Culture Isn’t a Vibe. It’s a System.

How to drive real behaviour change by redesigning the system around your people.

Most organisations treat culture like atmosphere. They describe it in vague terms: the vibe, the energy, the way things feel when you walk through the door. And while that may reflect culture, it doesn’t shape it. 

If you want new behaviours, you need a new system. 

At Sisima, we believe culture isn’t just something you sense. It’s something you design. 

We work with leadership teams who want to embed change, lift performance, and make smarter ways of working stick. But we don’t start with posters or purpose statements. We start with systems. 

Culture as a System 

At the centre of every organisation is the individual. And surrounding that individual are four powerful forces that shape how they think, decide, and behave every day: 

• Leadership 

• Process 

• Environment 

• People 

Together, these forces make up what we call the Culture as a System model. 

It gives organisations a way to understand why certain behaviours are showing up — or not — and what needs to change if they want different outcomes. 

Leadership: What gets modelled gets mirrored 

Culture starts with leadership. Not the slogans or strategy decks, but the real, visible behaviour of those with influence. 

If you want psychological safety, it starts with leaders who listen. If you want accountability, it starts with leaders who follow through. 

The way leaders show up sets the tone. It’s the shadow the rest of the organisation works in. 

Process: What gets measured gets reinforced 

Most organisations don’t realise how deeply their systems shape behaviour. 

What we track, how we report, where we focus — these things create pressure and priority. If the only metric that matters is billables, don’t be surprised when collaboration suffers. If time tracking is clunky, people won’t do it. 

Process signals what matters. Good systems create clarity. Broken systems breed friction, frustration, and workarounds. 

Environment: Culture made visible 

The way we meet. The way we use space. The rhythm of our weeks. 

All of these are environmental signals that show people what’s normal, what’s valued, and how to behave. 

Do people get cut off in meetings? Are your tools built for transparency or control? Are team rituals designed to connect, or just perform? 

If culture is how we do things around here, then environment is how people know. 

People: Who you surround yourself with matters 

Culture is built by people. But not just your internal team. 

It’s shaped by who you hire, promote, and protect. It’s shaped by clients, suppliers, partners — everyone in the system. 

People reinforce norms. They reflect your standards. If you want a high-performance culture, build a team that raises the standard, not one that waits to be told. 

Culture change is systems change 

Most culture programs fail because they operate at the surface. They talk values but ignore the system those values live inside. 

The Culture as a System model gives leaders a practical way to redesign how their organisation really works. 

Because if you’re not getting the behaviours you want — don’t blame the people. 

Look at the system around them. 

Ready to redesign your culture system? 

If you're trying to shift behaviour, embed a new way of working, or scale sustainably, we can help. 

Sisima works with consultancies and growth-focused organisations to implement tools like

ProjectWorks, and align them with the leadership, culture, and capability systems that make change stick. 

Book a free 30-minute culture strategy call and let’s explore how to move from surface-level change to real systems transformation. 

Book a Culture Call 

Prefer to explore first? Download our one-page Culture as a System Guide and start assessing where your current system may be out of sync.