Understanding the Layers of Organisational Culture

Culture is often described as ‘the way we do things around here.’ At first glance, it seems simple. Yet beneath the visible behaviours and policies lies a complex system of assumptions, values, and beliefs that shapes how people act, make decisions, and interact with each other. Understanding culture requires looking beyond what’s obvious and exploring the layers that collectively define the employee experience.

Edgar Schein, a leading expert on organisational culture, describes it as three intertwined layers: artefacts, espoused values, and underlying assumptions. Each layer reveals a different aspect of how culture operates, and recognising them is essential for anyone aiming to influence, change, or optimise it. Let’s break them down, and explain what you can do within your company to ensure that each of these cultural layers is in action.

Layer One: Artefacts - What You Can See

The most visible layer of culture is what Schein calls artefacts. These include behaviours, processes, policies, physical spaces, and symbols. They are the tangible signs of culture - the dress code, office layout, meeting styles, or the way recognition is given.

Artefacts are easy to observe but hard to interpret. For example, a company may have open-plan offices to signal transparency and collaboration, but unless you understand the underlying values, the gesture alone doesn’t guarantee those behaviours occur. Leaders often notice artefacts first because they are immediate and observable, but they only scratch the surface of culture.

To ensure artefacts reinforce your desired culture:

• Audit visible processes and practices for alignment with your values.
• Observe daily interactions and rituals
• Ensure workspace design and tools support collaboration, accessibility, and inclusion.
• Regularly check that communication, branding, and symbols reflect the culture you aim to create.

Layer Two: Espoused Values - What You Say You Stand For

The second layer encompasses espoused values: the stated principles, goals, and philosophies an organisation promotes. These include mission statements, codes of conduct, or stated values like 'innovation' or 'teamwork.'

Espoused values are critical because they guide decisions and behaviour when interpreted and reinforced correctly. However, the gap between espoused values and actual practice is often where culture challenges emerge. Employees quickly learn whether what’s written on the wall aligns with what’s rewarded, recognised, or tolerated in daily work.

Examining espoused values provides insight into what a company aims to prioritise, but understanding how these values are enacted (or not) requires looking deeper into the assumptions that underpin them.

• To make espoused values meaningful in practice:
• Embed values into performance reviews, promotion criteria, and recognition schemes.
• Encourage leaders to model values consistently in decision-making and communication.
• Translate values into everyday behaviours and practical expectations for teams.
• Review policies regularly to ensure they support the values rather than contradict them.

Layer Three: Basic Underlying Assumptions - The Unspoken Rules

The deepest and most powerful layer of culture consists of basic underlying assumptions. These are the unconscious beliefs, perceptions, and thoughts that drive behaviour and decision-making. They are rarely articulated but are demonstrated consistently through actions, rituals, and norms.

For instance, a company might espouse 'employee well-being' as a core value. If employees consistently work long hours without recognition or support, the underlying assumption may be that 'success requires sacrifice.' Identifying these assumptions is challenging because they are typically taken for granted, when they shouldn’t be, since they shape what is considered ‘normal’ and influence how new members adapt to the workplace.

Understanding these assumptions is essential for meaningful cultural change. Without addressing them, attempts to shift behaviours or introduce new initiatives often meet resistance or produce superficial results.

• To uncover and influence underlying assumptions:
• Conduct candid interviews, focus groups, or pulse surveys to surface unspoken beliefs.
• Challenge leadership and team norms, by asking what behaviours are implicitly expected?
• Align policies, incentives, and systems with desired assumptions, not just stated values.
• Monitor how assumptions influence decision-making, collaboration, and employee engagement over time.

Why Culture is Multi-Layered

The importance of workplace culture to your employee’s day-to-day lives can not be understated. Understanding and deliberately choosing to work on the key elements of a high-performing workplace culture, rather than focusing solely on artefacts or values, is essential. Culture is a system where all layers interact:

• Artefacts reflect and reinforce deeper values and assumptions.
• Espoused values provide direction, but only become meaningful when aligned with underlying beliefs.
• Basic assumptions determine how people interpret policies, behaviours, and messages.

Leaders who grasp these dynamics can see why seemingly small interventions, like introducing flexible working or changing performance review structures, can fail if they conflict with entrenched assumptions.

How to Approach Culture Change

Changing culture is rarely about quick fixes or top-down decrees. Instead, it requires careful diagnosis, strategy, and ongoing reinforcement across all layers:

1. Observe and understand artefacts - pay attention to patterns of behaviour, rituals, and visible processes.
2. Examine espoused values critically - are they reflected in reward systems, leadership actions, and everyday practices?
3. Identify underlying assumptions - use surveys, interviews, and reflection to uncover unspoken norms.
4. Align initiatives across layers - ensure programmes, leadership behaviours, and communication reinforce each other.
5. Embed change through ongoing reinforcement - change is continuous, requiring regular review and adaptation.

It’s also often valuable to work with specialists who can bring an external perspective. Partnering with experts allows organisations to move from surface-level interventions to systemic change, so they can learn about expert culture transformation support that is both practical and sustainable.

The Human Impact of Culture

Culture is not an abstract concept; it shapes how people feel, perform, and engage. Healthy, aligned cultures foster trust, clarity, and motivation. Misaligned cultures produce frustration, burnout, and attrition. Understanding and influencing culture is ultimately about creating workplaces where people can thrive, feel valued, and contribute meaningfully.

Recognising the multi-layered nature of culture helps leaders appreciate that changing behaviours without addressing assumptions is unlikely to succeed. Similarly, focusing only on assumptions without tangible interventions risks leaving employees feeling the gap between intention and reality.

From Understanding to Action

The layers of culture provide a framework for understanding why some initiatives succeed and others falter. They offer a lens to diagnose problems, design interventions, and evaluate progress. By paying attention to artefacts, espoused values, and underlying assumptions, leaders can move beyond surface-level fixes toward meaningful, enduring change.

A deliberate, structured approach ensures that cultural evolution is not left to chance. Combining insight with action creates a workplace that is not only high-performing but also supportive, coherent, and adaptive to change.