How to Change Organizational Culture in 12 Easy-to-Replicate Steps

Change. We often fear it. Resist it. But in the business realm? It's oxygen. Especially when we talk about culture. No organization wants to be stuck in the 'that's-how-we've-always-done-it' cycle.

But changing organizational culture? It's not an overnight endeavor. It is a movement, not a mandate. 

Imagine how difficult it is to change one person's behavior. Not to talk about changing the behavior of hundreds or thousands of employees. So, stakeholders and employees need strategic goals, planning, and buy-in from leadership teams.

This article is your blueprint: An 12-step plan. Tried. Tested. Made for replication.

🔍 What does changing organizational culture mean?

Changing organizational culture refers to the deliberate process of shifting the shared values, beliefs, practices, and norms that define the behavior of an organization's members. This involves transforming the underlying assumptions, attitudes, and behaviors that employees use to interact with one another and adapt to their external environment.

Organizational culture can shape everything from decision-making processes to employee morale, and it can be influenced by:

• leadership; 
• organizational history; 
• policies; 
• external pressures.

More and more workers today care about company culture than other workplace perks, even salary. A study from Workplace Insight observed that over two-thirds of Millennials cite culture as a more influential factor than salary. 

Types of organizational culture

There are four kinds of organizational culture. Social, dependable, enterprising, and hierarchical culture.

Changing your culture can mean moving from one of these cultures to another. To change your culture, you must first identify the one you have.

🧭 4 Models to guide corporate culture change

Kotter's 8-step process for leading change

Developed by Harvard Business School professor John Kotter, this model emphasizes the sequence of steps necessary for successful organizational change:

1. Create a sense of urgency: Focus is on highlighting the compelling reasons why change should happen.
2. Build a guiding coalition: Identify key leaders and influencers in the organization, bring them together, and work as a united front. 
3. Form a strategic vision: Create a vision to guide the change and develop strategies to achieve that vision. Once the vision is clear, strategize on how to accomplish this vision in realistic, tangible steps.
4. Enlist a volunteer army: Ensure that as many as possible understand and accept the vision and the strategy. Regularly communicate the change vision using every channel available. This could be through meetings, newsletters, intranets, or town halls.
5. Enable action by removing barriers: Remove barriers to change and empower and encourage employees to act on the vision.
6. Generate short-term wins: Set achievable short-term goals that align with the change vision. Once these goals are achieved, publicly recognize and reward team members involved to keep up the morale and momentum.
7. Sustain acceleration: Reinforce the changes by highlighting interim successes and leading to more significant change. Consolidate gains and produce more change.
8. Institute change: Anchor new approaches in the culture. Articulate the connections between new behaviors and organizational success, ensuring they continue until they become strong enough to replace old habits.

Kotter's model stresses the importance of each step building on the previous one. Skipping a step or not following the order could derail the change initiative.

Lewin's change management model

This model consists of three stages:

• Unfreeze: Recognize the need for change and prepare the organization to accept it. In the context of cultural change, this phase aims to dismantle the current organizational culture, challenge the status quo, and create a perceived need for a new way of operating.
• Change: Execute the change strategy. This is where the actual shift in organizational culture takes place. New behaviors, values, and attitudes are introduced and reinforced. Some exemplary actions for this stage include leadership exemplifying the desired cultural changes and establishing mentorship programs or support groups to help employees navigate the cultural transition.
• Refreeze: Solidify the change to ensure it becomes permanent. Once the desired cultural changes are in place, the goal is to solidify and institutionalize them to ensure they persist and aren't just temporary shifts. You'd update organizational policies, procedures, and guidelines to reflect the new cultural norms.

Mckinsey 7S Framework

Mckinsey 7S believes an organization's effectiveness hinges on understanding seven key factors: 

• strategy; 
• structure; 
• system; 
• staffing; 
• style; 
• skills;
• shared values. 

Each element influences an organization's culture. Its integrity also dwells on achieving a balance between them. 

Successful cultural change requires addressing all these elements in tandem.

Top-down vs. bottom-up approaches

"If change is top down, it never reaches the bottom." Michael Ward, Why Your Corporate Culture Change Isn't Working and What To Do About It.

Cultural change needs to be both top-down and bottom-up. Else, it fails. Leaders need to buy in and lead the change (top-down). Employees must also be ready and motivated to see the change happen. 

