top of page
Blogs & insights
You can now find our library of culture tools & session playbacks inside the
Explore our latest blogs and articles using the categories below:
Simplifying Culture
Move culture from fuzzy to focused with tools to simplify.
Hear how people feel (HABIT step 1)
Learn how to evaluate your culture & win stakeholder support.
Integrate it daily (HABIT step 4)
Pinpoint moments & skills to ensure leaders & managers bring culture to life.
Culture Stories
Insights & inspiration from workplaces around the world.
Align on the future (HABIT step 2)
Pick the best direction to fuel sustainable growth for your culture & business.
Trust & evolve
(HABIT step 5)
Culture is never done! Tools to help measure & improve your culture.
Culture Habits
Small practices with BIG impact. Pick-up & use habits to nudge towards growth.
Build the behaviours (HABIT step 3)
Clearly define and turn desired behaviours into everyday reality.
Culture Skills
Resources and practices to keep your culture skills sharp!
Search
From Fuzzy to Fuel: Launching the HABIT System for shaping culture
Culture has become one of the most talked-about topics in business. And yet, for many leaders, managers and HR teams, it still feels frustratingly hard to actually shape. They know culture matters. They care deeply about creating better workplaces. But when it comes to turning good intentions into everyday reality, many get stuck. That’s exactly why we created the HABIT System. Through conversations with leaders — and analysis of 4,000+ employee experiences across som
Make It Human
May 24 min read
How to Restore Momentum in a Permission-Based Culture
Image from Canva The second most common culture archetype emerging from the Growth Cultures Insight Report is "Permission-Based". When workplaces get stuck in permission loops. This pattern showed up repeatedly across 4,000+ employee reviews from top-rated UK organisations — particularly in highly regulated, hierarchical and service-led environments On the surface, these organisations look healthy. They’re professional. Measured. Respectful. Clear about roles and stand
Make It Human
Feb 134 min read
How to Tackle the Overwhelm Crisis (Before It Stalls Growth)
Image from Vitaly Gariev, Pixels Overwhelm isn’t a personal resilience issue on the side of “real work”. It’s probably the biggest threat today to business performance. This emerged as one of the clearest signals in the Growth Cultures Insight Report , built from analysis of 4,000+ employee experiences across top-rated workplaces. Even in organisations doing many things right, overwork and lack of clarity repeatedly surfaced as the cracks that quietly undermine results, ene
Make It Human
Feb 23 min read
How Leaders Shape Growth Cultures (One Small Habit at a Time)
Image from Make It Human Webinar Nov 2025: From Fuzzy to Fuel: A Practical Formula for Culture-Driven Growth If you ask most leaders what they want, the answer is simple: better culture, clearer alignment, stronger performance. But ask what they’re doing to get there… and the answers get vague. It was a pleasure to host our recent “From Fuzzy to Fuel” webinar, where participants shared the same sentiment, no matter their role or industry: Culture matters deeply — yet it
Sarah McLellan
Nov 13, 20253 min read
Culture Stories: How Menlo Innovations Build a Joyful & Accountable Culture
Sources: Menlo Innovations website. Correct as of Oct 2025. Intentionally designing an environment where fear is pushed out In Ann Arbor, Michigan, sits a small software firm with a big idea: What if work could be joyful — not stressful, hierarchical, or fear-driven, but truly human? That’s the philosophy behind Menlo Innovations, a 50-person tech company that has spent two decades intentionally designing a culture around joy, teamwork, and learning. Founded by Richard
Make It Human
Oct 23, 20254 min read
Download Growth Culture Starter Kit (Premium Members)
Shaping a thriving culture isn’t about grand gestures — it’s about building the everyday conditions where people and performance can grow, together. This Starter Kit gives you the core Make It Human models and practical tools to: Understand what a Growth Culture looks like in action Spot cracks and opportunities early Spark meaningful conversations about culture Take simple, targeted actions that make a real difference Think of it as your launchpad — small steps that le
Make It Human
Oct 15, 20251 min read
Culture Stories: The Inside Story of Zapier's Growth Culture (without meetings!)
