Performance culture: Cornerstone of strategy implementation

HIGH performance is not an act, but a habit.

Sustaining it requires consistency, fairness, and courage — even when the decisions are tough.

A high-performance culture is not achieved by chance or by a single initiative. It is the outcome of deliberate effort — built, reinforced, and sustained through disciplined leadership and organizational integrity.

Once a strategy is set and alignment is achieved, the real challenge begins: keeping performance alive over time.

This article explores how organizations can sustain a performance culture through feedback, continuous learning, accountability, and, when necessary, fair and professional off boarding.

It addresses how leaders can handle underperformance with both humanity and firmness, protecting the organization from both cultural and legal risks.

1. Sustaining a performance culture: The transition from execution to excellence

Once strategy execution is underway, sustaining a performance culture means embedding it into the organisation’s daily rhythm. At this stage, culture must be self-propelling — guided by systems, reinforced by leadership, and owned by individuals.

A sustainable performance culture exhibits three enduring characteristics:

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1. Consistency: Performance standards remain clear and uncompromised, regardless of leadership changes or external pressures.
2. Transparency: Performance decisions are communicated openly and based on evidence, not opinion.
3. Learning orientation: Mistakes are treated as opportunities for improvement, not occasions for blame.

Organisations that maintain these attributes evolve from reactive performance management to proactive performance leadership.

2. Continuous feedback and learning loops

The foundation of sustained performance is feedback. Feedback keeps employees connected to expectations, progress, and improvement opportunities. It must be continuous, two-way, and constructive.

• Upward feedback allows employees to share insights about processes and leadership effectiveness.
• Downward feedback helps employees understand how their performance contributes to strategic goals.
• Peer feedback fosters accountability within teams.

Regular check-ins, coaching sessions, and development discussions create learning loops that fuel improvement. In this environment, feedback is not feared; it is welcomed as a sign of engagement and trust.

Organisations that institutionalize feedback evolve into learning organizations — adaptive, resilient, and performance-driven.

3. Reinforcing accountability and recognition

A true performance culture thrives on balanced accountability. High performers must be recognized, and low performance must be addressed swiftly and fairly.

Recognition, whether through financial rewards, career advancement, or simple acknowledgment, reinforces desirable behavior. It signals that excellence is noticed and valued.

Accountability, on the other hand, ensures that standards are upheld. It prevents complacency and protects fairness among employees. When people see that effort and outcomes matter — and that standards apply to all — trust in leadership grows.

Sustaining a performance culture thus requires a delicate equilibrium between support and consequence.

4. Managing persistent underperformance

Despite coaching, alignment, and performance Improvement Plans (PIPs), there will always be instances where some employees fail to meet expected standards. Managing this scenario professionally is critical — both for protecting organisational culture and minimizing legal or reputational risk.

1. The purpose of managing underperformance

The aim is not to terminate employees but to ensure fairness, preserve culture, and uphold performance integrity. Off boarding is a last resort, pursued only after genuine developmental efforts have been exhausted.

1. The process: From support to decision
2. Early identification:

Managers should recognize signs of underperformance early — declining results, missed deadlines, disengagement, or resistance to feedback. Early conversations can often redirect performance before formal steps are needed.

2. Performance improvement plan (PIP):

A PIP must be clearly documented, time-bound (typically 30–90 days), and jointly signed by the manager and employee. It should define:

• Specific performance gaps
• Expected improvement levels
• Support mechanisms (training, mentoring, resources)
• Regular review checkpoints

3. Mid-Plan review:

Continuous evaluation ensures fairness. Progress should be recorded, and any adjustments made transparently.

4. Final evaluation:

At the end of the PIP period, the manager evaluates whether the employee has met the agreed targets.

l If improvement is evident, the PIP should be formally closed with recognition and a continued development plan.

l If performance remains below expectation, the organization must consider next steps — redeployment, reassignment, or, where appropriate, offboarding.

