An Enduring Culture Framework

I point to Patagonia when helping leaders and teams shape culture

Patagonia, the outdoor apparel company offers one of the clearest and most enduring examples of a culture framework—Purpose, Vision, Mission, and Tenets that don’t just live in frames on office walls but guide decisions across the organization.

Patagonia’s Purpose is to save our home planet. Its Vision: a world where people use business to protect nature. Its Mission: to build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, and use business to help solve the environmental crisis. A sampling of their Tenets: Engage in creative problem-solving; and build products that are functional, durable, repairable, and sustainable.

While the environmental focus is compelling, what’s relevant here is just how powerful their culture framework is.

• Each piece serves a unique function and together they form a cohesive framework.

• It’s aspirational at the top, actionable at the base.

• It’s withstood the test of time.

• It’s relatable, informing everything from big decisions to daily work, from their stores to their product teams and from the latest joiner to the longest tenured employee.

In Let My People Go Surfing, founder Yvon Chouinard outlines the history and philosophy behind Patagonia’s approach and talks about its failures, learnings, and successes. Chouinard originally wrote the book in 2005 as a philosophical manual for his employees, but since then it’s been studied in high schools and colleges and translated into more than 10 languages.

It’s a blueprint for anyone wanting to build a successful and sustainable company where values and actions align. Decades later, this book remains fresh and relevant.

Let’s connect to discuss your culture framework!