect key routines (like planning or reviews) during these times to signal their importance.

6. Beliefs about success and failure

Teams hold shared assumptions about what leads to success and how failures are interpreted. These beliefs influence how people take risks and learn from experience. Teams that treat setbacks as learning opportunities become resilient, while those that hide errors create defensiveness.

Strategies for practice:

  • Define success beyond immediate results: Explicitly describe good performance to include decision quality, collaboration, and how risks were handled. When reviewing outcomes, reflect on how they were achieved, not just what was achieved.

  • Treat setbacks as learning events: When things go wrong, create space to examine what happened and what assumptions proved incorrect. Avoid language that assigns blame and focus on collective learning.

  • Make learning visible and actionable: Capture lessons from successes and failures and agree on specific changes to behaviour or process. Revisit these changes to assess their impact.

  • Reward intelligent risk taking: Distinguish between avoidable errors and thoughtful risks that did not pay off. Acknowledge well-considered risks regardless of the outcome to encourage initiative.

  • Watch what you celebrate and what you ignore: Pay attention to what you praise. Ensure recognition highlights learning and sound judgement, not just speed or visible effort. What you celebrate becomes the team’s implicit definition of success.

The mechanism of change

The six elements above provide the map, but they do not explain the vehicle. How do you actually move a team from one state to another?

The answer lies in the mechanics of habit.

Culture does not emerge from statements of intent or from the values printed in organisational documents. It forms through repetition. The practices that occur week after week, planning sessions, check-ins, reviews, establish a rhythm that signals how the team works.

Therefore, shifting culture cannot be achieved through one-off interventions. Leaders influence culture most powerfully through the everyday choices they make about how the team works. Small, consistent actions have far more impact than occasional symbolic gestures.

The trap of the ‘Big Launch’

A common error is attempting to shift too many behaviours simultaneously, which often leads to confusion and fatigue. The most effective approach is to focus on a small number of leverage points and work with them deliberately.

Instead of launching a ‘culture change program’, simply agree on one area to explore further. Identify one or two small behavioural shifts to experiment with. For example, if you want to improve psychological safety, do not announce a ‘safety initiative’. Simply start every meeting for the next month by asking for dissenting views before closing a decision.

The leader as a mirror

Finally, we must address the most uncomfortable truth about team culture. The leader’s own behaviour is the primary cue for the team. Teams observe their leader closely and internalise these behaviours as cues for their own.

A leader who welcomes difficult questions teaches the team that honesty is valued. A leader who reacts defensively teaches the team to hide problems. Over time, the leader’s behavioural patterns become the team’s behavioural expectations.

Therefore, before you try to ‘fix’ your team, you must examine your own shadow.

Wrapping up

Team culture is often described as intangible, yet in practice, it is one of the most concrete determinants of performance. It is not a backdrop to the work; it is the system through which the work actually gets done.

Culture will shift whether leaders attend to it or not. It is being shaped every day by the behaviours you tolerate, the routines you protect, and the signals you send when pressure rises. The question is not whether you have a culture, but whether it is the one you intend.

Reflection for leaders

If you observed your team’s behaviour objectively, what story would it tell about your culture today?

  • What behaviours in my team are consistently reinforced, and what do they reveal about the culture we currently have?

  • How do my own leadership habits influence whether people speak openly, challenge constructively, or stay silent?

  • Which routines or practices strengthen the culture, and which ones unintentionally undermine it?

Diving deeper

If you wish to explore the mechanics of team culture further, these three resources provide the evidence and frameworks that underpin the approach outlined above.

The Fearless Organization by Amy Edmondson This is the essential text on psychological safety. Edmondson provides the rigorous research behind why “silence is the enemy of learning” and offers practical scripts for leaders who want to encourage voice over silence. It is particularly relevant for improving the ‘Interpersonal climate’ and ‘Communication patterns’ sections of your team, helping you understand why people hold back concerns even when they know the risks.

The Culture Code by Daniel Coyle While less academic, this book offers a vivid look at how successful groups build safety and shared purpose. It aligns closely with the article’s focus on ‘Behavioural norms’ and the specific mechanism of ‘signalling’ safety through small, repeated interactions rather than grand gestures. It serves as a practical companion to understanding the ‘micro-culture’ that drives everyday performance.

Organizational Culture and Leadership by Edgar Schein For those who want to understand the systemic root of culture, this is the foundational work. Schein explains how culture is ultimately shaped by “what leaders consistently do” and how it forms around the solutions a group finds to its problems. It provides the deep theory behind why ‘Rituals and routines’ and ‘Beliefs about success and failure’ are such powerful levers for change.

Do you have any tips or advice for changing team culture?

What has worked for you?

Do you have any recommended resources to explore?

Thanks for reading!