Handbook
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Hiring & Team
Building Team Culture Intentionally
Culture happens whether you're intentional or not. Here's how to build the culture you want.
Culture is not ping pong tables and free snacks. It’s how people behave when no one’s watching. It’s the unwritten rules that govern decision-making. And it compounds—every hire either reinforces or dilutes it. Build culture intentionally or end up with culture by accident.
What Culture Really Is
The Real Definition
Culture is:
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How decisions get made
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How people treat each other
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What behavior is rewarded
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What behavior is tolerated
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The unwritten rules
It’s not:
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Mission statements on walls
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Company perks
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Team events
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What you say culture is
Culture is what you do, not what you say.
Why It Matters
Culture determines:
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Who wants to work here
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How fast you move
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How problems get solved
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Whether people stay
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How you handle adversity
Strong cultures outperform weak ones.
Culture as Competitive Advantage
A great culture:
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Attracts A players
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Makes decisions faster (shared values)
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Enables autonomy (trust)
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Retains people (belonging)
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Survives hard times (shared purpose)
Founding Culture
Founders Set the Tone
Early culture comes from founders:
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Your behavior becomes the norm
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Your values become company values
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Your habits become company habits
This is a feature, not a bug. Be intentional.
The First Hires
First 10 hires define culture:
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They establish patterns
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They hire people like them
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They train everyone after
Hire for culture early. Skills can be taught. Culture fit is harder.
Codify Early
Don’t wait until you’re 50 people:
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Write down your values
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Make them specific and actionable
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Use them in hiring and feedback
Vague values are useless. “We value excellence” means nothing.
Defining Your Values
What Makes Good Values
Specific: Can be acted on
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Bad: “We value teamwork”
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Good: “We share context, not just tasks”
Differentiating: Not generic
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Bad: “We value integrity”
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Good: “We give feedback directly, even when uncomfortable”
True: Actually practiced
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Don’t aspire to values you won’t live
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If you won’t fire for violating it, it’s not real
How to Identify Your Values
Look at behavior:
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What do top performers do?
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What does the founder team value?
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What makes someone successful here?
Ask the team:
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“What do you value most about working here?”
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“What behaviors do we reward?”
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“What would you never tolerate?”
Test against decisions:
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Would you hire someone great who violates this value?
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Would you fire someone who violates it?
Example Values (Specific)
Instead of “Customer focus”:
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“We start every meeting with customer impact”
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“Anyone can talk to customers without permission”
Instead of “Move fast”:
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“We ship weekly, not monthly”
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“80% solutions beat 100% solutions that never ship”
Instead of “Transparency”:
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“Default to public channels, not DMs”
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“Share bad news faster than good news”
Building Culture Practices
Communication Patterns
How you communicate shapes culture:
Open by default:
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Public channels over private
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Documentation accessible
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Context shared widely
Direct feedback:
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Say it to their face
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Don’t wait for reviews
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Assume good intent
Meeting culture:
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Start on time (or don’t have them)
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Clear purpose required
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Follow-up documented
Decision-Making Norms
Who decides?
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Clear ownership
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Disagree-and-commit culture
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Escalation when needed
How decisions are made:
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Data-informed
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Customer-focused
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Speed valued
After decisions:
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Commit fully
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Don’t relitigate
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Learn from outcomes
Accountability Standards
What gets measured:
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Clear goals
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Public progress
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Regular reviews
How you handle misses:
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Focus on learning, not blame
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Separate performance from character
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High standards, high support
Work-Life Expectations
Be explicit about:
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Working hours expectations
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Response time norms
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Time off practices
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Remote/in-person balance
Don’t say “work-life balance” while emailing at midnight.
Reinforcing Culture
Hiring for Culture
In interviews:
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Ask values-based questions
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Evaluate fit against specific values
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Include culture interview with team
Example questions:
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“Tell me about a time you disagreed with a decision. What did you do?”
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“How do you handle giving difficult feedback?”
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“Describe your ideal work environment”
Performance and Promotion
Evaluate on culture:
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Include values in reviews
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Promote people who exemplify culture
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Don’t reward results that violate values
What you reward defines culture.
Recognition
Celebrate culture wins:
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Call out values in action
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Share examples of good behavior
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Make culture visible
Addressing Violations
Handle violations directly:
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Give feedback immediately
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Be specific about the issue
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Connect to values
Escalate when needed:
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Repeated violations need consequences
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High performers don’t get passes
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Tolerance of bad behavior destroys culture
Culture Evolution
Culture Will Change
As you grow:
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New people bring new perspectives
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New challenges require adaptation
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What worked at 10 won’t work at 100
This is normal. Manage it intentionally.
What Should Stay
Core values shouldn’t change:
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They’re who you are
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Changing them changes the company
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People joined for them
What Can Change
Practices can evolve:
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How you communicate
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Processes and tools
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Rituals and traditions
Update practices, preserve values.
Managing Growth Transitions
At 10-20 people:
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Hire people who build culture, not just fit
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Start documenting unwritten rules
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First management layer
At 50+ people:
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Can’t know everyone personally
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Need explicit cultural transmission
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Onboarding becomes critical
At 100+ people:
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Sub-cultures emerge
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Need culture champions
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Values must be deeply embedded
Common Culture Problems
Brilliant Jerks
High performers who violate values.
Problem: Keeping them signals values don’t matter.
Fix: Address behavior or exit. No exceptions.
Say-Do Gap
Values on the wall don’t match behavior.
Problem: Cynicism spreads. Trust erodes.
Fix: Either live the values or change them to what you actually value.
Founder Exemption
Founders don’t follow the rules.
Problem: Double standards destroy credibility.
Fix: Founders model the culture. Period.
Culture Dilution
Growing fast without maintaining culture.
Problem: Culture becomes whatever the majority does.
Fix: Slow down hiring. Invest in onboarding. Fire for culture fit.
Toxic Positivity
Can’t give real feedback because “we’re nice.”
Problem: Problems fester. Performance suffers.
Fix: Define culture as direct and kind, not just kind.
Measuring Culture
Leading Indicators
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Referral rate (would employees refer friends?)
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Participation in company activities
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Retention of top performers
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Engagement survey scores
Lagging Indicators
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Turnover rate
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Glassdoor reviews
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Exit interview themes
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Time to hire
Qualitative Signals
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What do people complain about?
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How do meetings feel?
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How do people describe working here?
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What stories get told?
Key Takeaways
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Culture is how people behave, not what’s on the wall
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Founders set the tone—your behavior becomes the norm
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First 10 hires define culture; hire for fit early
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Write down specific, differentiating values you’ll actually live
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What you reward defines culture; what you tolerate does too
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Brilliant jerks must go—keeping them signals values don’t matter
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Practices can evolve, but core values should stay constant
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Growth dilutes culture unless you’re intentional
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Close the say-do gap: either live the values or change them
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Culture compounds—every hire reinforces or dilutes it
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