Expert Culture Management & Consulting Services
Why is it important for organisations to manage culture?
Culture management is critical because it aligns employee behaviour with strategic goals, mitigates risks of toxic environments, and directly impacts retention and results.
Culture dictates how decisions are made and how employees engage, yet the process of shaping it toward a more productive and effective outcome is notoriously challenging.
At Verita, we have extensive experience in cultural assessments and performance improvement, and believe that culture is the bedrock of any successful organisation.
Our culture consulting services include expert advice and strategies for continuous cultural improvement. Rather than simply implementing a plan, we partner with organisations to proactively manage and evolve culture to prevent issues and sustain a positive environment.
By working with leadership to assess the current culture, identify areas for improvement, and implement strategic changes, we can create a work environment that empowers employees and drives results.
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How do we approach culture consulting?
We work collaboratively with clients to assess organisational culture and identify areas which may be preventing a business from achieving its objectives using a range of tools and systematic analysis.
This process helps us build a comprehensive picture of the underlying values and behaviours. Once this picture is developed, we can identify patterns and areas of concern that inform the decision making process and identify areas for cultural improvement.
As experienced culture change consultants, we have extensive knowledge of the far-reaching impact culture has on the performance of a company, its employees and public perception. Through a comprehensive assessment we are able to provide practical recommendations to ensure a positive culture is embedded in the organisation, whether that’s through changes to organisational structures, leadership approaches or HR systems.
Assessing your organisation's culture
Our whole focus in assessing culture is to help organisations find ways to improve it – not as an end in itself – but as a powerful way to help deliver performance improvements that can be measured and sustained over time.
The culture of organisations can be tricky to pin down and to describe, but there is no doubt in our experience that trying to change it can be a challenging process for leaders. With our help, you can get more insight into what your culture is really like, and what practical steps you can take to improve it.
Our experience as a workplace investigator provides us with a deep understanding of how cultural issues can impact organisations, and why dealing with them effectively is vital for long term success.
Our culture assessment & improvement process
- Employee surveys: We use these to help to gauge aspects like leadership effectiveness, teamwork, work-life balance, overall satisfaction and potential barriers to positive change
- Workplace observations: Observing everyday interactions within a company can offer valuable insights, such as tone of voice or body language during employee interactions, or management styles such as approachable or micromanaging.
- Policies and procedures: Looking at the stated values and priorities of a company and whether they are reflected in policies and procedures helps us to identify potential areas of cultural improvement. Our approach helps company’s to align policies and procedures with aspects of a positive culture.
- Data analysis: We look at hard data such as employee turnover and absenteeism rates to identify any trends over time and compare against industry benchmarks. We analyse this data to consider how these aspects might indicate employee dissatisfaction and a potential toxic culture.
How is culture improvement implemented in the workplace?
Once the culture assessment phase is complete and the areas of cultural improvement have been identified, we create a tailored plan which will bring about performance improvements, and which can be measured and monitored over time.
Whether that requires creating a transparent and trusted mechanism for raising concerns, or ensuring employees feel supported and able to carry out their jobs effectively.
We monitor progress in areas which have been identified to ensure our recommendations are being implemented.
Key Team Members & Associates
David Scott is Verita’s associate director and HR expert, specialising in people and the workplace. He is an experienced human resources director, having worked at Board/Executive level for more than 20 years, including senior positions at British Telecommunications plc, HM Prison Service and United Utilities plc.
David has been interim HR director of First Group, the Strategic Rail Authority and was interim Director of Workforce and Strategic HR at Kent and Medway Strategic Health Authority from 2004-2005.
Peter Killwick
Peter has 25 years of consulting experience covering a variety of strategic and operational issues in a wide range of sectors including healthcare.
He has extensive experience of conducting complex investigations within the NHS, both at operational and commissioner level, including several cases involving allegations raised by whistle-blowers.
Ed Marsden
Ed Marsden has a clinical background in general and psychiatric nursing and NHS management, and has worked for the Department of Health and the West Kent Health Authority as director of performance management.
