Advice from Experts on Building a Positive Company Culture

I’ve worked with leadership teams across industries for 15+ years, and the one piece of advice that actually moves the needle is this: **stop treating culture like a program and start treating it like a commitment to clarity.** Most companies fail because they never define what they’re actually building together—people show up confused about priorities, values stay abstract, and “culture” becomes whatever’s left over.

The most important lesson I learned came when I shifted from asking “what do we value?” to asking “who must we become to get where we’re going?” That question forces real conversation. I watched one executive team spend six months talking about innovation while simultaneously punishing every failed experiment. The gap between stated values and actual behavior kills culture faster than anything else.

Here’s what worked: I had a client implement what I call “Burn the Ships” decision-making—they identified the three things they needed to *stop doing* before adding anything new. They cut two meetings, eliminated one approval layer, and suddenly people had space to actually collaborate. Their engagement scores jumped 34% in one quarter, not because they added perks, but because they removed the friction between what they said mattered and how people actually spent their time.

My framework is simple: Define your destination clearly, eliminate what’s misaligned, then commit fully. Culture isn’t built in retreats—it’s built in the 100 micro-decisions leaders make every week about what gets attention and what gets cut.

If I had to choose just one piece of advice, it would be this — be intentional about how people feel, not just what they do. Culture isn’t the words on your website or the values on a slide deck. It’s the daily experience your team has when they show up to work — how they’re treated, listened to, and trusted.

At DianaHR, I learned early on that clarity and kindness can coexist. When we were a small team, I made the mistake of assuming that “good intentions” automatically led to good culture. They don’t. It takes structure — transparent communication, psychological safety, and feedback loops that genuinely inform decisions.

The most important lesson for me has been that culture scales only if trust scales. You can have the best tools and strategies, but if people don’t feel safe to ask questions, make mistakes, or challenge ideas respectfully, innovation stalls.

So to other companies: start by defining how you want people to feel when they work with you. Build your systems, rituals, and leadership practices around that. The rest — productivity, retention, creativity — naturally follows.

Here is a brutal lesson for leaders who care about building a culture that can survive being kicked and is optimized for performance, especially those with fast-moving, innovation-driven teams.

Make onboarding a living, breathing thing, not a slide deck and a checklist.

The most powerful change we made took our onboarding process from being a piece of paper about employee conduct and a slide deck to being a living, breathing thing that’s more about culture than procedure.

Early on, we figured out that tossing the “employee handbook” at people wasn’t instilling anything in them. The key to cracking it was trying to show culture “in action” through stories.

Right now, our onboarding process starts before they start, with us sending them notes and recording a one-on-one video explaining who we are and where we’re going. And instead of starting with “here’s our employee handbook,” we start with stories, such as how our product lead literally owned up to a design mistake we released and how we folded in customer feedback to make it a viral hit.

Stories do two things culture-wise. They make culture tangible, per Chris Michaels. And they raise the bar because you can’t tell a story about something below your aspirational level.

The other crucial part of this new system is that every newbie gets a “culture buddy” who is, in effect, a second onboarding shepherd. At 30, 60, and 90 days, the culture buddy sends a series of questions about the new-hire experience and cultural integration. The culture buddy can answer questions that new hires don’t even know how to ask about life in the ranks. And practically speaking, this slashes our ramp-up time and doubles weekly engagement. The new hires report feeling like part of the team in weeks, not months. And when they do feel welcomed and have trustworthy relationships and live values, especially around how people respond to setbacks, they stay longer. 80% of workers say better onboarding would make them stay longer, and we’ve seen first-year attrition drop by double-digit percentages since implementing culture-focused onboarding.

So if you’re doing fast-moving tech stuff, spend less time writing theory and more time making your culture real in these three ways: stories, relationships, and leadership showing their scars. That’s the lesson that cracked it for us.

A strong, positive company culture starts with getting your team involved in something bigger than the day-to-day workload. When everyone rallies around giving back (whether it’s a Thanksgiving food drive, a turkey trot, or volunteering on a community project together), it builds unity and a shared sense of purpose you simply can’t manufacture in a meeting.

