Organizational culture is the collection of values, beliefs, and attitudes that shape the way a firm operates, that is, how its people think, feel, and act (Gutterman, 2025). Organizational culture can evolve, but it is not accidental. It is shaped and sustained by its leadership (Jaiyeola et al., 2025). The way leaders of an organization make decisions, communicate, lead, assign priorities, and personally act sends signals to everyone in the organization about the way things are done. Whether intended or not, leadership actions influence employee morale and commitment, creativity and innovation, customer service, productivity, profitability, and the organization’s long-term survival (Khassawneh et al., 2022). To appreciate the influence of leadership on organizational culture, we need to examine how leaders communicate ways things should be done, model and reinforce the way. That is the focus of this article.
The Leader as the Cultural Architect
Culture ultimately starts with the leader. The way things are done is mostly influenced by how leaders act and communicate. In times of uncertainty, employees look at their leaders to understand how things should be done. Leaders set the organization’s culture by establishing priorities and defining its mission. For instance, if a leader consistently directs that candid communication is a priority and consistently makes decisions openly and truthfully, a culture which values candid communication will be promoted. If a leader consistently makes decisions hierarchically and does not communicate frankly, the culture that emerges is that the way to get things done is through hierarchy and secrecy. The creation of culture begins with a leader’s intent. Leaders who intentionally establish cultural goals through establishing mission statements, visioning, setting goals, and behavioral expectations establish a culture that employees can understand and adapt to. Leaders who do not establish priorities create a culture that is confusing, fragmented, or conflicted because employees are left to their own devices to determine the priorities.
Modeling the Way
Perhaps the most important way leaders influence culture is through their actions. Employees focus more on how leaders act than on what they say. For example, if a leader talks about the significance of work-life balance but consistently works long hours, sends late-night emails and texts, or rewards people who do, a culture that supports burnout will be fostered. If a leader models empathy, active listening, and equity, those values will become part of the organization’s culture. Leaders’ actions have been referred to as the shadow of the leader (Judge, 1999) (Hudson, 2021). The shadow of the leader means that leaders throw a long influence over the organization through their actions (Judge, 1999). The way a leader reacts to a crisis, responds to success, handles failure, and gives feedback all impact how employees do their work. Leaders who model accountability establish a culture of accountability. Leaders who model humility establish a culture of humility. Through their actions, leaders establish the way things are done.
How Communication Shapes Culture
The way leaders communicate is a powerful influence on an organization’s culture. Leaders who consistently communicate in a clear, respectful, and open way establish a climate of trust and respect. Employees are appreciated and informed, they trust the leader more, and they establish a culture that trusts others. Communicating clearly and consistently about expectations, changes, challenges, and successes helps employees understand the way things are done. Lack of communication or poor communication by a leader creates confusion, mistrust, conflict, and poor morale. For instance, in a human service organization where employees need to establish trusting relationships with clients to achieve results, leaders who do not communicate clearly and consistently establish a culture of mistrust and suspicion. Employees feel disconnected and unsupported. Communication does not involve only the message conveyed but also the manner and tone. For example, is the communication method participative or authoritative? Is the attitude encouraging and supportive, dictatorial or punitive? The way a leader communicates influences the way employees feel about themselves and their organization. It influences whether employees feel connected to the organization.
Decision-Making and Priorities as Cultural Drivers
What leaders value and prioritize greatly influences an organization’s culture. What a leader decides to reward or not establishes the priorities of an organization. For example, if a leader consistently rewards teamwork and joint effort but ignores individual contributions, a culture which values teamwork and joint effort will be established. If a leader consistently focuses on speed and output while ignoring the need for planning and process, a culture that favors speed and output over planning and process will be established. The way a leader makes decisions also influences the culture. For example, leaders who consistently make participative decisions establish a culture of participation and involvement. Employees feel empowered and valued. Leaders who consistently make autocratic decisions establish a culture of control and mistrust. Employees feel disconnected and unsupported.
People, Practices, and Cultural Support
People-related practices – such as hiring, promotion, reward, and recognition – influence an organization’s culture (Acheampong, 2025). Leaders who establish hiring practices that ensure people who share the organization’s values are hired create a culture that supports those values. Leaders who promote people not only based on what they know and can do, but also on how they do it, establish a culture that supports the values of the organization. Leaders who reward and recognize employees who consistently act in line with the organization’s values establish a culture that supports those values. For example, if an organization’s values are respect for clients, respect for each other, and teamwork, and a leader rewards employees who consistently demonstrate those values, a culture that supports them will be established. On the other hand, if a leader ignores poor behavior and rewards results no matter how they are achieved, a culture that ignores values will be established.
