Culture: The Invisible Engine of Exceptional Operations
Lever 1 of the X-OPS Framework Series
Operations don’t fail because of bad tools. They fail because of bad behaviour. You can have the best systems, the slickest dashboards, the sharpest strategy—but if your culture is off, you’re flying with the brakes on.
Culture isn’t the soft stuff. It’s the infrastructure behind the infrastructure. And when it’s toxic, it quietly drains performance, morale, and accountability—every single day.
Let me begin by sharing a few examples that I had encountered over the years.
- In one airport I saw a couple of very large posters. I recognised it as an ISO 9001 Quality Management System certification, and it was proudly displayed on the wall next to the customer service desk. Upon closer examination, it was clear that the certification had expired by more than 5 years. It was displayed for a reason, whatever it may be, but with an expired certificate, it says a lot about the purpose and team that puts it up.
- On the production floor of a high-volume food catering unit, I noticed a pallet jack that is used to move materials. Nothing unusual, except that it was chained up and padlocked to the wall. This tells me that the piece of equipment is not for sharing with other functional units. Turns out that the pallet jack was brand new, highjacked by another department, which had it repainted in their department’s colour code, and when discovered by the rightful department, claimed ignorance.
- During a Safety Management training class I attended years ago, the instructor related a story in which a technician was hired to work in a workshop. He was blind in one eye but could still do simple tasks. In a series of unfortunate events, metal chips from a piece of metal flew and pierced his good eye, rendering him totally blind! Investigations revealed that although the company had safety policies, provided safety equipment such as goggles, the safety culture was non-existent. Supervisors and workers ignored the rules requiring Personal Safety Equipment to be used. No one bothered to check, and there was no safety briefings prior to every start of duty. Consequently, the company was fined heavily, but the poor technician had to suffer greatly due to the lack of care and diligence on the part of management. Rules without enforcement means nothing!
More examples of unproductive or toxic cultures in my blog posts here.
Sound familiar? Then read on….
🚨 First, Spot the Signs of a Bad Culture
Toxic cultures aren’t always loud. Sometimes, they hide in plain sight:
- Territorial behaviour: One department “borrows” another team’s forklift or equipment and doesn’t return it—because they can. No communication. No consequence.
- Chronic apathy: Outdated safety posters from five years ago? Notices about projects that were scrapped months ago? That’s not just laziness—it’s a signal no one’s paying attention.
- Meeting zombies: Everyone nods in meetings. No one follows through.
- Finger-pointing: When something breaks, the first reaction is, “It’s not my job.”
- Silence over speaking up: People stop offering ideas—not because they don’t have them, but because they don’t believe anyone’s listening.
None of these problems start in the process. They all start in the culture.
🔍 What a High-Performance Culture Looks Like
A healthy culture isn’t about being nice. It’s about being real, accountable, and engaged.
Here’s what great looks like:
✅ Teams own problems—together.
✅ Leaders walk the floor, not just the boardroom.
✅ Feedback flows freely, not just in annual reviews.
✅ People care about outcomes—not just outputs.
✅ Pride shows up in the details—clean boards, up-to-date signage, visible KPIs.
When culture works, execution flows. Teams collaborate. Waste shrinks. Performance scales.
The Caring Culture
I once worked in an European country where its labour laws are some of the most strictly regulated and enforced. In one incident, I had to manage an AOG delay (Aircraft On Ground) in the middle of a freezing winter. The aircraft had returned to the origin after nearly 3 hours in flight (more on that story later in the series). With well over 450 unhappy passengers to care for, accommodate in hotels (with little food left and the kitchens closed), and a major snowstorm on the way, it was going to be a major challenge for a very lean team. Plus, there was going to be another regular flight operation the next day, with another 450+ passengers to manage.
After nearly 12hours on our feet, and in accordance with the labour laws, I officially inform my team that they had worked the maximum hours that day, and must stand down, return home to take a minimum number of hours of rest before coming back the next day. All of them nodded their understanding, sat back down in their desks and continued to work! They did return home for a (less than minimum) rest and returned a few hours later to ensure the disrupted passengers could finally be on their way to their destination. All that in record snowfall that brought the airport to a standstill. Why? Because they Cared and that their duty is to the passengers’ wellbeing. They had a sense of purpose.
THAT is what a strong team culture is! Have you ever encountered similar dedication? Do Share! More examples of positive workplace culture can be found here.
🧠 Why Culture Drives Ops (Even When You Can’t Measure It)
Culture is the multiplier. Good systems in a bad culture? You’ll get resistance, workarounds, and eventual burnout. But even average systems in a strong culture? You’ll get energy, ownership, and people finding better ways to work.
And here’s the kicker: your frontline team already knows what the culture is.
They live it every day. You can’t fake it.
Culture isn’t a “nice-to-have” or an HR side project. In high-performing organizations, culture IS corporate strategy. It shapes how decisions are made, how teams collaborate, how fast change happens, and ultimately—how customers experience your business.
🧭 Why Culture is Strategic
A strong culture aligns behaviour with strategy. When done right, it:
- Translates vision into action across every level of the organisation.
- Accelerates execution by reducing friction, confusion, and second-guessing.
- Reinforces standards even in moments of ambiguity or crisis.
- Attracts and retains talent that matches your strategic direction.
In other words, culture is the operating system that runs the strategy.
🛠️ How to Build a Strategic Culture
- Put Culture on the Strategy Map
Treat culture as a strategic asset. Measure it, invest in it, and assign accountability—just like any other performance driver.
- Define Operational Behaviours
Go beyond values. Identify the specific, observable behaviours that support your strategy (e.g., cross-functional handoffs, frontline empowerment).
- Embed Culture into Decision-Making
When reviewing ops, ask: “Is this how we want our teams to behave under pressure?” If not—rethink the system, not just the people.
- Make Mid-level Managers Culture Champions
They are the true multipliers. Equip them with leadership training, coaching skills, and visibility into culture metrics.
- Ritualize the Culture You Want
Create repeatable rituals—like daily standups, peer shoutouts, or quarterly ops showcases—that reinforce your values in action.
- Align Incentives to Behaviour
Don’t just reward results. Celebrate behaviours that drive sustainable, collaborative, customer-focused outcomes.
- Share the Vision
Communicate the corporate vision and mission transparently. The more the team understands and align their motivation to the organization, the stronger the culture.
🛠️ Operationalise Culture
- Call out the bad behaviours
Don’t tolerate equipment hoarding, poor housekeeping, or pass-the-blame games. Set expectations clearly—and enforce them visibly.
- Walk the floor daily
Culture isn’t built in a meeting room. Be visible. Ask questions. Praise & reinforce what’s working. Fix what’s not.
- Reward the right stuff. Celebrate small wins
Recognize people not just for hitting numbers, but for living the values: teamwork, ownership, improvement. Often, a simple thank you note, or certificate works wonders.
- Fix the small things
That old poster? Replace it. That broken hand sanitizer? Refill it. Small fixes show people you care. And that spreads.
- Make accountability a team sport
Peer accountability beats top-down pressure every time. Build a culture where
💡 Culture Starts at the Top—but Spreads from the Middle
Leaders set the tone. But supervisors and mid-level managers spread the culture. If you’re not developing your middle layer, you’re not building culture—you’re just making noise.
✈️ Final Thought: Culture Is Ops
In the X-OPS model, Culture isn’t the backdrop—it’s the infrastructure. If you want execution that’s fast, resilient, and self-sustaining, culture needs to be built into your core operating rhythm—and your strategic planning process.
Next Up: “Change Management“