With a top-down approach, the leaders review the existing culture, change some values, and pass instructions to other employees. 

This approach is inadequate because the change may not sit well with the employees. Besides, you can change the organization's values, but it's harder to change the actions of each employee. 

In a bottom-up approach to change, employees agree on things that need to change and go on to bring them to life. In this model, employees sell their ideas to managers, peers, and team members. The challenge with this is that the top management may not be in full support. Without them, it may be hard to put these changes in place. 

➡️ For more generic change models, check out our separate resource, where you'll learn about change management vs. change leadership.

🪜 Change your organizational culture in 12 steps

Check what's working and identify gaps

If you want to change, the first step is to review your current culture. 

For example, do your employees tend to collaborate, share information, and credit decision-making? 

Or is your company more competitive, where people compete for compensation and recognition?

You also need to identify the gaps you have in your current culture. 

For example, if a core value is respecting each other, yet a team lead disregards their members, that's a gap you need to bridge. 

To review your culture and identify gaps: 

• Review your core values at meetings and recognize (reward) employees who practice them. 
• Send monthly or quarterly anonymous surveys. This uncovers how employees feel about the present culture of the organization. 
• Use a virtual suggestion box for hunting for ideas on improving culture. Ask them to mention what they like and would love to see improved.
• Diagnose existing beliefs and the underlying reasons for toxic workplace culture. Identify behaviors that led to these toxic habits.

Envision a new culture and identify desired outcomes

Changing work culture requires changing the values of both leaders and employees. And it's no easy task. Worse, each department may even have its own culture, making it hard to fix the existing culture. Your best bet is culture change, starting with identifying desired outcomes. 

Discuss desired outcomes in individual and group meetings. This can include increased productivity, a better employee support system, or respect for others. 

Leaders and executives should act as role models for the desired culture to encourage employees to embrace it.

Communicate these desired outcomes in detail to employees.  

💡 Tip: Change is gradual. The new culture may not stick at first, so it's essential to be patient with everyone. 

Create a new value and belief statement

Value statements describe who you are, what you stand for as a company, and what everyone can expect. It's an excellent way to show employees and new hires what you wish for them. In addition, it helps to keep your culture in check. 

A written value statement bridges the gap between perceived and actual company values. 

Here are examples of mission and value statements. 

Mission: "We bring the best computing experience globally to managers and business owners. Through innovative and practical technology."

Belief/value statements:

• We're on this planet to make a difference in computing. 
• We go above and beyond to please our target customers beyond the market standard.
• We respect each other and appreciate everyone's effort, no matter how little. 

It needs to be more than just writing down these values. Practice them daily. 

Find metrics to track 

Gathering data gives you actionable insight into current culture. What is and isn't working? 

You should: 

• Check Glassdoor and Indeed reviews. It helps you know how well your company is improving its culture.
• Collect employee feedback from direct and indirect reports to understand group culture. 
• Take a look at exit surveys to capture what is still missing in your organizational culture.
• Compare previous metrics and feedback to current ones. 

Some metrics to measure include:

• Referrals: Ask to exit and existing employees: "How likely are you to recommend us as an employer of choice to your family, friends, and network?" The results would represent your eNPS score. Scores lower than 20 might should trigger an alarm. 
• Turnover rate: if your company experiences high turnover yearly, it can point to a toxic culture. 
• Productivity: Happy employees become engaged and more productive over time.

📈 Check out our guide on how to improve eNPS scores. We collected 15 effective strategies for driving your people's engagement and igniting positive change.

Ensure executive buy-in and support 

Most leaders rank productivity over workplace culture. And this can lead to a toxic workplace. So, stakeholders need to buy into culture change to ensure its success. 

Show leaders how the cultural initiative is a key to achieving business needs. 

For instance, suppose your organization aims to improve brand awareness. Show how a positive employee-centric culture would improve brand awareness. Happy employees are engaged, productive, and brand advocates. Thereby improving brand awareness.

➡️ Check out our discussion on why employee advocacy programs are the future of recruitment.

Identify your change leaders and create an organizational change team

You need change leaders to inspire action and instill confidence in employees. In addition, change leaders exhibit several skills, such as communication, collaboration, and curiosity. 

For example, if the organization agrees to resolve conflicts openly, executives should champion this move to encourage other employees. 

Additionally, instead of relying on leaders to power the change, identify team champions who can help drive the change. 

