Culture Doesn’t Happen by Accident, It Happens by Design
- Dimitri Stathoulis
- 7 days ago
- 2 min read
For years, companies have tried to fix culture through posters, slogans, inspirational speeches, and once-off workshops. But culture isn’t built in boardrooms or staff meetings. Culture is built in behaviours. Reinforced through symbols. Protected through systems. And it always starts with leadership.
In my work with schools, corporates, and executives, I’ve seen one truth repeated over and over:
Culture isn’t what you say, it’s what you allow.
If you allow gossip, inconsistency, or disrespect, those behaviours become the culture. If you reward accountability, clarity, and ownership, that becomes your culture too. Below is the 3-pillar framework I teach leaders who want to transform culture intentionally and rapidly, often in as little as 30 days.
Behaviour: The Foundation of Every Culture
When leaders say, “We want to change the culture,” what they’re really saying is:
“I want people to behave differently.”
Behaviour doesn’t shift through slogans or motivational speeches. It shifts through intentionality, structure, and consistent leadership. Because while symbols and systems differ across industries, human behaviour follows predictable patterns everywhere.
If you want to change culture, start here:
The 30-Day Behaviour Challenge
Week 1: Define 3 specific behaviours that reflect the culture you want. Week 2: Model them visibly, every day. Week 3: Recognise and reward the people who embody them. Week 4: Gently but consistently correct behaviours that break the standard. When leaders are consistent, the culture becomes consistent.
Symbols: Making Culture Visible
Every thriving culture has symbols, the visible reminders of who you are and what you value.
Symbols are:
Logos
Rituals
Awards
Taglines
Traditions
Inside jokes
Visual moments that reinforce belonging
Think of sports teams: the jersey, the chant, the handshake. They don’t strengthen performance because of the object, they strengthen performance because of identity and unity. In organisations, symbols might be:
A Friday recognition ritual
A wall of wins
A powerful shared tagline
A workspace designed for energy and psychological safety
A ritual that celebrates progress or milestones
Symbols shape how people feel, and how people feel shapes how they perform.
Systems: The Engine That Keeps Culture Alive
Systems are the processes and rhythms that turn values into repeatable action. They answer the question: “What matters here, really?” You can say you value growth, but without a feedback system, you don’t value growth. You can say wellbeing matters, but if your systems overload people, wellbeing isn’t a value, it’s a slogan. Systems communicate what matters without saying a word. Your systems either:
Reinforce the culture, or
Contradict it
Strong systems include:
Weekly leadership rhythms
Clear onboarding
Recognition loops
Accountability frameworks
Meeting structures
Communication pathways
If behaviour is the foundation and symbols are the walls, systems are the scaffolding that holds culture together.
The Leader Is the Architect
Culture doesn’t change by accident. It doesn’t shift because you demand it. It shifts because you design it. You don’t need to rebuild everything in one go. Just choose one pillar:
A behaviour
A symbol
A system
…and begin building. Small, consistent actions, repeated daily, shape the culture people live in tomorrow. Culture isn’t built by speeches. It’s built by the standard the leader models. And that leader, the architect of the culture, is you.
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