Culture is underestimated in Transformation

In every organisation I’ve worked with, one thing is clear: transformation is not just about structure, strategy, or process. It’s about people. And more importantly, it’s about culture.

Muses (2000) noted that successful organizations should be capable of more than the sum of their parts. This only happens when trust is embedded between employees and leaders, and when culture moves beyond slogans to truly empower people.

But let’s get honest: navigating culture is messy, confusing, and hard.

I talked in a recent post about a transformation involving global shared service centers, where the role of culture repeatedly surfaced—not always explicitly, but always powerfully. Whether it was resistance, confusion, or friction around communication, the underlying current was clear: culture matters, and each locations culture is unique, shaped by its history, its people and shared experiences.

Culture Isn’t SOFT. It’s Structural.

As Schein (2010) observed, culture may be abstract, but its effects are tangible. It shapes behaviors, guides what is accepted or rejected, and creates an unwritten code that people live by. Leaders who ignore this—who push change through without reading the cultural landscape— risk building sandcastles.

What struck me is how national and organizational cultures overlapped, but underestimated. Cooke (2006) suggested that shared services models impact people’s work and careers, but the how varies. For example, my research indicated that Anglo-Saxon sites (e.g. UK, Ireland, US) often expressed confidence in managing change independently, while other non-Anglo Saxon sites welcomed alignment efforts. Ironically, engagement data later showed that sites who claimed they didn’t need support struggled more with change outcomes. Not made here arrogance?

Power Distance, Uncertainty, and the “We” Shift

Hofstede’s work gives us an opportunity to go deeper—power distance and uncertainty avoidance can heavily influence how people respond to top-down change. This means in high power distance cultures, people may expect the boss to decide, and in low power distance ones, not involving the team may be seen as disrespectful or demotivating.

To help move the cultural shift from “me” (I will do it my way) to “we” (only together works) this shift must be more than a communication/marketing campaign, but be seen as a genuine change leading to high performing teams.

It needs to be felt by employees in how decisions are made, how leaders show up, and how people are supported.

I noted an interviewee saying, “Change is about doing away with practices deeply rooted in the fabric of an organisation.” That’s not a light task. It’s deep, demanding, and deliberate work which needs understanding and empathy.

Transformation Is a Cultural Journey

When designing global change programs, it’s tempting to roll out a standardized model. But people don’t operate on PowerPoint slides. They operate in networks, teams, communities—and those are governed by culture.

What worked in Mexico may not in Ireland. What resonates in Malaysia might be resisted in Prague. Culture is context. And if we don’t engage with that complexity, we risk change fatigue, passive resistance, or worse—active disengagement.

So, What Do We Do About It?

1. Start with Diagnosis Work with HR and OD to assess cultural strengths, weaknesses, and fault lines—early. Use tools that use data and deep listening. Ensure measures to track are understood and transparent.
2. Make Culture Visible Translate cultural values into observable behaviors. Create a roadmap that turns vision into action, and ensure leaders are role models.
3. Adapt, Don’t Impose Align leadership messaging with local cultural realities. Avoid a one-size-fits-all approach to communication and decision-making.
4. Lean into Relationships Trust is the bridge between strategy and execution. Foster open dialogue—especially in virtual teams.
5. Developing High Performance By establishing high performing team principles, such as building Trust, Enabling healthy Conflict, rewarding Commitment, enabling Accountability and focusing hard on outcomes can lead to stronger ties between the international teams.

Meyer (2015) suggests, managing the clash between corporate and national cultures means understanding where they differ—and then meeting people where they are.

Culture is how things get done. It’s how people show up. And in transformation, it’s the invisible architecture that either holds everything together—or it falls apart.

If you’re driving change and not thinking deeply about culture, you’re only doing half the job.

If you’re not showing up according to your corporate beliefs and values, you will lose.

If you are a leader proclaiming “this is our culture”, but it is not genuine, the organization will struggle to transform and meet its expected outcomes.

If this resonates with your experience, I’d love to hear your perspective. How have you seen culture enable—or hinder—transformation?