Most companies call themselves values-driven. They have a statement, a poster, maybe a mention in the onboarding deck. And that’s exactly the problem—values-driven has become table stakes, not an advantage. In this week’s Brand+Culture Series on LinkedIn, I make the case for something different: values-fused. It’s the shift from values a company has to values […]
Here’s a wake-up call as you lock in your 2026 strategy: 84% of leaders say long-term brand building is critical to business success, but only 36% believe their organizations are effective at it. That’s a huge gap! New research from Harvard Business Review Analytics reveals why most organizations fail at brand building and what the […]
Brand power comes from keeping – not only making – promises. And to keep your brand promises, your brand and culture must be aligned and integrated. In other words, brand-building requires brand-culture fusion. But a recent HBR article by Roger L. Martin, former dean of the Rotman School of Management, and a couple of LinkedIn […]
Celebrating my 20th anniversary of being an independent practitioner! As I reflect on my journey, I’m convinced that “culture” is as important for solopreneurs, coaches, and freelancers as it is for companies of thousands. Check out my thoughts on brand-culture fusion and why it matters for people who are self-employed. Let me know what you […]
The principles in my book, What Great Brands Do: The Seven Brand-Building Principles That Separate the Best from the Rest can be applied to employees, employee experience, and employee engagement. For example, in WGBD, I explain that Great Brands Avoid Selling Products. Instead of simply focusing on selling products or services to customers, great brands […]
To change your strategy – your what – you need to change your how – your culture. And you need to change your culture first – because your culture is what will ensure your organization is able to execute on your strategy. In my new Brand+Culture Series post on LinkedIn, I show how to use […]
Social media influencers and AI platforms are changing the way we connect with customers; they are also changing the way we use brands. Today brands are not only marketing outputs and strategic inputs. They are – or at least they should be – cultural cornerstones. Here is why. related: Prepare Your Culture for a Recession […]
How do you build a great brand? Ever since I wrote the book What Great Brands Do, I’ve been on a quest to discover and share answers to this question. While all seven brand-building principles that I introduced in the book still are important and relevant today, the one that has risen to the top […]
Now is the time to prepare your business for the recession. In addition to the typical strategies of cost-cutting and cash flow management, add culture-building. A healthy, effective, and resilient company culture can help you not just survive, but actually thrive during an economic downturn. In my new Smartbrief on Leadership video, I explain how […]
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently referred to Meta employees in a new way: Metamates. Is this a good idea? Should you use a coined name to refer to your employees? The poll I fielded on LinkedIn yielded a definitive answer: It depends. 28% supported the practice of made-up names for employees; 32% voted against it; […]