A landmark study from Massey University and the Leadership and Governance Collective has confirmed what many leaders already sense: organisational culture is one of the most powerful drivers of value. Far from being a “soft” or secondary concern, culture shapes productivity, growth, and even the financial decisions leaders make.

What the Survey Found

  • A huge majority — 88% of for-profit CEOs and 87% of not-for-profit leaders — ranked culture among the top three drivers of value.
  • Even more believe that improving culture boosts performance: 95% expect culture improvements will raise productivity, growth, or profitability
  • Yet despite all this: 89% of CEOs say their culture is not fully aligned with their strategic goals. Key barriers? Leadership capacity and capability.

The study also revealed some fascinating differences between sectors. For-profit organisations are more likely to use incentives such as linking pay to behaviours, to reinforce cultural priorities. They are also quicker to adopt governance levers like AI and data-driven decision-making. Not-for-profits, constrained by resources, tend to focus on non-monetary approaches such as flexible working and stronger alignment to organisational values. Both approaches highlight the adaptability of culture as a lever, shaped by context but equally vital in every setting.

Perhaps one of the most telling findings was in the area of mergers and acquisitions. For many leaders, culture is a make-or-break factor in whether they proceed with a deal. Forty-four percent of for-profit CEOs said they would not acquire a company if they perceived cultural misalignment, and that number rose to 59% among not-for-profit leaders. The message is clear: culture isn’t just about employee experience, it has real strategic and financial implications.

So where does this leave leaders? Based on the study’s findings, here are some suggested takeaways for leaders wanting to move culture from concept to competitive advantage:

  1. Measure your culture and its alignment with strategy.
    You can’t manage what you don’t measure. Use diagnostics to see where culture is aligned, where it leaks, where there are blocks.
  2. Invest in leadership capability.
    Often the gap between strategy and culture comes down to whether leaders are equipped (skills, time, accountability) to shape culture intentionally.
  3. Be intentional about how you reinforce culture.
    Whether through incentives, governance, values, or flexible work, pick levers that suit your sector and context. If incentives are hard, find other signals (behaviours, role models, values) that reinforce what you want.
  4. Consider culture as part of deals and partnerships.
    When merging, acquiring, or partnering, cultural fit matters. Incompatibility can cost more later.
  5. Share findings, benchmark, and learn.
    The study offers organisations tools and dashboards. Using data across sectors gives perspective on what “good culture” looks like and what works.

In today’s fast-changing world, culture is more than a background theme. It shapes engagement, innovation, reputation, and resilience. The Massey University study shows that leaders know this, but also that many still struggle to act on it. Closing the gap between culture and strategy may well be the difference between organisations that thrive and those that get left behind.