Setting Inclusive Intentions for the New Year: A Guide to Strengthening Workplace Culture
As the year comes to a close, many workplaces pause to reflect. What went well last year? What could be better? Where did connections feel strong, and where could they be strengthened further?
This isn’t about resolutions. It’s about building a culture where people feel supported, valued, and able to do their best work. When that foundation is strong, teams collaborate more effectively, trust one another more, and stay energized for the year ahead.
In this guide, you’ll find clear steps to help your team set meaningful intentions, put them into practice, and sustain them over time.
Why Culture Matters in the Workplace
Culture is the heartbeat of every organization. It shapes how people show up, communicate, and collaborate. When employees feel connected to their work and their teammates, they’re more engaged, creative, and loyal.
A healthy culture doesn’t need perfection. It needs openness. When people trust that their voices matter, they’re more likely to share ideas, solve problems together, and adapt to change confidently.
Reflect on the Past Year: Assessing Your Current Culture
Before setting goals for the year ahead, take time to understand your team’s experience:
What moments last year made people feel proud to work here?
Where did connection fade or communication break down?
Honest reflection helps reveal both your cultural strengths and your opportunities to grow.
Take our Culture Compass quiz for insight into the health of your company culture.
Understand Where You Are Now
Start by taking an honest look at your current workplace culture. Ask:
How connected do employees feel to the company’s mission?
Do people feel comfortable sharing feedback?
Are values reflected in everyday behaviors?
Conduct a Culture Check-In
A culture check-in gives you insight into what’s really happening day-to-day. Try:
Employee surveys: Ask how connected people feel, how supported they are, and whether company values feel real in practice.
Team conversations: Host small-group discussions or anonymous feedback sessions to explore how people experience collaboration and communication.
Review current practices: Look at policies, recognition programs, and leadership habits. Do they reflect the kind of workplace you want to build?
Identify Areas for Growth
To understand your workplace culture, start with your people. Invite employees from different roles, backgrounds, and experiences to share their perspectives. You might be surprised by what you learn.
The answers to these questions will guide the development of targeted and impactful goals for the New Year. For further reading, check out this guide to maximizing your Inclusivity budget to align financial planning with your aspirations.
How to Set SMART Goals for the New Year
SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. This framework provides clarity and direction as you move closer to your workplace goals. On the other hand, broad goals like “improve communication” can fall flat without structure. SMART goals bring focus and accountability..
Check out this video for more useful info about SMART goal setting. ➡️
Examples of SMART Goals
Setting the right goals can make all the difference. Here are some examples to help you get started:
Launch a monthly recognition moment where team members can highlight each other’s contributions.
Improve employee-survey responses on “I feel connected to my team” by 10% this year.
Host quarterly cross-department conversations to strengthen collaboration.
Ensure every leader includes a short “culture moment” in their team meetings to reinforce shared values.
How to Put Your SMART Goals Into Action
Culture doesn’t shift overnight. It grows through everyday actions that reflect the kind of workplace you want to build. The most meaningful changes come when leaders and teams live out shared values, not just talk about them. Whether it’s how feedback is given, how decisions are made, or how wins are celebrated, these daily habits create the foundation for a thriving workplace culture.
Lead with Consistency
Leaders set the tone for the culture of an organization. When they communicate openly, listen intentionally, and model the behaviors they want to see, those habits ripple across teams.
Encourage leaders to make culture a regular part of conversations. Ask questions like, “How are we showing up for each other?” or “What’s one thing that would make this team feel more connected?”
Make it clear that culture isn’t just an HR topic; it’s a leadership responsibility. Simple actions like giving recognition, sharing context for decisions, or owning mistakes show authenticity and help build trust.
Include Your Team in the Process
Culture isn’t built from the top down. It’s shaped by everyone.
Invite employees to be part of the conversation about what makes your workplace great and where there’s room to grow. Create small opportunities for input: quick pulse surveys, roundtable chats, or brainstorming sessions on how to improve communication or collaboration.
When people feel their ideas matter, they take ownership. This sense of shared responsibility keeps culture efforts alive and ensures that initiatives actually reflect the team’s reality, not just leadership’s view.
Offer Meaningful Learning Opportunities
Investing in learning experiences can strengthen your culture in lasting ways. Focus on workshops or training sessions that help people communicate better, manage conflict, and collaborate across teams. Choose topics that feel relevant to your workplace right now. Whether that’s building psychological safety, improving meetings, or having more productive feedback conversations.
The most effective learning isn’t one-and-done. It’s reinforced through reflection and follow-up. Encourage leaders to discuss takeaways afterward and find ways to apply them day to day.
Keep Culture Visible
Culture work can easily fade into the background if it’s not reinforced. Keep it visible by recognizing the people and teams who live your company values.
Share stories that show what “good culture” looks like in practice, like how a team handled a tough situation with empathy, or how someone went out of their way to help a colleague.
