A bold brand identity can turn heads. A well articulated brand purpose can inspire teams. But even the most brilliantly crafted brand strategy will fall flat if it is not matched by the culture inside the business.

In fact, culture has the power to amplify or undermine a brand, and often, it does both.

Brand is the Promise, Culture is the Proof

Brand strategy defines what a company says it stands for. Culture is how those promises show up in practice. According to the well cited alignment model (Hatch & Schultz, 2001), a disconnect between strategic vision, organisational culture and stakeholder image leads to a “misaligned brand”, a brand that does not live up to its own claims.

When values are merely words on a wall, employees do not know how to act on them. Customers begin to sense a lack of authenticity. And trust slowly erodes.

When Culture Fails the Brand

Let us say your brand identity positions your company as inclusive, dynamic and forward thinking. But internally, decision making is top down, new ideas are discouraged, and leadership does not model inclusive behaviours. That beautiful brand identity becomes a hollow façade.

The 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer found that 63% of consumers choose or avoid brands based on their beliefs and values (Edelman, 2020). But they do not just listen to what brands say, they watch how they behave. If the culture does not align with the promise, the gap is noticed.

Leaders Must Live the Brand

Culture always starts with leadership. As Sinek (2009) notes in Start With Why, people do not buy what you do, they buy why you do it. If leaders cannot clearly and consistently embody the brand’s values, employees will not either.

Without behaviour aligned to the brand, even the best strategy turns into a PowerPoint that no one believes in.

Culture Workshops, The Missing Link

For agencies and consultants, delivering a stunning brand platform is only half the job. The next phase is helping the organisation internalise and embody the strategy. That is where culture alignment workshops come in.

These sessions explore:

• Whether company values reflect lived behaviours

• If leadership is modelling the brand promise

• How hiring, reward and decision making processes align with the desired identity

It is here that strategy becomes systemic, not just symbolic.

A Brand is Only as Strong as the Culture Behind It

To build a brand that lasts, you must build a culture that lives it. That means taking the insights from brand strategy and asking, “Do we behave in a way that backs this up?” If the answer is no, you have cultural work to do.

The most powerful brands are not just seen. They are felt, in every meeting, every customer interaction and every decision made when no one is watching.

References

Edelman (2020). Edelman Trust Barometer: Brand Trust and the Coronavirus Pandemic.

Hatch, M.J. and Schultz, M. (2001). Are the Strategic Stars Aligned for Your Corporate Brand?. Harvard Business Review, 79(2), pp.128–134.

Sinek, S. (2009). Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action. London, Penguin Business.

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