Culture. What culture?

“Culture Eats Strategy for Breakfast,” a remark attributed to Peter Drucker and popularized in 2006 by Mark Fields, the then president of Ford Motor Company. Many quote it. Few understand it.

History is littered with businesses whose well-crafted strategies failed. Why did they fail? Often, it is said that they did not have the culture to execute the plan correctly.

What is this culture? How do you instill it?

Culture evolves from consistent behavior. The leadership must encourage the behaviors they want to see in the company. If you encourage people to make decisions, then decision-making will be built into your culture. If you reward courage, then courage will be built in—for example, the courage to make bold proposals. If you applaud negotiation skills, then negotiating well becomes your culture. If treating customers right is of prime importance, then treating customers right becomes your culture.

The most significant thing is to ensure that everyone understands the expected behavior and people know how to consistently show the organization’s values.

Coming soon: “Start:” The Starters’ Playbook