Culture is that unwritten set of rules that defines and enforces the required behaviors in the work that we do together. Many things we do are written down and comprise our standard operating procedures. But most things are unwritten. And, when we think of culture, here are some things that are often missed.

• Who can belong to our team? (Membership)
• Who has the authority to make decisions, in what situations?
• How are team members given work assignments?
• How often are team members given work assignments?
• Do team members depend on work product from other team members?
• How do team members hand off work to other team members? (Integration)
• When a team member completes a work assignment, how does their supervisor know?
• When a team member completes a work assignment, how do they know what to work on next?
• Does anyone review or inspect their work?
• How often is their work reviewed or inspected?
• Are they permitted to continue on additional work before their current work has been reviewed?
• Do they work on multiple assignments simultaneously?

The people system is the most important system you work on. This is just the start.