Hi

Over 16 million of us watched on TV as England’s Lionesses did what no England team has done before and won back-to-back finals in a major football tournament. 

But when the Lionesses lifted the Euro 2025 trophy, it wasn’t because they were the most technically gifted side. They didn’t dominate possession or pass other teams off the pitch. What they did have was something rarer — and, in the end, more powerful.

They had a team culture.

Manager Sarina Wiegman said afterwards, “Every player gave everything… that says something about the team and the togetherness and the will to really want to win.” It wasn’t tactics or training ground drills that made the difference — it was belief, unity, and a shared sense of purpose.

And the same is true in business.

Most small business owners focus on strategy, finance, systems, compliance — and rightly so. But culture is the under-acknowledged factor that often separates the resilient, high-performing businesses from the ones that struggle.

Culture: more than just a ‘nice to have’

Culture is “how we do things around here.” The shared values, habits and assumptions that shape your workplace. And whether you’ve thought about it or not — you already have one.

Even a two-person accountancy practice or a five-person marketing agency has a culture. It might be intentional, or it might be a bit random — but it’s there.

And it matters more than most realise.

When I opened my first office in Chester I had creating a positive culture as a key strategic goal, which contributed hugely to it becoming the fastest growing office in the firm's UK network over the next three years.

A famous Harvard study over 11 years found that companies with strong, adaptive cultures grew profits by over 750%. Those without? Just 1%.

Meanwhile, research from MIT found that a toxic culture is the number one reason employees leave — over ten times more influential than salary. That’s a problem for any business, but for small firms where every person counts, it’s potentially fatal.

Culture affects retention, productivity, service, reputation — everything. If your team believes in what you’re doing, trusts one another, and feels safe to speak up, they’ll go above and beyond. If not, they’ll check out.

Culture and performance: the link is real

The evidence is clear. Teams with a healthy, positive culture:

• Perform better under pressure
• Bounce back faster from setbacks
• Retain staff longer
• Deliver a better customer experience

Why? Because they’re aligned. People understand the mission, trust the leadership, and support one another.

They aren’t held together by process or micromanagement — they’re held together by shared purpose.

This matters in big businesses. But it’s even more critical in small ones. A toxic hire or muddled team culture in a company of 5 or 10 people will be felt immediately — and has far more impact than it would in a faceless corporate.

Culture as a resilience multiplier

We all know running a business isn’t easy. Customers leave. Staff get sick. Markets wobble. Mistakes happen.

Culture is what carries you through.

A resilient team will step up, flex, adapt, and support each other when things get hard. A fragile team falls apart.

When COVID hit, and the cost-of-living crisis bit, the businesses that weathered it best weren’t always the ones with the biggest cash reserves — they were the ones with strong cultures. The ones where staff said, “What do we need to do?” not, “This isn’t my job.”

Look back at the Lionesses again. They dealt with key players getting injured, matchday setbacks, off-pitch scrutiny. Their resilience wasn’t random. It was built on shared values, deep trust and a belief in each other.

So how do you build a great culture?

The good news is, you don’t need a big budget or an HR department. Small businesses actually have an advantage here: you’re close to your team, you can move fast, and your behaviour as the owner sets the tone. Here’s what you can do:

1. Define and share your values
What do you stand for? What behaviours matter most? Don’t just write them down – talk about them. Live them. Use them when hiring, giving feedback, making decisions.

2. Lead by example
You can’t tell your team to be proactive or care about customers if you don’t. They’re watching what you do, not what you say.

3. Communicate openly and often
Create space for people to speak up. Share what’s going well – and what isn’t. Ask for input. Listen, and act on what you hear.

4. Care about people, not just performance
Support your team’s wellbeing and development. That could be training, flexibility, mental health support – whatever helps them feel valued and supported.

5. Celebrate wins and effort
Notice when people do great work. Thank them. Share it with others. A culture of appreciation breeds commitment

Culture might feel intangible, but its effects are not. It influences every conversation, every decision, every client interaction. It’s the silent force that shapes how your business behaves — especially when no one’s watching.

And as the Lionesses showed, a strong culture can take you further than talent or tactics alone.

So ask yourself:

• What kind of culture are you building?
• Is it helping your team perform — or holding them back?
• Are you being intentional about it — or leaving it to chance?

Your answers to those questions could be the difference between a good business and a great one.

Worth thinking about.

Noel Guilford