Even small acknowledgments can have a big impact. They remind everyone that culture isn’t an abstract concept. It’s the sum of daily actions that make people feel supported, trusted, and proud to be part of the team.
How to Measure Progress and Accountability
Building a strong workplace culture isn’t about quick wins, it’s about steady progress over time. Measuring that progress helps you understand what’s working, where momentum is building, and what might need extra attention. Tracking culture isn’t just about metrics; it’s about listening, reflecting, and learning from the everyday experiences of your team.
Define What Success Looks Like
Before you can measure culture, decide what success means for your organization. It might be higher engagement scores, more collaboration between departments, or stronger communication between managers and their teams. Set clear expectations for what you’ll be watching and why it matters.
When people know how success will be measured, they’re more likely to stay motivated and aligned. Transparency builds trust and keeps everyone moving in the same direction.
Track Engagement and Connection
Quantitative data can be powerful. Use regular pulse surveys or short feedback forms to gauge how people feel about communication, workload, recognition, and team connection. Look for patterns over time (not just spikes or dips) to see whether culture initiatives are truly taking hold.
Beyond surveys, notice how people are showing up: Are they contributing ideas? Do they turn cameras on in meetings? Are they recognizing each other’s efforts? These small cues can tell you a lot about how connected your team really feels.
Pay Attention to Retention and Growth
Keeping culture work transparent reinforces accountability. Share updates and insights from surveys or listening sessions with your team. Not just the good news but the lessons learned too. Let people see how their input led to tangible changes, and invite them to keep contributing ideas.
When progress is shared openly, it builds collective ownership. People start to see culture not as a project led by leadership or HR, but as something they’re actively shaping together.
Celebrate Milestones (and the People Behind Them)
Finally, don’t wait until the end of the year to celebrate progress. Recognize the small, steady wins that keep your culture moving forward, whether it’s a new tradition that stuck, a team that collaborated differently, a manager who tried something new. These moments reinforce positive behavior and remind everyone that culture is built one action at a time.
Tips for Building a Strong Workplace Culture
A thriving culture doesn’t happen by accident, it’s built through daily actions As you look ahead to the new year, here are a few simple but meaningful ways to strengthen connection, communication, and trust across your workplace.
1. Make Reflection a Team Habit
Start the year by taking stock, not just of results, but of relationships. Ask your team what worked well last year and what could be improved. Create space for honest reflection, and listen closely to what people share. Sometimes the smallest insights lead to the biggest improvements in how you work together.
2. Create Moments of Connection
Connection fuels collaboration and motivation. Plan time for your team to connect in ways that feel authentic, from casual coffee chats to end-of-week wins meetings. For hybrid or remote teams, this might mean virtual social breaks or pairing teammates from different departments for short “get-to-know-you” sessions. These small rituals go a long way in keeping relationships strong.
3. Recognize and Celebrate Often
Don’t wait for performance reviews to acknowledge great work. Recognize people regularly and specifically: highlight a project that showed great teamwork, a colleague who supported others, or a creative solution that made work easier. Recognition doesn’t need to be formal or expensive. A simple thank-you shared publicly can boost morale and reinforce your values.
4. Keep Communication Open
Encourage feedback, questions, and new ideas year-round. Make it easy for employees to share their thoughts, whether through team meetings, anonymous surveys, or quick one-on-one check-ins. When people see that feedback leads to action, it builds confidence that their voices matter.
5. Support Balance and Wellbeing
Strong culture includes making sure people have what they need to do their best work: time, space, and trust. Model healthy habits like setting boundaries, taking breaks, and logging off at a reasonable hour. When leaders prioritize balance, it gives everyone permission to do the same and helps prevent burnout.
6. Align Leadership with Culture Goals
Culture will only grow when leaders embody it. Make sure leadership behaviors match the values on paper, whether that’s transparency, empathy, or accountability. Consistency between words and actions builds credibility and makes culture feel real.
7. Revisit and Refresh Goals Quarterly
Culture isn’t static. Check in on your goals every few months, review progress, and adjust based on what your team needs now. Keep it dynamic. The more flexible and responsive your approach, the more authentic your culture work will feel.
A strong workplace culture doesn’t require grand gestures. It’s the sum of small, intentional actions that show people they belong and that their contributions matter. By prioritizing connection, communication, and consistency, you’ll build a culture that not only supports great work but makes people proud to be part of it.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Culture goals look at how people feel, connect, and collaborate. Inclusion-focused goals consider how equitably people experience the workplace and where barriers may exist. Both support a healthy, connected environment.
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Quarterly check-ins are ideal, but small pulse checks can happen more often.
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Track engagement trends, connection levels, participation in culture-building activities, and qualitative feedback from listening sessions.
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Everyone plays a role, but leaders set the tone and reinforce expectations.
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Integrate culture into daily routines such as team meetings, performance discussions, planning cycles, and recognition practices.
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Create intentional touchpoints: structured check-ins, informal hangouts, cross-team pairings, and transparent communication.
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Ask your team: “What helps you feel connected at work?” Act on one insight this week.
