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Workplace culture is at a crossroads. Companies are grappling with the dual challenge of sustaining growth while supporting their employees amid rising concerns over burnout and mental health — what some have dubbed “The Great Exhaustion.”
A January 2024 SHRM report highlights how businesses are increasingly investing in mental health benefits to address these challenges, yet many employees still struggle to find balance. At the same time, debates over hybrid and remote work persist, with companies like Amazon facing backlash for their return-to-office mandates. These trends underscore a universal truth: Scaling a company’s culture is as complex as it is critical. As businesses grow, maintaining a thriving, values-driven environment becomes one of the toughest challenges leaders face.
At Tinuiti, this challenge has been a constant companion in our journey. What began two decades ago as a five-person team driven by a vision to put people first has grown into one of the largest independent full-funnel performance marketing agencies in the U.S. Through it all, we’ve learned that culture isn’t static — it must evolve alongside your business to meet the needs of both your people and your goals.
Here are five key lessons we’ve gained on navigating the complexities of scaling culture while staying grounded in our core values.
Related: What Makes a Great Company Culture (and Why It Matters)
1. Accept that culture must evolve
One of the biggest challenges in scaling culture is resisting the urge to cling to how things were in the past. If we tried to replicate the energy and perks of our original small team, we’d be ignoring the needs of the thousand-plus employees we have today. As companies grow, culture must evolve to serve the greater good, not just individual preferences.
According to Harvard Business Review’s research, 73% of employees report that working in an office feels more expensive than pre-pandemic, and nearly half believe that return-to-office mandates prioritize leadership preferences over employee needs. Forward-thinking companies are addressing these concerns by reimagining benefits — offering solutions like remote-work stipends, caregiver support and even housing subsidies to alleviate the burdens associated with office work.
By recognizing that perks and policies must adapt to align with evolving employee priorities, organizations can avoid alienating their workforce and ensure that their culture scales effectively alongside their operations.
2. Know when to evolve and when to change
Understanding the difference between evolving and changing is critical. Evolution involves gradual improvements, while change requires a transformative shift. At Tinuiti, this distinction has been vital in keeping our culture adaptable and strong, particularly when addressing our compensation system.
Initially, we used a straightforward, individual-focused merit model that worked well for our small, single-channel agency. However, as we grew into a multi-channel, integrated operation, it became clear that this model didn’t fully support the collaborative, cross-functional work we were doing. To address these challenges, we’ve restructured our approach multiple times, both evolving and implementing bold changes to better align with our culture and goals.
Most recently, we launched Project Simplifi, an agency-wide reorganization designed to balance individual achievement with team-based success. This evolution helps employees continue to earn competitively while gaining new opportunities for role and career growth within Tinuiti’s expanding framework. By reinforcing our Culture of Ownership, this model fosters a sense of shared success, aligning employee growth with the growth of the business.
3. Get out of the echo chamber
The more senior you become, the harder it is to get an honest picture of reality. Leadership often finds itself at the center of two opposing forces. On one side, people may hold back, offering only selective feedback to avoid upsetting leadership or shielding the CEO from bad news. On the other, the “squeaky wheel” effect can skew perceptions, as the loudest voices dominate conversations, often without the full context needed to resolve underlying issues.
To counter these challenges, leaders must actively seek out diverse perspectives and ensure communication flows both ways. For example, Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai conducts regular town hall meetings and employee surveys to gather insights and address concerns. During these meetings, Pichai often faces tough questions from employees, such as addressing company cost-cutting measures or clarifying organizational priorities, as highlighted during recent town halls.
Despite the challenges, these candid conversations help create an environment where employees feel their voices matter and foster trust through transparency.
Related: How To Create a Work Culture Where Everyone Has A Voice
4. Embrace change but hold tight to core values
As leaders, our role is to create an environment where change is understood, not feared. Not every change will feel good; some will push people out of their comfort zones. However, when core values remain strong and consistently visible, teams are better equipped to navigate these shifts with resilience.
While culture evolves to reflect the challenges and opportunities an organization faces, values provide the foundation that anchors decision-making and behavior. They define the principles that guide actions, ensuring that even as processes and strategies change, the organization remains true to what matters most.
Sprout Social offers a powerful example of how values can anchor organizations during disruption. Just three months before the global health crisis, Sprout went public, gaining new capital and momentum. But when the pandemic hit, the newly public company had to adapt quickly.
By leaning on its core principles — communication, accountability and care — Sprout provided employees with the tools to transition to remote work and supported customers through uncertainty. These actions not only helped Sprout navigate the crisis but also reinforced its culture.
The lesson for other companies? In times of rapid change, staying grounded in core values can guide decision-making, strengthen culture and ensure resilience, even in the face of major disruption.
5. Be the chief reminder officer
As a leader, it’s your job to consistently remind the team of your company’s core values. This may feel repetitive, but it’s essential to keep those values alive and actionable. Without reinforcement, values risk becoming hollow corporate slogans. At Tinuiti, transparency is one of our guiding principles, and we make it a daily practice through open communication channels like huddles, LinkedIn posts and office hours.
Transparency, however, isn’t just about sharing information — it’s about creating responsibility. For example, during a recent office hour, we discussed what “appropriate transparency” means: Sharing enough insights for employees to feel like owners without overwhelming them with unnecessary details. I often ask the team, “How does this information help you improve client outcomes?” These questions reinforce transparency as more than just a corporate value — it’s a strategic tool for empowerment.
By embedding these discussions into everyday practices, we ensure transparency remains a deliberate and meaningful part of our Culture of Ownership, helping employees align their work with the company’s broader mission.
Ultimately, scaling a company is difficult. Scaling a culture is complex. Doing both at the same time? That’s the ultimate challenge — and it only becomes harder as your organization grows, with the connection to your culture increasingly relying on others to carry it forward.
Don’t assume culture will scale itself. A thriving culture of ownership requires intention, action and a constant stream of reminders. If I could offer one piece of advice to leaders, it’s this: You can’t please everyone when you scale — value the constructive direct critics and don’t take personally the loud minority who hide behind anonymity as well as the traditionalists who resist change. And remember, the rewards of building a culture that grows alongside your company far outweigh the challenges.
Judge yourself on whether you have stayed true to your values. In my case, performance over politics, experience over opinion, “we” over “I,” transparency over fragility, and most importantly, actually helping people over making performative gestures.
Success is reflected in shared outcomes — employees advancing in their lives and careers, loyal clients whose businesses thrive and stakeholders achieving their goals. When all three are aligned, your culture will flourish. Scaling culture is an ongoing process of listening, adjusting and reinforcing what matters most.
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