Culture is the overall expectations of members’ attitudes and behaviours – what it takes to “fit in”. These expectations can be communicated subtly, sub-consciously or explicitly. For non-management personnel, culture answers questions such as “How do I fit in? How do I excel? And, (sometimes) how do I survive?” For management, culture answers questions more like, “How do I expect people to fit in, excel and survive?”

Culture is not a measure of employee satisfaction or employee engagement – they are the end result of culture. Nor is culture a measure of emotions. Some companies erroneously describe their culture based on their operating strategy, such as “fast paced” or “customer focused”. None of these definitions or terms describe what behaviours or attitudes are expected from members.

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