How I’m Partnering with Organizations in 2026

Most culture work fails because it treats symptoms, not systems.

A workshop gets delivered. A retreat happens. New language gets introduced. For a while, things feel better. Then a few months pass, pressure ramps back up, and familiar patterns return.

It’s not because leaders don’t care. It’s because culture doesn’t change through events. It changes through leadership habits.

The way decisions get made. The conversations that get avoided. Who speaks up in the room and who holds back. Those patterns shape culture far more than any single initiative.

I’ve noticed this time and time again. This is not a criticism. It is an observation of what happens when we are overwhelmed with meeting expectations.

It is these patterns that are shaping how I’m partnering with organizations heading into 2026.

Over the years, I’ve worked with many senior leadership teams who were smart, capable, and deeply invested in their people. They weren’t struggling because of a lack of effort. They were struggling because the system they were operating in no longer matched the leadership they wanted to model.

One team brought me in for what they thought was a tactical engagement. Meetings were inefficient. Decisions felt heavy. There was friction under the surface, even though everyone was “being professional.”

The early work helped. Communication got clearer. Leaders were more direct with one another. Decision-making improved.

And then something important happened.

As trust grew, they began to notice patterns they hadn’t seen before. Decisions that stalled because ownership wasn’t clear. Feedback that stayed polite instead of useful. Leaders stepping in to help, then quietly resenting it later.

No one was doing anything wrong. But the system was drifting.

That’s when the work shifted from a project to a partnership.

Clarify → Align → Sustain

This is the structure I now use most often. I don’t lead with it, but it’s always there.

Clarify what leadership actually looks like in practice. Not values on a wall, but real expectations about decision-making, accountability, and how leaders handle tension.

Align behavior with those expectations. This is where leaders practice having the conversations they’ve been postponing and recalibrate how they work together.

Sustain the habits. Because insight fades quickly without reinforcement. Old patterns return when no one is paying attention.

This phase requires continuity, not another initiative.

For that leadership team, the impact was tangible. Meetings became shorter and more focused. Decisions moved faster because roles were clear. Leaders trusted each other enough to disagree and move forward without reopening the same conversations.

Most importantly, they didn’t need me to intervene every time something felt off. They had built the muscle to notice it themselves. And they valued having a partner who could help them stay aligned as the firm continued to evolve.

As organizations look ahead to 2026, many are naming culture and leadership as priorities. The real question is not whether to invest, but how.

Awareness is easy to create. Sustained behavior change takes partnership.

If you’re planning leadership or culture work in 2026, I’m happy to help you choose the right starting lane.