For example, change leaders could be peer leaders or outstanding employees with leadership qualities. 

Define messaging inside and outside the organization 

Include your vision change in employer branding so everyone knows where the company is headed. Internally and externally. 

It's also essential to get the buy-in of your workforce (ensuring that everyone knows what's in it for them).

It's easier for 5000 people to convince five people than five people controlling 5000 people. 

Show them the big "why" — why are we doing this? 

What's in it for them? 

For example, does a good culture foster employee engagement, career growth, and more revenue?

Reinforce positive behaviors and discourage negative behaviors 

Culture change is a marathon, not a sprint. It's a continuous process that needs reiteration to work. 

Look into the values you want to foster, itemize, and communicate. Then, be sure those behaviors contribute to the culture of your business. 

For example, show workers what that means in practice if you say you value integrity. 

Call out destructive behaviors and discourage them.

➡️ Not sure how to address these constructively? Check out our curated 30+ constructive feedback examples and practical tips for managers. 

Senior leaders should offer incentives to reinforce these desired behaviors. 

Think about how you can promote specific behaviors in processes such as recruitment, assessment, and performance management. This ensures employees are practicing these desired values. 

Provide training addressing the gaps identified

Identifying gaps is the first step; training employees on the next steps is critical. To expect change from employees, you must equip them well enough to deliver. 

Coaching can stimulate managers' attitudes, helping them achieve cultural goals:

• Develop training programs to build and support the new culture. 
• Train employees on gaining specific skills to help empower the company culture. 

For instance, if one of the values is embracing a customer-first approach, engage employees in customer service training. If it's collaboration, enroll them in collaboration training. 

Enroll team leaders in training to build desired values. Then, transfer them to their team members.

Start tracking progression and collecting employee feedback

Research shows that leaders often think they've done more than they have. 

• Reflect on the change. What are the positives so far? How has the outcome influenced your business performance?
• Recognize and reward employees for practicing the desired action for change.
• Instill psychological safety in employees: Make feedback anonymous. So employees are comfortable sharing their candid opinions and challenges. 

Here are some methods you can use for collecting feedback: 

• Pulse surveys: send short surveys with a few open questions on culture to team members. 
• One-on-ones: communicate with employees during 1:1 meetings. Collect feedback on job satisfaction and thoughts about the new culture.
• Check Glassdoor reviews: Glassdoor provides data on your company's performance.

🚨 Don't stop at collecting feedback. Devise a plan to act on feedback. When you act on feedback, you encourage employees to provide more.

Weave new cultural values into recruitment initiatives 

• Focus on hiring people who are a perfect fit for the new culture.
• Set standards for bringing people on board. 
• Use the 3C's when hiring new candidates. Look for people with confidence, character, and cultural fit. People who have these three attributes can also be potential change leaders.

Track and reiterate whenever needed 

Regularly measure and assess the progress of your cultural change initiatives. 

By understanding where you are, you can: 

• Determine how far you've come. 
• Identify areas that need adjustment. 

It's important to remain adaptable, iterating on strategies that aren't yielding the desired results.

🤩 Cultural change done well: 3 Real-life examples

Starbucks

After CEO Howard Schultz stepped back, Starbucks's culture suffered. As a result, in 2007, the company closed 900 stores and laid off hundreds of employees, and shares dropped by 40%.

So he returned in 2008 to fix it:

• He identified the mistakes and poor decisions affecting the company.
• He discovered that training had taken a back seat. 
• He shut down underperforming stores, overhauled leadership, and drilled the employees and executives on the mission and core values. 
• He sent 10,000 store managers to rediscover their sense of mission and purpose.
• He uses loyalty programs and incentives to increase overall employee engagement and productivity. 

Uber

For years, Uber was in the headlines for its toxic culture and was constantly attacked from the outside. There were no support programs for employees, no employee relation programs, and senior executives were divided.

To fix this:

• Uber enrolled over 6,000 employees (including executives) in leadership and strategy training.
• Uber returned to the basis to identify its cultural norms and core values. 
• They reinvented their performance management system.
• They built a standard HR team.
• Engaged employees in culture transformation, asking for feedback on what needs to change and their suggestions. 

Microsoft

Before Satya Nadella became the CEO of Microsoft in 2014, people were punished for mistakes based on employee reviews. Also, Managers were forced to rank team members, so productive employees sat back in a lower position. This approach discourages innovation, causes burnout to increase, and causes fear to spread across the organization. 

