Building a culture that actually works

Leveraging Dilemmas for Real Impact 

In a recent Harvard Business Review article, Erin Meyer discusses the importance of articulating culture in a way that shapes employee behaviour and becomes an organizational reality. We couldn’t agree more. At Sidekick, we love using the Team Canvas tool to help make culture come to life. 

Source: Harvard Business Review

Meyer argues that the key to transforming a desired culture into action is dilemma testing—a process that uses real-world scenarios to stress test decision making against articulated values. 

Dilemma testing involves creating situations where employees face tough choices. For example, when facing organizational change, should you prioritize team stability (keeping quiet to avoid stress) or transparency (sharing what you know to build trust, even if it causes concern)? Both choices are valid, but if transparency is a core value, it must be clearly communicated to the team for value-aligned decisions to be made. For example consider the clarity of this statement: “In this company, we share information freely. Even when it causes some distress, we tell you what we know.” 

Testing whether your values can guide real decisions and fine tuning them, accordingly, helps create a culture that’s both actionable and memorable. It’s the difference between having cultural ideals on paper and ensuring those ideals drive day-to-day behaviors. 

At Sidekick, we’re excited about how this concept fits perfectly with the culture building Team Canvas tool that we love to work with for our clients and ourselves. It helps teams define and align on purpose, values, roles, and goals while fostering deeper connections between team members. The Canvas isn’t just about clarity—it’s about creating a culture that drives real collaboration and performance. 

Here's how it works:

Clarifies Purpose & Values: It brings teams together to define what they stand for and how those values are reflected in daily actions. 

• Aligns Roles & Responsibilities: Clear roles ensure everyone knows their contribution, fostering accountability and ownership. 

• Sets Goals & Metrics: Aligns the team on strategic objectives and provides measurable outcomes to track success. 

• Strengthens Connections: By exploring strengths and setting working agreements, the Canvas builds a culture of trust and collaboration. 

Shout out to, Erin Meyer, for adding another powerful exercise to our culture-building toolkit! 

Ready to build your culture? Let’s chat!