Most organizations love the idea that strategy happens at the top: executives develop it, and employees on the ground execute it. Things somewhere in the middle just work. We wave our hands, and like magic, processes fall into place.
Well, that’s not exactly true. Somewhere in the middle is exactly where most strategies succeed or fail.
Across all industries and studies, one pattern rears its head again and again: well-designed strategy rarely translates into actual output. It isn’t so much that the vision is wrong, per se; it is simply a matter of losing it along the way, of it being diluted or misunderstood.
That gap between intent and output lies where middle managers work. Enabling or neglecting them often dictates whether change will take hold or fade under its own weight.
In this article, we delve into this critical role by drawing on diverse views on change management, strategy execution, and leadership behaviours. Each section looks at this issue from a different angle; all reflect the same truth: middle managers aren’t merely intermediaries-they are the mechanism by which strategy takes shape in organizations.
The Strategic Translation Layer: How Middle Managers Turn Vision into Action
While an organization’s strategy defines what it wishes to achieve, it is middle managers who help transform that vision into something understandable and executable.
They occupy a unique position in organizations: positioned above are executives focused on strategy and priority-setting; below them, employees face the challenges of day-to-day operations. It is this dual orientation that grants them the detail executives often lack: context.
They are attuned to what leadership wants and what employees can realistically achieve.
Their ability to both translate strategy into executable plans and adjust plans to the realities of the work lies in their interpretation and adaptation of information from above and below. It is quite akin to alchemical transformation.
Studies and research consistently cite the translation role as critical. Employees’ understanding and belief in strategy correlates with performance gains, whether measured by revenue, engagement, job satisfaction, or customer experience. However, almost every time, without fail, understanding tends to stem not from the top but from above.
The irony is that strategy often never reaches the middle clearly. Managers often say they are not entirely confident in communicating strategy because they don’t fully understand it themselves. This deficit can ripple outward; the entire organization becomes unclear when the middle is unclear.
In sum, strategy fails not at the design stage, but at the translation stage, and this translation layer usually resides with middle managers.
From Resistance to Alignment: How Change Spreads Organically Inside Organizations
Despite having a strategy at the top, people will rarely fall in line spontaneously. Change within organizations is not a rational, top-down endeavor; rather, it is inherently social and emotional.
Initially, there is likely a division among middle managers. Some champion the new strategy, others defend established procedures. Each response is a common feature of this stage. However, with time, a subtle change occurs.
Initially reluctant middle managers may come to realize that even deeply cherished practices and systems will not persist in their current form without adaptation; innovation may actually be the means of preservation. As this occurs at the individual level, influence begins to be driven by credibility rather than by authority alone.
When a well-respected middle manager adopts a new perspective, it serves as an influential model, drawing followers and shaping the organization’s discourse around the strategy. The transformation begins to gain organic momentum, spreading not through directives, but through personal relationships and evolving consensus.
Eventually, the organization may realize that innovation and tradition are not necessarily antithetical and that alignment can provide the foundation for bridging them.
Organizational change is an emergent phenomenon rather than an announced decision. It evolves in the middle layers of leadership. As a result, organizational change rarely occurs rapidly; however, it is usually the long, slow process within middle management that results in the enduring transformation of an organization’s overall culture.
Why Strategy Fails: The Under-Discussed Problem of Alignment
Executives tend to view strategy execution as a technical problem – a matter of disciplined execution. In reality, it is almost always an alignment issue.
A) Vast studies have consistently shown that many of a strategy’s failed initiatives were not based on flawed ideas but on an inability to ensure consistent implementation. The literature frequently reports strategy implementation failure rates ranging from 50% to 90%, although these estimates are debated and vary across pieces of research.
This metric doesn’t reflect intellect or diligence; it reflects a breakdown in alignment and clarity.
Often, leaders see the strategy as transparent, while employees, and particularly middle managers, experience it as ambiguous or fragmented. This disconnect, a wide chasm between top-level confidence and the reality below, renders the strategy powerless. Instead of directing action, it becomes abstract material in presentation slides.