He combines his responsibilities as Verita’s founder with an active role in leading complex consultancy and investigations. He worked with Kate Lampard to provide independent oversight of the 40 or so investigations carried out by the NHS into allegations about Jimmy Savile. Recent work includes leading a review of patient safety at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, and investigating the work-related death of an NHS manager.
Workplace culture management
In the corporate world, ethics are important so a positive workplace culture fuels employee engagement. When employees feel valued, respected, and part of a shared purpose, they’re more likely to go the extra mile. This translates to higher productivity, innovation, and ultimately, improved business performance.
In our experience, poor performance can often arise from a hostile or disengaged culture where negativity, low morale, and disrespect are common features.
Examples of poor workplace culture in business include:
Sex discrimination
- Inappropriate comments, jokes, or behaviour of a sexual nature towards female employees
- Women being excluded from training programs or development opportunities that would benefit their careers
- Consistently overlooking qualified women for promotions in favour of less qualified men
Bullying and harassment
- Intentionally excluding someone from meetings, projects, or social events
- Any unwelcome touching, grabbing, or physical intimidation
- Belittling or criticising an employee in front of colleagues
- Yelling, insults, or threats directed at employees
Our approach helps organisations to manage culture and create a safe and inclusive work environment so that these negative consequences can be avoided and the full potential of their workforce is unlocked.
Benefits of workplace culture consulting
A positive workplace culture provides the ideal foundation for your organisation to flourish, fostering growth, innovation, and ultimately, exceptional performance.
By partnering with Verita for your workplace culture consulting, you can expect a range of benefits, such as:
- Reduced incidents and personal injuries through a better safety culture
- Improved employee engagement, motivation and dedication by reducing the risk of a toxic culture
- Enhanced collaboration due to an environment of open communication
- Better brand perception through culture-conscious consumers
Case Study
Verita was commissioned by the maternity unit at a large acute trust to support the development of a protocol for the handling of births where the woman’s birth preference lies outside trust guidelines. Differing opinions between midwives and obstetricians about how to manage such cases had created a dysfunctional working environment which the trust identified as potentially compromising patient care.
We provided external support to resolve the cultural issues, combining focus groups, training and protocol development to achieve multi-professional working, breaking down barriers between midwives, obstetricians and other professionals. By helping individuals to operate as part of a team across professional disciplines the trust was able to deliver safe, personalised care for woman and their babies.
Culture Management FAQs
A Culture Review is an independent, deep-dive assessment of the “unwritten rules” and behaviors within an organization. You should consider one if you notice high staff turnover, an increase in “near-miss” incidents, or a decline in whistleblowing reports. Verita identifies the gap between your stated values and the lived experience of your employees to prevent systemic failures before they occur.
We use a combination of qualitative interviews, anonymous surveys, and “speak-up” data analysis. We measure whether employees feel safe to admit mistakes, ask questions, or challenge the status quo without fear of retribution. This is a critical metric for high-pressure environments like healthcare and regulated industries.
A workplace investigation is reactive and focuses on a specific incident or individual grievance to find facts. A Culture Review is proactive and holistic; it looks at the broader environment, leadership styles, and systemic issues that may be allowing individual grievances to arise in the first place.
Absolutely. Regulators (such as the CQC in healthcare or the FCA in finance) increasingly look at “culture” as a leading indicator of risk. A Verita Culture Review provides documented evidence that an organization is taking its “Duty of Candor” and “Governance” responsibilities seriously, often serving as a roadmap for regulatory improvement.
We prioritise psychological safety by offering high levels of anonymity to participants. While the final report provided to the Board or Leadership Team identifies systemic themes and risks, individual contributions are anonymised to ensure the most honest and accurate data is captured.
Find out more
If you would like more information on our tailored culture consulting services and how we work with organisations to assess and manage culture, please contact Verita founder Ed Marsden via email at [email protected] or on 020 7494 5670.
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