To fix this: 

• He made it clear that aggressive behavior was not welcome anymore.
• He showed the employee how this works. He apologized in memos when he spoke unjustly or made statements without considering others' perspectives. This show of leadership led to emotional buy-in and boosted employee engagement.
• He led a culture of curiosity and learning, urging employees to embrace a "learn it all" mindset rather than what the public-themed "Microsoft know-it-all."

🕵️‍♀️ Why and when do you need to change your organizational culture?

Disengaged employees

People work better at organizations where they feel valued and appreciated. An organization that opposes this may likely have more disengaged employees.

For example, a Cisco employee, Mollie Pickney, says they're proud to tell friends where they work because "Cisco doesn't just talk. They listen, learn, and innovate." 

This type of culture is one of the reasons Cisco is among Fortune's 100 workplaces today. 

High turnover rate

A poor culture makes it challenging to keep employees. An MIT Sloan School of Management study found a link between culture and resignation. Of course, other factors still drive resignation.

However, research confirms that companies with a healthy culture experience lower turnover rates and improve employee experience.

Lack of trust in leadership 

If employees lack trust in leadership, changing your company's culture could be the right thing to do. But, unfortunately, employers who don't "treat employees somewhat are likely to suffer this consequence. 

Treating everybody the same without considering their circumstances shatters employees' respect for management and kills productivity. Also, a company with a culture that doesn't support employees' career growth will likely see a high distrust in leadership.

Drop or decline in revenue

Since culture affects the entire operation of an organization, an unchanged or rigid culture can significantly negatively impact an organization's ability to achieve goals and, ultimately, the monthly revenue.

A toxic culture discourages talents from joining your organization. Excellent skills consider the organization's culture before signing an employment letter. They do this to ensure their efforts will be appreciated and their career jeopardized while working for your company. 

Merger or acquisition issues

Mergers and acquisitions are fraught with cultural issues. Research shows that most mergers fail because of cultural issues. Conversely, companies with better cultures are more likely to be merged or acquired. 

⏳ How long does it usually take to see significant cultural change?

There is no standard timeframe for seeing significant cultural change. There are a few factors that influence the time it takes to see substantial cultural change: 

• the size of the organization; 
• the depth of the existing culture; 
• the nature of the desired changes;
• the strategies used to implement those changes.

However, as a general guideline, you can expect the following:

6 to 12 months for short-term changes

You will observe initial signs of cultural change as employees become aware of, understand, and get involved in the change initiatives. You will typically note these changes in surface-level behaviors and processes.

1-3 years for medium-term changes 

By this time, more employees have internalized the new values and behaviors, and you'll start to see shifts in group dynamics, decision-making, and collaboration patterns.

You will find evidence of the new culture in some departments or teams more than others.

3-5 years for long-term changes

Significant and lasting cultural transformation often takes several years.

By this stage, the new ways of thinking, behaving, and working are deeply embedded into your organization's fabric. They influence hiring decisions, performance evaluations, and how work gets done on a day-to-day basis.

⚠️ How not to change organizational culture: 5 Mistakes to avoid 

Changing organizational culture is a delicate endeavor that requires careful planning and execution. 

Here are the top 5 mistakes organizations often make when attempting to change their culture.

Lack of clear vision and communication

Not clearly defining what the new desired culture should look like or failing to communicate the reasons for the change might mean that your change initiative stands no chance of fruition. Employees can become confused, resistant, or disengaged without a clear vision.

💡 Solution: Ensure leadership is aligned with the cultural objectives and communicates them consistently and transparently. Regularly update employees on the progress and rationale behind each step.

Ignoring existing culture and values

Trying to impose a new culture without acknowledging or respecting the existing one can lead to resistance, as employees might feel their values and past contributions are being dismissed.

💡 Solution: Take stock of the current culture and identify aspects that can be retained or merged with the new culture. Recognize and celebrate the positive elements of the existing culture.

Not leading by example

Employees look to their leaders for cues on how to behave. Employees are less likely to adopt the new culture if leadership doesn't model it.

💡 Solution: Ensure all leaders, from top executives to mid-level managers, understand and embody the new cultural values. Leadership training can be beneficial in this regard.

Neglecting employee feedback and involvement

Not involving employees in the change process or neglecting to gather and act on their feedback can make employees feel undervalued and resistant to the changes.

