Catrin Lewis, founder and lead consultant at POP, discusses the topic of employee experience, and how the CEO holds all the cards to create a successful company culture.

A new era of leadership is here – where CEO stands for more than chief executive officer. With 71% of CEOs saying culture positively impacts financial performance, it’s an era where the smartest leaders know culture is the most significant competitive advantage. So, the CEO fully embodies every aspect of Culture and Engagement and, as a result, creates endless Opportunities for their business.

These three elements are the cornerstone of epic success. I've witnessed this transformation over the past decade, working alongside some of the most visionary leaders, and I’ve seen how much it sparks innovation, fuels growth and powers business success.

Culture: CEOs hold the key

Company culture can’t flourish from the bottom up; it needs nurturing. Culture will grow best with guidance and shaping by an unwavering commitment from the top.

As CEO, your role is cultivating a vibrant culture through guidance, not imposition. Your actions, words and behaviours shape culture. Your people look to you to set the tone, and how you treat them will be mirrored in the culture you create. Embrace your culture authentically, talk to your people honestly, default to transparency and watch as your team becomes the driving force behind bringing your vision to life.

Your workforce will become engaged and inspired if you live and love your culture. They’ll feel empowered to implement your strategy, grow your business, and make incredible moves on your company’s behalf.

However, visibility is paramount. And when I say visibility, this doesn’t have to mean losing loads of time to new projects or making substantial financial investments in new tech.

Small gestures will make a profound impact:

• Be approachable: Position your desk among your team to foster seamless integration.
• Be open: Initiate your day with a warm "good morning," sparking genuine conversations.
• Acknowledge effort: Engage with teams remotely, acknowledging efforts and milestones with praise and thank you.
• Recognise great behaviour: Each week, shout out the individuals who align with your cultural ethos and move the needle forward.
• Be relatable: Open up and humanise your leadership style by allowing people to learn a little more about you – think personal photos and celebrating team members’ lives outside work.
• Be connected: Personalise corporate messages by addressing your team members by name for a direct connection and showing them you know and appreciate their efforts.

It might seem like a wild idea, but one of the most influential business leaders I know was courageous enough to share his own stories on mental health and to open up about grief and anxiety. When companies try so hard to understand the experience of their people, talking openly about their own experiences transformed the company's approach to mental health, catapulting the campaign to unprecedented heights of engagement. Subsequently, the introduction of well-being coaching has been a resounding success, fuelling engagement and illustrating how the company lives their values beautifully.

Engagement: Igniting innovation

True engagement is when your team is as passionate about the company's vision as you are. It's the flame from which innovation and growth ignite.

Engagement must be on par with other strategic imperatives for this to be possible. The best leaders I work with understand that business strategy isn’t all about the money. They’ll create intelligent strategies that drive product, maximise profit and underpin it with robust support for their people. This equal focus on product, profit and people gives them the edge.

But make no mistake, while you may have thought engagement is simply an HR buzzword, it isn't a solo endeavour for HR; it needs CEOs to champion it. A positive culture will thrive by acting as guardians of company culture, encouraging the team to voice opinions, even if they challenge the status quo, and embodying the mission and values fully.

Opportunity: Encouraging greatness

When the athlete Roger Bannister ran solo, he couldn’t break the four-minute mile. But as soon as he had his team around him with his pacesetters pushing him on, he achieved a goal everyone had previously thought impossible. Likewise, in business, teams shine brightest with the right backing.

Foster a growth mindset in your people by helping them recognise their strengths and potential. Too often, I see a sole focus on the best salesperson or biggest win getting all the attention. But what about the invisible work of others? Every role, whether directly linked to new business or operational support, must be celebrated for its contribution to success.

Consistent dialogues and discussions with managers can be used to identify and spotlight personal success. Tracking back to your strategy and pointing out how individuals have helped achieve the company goals is powerful. Your people will see the purposeful impact they are making and the huge amount of opportunity ahead.

As we redefine what it means to be a CEO, ask yourself: How are you influencing culture, nurturing engagement, and crafting opportunities within your organisation? I look forward to exploring this and much more with you in February at Employee Xperience Expo 2025.