B) Another factor leading to failure is prioritization: where strategy is unclear, every initiative appears vital. Where all initiatives are vital, no single effort receives the attention it deserves.
It is middle managers who, day in and day out, must navigate this contradiction; they are the individuals making real-time choices about where effort and resources will be directed. They don’t merely execute strategy, but adapt and interpret it.
Indeed, alignment matters far more than planning. No strategy, however ingenious, can survive long-term failure to align the organization. Strategy fails not because of popular opposition, but because of differential experience with it across different parts of an organization.
The Reality of the Middle Manager’s Role: Pressure, Ambiguity, and Overload
It’s a lot more comfortable to use words like “bridge” to describe middle managers than to be comfortable with what this feels like.
Middle managers operate in two directions at once:
They are recipients of directives on strategy, mandates for transformation, and performance targets.
They are also simultaneously dealing with team members’ issues, capacity constraints, execution realities, and their own team’s morale.
That combination creates a structural tension that is difficult to resolve.
A primary factor in this challenge is role ambiguity. How much autonomy middle managers actually possess often becomes unclear.
Are they strictly implementation-focused, or is the implementation adaptable to the reality of the work? How accountable should middle managers be for things beyond their direct control?
Lack of clarity about how much discretion they have inevitably leads to overload. Without clear boundaries, it becomes impossible for middle managers to distinguish between urgent and important, leading to more reactive rather than strategic prioritization of activities.
The capability gap is another widely overlooked issue. Moving from operational leader to translator of strategy requires a fundamentally different skill set. This mental shift is rarely formally part of a middle manager’s promotion and development plan. Middle managers are frequently promoted based on their ability to execute and are expected to become capable strategic communicators and leaders of change immediately.
The result is the expected: stress, fatigue, strain, burnout, and disengagement.
It does not just affect individual middle managers. Lower productivity, scattered priorities, increased staff turnover, and a weaker alignment between middle management and the overall strategy are all byproducts of middle manager overload within an organization.
In other words, the pressure on the middle layer is a systemic challenge, not just for individual managers.
Making Strategy Work: Enabling Middle Managers
Given the importance of the middle manager layer, the question arises: why do organizations underinvest in it?
In most cases, the answer is a combination of inertia and an overemphasis on strategy design, with a laissez-faire approach to execution, assuming it will happen automatically.
However, nothing could be further from the truth.
The most effective method to improve strategy execution isn’t more strategy – it’s stronger enablement for those who translate it into reality.
1) The first crucial step is clarity of role and expectations.
Managers need to understand precisely what will be asked of them, which decisions they own, which must be escalated, and what successful execution looks like in practical terms.
Uncertainty and ambiguity lead to either constant over-escalation or boundary overstepping.
2) Second, capabilities must be developed.
Strategic execution requires much more than the ability to complete tasks. It relies on strong coaching and change management skills, so investment in development in these areas cannot remain just a nice-to-have option if consistent execution is the objective. It is mandatory, if one cares for the success of their business, that is.
3) Third, leadership alignment is critical.
If, on the one hand, middle managers are viewed as merely messengers, they cannot provide valuable feedback to those who designed the strategy, and their engagement in the process will be low.
If, on the other hand, they are valued for the insights they can provide on the ground, they will provide valuable input to the strategic planning process.
4) Fourth, the organization needs feedback loops that work in both directions.
Managers need to effectively communicate execution challenges upwards, while leadership needs to clearly articulate the strategic rationale downwards.
Without an effective two-way feedback structure, a series of distortions emerges, leading each successive level to hear a modified version of the intended strategy.
5) Finally, rewards are important.
Organizations signal to their employees what is valued by reinforcing both operational execution and transformation. Recognition for change leadership rather than just task completion ensures that the challenging work of strategy implementation is integrated into everyday performance.
With these conditions, middle managers transform from overburdened intermediaries into powerful drivers of organizational direction.
