Describing Culture: 20 Examples of Company Culture Statements

Most companies think their culture is obvious and clear to everyone: leadership, employees, and even outsiders. But the truth is until you have it written down, it’s likely every employee has their own perspective of what the culture is like.

If you already figured that out and want to write a fantastic company culture statement, you’re in the right place. In this blog, we explore 20 examples of company culture statements and provide valuable insight into the different ways companies can describe and communicate their culture.

How to describe your company culture

When creating a company culture statement, it’s essential not to take things for granted. Don’t assume everyone knows what the values and culture pillars are, and make an effort to build the case for your company culture from the ground up.

Here are the essential steps for describing your company culture:

1. Make an assessment: Get a clear understanding of your organization's culture and understand the values, beliefs, and behaviors that are present in your workplace.
2. Identify the key elements of culture: What are the elements of workplace culture that you want to communicate to others? Think about things like teamwork, communication styles, leadership, or work-life balance.
3. Use specific examples: Use specific examples or do-and-don’t lists to illustrate the key values and behaviors you want to promote. This will make it easier for others to understand and relate to the culture.
4. Get feedback: Share your description of the culture with employees and get their feedback. If your team doesn’t feel the culture statement is accurate, take their insight into consideration and go back to the drawing board.

We made a list of the essential company culture statistics that showcases how employees feel about culture and its importance. See the statistics >>>

Company culture examples: words that describe your culture

The words you use in your culture statement signal the type of culture in the company and the behaviors you truly value. Here are some examples of the most common ways to describe the company culture and what they mean to employees and candidates.

• Words like high-performance, agile, and mission-driven signify a relentless focus on achieving business goals and results on all fronts
• Ideas like customer obsession indicate that the customer experience is of utmost importance to the company
• Terms like independent, passionate, and curious describe cultures where individual contributors can make a difference and fit in well with various skill sets
• Words like sustainability, diversity, and equity demonstrate that a company is interested in contributing to the wider environment and social progress initiatives
• Terms like work-life balance, flexibility, and well-being signal a focus on employee experience

Benefits of a strong company culture

Work culture and company values are not buzzwords - they have a real impact on engagement, retention strategies, and profitability. From candidates who look for companies that have a culture fit and alignment with their personal values to how engaged employees are, here are a few benefits of a strong and positive culture:

High employee engagement

Strong company culture drives high employee engagement by creating a sense of belonging and purpose. When employees feel that they are part of a team and their contributions are valued, they are more likely to be invested and have a positive attitude towards their job.

A culture that promotes shared goals, collaboration, and a positive work-life balance also fosters a sense of trust and respect among employees, leading to increased engagement. Finally, when your teams feel their personal values align with company values, they’ll be motivated and engaged to achieve goals and smash their metrics.

Better retention and lower turnover

If your company has a strong culture that employees can relate to, they won’t just be more engaged; they’ll also be less likely to switch jobs.

Engaged employees don’t feel a need to change their job because they feel seen, heard, and valued. On top of that, if your company provides good career development opportunities and fosters a culture of learning and growth, it cements the happiness of employees and keeps them motivated.

Need help calculating your employee retention rate? See our calculator >>>

Attracting top talent

In the modern, global workplace, job seekers are increasingly searching for careers, not just jobs. And if you want to tap into the best talent out there, a strong culture will help you make a difference.

On top of that, demonstrating the culture you’re renowned for is a major advantage when it comes to new hires, as 20% of employees quit within the first 45 days of employment! Showcasing your culture and fostering belonging during the onboarding process can make or break your efforts to attract and retain top talent.

Happy employees = a better bottom line

Put simply, employees who experience great company culture are happier, and that means a better bottom line and profitability for the company.

Happy employees tend to be more motivated, productive, and more likely to provide high-quality customer service. This leads to customer satisfaction and loyalty going up, which is a direct pathway to better business results.

Additionally, when they’re happy at work, people embrace creativity and feel safe to propose new ideas, leading to innovation and gaining a competitive advantage over competitors. Their decision-making is less burdened with stress, and they’re focused on problem-solving, thus creating a strong reputation for the entire company and attracting new employees, partners, and customers.

20 examples of great company culture statements

We curated a list of 20 examples of company culture statements from companies that do a great job describing and illustrating how their culture works and impacts day-to-day work. These examples provide valuable insight into how you describe and communicate culture and create or improve your own culture statement.

Instapage

How Instapage describes its culture:

“Our global community of innovators work together to make industry-changing technology while embodying the values we want to see in the world. With international offices and a robust remote team, we are able to work with passionate, growth-minded experts from around the world.”

