When Company Cultures Stop Evolving
This weekend, I watched the movie Swiped, which is inspired by the story of Whitney Wolfe and her legal battle with Tinder, the company she co-founded. As an organizational psychologist who champions processes that help leaders create positive and healthy work environments, I can’t help but cringe when I see the harsh realities of some workplaces in the U.S. and around the world.
What strikes me is that many financially successful companies still become difficult places to work. Often, this doesn’t happen overnight. They evolve into unhealthy cultures—where leadership behaviors go unquestioned, where personal flaws at the top harden into the company’s cultural identity. Individual personalities, with all their strengths and weaknesses, end up defining the culture itself.
This makes me wonder: does the decline into a bad place to work come from a failure to evolve culture alongside the evolving needs of stakeholders, especially employees?
Disney captures this idea well in their statement on culture and values:
“We strive to design work environments that inspire optimism and drive innovation for all employees, at all levels. And because we recognize that maintaining an inclusive, supportive workplace requires mindful attention and intention, we continually adapt to the evolving needs of our people. Our intention is to put the responsibility for an inclusive culture in the hands of our leaders and employees through comprehensive education and engagement efforts.”
What stands out to me is the phrase “we continually adapt to the evolving needs of our people.” It raises important questions:
What strategies do companies actually use to ensure they’re adapting to those evolving needs?
How much of that adaptation is reactive versus proactive?
Or is it both—recurrent and simultaneous?
Yes, companies may intend to adapt to the needs of clients, employees, and communities. But intention alone isn’t enough. It requires an orchestrated effort to make sure the adaptation truly happens.
My Perspectives on Cultural Adaptation
Hold an annual cultural identity conversation among the leadership team.
This should not be a generic strategy session. It should be a deliberate dialogue about what the culture is, what it should be, and whether it is still aligned with the needs of employees and stakeholders.Read employee satisfaction reports through the lens of adaptation—not just performance metrics.
Too often, when negative results appear, companies rush to build an action plan designed only to raise the numbers. But sometimes a “negative” result is not a failure—it’s a signal of a changing need that the current culture does not address. If you respond with training or coaching alone, you may be applying a technical solution to an adaptive challenge.
Most cultural challenges are adaptive. They require going to the root: questioning core beliefs, examining leadership behaviors, and holding people accountable. Yet too often, change only comes when a lawsuit or scandal forces it.
A Question for Leaders
So, here’s the uncomfortable question: are you, as a leader, willing to take the risk of challenging your culture before a crisis forces your hand? And if not—what is the cost of waiting?