Final Thoughts
When reviewing the research and evidence, one theme consistently emerges: the middle management layer is not an auxiliary level in the organization but rather the engine through which strategy actually takes effect.
Middle managers take high-level direction and transform it into tangible actions, process ambiguity into decisions, resist resistance, and disseminate understanding throughout the organization through relationships rather than purely by authority.
Strategy becomes stuck when this layer is not supported. When enabled properly and with a clear understanding, strategy advances with great celerity.
Most successful organizations prioritize investing in the enablement of their middle managers-the people who bring their strategy to life every day-rather than focusing solely on better strategic design.
This is because, in the final analysis, at the end of it all, strategy failure does not occur in the boardroom but in the middle.
Bridging the gap between strategy and execution requires more than intent—it requires the right frameworks and capabilities. Enroll in the Certified Strategy and Business Planning Professional and Practitioner program by The KPI Institute to learn how to align strategy, planning, and performance for meaningful organizational results.
Many organizations believe that employees who disengage lack motivation or discipline. However, most of the time, people disengage for less obvious reasons, such as a lack of clarity.
When people are not fully aware of what matters, why it matters, how urgent it is, or how success is defined, a gradual shift in performance begins. Teams keep working, meetings keep happening, deadlines are being met, and dashboards are being updated, but truly productive momentum is fading.
The organization, while busy on the outside, is subtly becoming misaligned beneath the surface.
This disconnect rarely happens because employees lose interest. More often, it occurs when strategy gets fuzzy, or performance systems overwhelm rather than guide. In these instances, humans intuitively start to optimize for predictability rather than for impact.
The net result is an organization that is busy but lacks momentum.
Recognizing the psychological and operational impacts of vague objectives is critical for organizations striving to link strategy with execution. When goals lack clarity, the highest-performing teams will inevitably lose focus, ownership, and engagement over the longer term.
Why Employee Engagement Fades When Goals Feel Vague
Employees are more likely to remain engaged when they have a clear understanding of the purpose and meaning that their efforts will ultimately generate. When organizational objectives feel distant, intangible, inscrutable, or disconnected from daily actions, a sense of purpose dwindles.
Most organizations have their strategy documented in broad strokes. Common strategy descriptions are “become more innovative”, “focus on the customer”, “lead the transformation”, or “drive greater growth”. While appealing at the leadership level, these aspirations provide little direct guidance for employees.
This begins to create psychological dissonance between effort and outcome.
People naturally seek validation of their efforts and will readily respond to goals that provide evidence of what they are working towards. When individuals don’t have that direct visibility and connection to business outcomes, work becomes functional rather than purposeful.
Emotional investment then begins to decline with celerity.
Employees start to emphasize the accomplishment of immediate, tactical tasks over those that lead to meaningful organizational outcomes because the former offer clearer feedback and more predictable results.
Abstract goals also create divergent interpretations across the organization. Different parts of the organization define success using their own unique frame of reference rather than by overarching organizational goals.
Fragmentation ultimately weakens alignment as it expands throughout departments and teams.
This impact is exacerbated in larger, geographically diverse, or hybrid organizations.
Engagement doesn’t come from being assigned work; it comes from a clear understanding of what it represents.
The Psychological Impact of Unclear Priorities
In addition to reducing operational efficiency, undefined priorities induce psychological stress.
When individuals face competing demands, constantly shifting expectations, or inconsistent direction, they live with perpetual uncertainty about where to direct their efforts.
Humans crave clarity and predictability. When organizational priorities are murky, employees enter a continuous evaluation cycle, questioning their own decisions and seeking clarification from managers.
Stress levels increase
Employees may grow fearful that they are focusing on the wrong tasks or failing to meet expectations.
Cognitive efficiency decreases
Employees divert their attention to several perceived urgencies instead of focusing on tasks that generate strategic value.
This inevitably drives reactive, rather than strategic, decision-making.
Organizations rarely appreciate the compounding impact that this situation has on employee performance.
