When She Realized Culture Was Everyone's Job

I strive to create a workplace culture that is positive, welcoming, and enjoyable. I approach conversations with professionalism, confidence, and a sense of authenticity, while being thoughtful about how I communicate with others. Maintaining a calm and positive approach helps me remain neutral, composed, and intentional in how I respond to different situations and navigate my way forward.

Culture is what we allow, what we reward, what we teach, and what we do when no one is watching. I also strongly resonate with a concept from Anne Mulcahy, former CEO of Xerox: Employees need to understand where the company is going, why their work matters, and how they contribute to getting there. Culture then stops being a slogan and becomes the operating system.

Culture is very important. In my experience, I was hired into a culture of positivity and relational encouragement but when the management leaders changed, the culture changed to a more aggressive. Relationships or support from leadership was none existent. So true culture matters. Some companies advertise a family-friendly, supportive culture but in reality it is not always what you see.

I used to think workplace culture was something you inherited, the result of decisions made by people in leadership. Then I realized I was wrong. Every interaction, every conversation, and even the way we respond when someone is having a difficult day contributes to the culture around us. One experience that changed my perspective was recognizing how much a simple interaction could affect someone's entire day. A coworker was struggling with being honest about their sexual orientation and fear of losing their job over LGBTQ+ rights, and rather than simply focusing on my own responsibilities, I took the time to listen, offer encouragement, and let them know they were not alone. It was a small moment, but it reminded me that the environment we create for one another matters. I began paying more attention to how I showed up at work. I made an intentional effort to be approachable, communicate respectfully, recognize the contributions of others, and create an environment where people felt comfortable asking questions or sharing concerns. I also learned that contributing to a positive culture does not mean avoiding difficult conversations. It means approaching those conversations with honesty, respect, and a willingness to understand another person's perspective. That experience taught me that every person has some influence over the culture around them. We may not all make organizational decisions, but we all influence whether the people around us feel respected, supported, valued, and heard. Taking ownership of workplace culture, for me, means being intentional about the energy and environment I contribute to every day. It is choosing to be the person who helps make the workplace a little more welcoming, collaborative, and supportive not because it is someone else's responsibility, but because culture belongs to everyone.

Working across different countries, institutions, and cultures taught me that workplace culture is not created only by leadership, it is shaped every day by how each of us treats the people around us. I began to understand that even small actions matter: whether we listen, include others in a conversation, share credit, offer support, or simply treat someone with respect regardless of their title. As I moved from academia and research into advisory work and eventually entrepreneurship, I became much more intentional about the environment I wanted to create around me. When I founded my own organizations, I realized that culture begins long before policies or structures are established. It begins with the standards we set through our own behavior. I try to create environments where people feel respected, trusted, and comfortable contributing their ideas. To me, leadership is not only about making decisions; it is also about taking responsibility for the culture you help create.

When I first stepped into leadership, I viewed culture as something that was largely driven by management. Over time, I realized that culture is built through the daily actions, attitudes, and interactions of every person on a team. That lesson became especially clear as I began leading projects and process improvements within my department. Whether it was creating a project team, building resources to support our staff, developing retention strategies, or helping implement new technology workflows, I saw firsthand that success wasn't just about the process itself. It was about how people felt while working through it together. I learned that culture is strengthened when people feel supported, heard, and empowered to contribute. Small actions, such as offering help to a teammate, sharing knowledge, recognizing someone's effort, or approaching challenges with a positive mindset, can have just as much impact as formal leadership initiatives. As a result, I became much more intentional about the role I play in shaping the environment around me. I focus on being someone who encourages collaboration, creates solutions instead of simply identifying problems, and helps others succeed. Regardless of title, every person has the ability to influence culture. Once I understood that, I stopped viewing culture as something that happened around me and started taking ownership of the part I could help create every day. What I've learned is that the strongest workplace cultures aren't built by one person. They're built by a team of people who consistently choose to support, respect, and elevate one another.