Nine dimensions of culture: Understanding the state of your culture

If you’re not measuring culture, you’re not managing it. 

Despite its influence on everything from performance to retention, most organisations are still flying blind when it comes to culture. They measure what’s easy: sales, turnover, engagement, but not the complex web of behaviours, social norms, and unspoken rules that shape how the work gets done, and that’s a problem. 

Why? Because culture is either accelerating your strategy or quietly undermining it. Yet it’s often the last thing to be diagnosed and the hardest thing to fix (especially when there’s no shared language or clear way to track progress). 

We believe culture should be just as measurable - and manageable - as any other part of your business. That’s why we created the Culture Impact Framework, built around the Nine Dimensions of Culture. 

Where it all began

After two decades of leading culture transformation projects across sectors, we noticed a pattern: the existing frameworks that were being used were too academic or abstract. Leaders often needed a course just to understand them (and even then, they struggled to translate insights into action). 

We knew there had to be a better way. 

Drawing from the research of Richard Barrett, Dr Ian Macdonald, and Carolyn Taylor, we combined the best of existing thinking with what we've found actually works in real organisations. The result? A practical, grounded framework that captures the strongest levers for cultural alignment, and makes it easy to start. 

What are our nine dimensions of culture? And what do they measure?

Culture Impact Culture Dimensions: Performance, Agility, Engagement, Customer, Leadership, Alignment, Collaboration, People Management, and Communication.

Our model breaks the nine dimensions down into two clear categories: 

1. Culture Focus Areas – Where your culture needs to deliver  

2. Culture Catalysts – How your organisation enables success 

The culture focus areas

These are the areas most aligned to strategic outcomes and what your culture must prioritise to support business goals. 

1. Customer - Are decisions made with customer insight in mind? Is feedback acted on? Are customers at the heart of how your people think and behave? 

2. Agility - Can your teams adapt, experiment, and learn quickly? Do they innovate or default to “how we’ve always done it”? 

3. Performance - Are people clear on what success looks like? Is the focus on value and outcomes - not just activity? 

4. Engagement - Do your people feel motivated, included, and empowered? Do people feel able to voice their thoughts freely, including to senior management? 

The culture catalysts

These five dimensions reveal the underlying enablers or blockers that support - or sabotage - your ability to deliver your strategy. 

1. Alignment – Is everyone clear on what matters most? Is everyone clear on the strategic direction of the organisation and how their role contributes to the strategy? 

2. Collaboration – Are silos slowing you down? Do people trust each other and share information across teams? 

3. Communication – Is your messaging at the right frequency and impactful? Do you have a good news culture that prevents mistakes from being discussed and evoking cynicism and distrust?   

4. Leadership – Are your leaders aligned, focused, and inspiring? Do they model the behaviours you want from others? 

5. People Management – Do your systems support the culture you want - through fair processes, smart recruitment, and meaningful reward? 

There are other areas that impact culture, such as risk or compliance, but from our experience, the nine dimensions impact culture the most. 

How we use the nine dimensions to assess & change your culture

1. Review & understand your current culture

When we assess culture, CEOs are always surprised by the evidence we present. 

“Is that really happening now in my organisation, on my watch?” is a common statement. The executive often thinks they know what is going on, but by using these nine dimensions, you can start to uncover the real culture that's driving your business.

2. Align your strategy and culture 

We ensure that the executives are fully aligned around the strategy and the culture that will be needed to deliver it.  

3. Create a roadmap  

We identify the quick wins and the programmes that need to be prioritised to accelerate your culture change.  

By assessing your organisation against these Nine Dimensions, we can surface cultural blind spots, clarify priorities, and build a programme of change to shift behaviour at scale, without overcomplicating the process. 

Take the first step towards culture change

Culture won’t change through posters, one-off initiatives, or leadership workshops alone. Culture changes when you understand it, measure it, and lead the transformation with intent. 

If you’re ready to uncover the patterns helping and hindering your performance, we’d encourage you to: 

• Take our free survey to measure your current culture barriers 

• Get in touch with us to find out more about our services and how we can offer tailored support to ensure your culture is supporting the strategic direction of your business.