Culture Isn’t Perks – It’s How You Lead When No One’s Watching

Victoria Canham • 28 May 2025 • 3 min read

Victoria Canham Consultancy | Leadership concept compass with red arrow pointing to “Leadership,” alongside bold title text: “Culture Isn’t Perks – It’s How You Lead When No One’s Watching.” Blog cover image for workplace culture, employee engagement, and leadership development by Victoria Canham Consultancy.

"Who we are is how we lead. There is no separation between the two. The only way to be a brave leader is to embody the four skill sets of daring leadership: rumbling with vulnerability, living into our values, braving trust, and learning to rise." - Brené Brown

You know what employees never say?

“I stayed at that company because they had bean bags and a beer fridge.”

Culture isn’t free yoga or a pizza party in the office at the end of the quarter. It’s not the snazzy mural on the wall, or the 4-pager about your “values” laminated in the onboarding folder no one reads.

Culture is how your team feels when they log on at 8:59am. It’s how you lead when no one’s watching. It’s what your people say about you when the door shuts and the HRBP leaves the room.

We spend more of our waking lives at work than we do with our partners, friends, or families. Why wouldn't we want it to feel worth it?

Let me tell you a story

A client once told me about a Head of Department who made a habit of walking the floor once a day. Just ten minutes. No clipboard, no agenda. He'd stop at desks, ask a real question, listen—and crucially, follow up later. Not performatively. Just... consistently.

One of his team told me, “It’s like he sees me. And because he sees me, I want to do better.”

Now contrast that with another place I worked, where leadership didn’t engage unless there was a complaint. They organised monthly town halls, which they subsequently cancelled, so they were only truly held once a year and wondered why no one spoke up. That team had ‘engagement initiatives’, sure—but underneath? Cynicism. Disengagement. Attrition through the roof.

Same perks. Different leadership. Different culture.

I've also worked in places where the CEO was treated like a celebrity because they only ever saw him on the telly. When that happens, your hierarchy best be able to handle the runoff.

Don’t Tell Me Your Values. Show Me.

Here’s the problem with most “culture” initiatives: they’re too shiny. Culture isn’t a campaign. It’s not a Canva graphic of your values in Helvetica Bold. It’s the day-in, day-out lived experience of your people.

When a leader cancels a 1:1 for the third time because they’re “slammed”—that’s culture.

When someone speaks up in a meeting and gets shot down or ignored—that’s culture.

When an older team member is undermined and treated as "past it"—that’s culture.

When a junior team member gets feedback, support, and a proper stretch opportunity? That’s culture, too.

Culture is built in micro-moments. You don’t need a strategy deck. You need the courage to be consistent.

People Don’t Leave Jobs. They Leave Energy Drains.

I’ve sat across from so many high performers—brilliant, motivated people—who are emotionally done. Not because the job is too hard. But because the experience of doing the job is miserable.

🚩 Leaders are inaccessible.

🚩 Priorities shift with the wind.

🚩 There’s no clarity, no progression, no feedback.

🚩 Or worse, feedback is saved up for the annual review like some sort of corporate confessional.

People leave because it’s exhausting to not be seen. It’s exhausting to care more than your manager does. You want to know the ultimate retention strategy?

Lead like you give a sh*t. And for the LOVE OF GOD please stop saying "we're like a family here".

You Are the Culture

Culture lives in the behaviours leaders model every single day. If you’re a senior leader reading this, let me be very clear:

You are the culture.

If you want accountability, model it.

If you want psychological safety, show it.

If you want innovation, tolerate the learning curve and reward the effort.

When you show up—really show up—your people don’t just follow you. They invest in the place you’re building with them.

And let’s be honest: if your leaders have to ask someone else what their people are thinking, you don’t have a culture problem, you have a trust problem.

Make Work Somewhere Worth Being

We are in a cost-of-living crisis, a mental health crisis, and an attention crisis—and still, we expect people to give us 8 hours of their best effort every day.

So, make it count.

Make the environment worth being in.

Make it somewhere people feel proud to show up for—not just because of what they get paid, but because of how they’re treated. Because this? This is where they spend most of their damn life.

If you're serious about performance, get serious about culture. The perks are fun, but they’re not what keeps people. What keeps people is respect, consistency, growth, and leadership that feels human, and humane.

Final word?

At Victoria Canham Consultancy, we don’t build vibes. We build environments.

Rooted in behavioural insight, we partner with ambitious businesses who want their culture to be a strategic advantage—not a branding exercise.

If you're ready to stop talking about culture and start building it, let’s chat.

👉 Book a consultation. Let me help you build a high-performing, loyal team.

🔻

I am Victoria Canham, I transform employee journeys into competitive advantages. From frontline staff to senior leaders, I help you create a culture of respect, growth, and loyalty that drives bottom-line results.

Book a Consultation

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Victoria Canham - Performance and People Strategic Partner

Victoria Canham is an ICF-accredited Certified Professional Coach and the founder of Victoria Canham Consultancy. We are a specialist performance consultancy partnering with senior leaders and HR teams to elevate culture, leadership, and employee experience. Rooted in behavioural insight and change expertise, we diagnose what's truly holding performance back, co-creating practical, strategic interventions that drive sustainable business results and build workplaces that work—for people and performance.