Culture Co-Creation: National Medical Organization

Our work with this leading national assessment organization, began at the top. The work had two prongs–executive team strengthening and organization-wide culture change. We spent half a year working side-by-side with 5 members of senior leadership, creating the conversations and experiences to connect them to one another (they had been a siloed organization) strategically and relationally. (Highlights included soul-searching and soul-enriching time in nature in the Rocky Mountains and heart-to-heart conversations to get to know one another as humans and share each other’s hard truths.) This work paved the way for succession of a long-term CEO.

As these leaders came to recognize their impact on organizational culture, Insyte crafted a journey of culture co-creation that engaged 422 employees in defining their own culture, crystallized in 10 “Bold Statements” that represented commitments that were embedded in organizational meeting, performance management and everyday life.

It begins with leadership. As an organizational leader:

1. I set clear priorities and resource them.
2. I communicate directly, simply and humanly.
3. I delegate and empower.

Then it takes all of us.

1. I actively seek collaboration.
2. I contribute to our caring and diverse community.
3. I hold myself and my colleagues accountable for results–respectfully.
4. I make time for work-life balance, reflection, planning and relationships.
5. I take courageous action, wonder with colleagues, innovate, and continuously improve.
6. I lean into conflict as a source of creativity.
7. I look outward to learn—outside my department and beyond our walls.

To support this work, Insyte led workshops across the organization focused on “clean talk feedback,” deepening conversational practices and the art of listening. We also mobilized and empowered a Culture Team to champion and deepen the work beyond the time of our engagement. Based on multiple surveys, staff reported improvements in how they experienced the culture.

A year after we left, we received this note from the new CEO:

“I call you "partners" and not "Partners," because I am not referring to your corporate entity, but to the people you are who have stood beside us, guided us, supported us, and cared for us on our journey. You have been invaluable as we seek to transform ourselves. Thank you for everything you've done.”