Sources: Zapier website and YouTube channel. Correct as of Oct 2025. Meet Less. Align More. How Zapier Built a Thriving Remote Culture How do you keep 800 people, scattered across 40+ countries, aligned and energised — without defaulting to endless meetings? That’s the question Zapier has been answering since the very beginning. Unlike many organisations forced into remote work during the pandemic, Zapier has been fully distributed since day one. And that has shaped every
Make It Human
Oct 9, 20254 min read
Culture Stories: The Inside Story of Airbnb’s Growth Culture
Sources: AirBnB website, information correct as of September 2025. When you think of Airbnb, you probably think of unique places to stay. But behind the listings and the app is something that’s fuelled its journey from two airbeds in a San Francisco apartment to a $11bn+ global travel company: culture. Airbnb’s story shows us that culture isn’t just a “nice to have.” It’s the foundation for resilience, growth, and belonging — even through the toughest times. This blog kic
Make It Human
Sep 11, 20254 min read
Introducing the Make It Human HABIT Model: A Practical Way to Build a Growth Culture
Let’s be honest: most culture work doesn’t stick. It lives in slide decks, posters, or one-off workshops. Meanwhile, the real culture – how people behave, make decisions, and collaborate every day – keeps ticking along, unchanged. At Make It Human, we do things differently. We treat culture as a habit – something shaped daily, deliberately, and with impact. Our five-step HABIT model is built on behavioural science and years of hands-on experience helping organisations tur
Make It Human
Jul 8, 20254 min read
Want to fuel growth? Start with habits
When you look at the world’s most successful companies, from Google to Shopify, there’s a pattern that shows up again and again. They all shape great culture habits. Not once. Not as a campaign. But consistently, intentionally, and with purpose. Because here’s the truth: growth doesn’t happen by accident. It’s built daily, in the micro-behaviours and habits that shape how people work, learn, connect and lead. And without intentional focus and targeted nudging, we slip towar
Make It Human
Jul 3, 20253 min read
How to make investing in culture a no-brainer
Source: Wix Images Let’s be honest — getting buy-in for culture change is one of the hardest things to do in a business. Whether you’re proposing a team development day, a manager coaching programme, or a broader culture transformation, it often feels like you’re met with polite nods… and then silence. Culture might be named as a top priority, but behind the scenes, it rarely makes the cut when it comes to actual investment or action. Why? Because culture change is often se
Make It Human
Jun 19, 20254 min read
Return to what, exactly? — Why a Successful RTO Requires a Culture Shift
Source: Wix images Most RTO initiatives fail not because of resistance to work – but because they ignore one thing: workplace culture. Mandating office days without addressing why employees would want to return leads to resentment, not results. That’s why we were delighted to contribute to our partner Seatti's blog. Together we explored what actually makes returning to the office worth it — and how to create the conditions where real connection can flourish. 1. The RTO
Make It Human
Jun 3, 20253 min read
From invisible to invaluable: why mattering drives performance
In today's fast-paced work environment, employees crave more than just a pay check—they seek purpose, connection, and recognition. This deep-seated need is encapsulated in the concept of mattering: the feeling that one is seen, valued, and belongs. Recent studies underscore the significance of this sentiment. According to research highlighted in the Harvard Business Review , 30% of employees report feeling invisible at work, 65% feel under-appreciated, and nearly 82% experi
Make It Human
May 15, 20252 min read
How to Get Started with Culture Change
Source: Wix Images Culture change is regularly listed as a top priority by today’s leaders—yet it's often one of the hardest to act on. While 75% of leaders say improving culture is critical, only around half of employees see real change. Why? Because we get stuck. We see the problem, but the solution feels too big, too vague, or too risky. So, how do we move from intent to action ? At Make It Human , we’ve found that the key lies in two things: pivot moments and habit shi
Make It Human
May 8, 20252 min read
Are you culture fit?
Image by Gustavo Fring from Pexels At the start of the year, I enlisted the help of a personal trainer to try and improve my physical fitness. Being the other side of 40 I have reached the age where looking after my body suddenly feels both more important and challenging at the same time. Previous methods to keep fit and healthy have lost impact and so it was time for a new strategy. It’s early days, but learning new exercises, even venturing into the weights room (an area i
Sarah McLellan
Apr 28, 20253 min read
bottom of page