Conflicts arise, priorities must be constantly re-negotiated, and employees often give up trying to anticipate future work and simply manage the current uncertainty.
Overloading the Employee’s Mind with KPIs
Performance measurement is crucial for establishing and maintaining alignment across an organization; however, organizations often undermine performance when they measure too much.
As businesses become increasingly data-driven, organizations tend to develop more sophisticated KPI-based measurement systems and dashboards. Ironically, when overused, they can cause cognitive overload.
You can only keep a couple of metrics truly in focus. The moment you start asking people to juggle fifty metrics, attention becomes diffused.
This causes three distinct problems:
1. Paralysis
People cannot decide which metrics truly matter and either spread their effort thinly across all of them or focus only on the easiest metrics to influence.
2. Reduced Strategic Focus
Instead of focusing on organizational outcomes, individuals and teams focus on individual metrics.
You end up rewarding people for managing dashboards instead of solving problems.
3. Increased Mental Fatigue
People are forced to keep switching tasks, and the cost of switching accumulates.
The result is that the measurement system itself becomes demotivating.
The most effective organizations succeed because they know that using too many metrics creates more complexity and less clarity.
How Ambiguity Produces “Safe” Instead of Effective Work
An unclear environment can often lead employees to produce “safe” work.
“Safe” work implies completing tasks in a way that minimizes individual risk or visibility.
Ambiguous organizations tend to foster environments where risk-taking is discouraged.
The organization starts to become performance-oriented toward easily defensible activities.
The culture of innovation, as a result, becomes greatly hindered.
Employees are encouraged to maintain the status quo even if it isn’t delivering true organizational value.
By reducing the psychological costs of taking action, organizations increase motivation to do meaningful work.
The Distinction Between Compliance and Commitment
Compliance: employees work to do what they are told.
Commitment: employees work to achieve desired results in ways they believe add value.
These may appear similar on the surface, but what happens underneath is fundamentally different.
Compliant employees focus on doing enough to satisfy expectations.
Committed employees proactively solve problems, collaborate effectively, and adapt more willingly to change.
The gap between compliance and commitment is fundamentally a problem of unclear purpose, low trust, and lack of meaning.
Companies driven by commitment outperform those that rely solely on compliance.
Final Thoughts
The most fundamental reason companies fail isn’t that their people don’t work hard enough; it is that the work they do does not add sufficient value because they cannot clearly see the point.
Unclear priorities, complex systems, and undefined success measures dilute people’s focus, create psychological stress, and diminish initiative.
Strategic alignment is a psychological discipline as much as a tactical or operational one.
Without clear alignment, people can put in a lot of effort without ever having a significant impact because the connection between their work and intended results is too weak.
Think of workplace culture as the foundation of a building—no matter how sturdy the walls or advanced the design, weaknesses will emerge without a strong base, leading to potential failure. Similarly, even the most well-crafted strategies and key performance indicators (KPIs) cannot compensate for a weak workplace culture. In this interview, Mohannad Al-Ghazo, a management consultant at The KPI Institute, shares insights into why culture plays a significant role in fostering sustainable performance.
From your own professional experience, what key elements are indispensable in cultivating a performance-oriented culture, and how have they influenced your work?
A strong performance culture comes from clear goals, accountability, and openness. At Innovia Biobank, I introduced automation to track performance, which helped reduce bad debts and improve efficiency. Similarly, at The KPI Institute, I’ve seen how customized training and clear KPI frameworks help teams stay focused and improve results.
Strategic priorities today are being shaped by trends such as the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), reskilling efforts, and economic pressures, as highlighted in the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs 2025 report. In light of these trends, should we anticipate shifts in organizational culture? And if so, what might those changes look like?
Yes, organizations are moving toward AI-driven decisions, flexible work models, and continuous learning, and The KPI Institute helps companies adapt their KPIs to reflect these changes. For example, many companies now track digital skills development as a key performance measure, showing how important adaptability has become.
