The ONLY Way to Drive Culture Change (How to Practically Change Behavior in Your Company)
Everywhere you go, you hear the same mantras:
“We need collaboration and teamwork. We need proactivity and engagement. We need to focus on business goals.”
Of course, everyone agrees. The real question isn’t what we need. The real question is: how do we actually make it happen?
At the core of every culture and every company’s success are the choices people make every second — while acting, interacting, and deciding. One choice may seem small, but together they shape the outcomes that make or break a business.
When you target behavioral change, you can’t simply order it. So what should you do instead?
Why Training Alone Doesn’t Work
The internet is full of advice:
“Train people on psychological safety and emotional intelligence.”
“Teach leadership, teamwork, and feedback.”
Training does help fill knowledge gaps. And yes, people often learn quickly. But then they return to work. What happens?
They start using buzzwords, quoting corporate values, maybe even trying new collaboration tools. But when you look closer at the choices they make in real situations, almost nothing has changed.
They talk teamwork — while chasing hidden agendas.
They preach business goals — while optimizing for their department’s KPIs.
They “support” psychological safety — but quietly punish mistakes by blocking raises or promotions.
On the surface, it’s a new wrapping. Underneath, the same old behaviors remain.
Why “Leading by Example” Isn’t Enough
Another popular mantra: “Leaders should model the right culture.”
Yes, leaders with charisma can inspire. Their example is important. But the deeper you go into the hierarchy, the weaker that influence becomes. And let’s be honest: much of what leaders really do stays hidden. Employees copy the visible part — but their actual choices don’t shift.
A Real-Life Example
At a fintech company I worked with, everyone went through teamwork training. Top management gave speeches, managers reinforced the message, and employees learned the declared “good behaviors”:
Hold each other accountable
Support unpopular opinions
Challenge ideas even when the majority agrees
Within a week, reality hit.
People discovered that holding others accountable was risky — especially when those others influenced their salaries or promotions. Challenging ideas was even harder across departments, since each team was judged on its own KPIs.
So while everyone still talked about teamwork in meetings, they quickly reverted to old patterns. Why? Because those old behaviors still worked better for meeting personal needs inside the system.
The Real Lever of Change
So, is change impossible? Not at all.
The truth is simple: people don’t change just because you tell them to. They change when the system makes new behaviors the most useful option.
That system includes:
Structures, processes, and roles — shaping who we align with, whose goals matter, and whose voices we listen to.
HR policies and practices — promotions, raises, and recognition that heavily influence daily choices.
Formal and informal rewards — determining what really pays off in the long run.
If outdated behaviors still give people the best chance of recognition, money, and career growth, they’ll stick with them.
A Practical Approach to Real Change
Here’s how to make behavioral change stick:
Define target behaviors — the ones truly critical for your business success.
Identify drivers and blockers — find out why people choose old behaviors in your current setup.
Redesign the organizational system — not just the org chart, but also processes, management functions, HR rules, and performance metrics.
Prepare and align — train people, adapt hiring practices, and ensure leaders are ready.
Execute and support — create conditions where new behaviors are rewarded, safe, and rational.
Monitor actual choices — not just visible actions, but the real decision-making patterns.
Adjust and improve — keep tuning the system until the new behaviors stick.
Finally
Stop relying only on training and leadership examples. They matter — but only as part of a bigger system.
If you want real change, redesign the organizational system so that the right behaviors become the natural choice for people to achieve what matters most to them. That’s when training, leadership examples, and corporate values stop being theater — and start delivering business results.
