A fitting organisational structure and culture

But how do you know when it’s time to take action? 

As soon as you notice tensions arising around the various roles and responsibilities within your organisation. Maybe your structure has grown organically, no longer aligning with your strategy. Perhaps your organisation is experiencing rapid growth, but the current structure doesn’t match the existing culture. Or maybe various employees are focusing on the same issues, while other crucial tasks are being overlooked.

Also: who’s in charge? Are you asking yourself where all the meaningful discussions have gone, or does it seem like everyone’s trapped in an endless cycle of meetings? You might’ve heard of terms like ‘self-management’ and ‘horizontal working’—but there are also colleagues airing grievances about a lack of leadership. Sounds familiar? Time to take a deep dive into your organisational structure and culture.

At S&L, we’re ready to lend a hand to organisations in shaping and putting into action a new structure, while enhancing their organisational culture. The best part? We provide tailor-made solutions, customised to fit your organisation’s needs.

Your organisation’s strategy, values and norms lead the way.

We peel back the layers of your organisation, delving into your strategy, values, and standards to chart the right course. We dive into the core of your organisation, dissecting the existing structure and culture, aiming for a deep understanding and an initial analysis. We chat with employees, executives, transition teams, and other stakeholders—gathering valuable insights while keeping our options open.

We explore the distinctive roles of the teams within your organisation, mapping out each individual employee. Our analysis also encompasses governance, decision-making, communication, and processes. More often than not, we introduce a conceptual framework during this phase, covering organisational forms, teamwork, and roles.

Together, we search for the ideal structure, taking into account your organisation’s capacity for change.  

Step by step, we construct a fitting organisational culture that aligns with your guiding principles. We only stop when each puzzle piece fits, carefully factoring in your organisation’s capacity. Far too often, we see organisations chasing a single model, oblivious to their own ability to embrace change. We craft realistic plans, containing potential intermediate steps or adjustments. We take into account the developmental stage your organisation is in, exploring the flexibility of your systems.

We outline a feasible, new organisational structure, exploring the necessary steps towards a fitting culture.

This is custom work and requires some puzzling. Perhaps we need to restructure the communication process within your organisation, foster meaningful communication within your teams, optimise core processes, or clarify roles and responsibilities so that each individual can excel within their position. In some cases, it might be necessary to redesign your entire organisational structure. Incorporating all the insights we’ve gathered in the previous phases, we define the guidelines and actions necessary for the desired change. We dedicate ample time to this phase.

We craft a transition plan and guide you through its execution. 

Together, we create a plan, documenting all the big and small steps required for a successful transition. Should you wish, we provide extra support and even take on some tasks during the transition process. We often assist leaders and executives in communicating with the entire team—helping them explain the future organisational chart, for example. During the implementation phase, unexpected challenges might arise, offering fresh insights. If necessary, we remain present to offer ongoing support. Change can be scary, so we’re here to help you keep up the pace and trust what’s ahead.

Organisational structure and culture are always intertwined. However, sometimes the spotlight falls solely on culture. In that case, we offer a tailored approach where we focus on collaborative communication, solution-oriented thinking, ownership, shared leadership, growth mindset, and more. We always start with a thorough exploration phase, investigating concrete situations and ongoing themes.

Together, we uncover patterns and look for connections with underlying values, beliefs, and motivations, plus structures that might contribute to certain patterns. At times, we even delve into your organisation’s history, to gain an understanding of why certain issues persist longer than desired—all while maintaining respect for the current state of affairs, of course.

Curious about our approach?