In light of ongoing workplace shifts, which cultural trends do you think are having the greatest impact on increasing work productivity and individual performance?
Remote and hybrid work flexibility, personalized performance incentives, and AI-driven decision-making are the key trends shaping productivity. Empowering employees with autonomy, leveraging AI for task optimization, and fostering a results-driven rather than process-driven approach have proven to enhance both engagement and efficiency.
In today’s agile work environment, sustainability continues to be a key strategic consideration. In your view, how can organizations truly embed sustainability values in their culture, beyond just meeting regulatory compliance?
Sustainability must be part of daily operations, not just policies. At Innovia Biobank, we automate lab processes to cut costs and reduce waste. At The KPI Institute, we help companies implement sustainability KPIs to improve efficiency, track progress, and enhance resilience. These KPIs ensure accountability, align with global standards, and drive measurable impact, helping businesses integrate sustainability into their core strategy for long-term success.
As organizations adapt to these cultural and strategic changes, what key actions can leaders take to make sure performance isn’t just maintained but enhanced?
Leaders must shift from monitoring tasks to coaching teams, leveraging real-time analytics for agile decision-making. In this shift, transparent goal-setting, continuous learning, and fostering innovation are crucial. By embedding a performance-driven mindset, as we did at The KPI Institute, we saw productivity surge through clear accountability and structured KPIs.
A major factor influencing workplace culture and performance is work structure. How do you see changes such as the back-to-office push influencing employee motivation and effectiveness? In your opinion, is a remote or office-based approach better?
A hybrid model is optimal as it balances collaboration with flexibility. While in-office work strengthens culture and alignment, remote setups boost productivity and work-life balance. The best approach depends on industry demands, but autonomy and trust in employees yield the highest performance levels.
Given these structural and cultural shifts, what methods have you observed that organizations use to assess employee performance nowadays, and do these methods really help people achieve better results?
Companies are moving away from traditional annual reviews to real-time tracking. At The KPI Institute, we work with companies that use performance dashboards to track progress throughout the year. This helps managers give faster feedback, keeping employees focused and improving overall performance.
How can organizations make a smooth transition from the traditional rating and ranking evaluation system to agile employee performance management?
Shifting focus from rigid numerical ratings to goal-based and competency-driven evaluations can evolve traditional ranking systems into a more agile and adaptive approach to performance management. Incorporating regular check-ins, self-assessments, and AI-driven insights can provide more meaningful feedback. Additionally, clear communication and training ensure employee buy-in, which makes the transition seamless and effective.
Looking at what works in practice, what is one tool, method, or approach that has proven most effective in your organization for driving employee performance?
Data-driven decision-making combined with automated KPI tracking has been the most effective. At Innovia Biobank, integrating systems, applications, and products (SAP) in data processing and customer relationship management (CRM) systems provided real-time insights that improved performance visibility and accountability across departments.
While performance incentives like targets and bonus systems are designed to drive results, they can sometimes lead to undesirable attitudes and consequences. How can organizations avoid the negative impacts of target setting at the employee level?
Organizations should balance quantitative targets with qualitative measures. Emphasizing collaboration, learning, and process improvements prevents a toxic, target-obsessed culture. Moreover, aligning individual goals with company missions ensures motivation remains purpose-driven rather than pressure-driven.
Over the years, what’s been the most surprising or counterintuitive lesson you’ve learned about organizational culture, and how has it shaped your approach to leadership?
Culture is more important than strategy or KPIs alone. At The KPI Institute, I’ve seen that even the best systems won’t work unless employees feel valued and supported. When people believe in the company’s vision, they perform better—not because they have to, but because they want to.
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Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Performance Magazine Issue No. 23, 2025 – Employee Performance Edition.
About the Expert: An award-winning management consultant, Mohannad Al-Ghazo was recognized in 2023 as the Most Visionary Healthcare Diversification CEO. With over 13 years of leadership in healthcare, biobanking, and business transformation, he drives innovation and operational excellence across industries. He believes long-term success depends not just on strategy or KPIs but on agile performance management, which emphasizes adaptability, collaboration, and growth.
