Do you lead culture with intention?
| Dear Leaders, In this April edition, I invite you to reflect on something that already shapes everything you do: your culture. Can you clearly define it? And more importantly; are you truly living it, every day? In this issue, I share a practical lens to help you reflect on your own culture. You’ll also find behind-the-scenes insights from my recent leadership collaborations. |
| Corporate culture is the living DNA of an organization – a system of truly lived values that shapes everyday behaviors. It shows up in management style, in how teams communicate, and in the collective rituals that define how work gets done. |
| In reality, culture influences everything. It shapes how decisions are made, the level of team commitment, the capacity to innovate, brand perception, and even risk tolerance. |
| When culture is clear and embodied, it becomes a powerful driver of alignment and performance. When it lacks clarity or coherence, organizations lose the trust of their teams – and their ability to move forward together. |
| In my new article, I share practical and actionable ideas to help you step back and actively shape your culture. |
| Let's go back to an article from Harvard Business Review: “The Secret to Building a High-Performing Team (2025). It starts with a business case and leads to a matrix showing The link between culture and performance. Every two years, a global company lost up to $100M on failed projects. The reason? People weren't speaking up. Feedback came too late. The higher the hierarchy, the less truth leaders heard: a classic “CEO disease.” The paradox? High performance requires risk: saying the hard thing, challenging decisions, speaking up. But under pressure, our brains do the opposite. They protect. Researchers call this gap “the last 8%”: we say 92% of what we think...and hold back the 8% that actually matters most. What makes great teams different? → Connectivityfeeling safe and valued → Couragebeing encouraged to speak up When both are there, people close the gap. They say the last 8%. |
This matrix categorises four types of cultures:
Fear-based → low connection, low courage
Family strong connection, low courage
Transactional low connection, high courage
Last 8% culture → high connection, high courage
Where does your team sit?
| Last month, I shared the behind the scenes of a leadership reset. This month, I'm taking you into other very concrete situations I've worked on. |
| EdTech, luxury, FMCG, defense, senior care. Different formats: consulting, individual coaching, executive team coaching, collective intelligence facilitation. Different challenges: new leadership teams, transformation journeys, onboarding a new CEO, business expansion. |
| Always with one objective: aligning leadership and culture to perform better. |