Want to know more about Instapage’s culture? Read this story from their COO, Imran Syed.

CultureAmp

How CultureAmp describes its culture:

“We believe that nothing is impossible when a group of talented, caring humans work to build something together. That belief, among other things, means living our values every day, striving to be inclusive, and building a worldwide community that believes culture comes first.”

Twilio

How Twilio describes its culture:

“We build for better, together. Twilio culture runs on creativity, diversity, and positivity. That’s because our mission is to unlock the imagination of builders, including our own. We cultivate an inclusive space where all feel welcome, celebrated, and contribute meaningfully as we build great things together.”

Twilio’s VP of Global Real Estate & Workplace, Tamar Draper Mahru, was featured as one of Gable’s Top Workplace Innovators of 2022. Find out why >>>

Hubspot

How Hubspot describes its culture:

Hubspot’s Culture Code Tenets:

1. We solve for the customer.
2. We work to be remarkably transparent.
3. We favor autonomy & accountability.
4. We believe our best perk is amazing peers.
5. We lean towards long-term impact.

Lattice

How Lattice describes its culture:

“At Lattice, we strive to constantly build an inclusive culture. We challenge ourselves with a daily commitment to seek diversity and foster inclusion and track our results to make sure that we’re staying true to our promises.”

Gable

How we describe our culture at Gable:

“We value diversity, curiosity, and caring — for customers, teammates, and your work. We’re mission-driven, customer-obsessed, and agile, but we also work hard to be diverse, inclusive, and empowering for our team members.”

At Gable, we help remote and distributed companies strengthen their company culture, foster connections, and engage employees. See how we do it >>>

Oyster

How Oyster describes its culture:

“We design how we work as thoughtfully as we design our product. We believe that teams who work together in a cohesive way outperform the rest.”

AirBnb

How Airbnb describes its culture:

“Airbnb is built around the idea that everyone should be able to take the perfect trip, including where they stay, what they do, and who they meet. To that end, we empower millions of people around the world to use their spaces, passions, and talents to become entrepreneurs. A world where anyone can belong anywhere starts with a workplace where you feel welcome and can contribute your best work.”

Doist

How Doist describes its culture:

1. Thinking in decades, not in quarters We opt for solutions that will get us where we want to be in the long term. We’re running a marathon, not a sprint.
2. Balancing ambition and wellbeing Ambition without rest isn't sustainable. And working without ambition breeds complacency. Our team is proof you can have both.
3. Working without borders From Jamaica to Poland, Taiwan to Australia, diversity is in Doist’s DNA. We believe the future of work transcends all kinds of borders.
4. Supporting our users’ goals As Doist builds the future of work, many more people across the globe will thrive, both professionally and personally.

Doist’s Head of Remote, Chase Warrington, shared with us the proven tips for building, scaling, and connecting distributed teams. Read his tips here >>>

Future

How Future describes its culture:

“We believe that partnership is the key to progress. We aim to provide the perfect environment for leadership and impact. We want to push the boundaries and motivate both customers and employees.”

Docker

How Docker describes its culture:

1. Autonomy, Freedom, and Flexibility We trust you to get your work done however it fits into your lifestyle. Our flexible schedule lets you set priorities and maximize productivity.
2. Work / Life Balance We want you to maintain balance to thrive, reduce stress, and prevent burnout.
3. Transparency We believe that companies should be transparent. We’re open and honest with our employees.
4. Collaboration We work together as a team in all departments and levels. We openly share ideas.
5. Appreciation We know the employees are the heart and soul of Docker. We let them know how important they are every chance we get.
6. Respect We treat you how we want to be treated. We listen to what you have to say. We value your time. We’re courteous and polite to all.

Read more about how Docker empowers employees to connect with Gable. Read Docker’s story >>>

Okta

How Okta describes its culture:

“Our cultural pillars show up in how we work, how we treat each other, what we focus on, and how we live our collective values. As a culture-adding organization, we know that each new employee adds to our evolving culture. As you add to Okta culture to make our vision a reality, we want to create a work environment that empowers you, values your ideas, and recognizes your contributions.

We are people connecting people, and we’re glad you’re here.”

Zapier

How Zapier describes its culture:

“We set ambitious goals at Zapier. We want our customers, people, and company to grow. Achieving these goals requires us to regularly learn and improve. Thankfully, our success has more to do with how quickly we learn than how "perfect" we are at a given moment.

Whether it's about how we work or the work itself, feedback enables growth. As such, feedback is one of Zapier's most essential practices. Even so, feedback can be hard to give and hard to receive. We make a point to become good at it anyway—it's just that important.”

