Workplace culture and climate are closely connected, but they are not the same thing. Understanding the difference can help managers create an environment in which people feel valued, supported and able to contribute at their best.
I once attended a workshop where the speaker made a distinction that has stayed with me:
Culture is what an organisation aspires to have, or talks about. Climate is what its people actually experience.
What is workplace culture?
Workplace culture includes the values, behaviours and principles an organisation says are important.
You might see those values on the company website, in recruitment material or displayed on posters around the workplace. They describe what the organisation wants to stand for and how it believes people should work together.
Those aspirations matter. But they do not necessarily tell us what it feels like to work there.
I remember working in an organisation whose walls were covered with posters displaying its new core values. They were impressive and aspirational, but they bore little resemblance to the atmosphere I experienced in the office.
Ironically, that office was numbered Room 101.
What is workplace climate?
Workplace climate is the everyday experience created by the organisation and its managers.
What is it like to walk into the workplace? How are people treated? Do they feel valued? Are their views taken seriously? Do they have the confidence and support to contribute at their best?
The answers tell us more about the workplace climate than any poster or statement of values.
Organisations often talk proudly about their culture. The more important question is how closely that culture matches the climate their people experience every day.
How managers shape workplace culture and climate
A manager may not be able to transform the climate across an entire organisation. They can, however, shape what people experience within their own team.
Managers influence workplace culture and climate through everyday actions: how they communicate, listen, respond to mistakes, recognise good work and involve people in decisions.
They can create an environment where people feel respected, listened to and able to contribute. They can also notice when the stated values and the lived experience are beginning to drift apart.
Culture may be what the organisation says. Climate is what people feel.
That is why good people managers matter.
What does the climate in your team feel like today?
John