In the game of basketball, a well-defined playbook sets the foundation for a winning team. The same principle applies to nurturing a workplace culture. Without a strong framework, workplace culture can feel like a chaotic, uncoordinated game. According to Eric Lynn, Senior Learning Manager at Microsoft, establishing clear standards creates an environment where employees understand expectations, perform at their best, and contribute to a culture of excellence. He is also a professional coach at Microsoft’s Customer and Partner Solutions (MCAPS) organization, where his role is integral to supporting the company’s Growth Mindset Culture.
Eric’s background in sports administration instilled in him a deep understanding of teamwork, strategy, and leadership, which he further refined through a Master of Science in Organizational Management and Leadership. With over 17 years of experience in learning and development, he shares in this interview a unique perspective on how training programs, strong leadership, and a results-driven approach can drive long-term business success.
From your own professional experience, what key elements are indispensable in cultivating a performance-oriented culture, and how have they influenced your work?
I think in a performance-based culture, it is imperative to have transparency and clear standards. If you can understand what the guidelines are and how to achieve them, the more consistent and impactful the team’s performance will be.
Strategic priorities today are being shaped by trends such as the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), reskilling efforts, and economic pressures, as highlighted in the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs 2025 report. In light of these trends, should we anticipate shifts in organizational culture?And if so, what might those changes look like?
Yes, and I believe we will be moving to a more team-oriented performance culture. Two reasons why a strong team culture is important in today’s workforce are that it helps improve our use of new technologies and enables us to work together to handle pressures, both economic and industry-based. While we tend to focus on individual performance, the leader of a work group or a senior-level employee will also be held accountable if they don’t have clear standards. When the rules are inconsistent, employees will be unable to make the impact needed to overcome the potential cuts brought about by the cultural shift.
In light of ongoing workplace shifts, which cultural trends do you think are having the greatest impact on increasing work productivity and individual performance?
The use of AI as a true partner for an individual will be a big transition for productivity and performance. I see that being able to work alongside this technology opens up and improves productivity. From a performance standard, it really allows individuals to focus on more important and pressing work.
In today’s agile work environment, sustainability continues to be a key strategic consideration. In your view, how can organizations truly embed sustainability values in their culture, beyond just meeting regulatory compliance?
I feel that diversity plays a significant role in how company members see and support each other. The more they embrace different perspectives and collaborate effectively, the stronger their ability to work together toward shared goals. In our organization, we avoid unnecessary travel and wasted time associated with in-person training events. Travel for a global workforce can not only create financial instability but also increase emissions and generate additional waste, such as food waste. It is important to balance return on investment with time spent to ensure we are acting as responsible global and financial stewards of the business.
As organizations adapt to these cultural and strategic changes, what key actions can leaders take to make sure performance isn’t just maintained but enhanced?
Leaders need to be very clear on what the standards are for the team and organization. While there shouldn’t be a big departure between these, it is so important in a world riddled with changes that there is always a foundation on what the goal is for the team and organization. Leaders also need to foster a mindset wherein everyone counts; if a member of the team is struggling, we need to think about why and what can be done to help. It may be solved through training or having a conversation at the individual level, but I feel more and more that we need to have honest conversations around role changes and work scope.
A major factor influencing workplace culture and performance is work structure. How do you see changes such as the back-to-office push influencing employee motivation and effectiveness? In your opinion, is a remote or office-based approach better?
I find that if standards are clear and individuals are given autonomy, their workplace won’t matter— they will strive for success and contribute regardless. However, I do feel that a lack of trust can be a significant factor affecting employees. Personally, I find a hybrid situation impactful and beneficial in managing expectations and more.
Given these structural and cultural shifts, what methods have you observed that organizations use to assess employee performance nowadays, and do these methods really help people achieve better results?
