The needs and expectations of the modern workforce are constantly evolving. Companies are responding by adopting remote and hybrid work models, enhancing employee engagement programs, prioritizing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, and investing in professional development. In response to these changing needs, Twisthink has launched an innovative initiative called Culture Lab, designed to foster a dynamic and inclusive workplace.
In recent years, the workplace has experienced a significant shift in how companies perceive culture. Gone are the days when culture was synonymous with occasional pizza parties or happy hours. Today, it’s about creating actions and environments that bring out the best in employees. At Twisthink, people are our most valuable asset. As a consultancy, our clients rely on our innovation and expertise, which stems directly from our team. This understanding led us to adopt a company-wide mantra: “10x our Culture.” Our goal isn’t merely to maintain or slightly improve our culture; we aim to make it ten times better. This aspiration isn’t driven by a need to fix something broken but by the belief that focused attention leads to growth.
With this in mind, a group of teammates compiled feedback based on their experiences and shared it directly with the owner of the company. Their insights highlighted opportunities to enhance our workplace culture in a meaningful way. With leadership’s support and buy-in, this feedback evolved into the concept of a team-founded and team-led internal culture group. Thus, Culture Lab was born—not as a top-down initiative, but as an employee-driven effort to cultivate an environment where innovation, collaboration, and a thriving culture are at the core of everything we do.
Initially, Culture Lab was envisioned as a series of individual groups dedicated to each of our core values: Inclusion, Excellence, Courage, and Growth Mindset. However, we soon realized that planning events or training sessions around a single value was overly complicated. Our values often overlap, and that intersection is where the true beauty of our culture lies. Recognizing this, we redefined Culture Lab to celebrate the synergy between these values. Click here to learn more about Twisthink’s values.
Culture Lab operates as an ongoing experiment, emphasizing the importance of trying new things, making changes, and even failing if it means supporting our culture better. We wanted to create an environment where everyone could lead and contribute ideas, regardless of their position.
To achieve this, Culture Lab is led by two facilitators with different perspectives—an HR Leader and a Business Leader. We then called on our team to form the Culture Lab Core Team, a group committed to meeting biweekly and supporting the initiative for a full year. However, we also ensured that the larger team could participate in projects they were passionate about. Project ideas stemmed from annual surveys, stay interviews, and team feedback, ensuring that the focus areas were chosen by our team, for our team.
One common challenge with cultural change is ensuring engagement, buy-in, and volunteerism. Typically, a few passionate individuals step up for every culture-related initiative. But how do you ensure diverse perspectives are considered and prevent these few from shouldering the entire burden of cultural change? Culture change is complex, and even seemingly simple initiatives can become challenging. That’s why our system of a dedicated core team, complemented by broader team engagement, spreads the responsibility and keeps everyone connected to what’s happening in Culture Lab.
Our system isn’t perfect, and we are continually learning. However, compared to previous models, this approach balances effort, buy-in, ideas, and feedback more effectively. Whether deeply involved in cultural initiatives or preferring to observe, everyone is engaged in some way. Our goal is for Culture Lab to continue growing, empowering teammates to voice ideas, gaps, and concerns.
At Twisthink, we aim to cultivate a safe and engaging experience for all team members. We build trust, embrace change, embody our core values, and proactively address gaps between our current state and our vision of a 10x culture. Through intentional action and experimentation, we strive to create a positive impact, not just for our current teammates but for those to come. Culture Lab represents our commitment to fostering an environment where everyone can thrive.
Interested in learning more about Culture Lab at Twisthink? Connect with us!
Olivia is a dedicated HR professional at Twisthink, driving hiring, onboarding, and culture initiatives with a keen eye for detail and a passion for holistic people support.
