People and Culture, or is it HR?

Why Culture is a Living System and Why It Belongs to Everyone, Not Just the ‘HR’ team.

In today’s corporate world, we often hear the phrase to define a department focusing on “People and Culture”—a well-intentioned shift from the more transactional term of ‘Human Resources’. 

While this naming evolution may reflect a desire to center the human experience at work, it inadvertently suggests that one team holds full responsibility for something that belongs to everyone: culture.

The truth is, culture is not something a department builds or owns. Culture is a living system — an evolving, collective experience that emerges through shared behaviors, values, symbols, language, and stories. And understanding this is key to unlocking real, meaningful cultural transformation in any organization. While the ‘HR’ department sets the tone, unless the rest of the team follows suit, the internal culture of your business won’t succeed.

As someone who attained their degree in Anthropology many moons ago, I felt it necessary to focus on the term ‘People & Culture’ as this title has gained momentum in the last few years.

Anthropologists have long understood that culture is not created by decree (i.e. an announcement to the whole of society), Culture is created in community.

“Culture is the fabric of meaning in terms of which human beings interpret their experience and guide their action.”— Clifford Geertz, The Interpretation of Cultures (1973)

In Anthropology, culture is a dynamic, learned system of shared meaning that emerges over time. It is passed on not just through formal structures, but through rituals, norms, practices, and the way people interact—consciously and unconsciously. No single person, team, or policy can "own" it.

In this context, organizational culture is not a program or a document. It’s the lived, breathed reality of how people operate together: how decisions are made, how conflicts are resolved, how power is distributed, and how values show up in practice.

Culture doesn’t start in the boardroom or live only in leadership town halls. It’s formed and reinforced:

·      In the side conversations between colleagues

·      In who speaks up in meetings—and who doesn’t

·      In how feedback is given (or avoided)

·      In how people treat one another under stress

·      In what is rewarded, tolerated, or ignored

These micro-moments shape the macro-culture. And they’re happening everywhere, every day, with or without formal policies or HR involvement.

Everyone Shapes Culture, Leaders Most of All

While culture is co-created by everyone, leadership has an unfair advantage over its influence. Not because they control culture, but because they signal (through behavior), what is truly valued.

Positive Signals That Shape a Healthy Culture

• A CEO openly admits a mistake in front of the company → Signals psychological safety and humility.

• A manager prioritizes their team’s work-life balance, even during peak deadlines → Models healthy boundaries and sustainable performance.

• A leader celebrates team collaboration over individual heroics → Reinforces that teamwork is more valued than competition.

Negative Signals That Undermine Culture

• A senior leader talks about “employee wellbeing” but glorifies working nights and weekends → Signals that burnout is acceptable or even expected.

• A manager tolerates toxic high performers because “they get results” → Shows that performance is prioritized over behavior.

• An executive claims to value feedback but shuts down challenging questions in meetings → Undermines psychological safety and openness.

But again, it’s not just leaders. Culture also belongs to:

·      The new hire who brings fresh perspective

·      The team member who dares to ask “why?”

·      The informal influencers who hold social capital

·      The quiet contributors whose habits reinforce consistency

Everyone plays a role. Culture is not just a poster in the breakroom; it’s the collective behavior of the group.

What HR (or People & Culture) Can Do

While the HR team cannot create culture in isolation, it can shape the conditions in which culture grows:

·      Designing systems that reward the right behaviors

·      Hiring and onboarding people who align with core values

·      Addressing toxic behavior early and consistently, mitigating the Company’s risks

·      Empowering leaders with tools to lead authentically

·      Creating rituals that reinforce connection and belonging (pizza party anyone?)

HR is like a conductor of an orchestra, they set the tempo, guide the transitions, and bring attention to different sections at the right time. But they don’t play every instrument. Each musician (i.e. each employee), contributes their own skill and expression. For the performance to truly resonate, everyone must listen to one another, follow the cues, and show up with intention.

To build a thriving, values-aligned culture, organizations must move beyond the myth of culture as a “departmental deliverable.” Instead, they should:

·      Democratize culture conversations—involve all levels in defining what good looks like.

·      Create feedback loops, listen often, adapt quickly.

·      Tell stories, highlight real examples of values in action.

·      Model the message, leaders and influencers must walk the talk.

Because ultimately, culture is not what we say, it’s what we do, together.

Culture is a living system, not a static program. It’s not owned by HR, nor should it be. It belongs to every person in the organization—shaped by their actions, words, choices, and relationships. When we recognize that truth, we stop waiting for one team to “fix the culture” and start becoming active participants in creating the kind of workplace we all want to be part of.

How Unlimited HRM Solutions Inc. Can Help

We understand that shaping culture isn't about posters on the wall — it’s about aligning leadership behavior, HR practices, and organizational systems with what you say you value.

Here’s how we can help organizations walk the talk:

Leadership Coaching & Alignment

Equip leaders with the awareness, emotional intelligence, and feedback tools they need to model the culture you want to build.

Culture Diagnostics & Engagement Pulse Checks

Measure what’s really happening on the ground, and uncover gaps between stated values and actual experience.

Values-Driven Performance Frameworks

Create performance management systems that reward how results are achieved, not just what is achieved.

Inclusive People Practices

Build hiring, onboarding, and promotion practices that support equity, inclusion, and belonging from the inside out.

Accountability Systems for Behavior

Develop clear expectations for leadership behavior and consequences when culture is undermined—no matter how senior the person.

By partnering with Unlimited HRM Solutions Inc., our clients can move from culture as aspiration to culture as everyday reality, one conversation, one decision, and one behavior at a time.

Sincerely,

Carmelinda

416-399-0916

info@UnlimitedHRMS.com