Organizations with a true team culture deliver the best team performance. When a company has subjective standards, it can be hard to take things seriously. Overall, I feel that the technology industry is taking a strong approach to accountability. I do like this approach, but in order for it to truly be effective and impactful, leaders must have a strong team culture with clear standards.
How can organizations make a smooth transition from the traditional rating and ranking evaluation system to agile employee performance management?
Having clear standards and providing solid coaching can uphold teams and employees. It is important that leaders remain curious and always review the process and the structure before jumping to the individual. I think organizations that do that and help those around them and see how they contribute can create a good environment centered around healthy performance management.
Looking at what works in practice, what is one tool, method, or approach that has proven most effective in your organization for driving employee performance?
The principles around curiosity and coaching have been good at helping to remove judgment and inspection. One example involved a manager who had an opportunity to improve performance. Rather than inspecting or placing blame on the organization, we focused on key learnings that could guide future improvements and help carry the work forward. This approach demonstrates a vested interest in continuous improvement and in building examples of how this can work in the future.
Asking thoughtful questions such as “What about…?” or “That’s a great idea—have we considered…?” helps to better understand the mindset behind decisions and fosters a more constructive approach to problem-solving.
While performance incentives like targets and bonus systems are designed to drive results, they can sometimes lead to undesirable attitudes and consequences. How can organizations avoid the negative impacts of target setting at the employee level?
It has to come down to a strong correlation beyond the reward. Employees need to understand that it is about leaving an impact that helps improve a group versus not. While employees can receive a bonus for their performance, it really comes down to how the organization and the company feel.
Over the years, what’s been the most surprising or counterintuitive lesson you’ve learned about organizational culture, and how has it shaped your approach to leadership?
I have learned the importance of transparency, which means having clear standards of what excellence looks like in top performance. I have seen this effectively used by senior leaders by being very clear on expectations, allowing their teams to align with those standards. For example, this includes guidance on how to influence for impact, the key competencies required at each level, and the structural framework needed to make it work. I think of it like a motion offense in basketball—the more structure you give your players, the more ability and autonomy you give them to make the decisions.
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Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Performance Magazine Issue No. 32, 2025 – Employee Performance Edition.
With return-to-office mandates looming on the horizon, workplace culture is more important than ever. But what constitutes this culture? What shapes it? Steluţa Elena Mihai might just have the insights you’re looking for.
Steluţa co-founded Meraki HR, a company that provides tailored HR solutions. She has two master’s degrees (one in business management and another in labor law), a certificate in sport psychology for athletes’ development, and multiple certifications in strategic HR, communication, and leadership. In this interview, Steluţa explores what workplace culture looks like beneath the surface.
From your own professional experience, what key elements are indispensable in cultivating a performance-oriented culture, and how have they influenced your work?
A performance-driven culture relies on clear expectations, a goal-setting process, and leaders who walk the talk. Transparency in objectives and accountability enhances trust, while investing in the personal and emotional development of higher management ensures strong decision-making and resilience at the top. Without these, engagement and long-term performance suffer.
In my work, I’ve seen that companies that are underperforming in these areas often struggle with engagement and retention, no matter how much they invest in their performance management tools.
Strategic priorities today are being shaped by trends such as the rise of AI, reskilling efforts, and economic pressures, as highlighted in the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs 2025 report. In light of these trends, should we anticipate shifts in organizational culture? And if so, what might those changes look like?
AI is changing the way we work, but its impact depends on how we understand and use it. The key is smart, compliant, and ethical adoption—leveraging AI to enhance productivity without replacing critical human decision-making. The trend shows that if companies fail to adapt strategically, they will struggle to stay competitive.
In light of ongoing workplace shifts, which cultural trends do you think are having the greatest impact on increasing work productivity and individual performance?
Prioritizing mental health – Companies that understand and recognize burnout will actively support well-being and will achieve higher long-term productivity.
High-performance mindset – Understanding the principles of peak performance helps individuals sustain motivation and effectiveness.
Hybrid work, done right – Hybrid and remote work boost productivity, but without clear accountability structures, they fall short. Flexibility must come with the responsibility to ensure that outcomes are met.
