The core idea
The Cultural Web places a central paradigm—the assumptions shaping what feels normal—among six connected elements: stories, symbols, rituals and routines, power structures, organisational structures and control systems. It is associated with Johnson and Scholes and later editions of Exploring Strategy with Richard Whittington. The model helps connect a general statement about culture to observable features of organisational life. Its centre is an interpretation to investigate, not a slogan to invent and impose.
Source and attribution [1]Using it in practice
Choose one issue and gather examples for each element. Distinguish the formal organisation chart from informal influence, and stated priorities from measures that actually affect decisions. Build a current map before describing a desired one. Then identify a small set of mutually reinforcing changes, with owners and review dates. Keep contrary evidence and disagreement on the map: the purpose is to understand patterns, not to manufacture consensus in a workshop.
An example, not a reported case
Worked example · illustrative
A fictional security business celebrates the supervisor who personally rescues a failed shift. Overtime totals are highly visible, while avoided disruption is almost invisible. Experienced schedulers influence decisions despite limited formal authority. HR explores a possible paradigm that dependable service requires constant heroics. A pilot recognises early planning, adds a short capacity review and gives schedulers an explicit escalation route. The evaluation checks whether disruption falls without encouraging teams to conceal uncovered work.
What to watch for
A completed diagram is not proof of a causal explanation. Maps may reflect the people invited and the stories they feel safe telling. Do not confuse a power structure with a list of senior job titles, or symbols with branding alone. Changing a symbol while retaining contradictory incentives may change little. Use the web with observation, operational evidence and follow-up conversations.
Stories and symbols
Ask which incidents are repeatedly retold and who appears as the hero, problem-solver or cautionary example. Inspect visible signals of status and access as well as logos and office space. Our working question is what a new starter would learn about whose work matters. Capture more than the senior team’s preferred story.
Rituals and routines
Observe a handover, meeting or promotion discussion. What happens every time, what gets skipped under pressure and what behaviour attracts approval? Choose one routine that can be changed without disrupting essential operations. State the intended behaviour in practical terms, then observe whether the change survives a busy period.
Formal structure and real influence
Draw decision routes as people experience them. Identify where advice is routinely sought and where an informal objection can stop progress. Compare that with official responsibility. Our suggested intervention is to clarify a specific decision and escalation path, rather than assuming a new chart will change influence by itself.
Control systems
Inspect the measures, budget rules, rewards and sanctions that shape choices. Ask which important outcomes are absent from the scorecard. A measure of speed may need a quality check; a cost measure may need visibility of work shifted elsewhere. Make the trade-off explicit and review possible unintended effects before expanding a new measure.
From current web to change plan
For every proposed change, record the supporting element and any contradiction elsewhere in the web. If leaders ask for early reporting but still punish every inconvenient report, address that conflict first. Set a review date and specify observable evidence. Treat the map as a living hypothesis rather than a finished poster.
Take it into your next conversation
Three useful questions.
- What observable evidence supports this interpretation?
- Whose experience differs from the dominant story?
- What small change could we test, and how would we know it helped?
Related terms
Go to the evidence
Sources & attribution
[1] Cultural Web teaching resource, citing Johnson, Scholes and Whittington, Exploring Strategy ↗
The core idea is an original summary of the cited work. Application notes, examples and sketches are our interpretations, not quotations or reproductions of the authors’ figures. Publisher records may require access to read the full original work.
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Published 2026-09-20 · Reviewed 2026-09-20. Editorial approach