Dropbox

How Dropbox describes its culture:

“Dropbox has always striven to have an organizational culture that’s inspiring, diverse, informed, and joyful. That starts with letting team members take part in defining culture. We also unite ourselves by celebrating diversity. This highlights our different backgrounds and perspectives, which makes us stronger as a company. We recognize that simple acts of kindness are essential to building strong connections.”

Wheel

How Wheel describes its culture:

“We nurture a collaborative and inclusive environment where people have the freedom and autonomy to do their best work. We know we will go further together by celebrating diversity — and that starts by honoring each of our unique lived experiences.

We practice problem-solving with the other in mind — from clinicians to clients to colleagues. We ask thoughtful questions. We make time to talk. We truly listen to one another. That’s the Wheel way.”

Wheel uses Gable to scale and connect their remote-first teams. Read a story from Gabby Lorestani, their Head of People >>>

Airtable

How Airtable describes its culture:

“At Airtable, we don’t just identify problems; we find and build solutions. Rather than blindly following precedent, we value thinking from first principles, carefully considering the underlying reasons why things are the way that they are.

Our mission to democratize software creation translates into a culture that prioritizes transparency and respects everyone’s contributions to making the team work—from engineers and salespeople to recruiters and operations staff. Most of all, we’re excited to work at a company with a mission and a product we can truly believe in.”

Pinterest

How Pinterest describes its culture:

“We believe that everyone should be able to discover things that inspire them. It’s a higher purpose and concrete challenge that our employees embody every day. Every single person, no matter where they live, what they look like, or what their interests are, should be able to discover ideas that move them. Only Pinterest has the accessibility and scale to inspire this inclusivity.”

Figma

How Figma describes its culture:

“We’re a team of makers who celebrate our differences and share a passion for our community. We build for builders and try to make complex things feel simple. We ask why until we get to the core and continually focus on solving the right problem, not just shipping work. Everyone’s a work in progress, and we’re here to help each other grow. With humility and curiosity, we give and get the ❤️ and 💯, and the direct feedback we all need to become great.”

SentinelOne

How SentinelOne describes its culture:

“Our team is doing what no other company has done before in record time. We’re on a mission to defeat every cyberattack with autonomous technology. We're changing cybersecurity to give enterprises an advantage over tomorrow. We foster a winning culture that’s rewarding and values-driven. Work where your voice is heard, and your work is recognized. Thrive. Learn. Grow.”

LiveRamp

How LiveRamp describes its culture:

“We believe in our own exceptionalism. We don’t aspire to be good or even great–we hustle to be the absolute best in all we do. We hire exceptional people, challenge them to accomplish exceptional things, and win exceptional results for our customers. We do this through six guiding principles: empowering people, saying what we mean, doing what is right, loving our customers, getting stuff done, and respecting people.”

FAQ: Company culture

What is company culture?

Company culture is a scope of shared values, beliefs, and behaviors that shape an organization. Culture encompasses the overall atmosphere and attitude in the workplace, including things like communication, teamwork, core values, and leadership.

A positive company culture leads to high employee satisfaction, a stable employee retention rate, and exceptional engagement in employees, while a negative culture can lead to high turnover and low morale.

What are a company’s core values?

A company's core values are the fundamental beliefs that guide the actions and culture of the organization. Put simply, core values are the behaviors and beliefs the company wants to promote and reward.

Core values provide a framework for how employees should behave and interact with each other, customers, and partners. Some examples of core values are integrity, respect, excellence, innovation, and diversity.

What is a company mission statement?

A mission statement is a statement of purpose that defines the overall goals and objectives of an organization. It is a concise statement that communicates the organization's overall strategy and the approach it will take to achieve its goals.

A mission statement serves as a guide for the organization's actions and decision-making, and it’s used to communicate values and purpose to employees, customers, and stakeholders. It is usually a short, clear, inspiring statement that outlines what the organization does, who it serves, and what it aims to achieve.

How to write a culture statement?

Here are some steps to help you write a corporate culture statement:

1. Define your organization's values: Sum up the set of values of your organization that guide the actions of your employees.
2. Identify behaviors & attitudes that align with your values: Define specific behaviors you want to encourage in your company in order to support core values.
3. Write a draft: Write the first draft of your culture statement using simple, easy-to-understand language.
4. Get feedback: Share your draft with your leadership team, employees, and stakeholders, and get their feedback. Use that feedback to improve the statement.
5. Finalize and communicate: Once you have a final version of your culture statement, communicate it to all employees and make sure that it is visible and easily accessible.
6. Review and improve: Regularly review the culture statement and make changes to ensure that it continues to align with the company’s goals and values.