One of our proudest recent moments was when our crew completed a complimentary repipe for an elderly woman on disability. Being able to help her with this necessary service, which she otherwise wouldn’t have been able to afford, reminded us all why we do what we do, and it brought us closer together as a team.

Policies don’t create culture; it’s developed through actions your team can be proud of. When your employees see leadership consistently showing up for the community, they naturally want to be part of it, and that energy carries into every job they complete. Investing in people, both inside and outside the company, is what ultimately builds a workplace where everyone feels connected and motivated.

Recognize that a strong, positive company culture is not static; allow it to evolve as the business scales and its ambitions change. This became clear when we encountered a conflict between our commitment to loyalty and the need for performance.

When we were just starting, we struggled with staff retention. That’s a typical challenge in the support industry, so naturally, we wanted to cultivate loyalty. It was so important that loyalty became no less than a corporate value. Sometimes I felt like we were the company people wouldn’t quit.

But there came a point when I realized that loyalty alone was no longer serving us. Last year, a performance review showed that some loyal teammates didn’t show tangible results. What was the point of them being loyal if they made little to no difference at all?

That was a difficult pill to swallow. I had been such a dedicated advocate of loyalty as our value. On the other hand, I had been leading the company towards ambitious goals, and peak performers had already been emotionally invested.

That’s where my most important lesson happened: I realized that the company had outgrown its version that relied solely on loyalty; now we were ready to stretch targets with people who showed results.

For that to happen, I needed to make difficult decisions, saying goodbye to those who didn’t perform. On the other hand, that step gave a positive signal to high-potential teammates. They saw that our company appreciated effort and felt encouraged to create a clear path for their own advancement.

Looking at the bigger picture, this was about our culture organically evolving with the company. As we have grown from a one-person startup into a multinational business, so has our culture. By acknowledging that as a natural part of development, we were able to foster our organic evolution.

Consistency is key. Companies that are consistent in their practices tend to form the strongest cultures. I suggest starting by identifying the core elements of the culture you wish to build, but more importantly, identify the ‘why’ behind those elements. Your employees deserve and need to understand why those elements matter to you, to them, and to your customers. Companies that don’t include and explain the ‘why’ tend to lose employee commitment and struggle to build a scalable and pervasive culture.

A key lesson for me is that this need for consistency starts at the top with CEOs and Founders. Every time I have seen folks at the top being inconsistent in any element of the culture they wish to build, the employees struggle to get there. Those leaders who have a clear set of values and principles they wish the company to adopt, when they consistently apply those, are then able to assess whether the rest of the organization is able to adopt those practices. The lesson here is that the onus of consistency is not on the employees but the management – you will get the culture you practice, and if your practice is inconsistent, then you will get the culture of ‘inconsistency’. Good news: it can be exactly the opposite if you lead culture building with consistency.

Culture isn’t built in all-hands or offsites; it’s built in how you handle the hard stuff. At Benitago, we scaled from 2 to 350 people across 14 countries. The culture didn’t come from values on a wall. It came from how fast we made decisions, how we handled mistakes, and whether people could see their work matter.

The most important lesson: transparency beats motivation. When people know the real numbers, the real problems, and the real plan, they don’t need to be “engaged.” They engage themselves. We shared revenue, burn, runway—everything—with the entire team monthly. That created ownership, not compliance.

At DualEntry, we do the same. Everyone sees the product roadmap, customer feedback, and where we’re stuck. No sugarcoating. Culture breaks when there’s a gap between what leadership says and what’s actually happening. Close that gap, and you don’t need culture decks. The work becomes the culture.

The most effective path to creating a company culture that endures over time is to connect the daily actions in your business to real values. In the hospitality industry, we strive to incorporate teamwork and respect into every interaction. We ask new hires to shadow staff who have been scanning in and out of a hotel so they can learn the steps as well as the level of treatment for all guests and staff. The benefits of this type of instruction are trust-building and establishing expectations right away.

We also incorporate recognition as a part of what we do. Managers point out individual efforts, whether it’s showing patience with a difficult guest or teamwork to help fellow staff members during busy service periods, in team meetings. These momentary and small gestures of recognition reinforce your staff’s understanding that they are part of something important while also motivating them to provide excellence every day.