Emotional Intelligence and Its Cultural Effect
A leader’s emotional intelligence strongly influences an organization’s culture (Mishra et al., 2024). Leaders with high emotional intelligence foster cultures that promote psychological safety, trust, and equity. Employees feel safe to take risks, they feel trusted to make decisions, and they feel the organization is fair and just. Leaders with high emotional intelligence are aware of their own emotions and those of others and consistently act in ways that support the health of everyone. They establish a climate of trust and respect. For example, a leader who consistently provides timely, honest feedback establishes a climate of trust and respect. A leader who consistently reacts badly when an employee makes a mistake establishes a culture of mistrust and suspicion.
Leadership and Culture Change
Culture change is perhaps the most difficult thing leaders can do (Muls et al., 2015, pp. 633-638). Many leaders fail to change their organizations’ cultures because it is a long-term process that demands sustained effort and commitment. Many leaders lack the patience and persistence to see the process through. Furthermore, many leaders do not model the way, thereby failing to gain trust and confidence with employees. Leaders who consistently model the way establish a culture that trusts and has confidence in them. When such leaders establish a new way of doing things, employees are more likely to follow. Employees trust the process and the leader and consistently support it. When a leader consistently and persistently communicates a new vision and way of doing things and models that way, employees begin to see a different way and establish a new one. Employees begin to consistently support the new way because they trust and have confidence in the leader and the process. For example, when leaders consistently communicate the need for employees to support each other consistently and persistently to establish a new service, employees begin to see that the way to establish the new service is to support each other in the same way. Employees begin to establish a culture of teamwork and cooperation to establish a new service. When employees consistently support each other in establishing new services, a culture of cooperation and teamwork is fostered.
Leadership Style and Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity
A leader’s leadership style strongly affects whether an organization supports and promotes inclusion, diversity, and equity (Tsai, 2024). When a leader consistently models inclusion and honors diversity, a culture that supports inclusion, diversity, and equity is established. Employees feel included, valued, and supported to contribute. When a leader consistently ignores diversity, equity, and inclusion, a culture that does the same is established. Employees do not feel included, valued, or supported in contributing. For example, when a leader consistently makes sure that all employees’ voices are heard, values variety of thought and approach, and consistently challenges discrimination and inequity, a culture that supports inclusion, diversity, and equity is established. When a leader consistently ignores employees’ voices, variety of thoughts and approach, and discrimination and inequity, a culture that ignores inclusion, diversity, and equity is established.
Long-Term Corporate Impact of Leadership
The long-term impact of leadership on an organization’s success is perhaps the most important influence leaders have (Zakliki & Christodoulou, 1996, pp. 30-47). An organization’s success is long-term because it is consistently influenced by how things are done. The way things are done consistently influences whether an organization consistently establishes and supports a positive, productive, and performance-oriented culture. When leaders consistently establish and support a positive, productive, and performance-oriented culture, employees are consistently positive, productive, and performance-oriented. The culture consistently attracts and retains talented employees who consistently support a positive, productive, and performance-oriented culture. Employees consistently support innovation, risk-taking, inclusion, diversity, and equity. Employees consistently support and establish quality and distinction and consistently strive to improve and excel. Employees consistently feel positive about what they do and how they do it and consistently feel that what they do is important and makes a difference. Employees consistently feel that they matter and are valued, and that they can consistently contribute to the best of their ability.
Conclusion
In conclusion, leadership style strongly influences an organization’s culture. It influences the way employees consistently feel about what they do and how they do it. It influences whether the organization consistently achieves positive results and makes a difference in clients’ lives or consistently achieves negative results and does not. It influences whether the organization consistently flourishes and prospers or consistently does not. Leaders who consistently model the way and establish a positive, productive, and performance-oriented culture consistently achieve positive results and make a difference in the lives of clients. Leaders who consistently do not model the way and consistently do not establish a positive, productive, and performance-oriented culture consistently achieve negative results and do not make a difference in the lives of clients. Leaders either consistently flourish and prosper, or consistently do not, depending on how they consistently influence their organization’s culture.
Dr. Isaac Mawuko Adusu, DHA, MSNPM is a Policy Advocate, Assistant Vice President of Adult Services at Seven Hills Foundation, Rhode Island and an internationally recognized nonprofit leader in intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and behavioral health, specializing in workforce transformation, community-based care, and organizational innovation. He can be contacted at IAdusu@sevenhills.org or ikemawuk@gmail.com.
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