Organisation culture: Why it matters and how HR can shape a positive workplace

Organisational culture plays a powerful role in shaping how people work, collaborate, and perform within a business. While strategies and policies may define how an organisation operates on paper, culture determines how those policies are experienced in everyday practice.

For HR professionals, organisational culture is not simply a concept – it’s a critical element of building engaged teams, attracting talent, and supporting long-term organisational success.

Recent changes have made it even more important – and potentially more difficult – to proactively and continuously work on an organisation’s culture.  Remote working, demographic and generational factors, and AI, have all had a major impact on ways of working.

In this article, we explore what organisational culture is, why it matters, and how HR can actively influence and strengthen workplace culture.

What is organisational culture?

Organisational culture refers to the shared values, behaviours, attitudes, and expectations that guide how employees interact and work together. In simple terms, it is often described as “how things are done around here.”

Organisational culture shapes workplace norms such as:

• Communication styles
• Leadership behaviour
• Decision-making processes
• Collaboration between teams
• How success and performance are recognised

While some elements of culture may be formally defined through company values or policies, much of it develops organically through daily behaviours and leadership actions. Because of this, organisational culture is constantly evolving and requires ongoing attention from HR and leadership teams.

Why organisational culture matters

A strong workplace culture can have a significant impact on business performance and employee experience.

When employees feel aligned with organisational values and supported in their roles, they are more likely to be motivated, productive, and committed to their organisation.

Key benefits of a positive organisational culture include:

• Higher employee engagement: Employees who feel connected to the organisation’s purpose and values are more likely to be engaged in their work and contribute to team success.
• Improved employee retention: A supportive workplace culture encourages employees to stay with the organisation, reducing turnover and the costs associated with recruitment and training.
• Stronger collaboration: Clear cultural values promote open communication and teamwork, helping employees work more effectively across departments.
• Enhanced employer brand: Organisations with a strong workplace culture are often more attractive to potential candidates, making it easier to recruit top talent.

For these reasons, organisational culture is increasingly recognised as a key driver of business success.

The role of HR in shaping organisational culture

While culture is influenced by everyone in the organisation, HR plays a central role in shaping and maintaining it. Through policies, people practices, coaching leaders and managers, and leadership development initiatives, HR teams help embed cultural values into everyday workplace behaviours.

Below are several key ways HR can influence organisational culture:

Recruitment and hiring practices

Hiring employees who align with organisational values helps reinforce the desired culture from the outset.  HR teams can support a positive culture by ensuring recruitment processes identify candidates whose values and behaviours align with the organisation’s mission and working style.

This includes:

• Using values-based interview questions
• Clearly communicating organisational expectations during recruitment

• Promoting transparency about workplace culture

Effective onboarding programmes

Onboarding is a critical opportunity to introduce new employees to workplace culture. Structured onboarding programmes can help employees understand:

• Organisational values and expectations
• Communication and collaboration styles
• Performance standards and goals

When onboarding is done well, employees feel more confident, engaged, and connected to the organisation.

Onboarding also provides the opportunity to role model the culture rather than just talk about it, e.g. bring friendly and welcoming, setting up connections with people at all levels, providing mentors and following up to find out how it is going.

Leadership and management development

Leaders play the most critical role  role in shaping workplace culture. Employees often mirror the behaviours and attitudes demonstrated by managers and senior leadership.  It is often true to say that people judge the culture of an organisation by the behaviour of their own boss.

HR can support cultural alignment by investing in leadership development programmes that encourage:

• Ethical decision-making
• Inclusive leadership
• Open communication
• Accountability and transparency

When leaders consistently model organisational values, culture becomes more authentic and sustainable.

Performance management and recognition

Performance management systems can significantly influence organisational culture. HR teams should ensure that performance frameworks recognise behaviours that align with organisational values – not just business outcomes.

For example, organisations may reward:

• Collaboration and teamwork
• Innovation and creativity
• Customer focus
• Continuous improvement

Recognition programmes and incentives reinforce the behaviours organisations want to encourage.

While the design of a performance management system is important, it’s the way it is used that truly represents the culture of an organisation.  It is vital that HR create the conditions for meetings to be carried out with genuine commitment to the employee’s development and career, rather than pay lip service to the process.  This means that HR must make the process easy to use, relevant to the actual context, and work hard to engage leaders and managers so that they use it with authenticity.

Employee engagement and feedback

Listening to employees is essential for maintaining a healthy organisational culture. HR can gather insights through:

• Employee engagement surveys
• Pulse surveys
• Feedback sessions and focus groups
• Exit interviews

These insights help organisations identify strengths and potential cultural challenges, allowing HR to implement targeted improvements.

We can support you with this using our Career Insight platform – our secure online system for surveying, collating and presenting continuous and project-based employee data.

How HR can improve workplace culture

Improving organisational culture requires consistent effort and leadership commitment. HR professionals can support culture development by focusing on the following strategies:

• Clearly define organisational values: Ensure values are meaningful, actionable, and reflected in workplace behaviours.
• Measure and learn from employees: Take every opportunity to find out how employees respond to interventions, managers’ behaviour and leadership capabilities. Use comprehensive engagement surveys or pulse surveys to take the cultural temperature and test the effectiveness of managers.

• Align policies with cultural goals: HR policies and procedures should reinforce the organisation’s cultural values.
• Encourage open communication: Promote transparency and create opportunities for employees to share ideas and feedback.
• Support employee wellbeing: Wellbeing initiatives demonstrate organisational commitment to employees and contribute to a positive workplace culture.
• Lead culture change initiatives: When organisations evolve, HR can guide cultural transformation through communication, leadership support, and employee engagement.

Organisational culture has a profound impact on employee experience, productivity, and business success.

For HR professionals, shaping workplace culture is an ongoing responsibility that requires strategic planning, strong leadership support, and active employee engagement.

By aligning recruitment, leadership development, performance management, and employee wellbeing initiatives with organisational values, HR teams can build a culture that supports both people and performance.

In today’s competitive labour market, a positive organisational culture is no longer just desirable – it is a critical component of organisational success.

Looking to strengthen your workplace culture?

A well-defined organisational culture can improve employee engagement, productivity, and retention. HR professionals play a vital role in ensuring that workplace practices align with organisational values and goals. Get in touch if your organisation is reviewing its HR strategy or seeking to improve employee engagement, to discuss how we can help you develop a strong and supportive culture.