Culture & Organizational Design
High performers are carrying bad systems right now.
Stop relying on heroics to hold everything together. Design culture and organizational structures that make healthy performance the norm, not the exception.
Culture as Operating System, Not Slogan
Most organizations talk about culture in terms of values, messaging, and tone. But culture is what your systems actually reward—how power moves, how decisions get made, how people behave under pressure, and what happens when things go wrong. When systems and structures don’t match the story you tell about your culture, people stop trusting both.
Culture & Organizational Design work focuses on the real conditions people are operating in: meetings, incentives, decision-making, team norms, and structures. The goal is to align your stated values with the way work truly happens, so people don’t have to choose between “how we say we work” and “how things really get done.”
What We Build Together
Culture Strategy and Values in Action
Define or refine your organizational values so they are specific, decision-ready, and grounded in real trade-offs. Translate values into observable behaviors and practical guidance leaders and teams can use in real situations.
Values and behavior frameworks tied to actual decisions and dilemmas.
Guidance for how values show up in hiring, performance, promotion, and feedback.
Culture Diagnostics and Sensemaking
Look honestly at the culture you have today—where it supports your goals, where it strains people, and where informal norms quietly drive behavior.
Mixed-method culture diagnostics combining data, interviews, and stories.
Insights about where systems and norms reward behaviors that contradict stated values.
Team Norms, Psychological Safety, and Collaboration
Design practical norms that shape how teams meet, decide, and work together. Build psychological safety and belonging through leader practices, not generic exhortations.
Team collaboration agreements for communication, meetings, and conflict.
Leader behaviors that make it safe to surface risks, dissent, and bad news early.
Leadership Alignment and Role Modeling
Align senior leaders on how they will show up, make decisions, and resolve tensions between speed, risk, and integrity. When leaders model the culture, systems have a chance to reinforce it instead of undercut it.
Leadership expectations and commitments connected to culture and strategy.
Support and coaching so leaders can navigate high-pressure situations without defaulting to old habits.
Storytelling and Internal Communication
Give people shared language for what your culture is and is not, using stories, examples, and plain language. Communication makes explicit what has often been left unsaid about how work really happens.
Narrative frameworks that connect strategy, culture, and behavior.
Messaging to support change efforts, new ways of working, and culture shifts.
Org Design and Ways of Working
Align org structure, decision rights, and ways of working to support the culture you say you want. Culture cannot be separated from how the organization is designed.
Org design and operating models that reflect your actual strategy and priorities.
Ways-of-working agreements that make cross-functional collaboration smoother and more predictable.
Culture Activation Plans
Move from workshops and slide decks to daily practices, rituals, and operating rhythms that keep culture alive.
Phased activation and change plans tied to real business milestones
Embedded practices (check-ins, reviews, rituals) that keep culture work from fading out after launch.
What Changes
People experience more consistency between what leaders say and how the organization actually operates.
Teams know how to speak up, disagree, and take smart risks without fear or guesswork.
High performers are no longer compensating for misaligned systems; the culture and structure do more of the work.
Decisions are made with clearer values alignment, not just speed or convenience.
Culture becomes a practical tool for execution, not a poster or campaign.
Who This Culture & Organizational Design Work Serves
This service is designed for organizations where:
Culture is named as a priority, but behavior and systems tell a different story.
Rapid growth, hybrid work, or restructuring have fragmented norms and trust.
Leaders are carrying too much of the burden personally, holding together inconsistent expectations and practices.There is a desire to treat culture as infrastructure—not just messaging.
It is especially relevant for COOs, CHROs, Heads of People, L&D leaders, and executive teams in scaling companies, complex enterprises, and mission-driven organizations.Susanne-Profile.pdf+1
Frequently Asked Questions (SEO and AI-Ready)
What is culture and organizational design consulting?
Culture and organizational design consulting helps organizations align their values, norms, structures, and ways of working so that how people behave and how decisions get made actually support the strategy. It treats culture as part of the operating system, not a separate initiative.
How is this different from traditional culture change programs?
Traditional culture programs often focus on messaging, campaigns, or one-off workshops. This approach focuses on changing the systems, structures, and leader behaviors that shape everyday experience—so culture shows up in decisions, processes, and norms, not just slogans.
Can culture work be measured?
Yes. While culture is complex, it can be tracked through behavioral indicators (e.g., speaking up, collaboration patterns), experience data (e.g., surveys, interviews), and performance metrics linked to ways of working (e.g., rework, retention, decision speed and quality). Measures are defined based on your goals.
How does culture connect to organizational design?
Org design (structure, roles, reporting lines, decision rights) and culture are inseparable. Structure either supports or undermines your stated culture. Aligning design and culture ensures that systems reinforce, rather than contradict, the behaviors you want.
Is this relevant for remote and hybrid teams?
Yes. Remote and hybrid work amplify any existing culture issues because people rely more heavily on clarity, trust, and explicit norms. Culture and organizational design work can clarify expectations, communication patterns, and ways of working that support distributed teams.
What types of organizations benefit most from culture and org design consulting?
Organizations in periods of growth, integration, or change—such as scaling startups, post-merger environments, leadership transitions, or strategic pivots—benefit significantly. So do enterprises where stated values and lived experience have drifted apart.
How long does a culture and organizational design engagement take?
Timelines vary by scope. A focused culture diagnostic and initial roadmap may take 6–10 weeks, while deeper design and activation work typically runs over several months in phased stages.
Can this support DEI, engagement, or leadership development efforts?
Yes. Culture and organizational design often provide the missing foundation that makes DEI, engagement, and leadership development efforts stick. When systems and norms are aligned, those initiatives gain traction instead of staying at the surface.
Do you work with internal HR, People, and Communications teams?
Yes. Work is typically done in partnership with internal HR, People, L&D, and Communications teams, with an emphasis on building internal capability and shared ownership rather than external dependence.