In today’s agile work environment, sustainability continues to be a key strategic consideration. In your view, how can organizations truly embed sustainability values in their culture, beyond just meeting regulatory compliance?
This crucial topic is still waiting for its authentic moment in the spotlight. Sustainable behaviors are often overlooked because everyone loves a report that looks good on paper. People’s values and behaviors shape company culture, so organizations should examine how and whom they recruit, how and whom they promote. True sustainability isn’t about ticking boxes; it’s about hiring and developing individuals who genuinely prioritize sustainability in their decision-making.
As organizations adapt to these cultural and strategic changes, what key actions can leaders take to make sure performance isn’t just maintained but enhanced?
Success at work triggers dopamine, leading to feelings of fulfillment and motivation. To enhance performance, organizations must create processes and provide tools that help employees consistently achieve their best outcomes year after year. When people experience progress, their engagement and drive increase, reinforcing a cycle of continuous improvement. Leaders should focus on removing obstacles, setting clear goals, and ensuring employees have the resources needed to excel.
A major factor influencing workplace culture and performance is work structure. How do you see changes such as the back-to-office push influencing employee motivation and effectiveness? In your opinion, is a remote or office-based approach better?
The issue isn’t remote vs. office—it’s clarity and purpose. Employees need to understand why office presence matters. If collaboration and culture-building are the goals, structure the in-office experience around them. A workplace should feel like a space of inspiration, not obligation. The best companies blend intentional in-person collaboration with remote flexibility, ensuring motivation stays high.
Given these structural and cultural shifts, what methods have you observed that organizations use to assess employee performance nowadays, and do these methods really help people achieve better results?
Traditional performance reviews no longer work for today’s mix of generations. Many companies only conduct them for regulatory purposes, leaving employees frustrated by endless evaluations with no real incentives. People are tired of check-the-box assessments that lack the ability to drive meaningful progress. The real goal should be coaching for self-actualization—helping employees build a better, more purposeful life, not just measuring performance for the sake of it. Organizations need to shift from outdated evaluations to continuous, meaningful coaching that fosters personal and professional growth.
How can organizations make a smooth transition from the traditional rating and ranking evaluation system to agile employee performance management?
Ditch forced rankings. High performers don’t need artificial competition to excel. Instead, focus on strengths-based development, integrate regular coaching and emotional regulation practices, and align performance metrics with long-term business outcomes, not just short-term quotas. The shift requires a mindset change at the top.
Looking at what works in practice, what is one tool, method, or approach that has proven most effective in your organization for driving employee performance?
Listening and adapting to how the company vibrates. Truly effective organizations don’t force rigid frameworks; they listen to employees, adapt to their needs, and act on feedback. Leaders must walk the talk—when employees see genuine responsiveness and commitment to their input, performance naturally improves. This is yet another reason for having emotionally mature leadership.
While performance incentives like targets and bonus systems are designed to drive results, they can sometimes lead to undesirable attitudes and consequences. How can organizations avoid the negative impacts of target setting at the employee level?
Targets should drive progress, not fear. Organizations should balance qualitative and quantitative metrics to prevent toxic competition.Instead of focusing solely on short-term results, incentives should encourage behaviors that drive long-term success. When employees feel a sense of purpose rather than pressure from numbers, they stay motivated and engaged, leading to sustainable performance improvements.
Over the years, what’s been the most surprising or counterintuitive lesson you’ve learned about organizational culture, and how has it shaped your approach to leadership?
Culture is what people do when no one is watching. It’s not policies, posters, or slogans—it’s the lived reality. If leaders don’t model the culture they preach, employees won’t buy into it. Additionally, experts promoted to leadership roles without leadership skills and emotional maturity create toxic environments. Leadership isn’t about expertise alone—it requires self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and the ability to inspire and develop others.
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Editor’s Note: This article was originally published in Performance Magazine Issue No. 32, 2025 – Employee Performance Edition