5. Off boarding with Integrity and professionalism

When off boarding becomes unavoidable, leaders must ensure the process is legally sound, ethically fair, and culturally consistent. Poorly managed exits can damage morale, reputation, and even result in litigation.

1. Principles of fair off boarding:
2. Transparency: The employee should never be surprised by the decision. There must be a clear trail of documented conversations, feedback, and PIP reviews.
3. Consistency: The same standards and procedures should apply across similar cases to avoid claims of bias or unfair treatment.
4. Respect and dignity: The manner of communication matters. Conversations about exit should be private, empathetic, and focused on professionalism rather than blame.
5. Documentation: Maintain accurate, factual records of performance discussions, evidence, and agreed actions. This protects both the organization and the manager from potential disputes.
6. Legal compliance: Offboarding must comply with labor laws, contractual terms, and internal policies. Consultation with human resources and legal counsel is essential before final action.
7. Exit conversation: Conduct a structured exit meeting — not as a confrontation but as closure. Offer clarity on notice periods, benefits, and references. Preserve relationships; today’s exit could be tomorrow’s ambassador or client.
8. Protecting the organisation from litigation:

To safeguard against potential legal challenges, leaders should ensure:

• The PIP process was fair and well-documented.
• The employee had adequate opportunity and support to improve.
• All decisions were based on objective evidence, not perception.
• HR and legal departments reviewed and endorsed the final decision.

These precautions demonstrate procedural fairness, which courts and tribunals consider the cornerstone of lawful termination.

6. Leadership responsibilities in sustaining culture

Both the board and management have crucial, distinct roles in maintaining performance culture through transitions and offboarding.

The board’s role:

• Ensures that performance policies uphold ethical standards and legal compliance.
• Monitors whether the organisational climate remains healthy despite performance pressures.
• Reviews talent and succession plans to ensure leadership continuity and capability renewal.

Management’s role:

• Communicates expectations clearly and consistently.
• Leads performance conversations with empathy and firmness.
• Upholds fairness in applying rewards and consequences.
• Supports managers through training on effective feedback and conflict resolution.

When boards and management align on these principles, performance management becomes a hallmark of professionalism — not a source of fear.

7. The cultural payoff: Trust, integrity, and renewal

Sustaining a performance culture requires courage — the courage to set high standards, to have honest conversations, and to make difficult decisions with dignity.

When leaders handle underperformance and exits transparently, the rest of the organization notices. It builds trust. Employees feel secure knowing that excellence is recognized, improvement is supported, and fairness governs consequences.

Ultimately, this consistency transforms performance culture into a strategic asset. It ensures that execution excellence is not personality-dependent but system-driven — embedded in processes, protected by values, and perpetuated through leadership behavior.

8. Conclusion — From culture to legacy

Performance culture is not just a management concept; it is an organizational legacy. It defines how people experience work, how leaders make decisions, and how success is sustained.

The journey from strategy formulation to execution — and finally to sustained performance — is a story of leadership maturity. It’s about building systems that empower, not enslave; cultures that uplift, not intimidate.

When off boarding is handled with fairness, when improvement is genuinely supported, and when excellence is consistently recognized, performance culture becomes self-renewing.

It outlives individuals, outlasts challenges, and outperforms competitors.

Closing thought

“Sustaining performance culture is not about keeping everyone; it’s about keeping integrity — the discipline to support where possible and the professionalism to part ways where necessary.”

*Clever Matigimu  is a business consultant  and trainer. He offers MS Excel training (inform of best practice spreadsheet modelling divided into 3 levels) as well as leadership Skills development. He is a seasoned business executive whose career spans over 35 years, most of which were in C – suite, in financial services, industry & commerce. He has sat and still sits on a wide variety of boards as a non-executive director and chaired boards and committees.. 

These weekly articles are coordinated by Lovemore Kadenge, an independent consultant, managing consultant of Zawale Consultants (Private) Limited, past president of the Zimbabwe Economics Society and past president of the Chartered Governance & Accountancy Institute in Zimbabwe. Email – [email protected] or Mobile No. +263 772 382 852.

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