We’ve all been on a wild ride over the last few years when it comes to workplace culture. From the initial push for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) to the current resistance, the landscape is shifting. For many leaders, this has led to sleepless nights wondering what the future of work holds.
I recently sat down with Abi Adamson, founder of the Culture Partnership and a LinkedIn Top Voice recognized by The New York Times, to discuss her approach to global workplace strategy. Abi has conducted over 800 workshops on the topic and has worked with brands like Spotify and Sony Music. Her perspective is a refreshing departure from the corporate consulting project mentality. Instead, she views workplace culture as a living ecosystem that requires constant tending, much like gardening.
Here are three critical lessons from our conversation on how to cultivate a flourishing culture: stop building and start gardening, prioritize truth over retention metrics, and reframe resistance as a catalyst for change.
Stop Building and Start Gardening
Many organizations approach culture as something to be built—a static project with a start and end date. We draft values, print them on posters, and assume the job is done. But Adamson argues that this architectural approach is fundamentally flawed because it ignores the organic nature of human interaction.
Through her SERN framework (Soil, Exposure, Roots, and Nutrients), Adamson encourages leaders to act as gardeners. This means looking at the soil—the daily experiences of employees—rather than just the official company line. It also means examining the roots, or the whisper networks and group chats where the real culture lives. “Organizations still treat culture like a construction project instead of what it is… I call workplace culture a living ecosystem,” Adamson explains. SERN can be distilled into everyday employee experiences with the workplace culture.
Soil (Daily Experience): This represents what employees actually experience on a day-to-day basis within the organization. It focuses on the reality of the work environment rather than the aspirational values listed on a company poster.
Exposure (Visibility and Opportunity): This pillar examines who receives high-level visibility and access to career-advancing opportunities. It identifies which employees are being championed and which remain in the shadows.
Roots (The Whisper Network): Roots represent the informal culture, including group chats and whisper networks, where the most honest conversations happen. This is often where the real culture lives, independent of official Slack channels or town hall meetings.
Nutrients (Growth and Distribution): Nutrients refer to the specific growth opportunities and resources provided to staff. The framework asks leaders to evaluate who is being fed with these opportunities versus who is being starved of professional development.
When we view culture as an ecosystem, we realize it’s never finished. It requires regular attention, weeding, and nourishing to ensure that all members of the organization have the same opportunity to thrive.
Prioritize Truth Over Retention Metrics
One of the biggest challenges leaders face is hemorrhaging talent, yet many are afraid to dig into the why. We often see a truth problem in corporate spaces: leaders know something is wrong, but they are hesitant to uncover the reality because they fear they’ll have to fix it.
Adamson shared an example of a tech company that had every program imaginable—ERGs, mentorship, and great benefits—yet their top talent kept leaving after 18 months. The issue wasn’t the benefits; it was a toxic soi” and a roots problem where employees were warning each other which managers to avoid.
To fix this, an organization must foster psychological safety. This allows employees to speak truth to power and share candid feedback without fear of retaliation or job loss. “When you’re able to have an organization that’s built on psychological safety… everything else will follow,” Adamson notes.
Without that safety, your nutrients—growth opportunities and promotions—will likely be distributed inequitably, and you’ll never know why your best people are walking out the door.
Reframe Resistance as a Catalyst for Change
In today’s climate, it’s easy to feel discouraged by the pushback against DEI initiatives. However, Adamson remains an eternal optimist by leaning on the lessons of history. She points out that every major social advancement—from the Suffragettes to the Civil Rights Movement—was met with significant resistance.
Friction is often a sign that the pendulum is about to swing toward meaningful progress. Rather than seeing resistance as a reason to retreat, leaders should see it as a gauntlet that must be navigated to reach a better place. “History has always taught us: whenever big changes happen, there’s always resistance… to get to a good place, you do need to go through a bit of a gauntlet,” Adamson contested.
By understanding that resistance is a natural part of the process, leaders can maintain the stamina needed to continue tending to their workplace ecosystem.
Ultimately, workplace culture isn’t a destination. It’s a process. As Adamson summarized, “We bloom together or we wilt alone.” The question for leaders isn’t whether your culture has problems, but whether you are willing to see them clearly enough to change them.