The best lesson that I learned is that culture needs to be observed within your leadership as well as operational behaviors. If everyone believes the follow-through on what management is saying or doing is an honest attempt to help others, your employees will feel a level of loyalty and pride. A healthy culture will attract good employees and invigorate them to stay with the company while working to help it grow.

Something that I would say to other businesses that aspire to have a strong and positive culture is to put the focus on people. At Merchynt, what we have found is that culture begins with how you treat your team on a daily basis. It’s not about providing free lunches or having team-building activities. It’s about making sure that your team feels appreciated, respected, and heard. When individuals feel like they are important to you, it is only natural that they give their all. We ensure that every individual on our team is informed about our mission and how it relates to what they do. This makes them feel proud of what they do. The biggest thing that I have taken away is that culture does not develop overnight. It is developed by small actions on a daily basis. At Merchynt, we focus on celebrating successes, learning from failures, and improving each other. We utilize Paige by Merchynt, which is our AI SEO assistant. We use it to save time on busy work so that our team can engage in innovative and worthwhile projects.

Building the right team was the defining challenge of our early growth. Many founders obsess over product, pricing, and go-to-market—then treat “team” as an HR function. It isn’t. It’s the strategy. I learned quickly that the wrong role fit can stall a great business, while the right fit unlocks outsized results.

The breakthrough came from getting intentional about talent. We mapped strengths and gaps, and stopped equating “top performer” with “next manager.” A world-class technologist doesn’t automatically become a great people leader—and forcing that transition can cost you both excellence and morale. My job as founder is to see people clearly, place them where they’ll shine, and give them the runway to grow.

Here’s what changed our trajectory:

– We elevated how we communicated—clear expectations, consistent feedback, and transparent decision-making.

– We brought in a stellar talent leader and involved department heads directly in hiring to ensure role-culture-capability alignment.

– We invested in development: coaching, training plans, and internal mobility so people could advance without leaving the company.

At Franchise Fame, we also designed a culture that retains high performers: equitable opportunities, psychological safety, meaningful incentives, and team rituals that build trust. When you get the social environment right, the rest—performance, innovation, client outcomes—follows.

In short: hire for strengths, design roles around them, and nurture growth. Do that consistently, and you don’t just assemble a team—you build a durable advantage.

Everyone in a good work culture needs to do what they say they’re going to do, be held accountable for what they don’t or do, and honor others with decency.

Here’s the thing about trust. It doesn’t just happen. You can’t just tell people to trust you and expect it to stick. Trust needs structure. It requires systems that ensure it is easy to earn and difficult to lose. When you have a fair process to hold people accountable and recognize effort, trust is the natural result. The most important lesson is that culture doesn’t come from lofty statements and motivational posters. It is forged in how people show up every day. When your team realizes that accountability and respect flow both up and down, including to you as a leader, they can sense that the culture is real. Create the systems that enable trust, and the culture will follow.

A strong and positive company culture starts with a solid foundation.

My advice is to provide complete clarity. What does the business do? How do projects move from start to finish? Where does each department fit in, and where does each person fit within that? What are their responsibilities, and how is performance measured?

When people understand the bigger picture – and their place within it – they stop working in isolation. They start operating as part of a team with a shared purpose and accountability.

That’s when motivation, engagement, and camaraderie begin to take root. I am a firm believer that culture doesn’t grow from slogans or social events. It grows from clarity.

A strong company culture is not forged through slogans or perks; it’s born from understanding. The most effective cultures embrace the diversity of thought, recognising that individuals think, communicate, and contribute in their own unique ways. When leaders create space for this diversity, whether it’s neurodivergent minds, varied work styles, or distinct perspectives, the team flourishes, becoming more resilient, creative, and engaged.

In my experience, the pivotal moment for culture occurs when leaders abandon the notion of fitting everyone into a single model of “professionalism.” Instead, they focus on empowering each person to shine. For me, that transformation involved moving from performance policing to environment shaping, focusing on what helps each individual thrive and building support around that.