💡 Solution: Create channels for employees to provide feedback and voice concerns. Involve them in shaping the new culture by setting up workshops, focus groups, or culture committees. Make them feel like co-creators of the new culture.

Expecting immediate results

Anticipating quick outcomes and becoming impatient when change doesn't manifest immediately. Cultural change is a long-term process; rushing can lead to incomplete implementation or superficial changes that don't last.

💡 Solution: Set realistic timelines and expectations. Celebrate small wins along the way, but understand that profound, lasting cultural change will take time. Ensure consistent effort and reinforcement over the long haul.

Avoiding these common pitfalls can significantly improve the chances of successfully transforming an organization's culture in a meaningful and lasting way.

💡 5 Effective tips for driving your culture shift

Include the entire organization (leaders, executives, employees) 

You must bring everyone along to achieve the desired change and ensure they know why change is necessary. Employees and executives must believe in the organization and challenge the process. 

• Create a vision in the company where everyone understands the set goals.
• Every culture must have a "why." 
• How does culture change relate to business growth? What does it mean for my career?
• Communicate what you're trying to achieve and address any concerns. 

Create a safe environment for people to share their thoughts and opinions 

To change the culture, you have to get buy-in from everyone. Cultivate an environment that fosters collaboration, respect, and fairness. Ensure everybody feels heard, and leaders develop empathy, emotional intelligence, active listening, and teamwork skills to help employees. 

Recruit and train internal change leaders 

If you want to train your change leaders effectively, check our change leadership template to train and communicate with change leaders effectively.

If you need to hire a change management specialist:

1. Look for someone who embodies the culture you're trying to build in the organization.
2. Ensure they have a proven track record of improving business performance and are capable of evaluating organization procedures within a short time.
3. Show them business planning and goals and lay expectations 3cs to hire change leaders and empower them with training.

✈️ Use our Change management specialist onboarding 30-60-90 day plan template for guaranteed onboarding success. 

Clarify roles throughout the change journey

Who does what, and which actions contribute to change?  

If your cultural values are too innovative, show people what it's like to be creative.

If you define cultural values like building a customer-centric environment, show what that's like for each role.

For instance, being customer-centric for a receptionist might mean being warm and friendly. 

For a developer, it might mean building an application with a user-friendly experience.

Focus on employee engagement and its drivers

A successful organizational culture change hinges on your employees' active participation and buy-in. Focus on these key drivers of engagement:

1. Clear communication: Employees must understand the reasons behind the change, its benefits, and how it aligns with the company's vision. Regular, transparent communication prevents rumors and misunderstandings that can create resistance.
2. Inclusive decision-making: Including employees in the decision-making process helps them feel valued and part of the change rather than being subjected to it. Their input can provide valuable insights and foster a sense of ownership.
3. Training & skill development: Change can require employees to adopt new skills or working methods. Providing the necessary training ensures they feel equipped to handle the changes and reduces competency-related anxiety.‍
4. Recognition & rewards: Acknowledge and reward those actively contributing to the change process. This can motivate others to engage and shows appreciation for adaptability and initiative.

➡️ Drive cultural change with Zavvy

Organizations that adapt and thrive in the face of change often outperform their peers. However, cultural change is a complex and ongoing process.

Zavvy is your trusted partner in fostering and supporting cultural change initiatives that drive lasting success:

• 🌱Employee development software: Cultural change starts with your people. Zavvy empowers you to design personalized learning journeys that educate, engage, and inspire employees to embrace the new culture. From onboarding to ongoing development, our platform ensures every individual is equipped with the knowledge and skills they need to thrive in the transformed environment.
• 🔄 Feedback systems: Cultural change is about giving every employee a voice. Zavvy's anonymous feedback tool provides a platform for employees to share their thoughts, concerns, and ideas.
• 📚 Diverse learning resources: Our extensive training library offers a wealth of resources that support cultural change, from diversity and inclusion training to leadership development programs.
• 🌐 Engagement software: Cultural change is not just about processes; it's also about people. Zavvy's emphasis on employee engagement and well-being ensures that your cultural change initiatives are sustainable and that employees remain motivated and committed throughout the journey.
• 🧭 Career frameworks for cultural alignment: Define clear career pathways that align with your new culture, offering employees opportunities for growth and development that reinforce the desired cultural shift.

📅 Get a demo and free consultation with our team to power the company's cultural needs.