The best cultures are shaped not by what leaders say, but by how attentively they listen. They emphasise clarity, compassion, and trust. When individuals feel understood and valued for their unique contributions, rather than just their output, they invest more of themselves in the mission. A positive culture isn’t about uniformity; it’s about creating a safe space for everyone to be their true selves, united in a shared direction.

Lead by listening. A positive work culture develops through understanding what the team values, which organizations should use to shape processes, communication systems, and reward structures. Our organization focuses on three core values: work-life balance, technician safety, and career development opportunities.

We established three main systems to support these: paid skills training, clearly defined career growth paths, and scheduled weekly meetings with field personnel. The company’s direction becomes more meaningful to employees when they feel included and supported, which ultimately leads to better quality in customer service.

If I had to give one piece of advice, it’s this: invest in trust and transparency at every level. A strong culture isn’t about perks or slogans; it’s about people feeling heard, valued, and aligned with a shared purpose. The most important lesson I’ve learned is that culture is built every day through small, consistent actions, not big gestures.

Culture is what you put up with. So, fire toxic people. Companies can get choosy about whom to hire, but then become patient when it’s apparent that someone is not a good fit. Once someone turns out negative or just not aligned, keeping them around wrecks morale and slows everyone down. It’s unfair to the people actually doing the work. So cut them loose quickly and provide a proper severance so that nobody walks away bitter. And it’s not just toxic people. If you have someone who’s super nice but can’t do the job, that is a problem too. Nice doesn’t cut it. The most talented people on your team will leave if they feel like they are being dragged down by others. After that, you’re left with mediocrity, and culture declines from there. I advise managers not to avoid firing someone because they feel sorry for them. Do it to protect your team. Accountability is part of caring about your people.

One piece of advice I would give is to be intentional from day one. Don’t wait for problems to arise to think about culture. Define the kind of environment you want to create and take deliberate steps to make it happen. Be transparent, show empathy, and CELEBRATE the PEOPLE who make your business SUCCEED. Culture is built in the small, consistent actions every day, not just in policies or perks.

The most important lesson I’ve learned is that people need to feel seen and valued. Even with the best intentions, it’s easy to overlook how a comment, tone, or lack of recognition can affect someone. I’ve learned to listen actively, check in genuinely, and create space for my team to feel supported. A healthy culture isn’t just nice to have; it’s what allows a business to grow sustainably and with heart.

Trust your teams. This has been the most impactful advice I’ve ever given to leaders: to empower their teams at all costs. Trust brings accountability. No one wants to disappoint a leader who listens and genuinely cares about their team’s success. That’s the fabric of a strong organizational culture: empowering leadership.

Teams may (and often do) trip and fall along the way, but a strong culture isn’t about avoiding failure. It’s about getting up, tending to the wounds, and learning how to rise stronger next time.

What is one piece of advice you would give to other companies looking to build a strong and positive company culture? What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned?

The most important thing is to actually define what your culture is meant to enable, not just what it looks like. Too many companies focus on perks and ping-pong tables when culture is really about how decisions get made, how conflict is handled, and whether people feel safe to speak up. Start by asking: what behaviours do we need to succeed, and what behaviours will kill us? Then build everything around reinforcing the first and stopping the second.

The biggest lesson I’ve learned is that culture isn’t what you say in your values document – it’s what you tolerate. If you say you value innovation but punish people for mistakes, or claim to want collaboration but reward individual heroics, your real culture is the second thing, not the first. People watch what leaders do when things get hard, when there’s a difficult conversation to have, or when someone high-performing is behaving badly. Those moments define your culture far more than any workshop or away day ever will.

Focus on connection and consistency. Every strong culture starts with people feeling seen, understood, and trusted. I’ve learned that every human—whether CEO or intern—craves two things: connection and being understood. That belief drives everything at Strategic Pete. We build systems, but we lead with empathy.

The most important lesson I’ve learned is that happiness and performance both come from managing expectations. Culture collapses when expectations and reality are too far apart. I tattooed a reminder on my arm: “Happiness = Reality / Expectations.” I hold myself and my team to high standards in preparation and attitude, not just outcomes. That mindset creates trust, humility, and resilience—three things you can’t fake in a company culture.