By Tom Florence, Managing Partner, Zeal Med
Key takeaways:
- Nearly every leader says culture matters, but few teams say their firm lives it. Executives also rate their own leadership higher than employees do.
- Culture comes from values lived daily, a clear mission, and leaders who model the standard and value their people. Perks aren’t a substitute.
- Culture is never permanent, so every leader who inherits it has to protect it. Firms that keep learning and improving keep it strong.
When I talk with colleagues who are looking to scale a business, launch a new team, or drive change, I always ask the same question: tell me about your culture.
The answer usually tells me more than any growth plan or org chart. A strong culture aligns teams, attracts top talent, increases retention, and fuels innovation. In staffing, where our product is people and our reputation rides on every placement, culture isn’t a side conversation. It’s the business.
Few employees feel truly connected to their firm’s culture
In 2024, Gallup found that only two in 10 U.S. employees strongly agree they feel connected to their organization’s culture. Leaders fare better, but only 40% report feeling fully connected.
Leaders feel closer to culture than their teams do, yet most still don’t feel fully connected. Very few can say their team truly lives it.
Gallup also found that only 19% of employees strongly agree their manager explains how cultural values shape their work.
As I talk with staffing companies large and small, it becomes very clear which firms have a winning culture and which do not. The difference rarely shows up in a mission statement. It shows up in how people talk about their work, their leaders, and each other.
Strong cultures rest on lived values, a clear mission, and leaders who walk the talk
Perks are nice. A firm can offer every amenity and still struggle with turnover, low trust, and disengaged teams if the fundamentals are missing.
A winning culture is built on things that cost far less and demand far more:
- Values lived every day. Not values on a wall or in an onboarding deck, but values that show up in how decisions get made, especially the hard ones.
- Clarity of mission. When every recruiter, account manager, and back-office team member knows why the firm exists and who it serves, alignment happens naturally.
- Leaders who walk the talk. Teams watch what leaders do far more closely than what they say. The standards leaders model are the standards teams follow.
- Leaders who truly value their team members. People can tell the difference between being managed and being valued, and they stay where they feel valued.
A healthy culture is never satisfied with the status quo
A strong culture is not content with “good enough.” Continuous improvement and growth are expected, not optional.
In staffing, this matters more than ever. Our industry is changing quickly, from how candidates are sourced to how clients measure value. Firms that expect their people to learn, adapt, and grow will keep pace.
In a culture of improvement, people ask better questions and share what isn’t working. They look for ways to serve candidates and clients better than they did last quarter, without constant pressure.
Culture is never permanent, so every leader has to protect it
I was fortunate to experience an amazing culture early in my career, and I saw firsthand how it impacted the growth of our business. People wanted to be there. They pushed each other, supported each other, and took ownership of results.
You take that kind of culture for granted until you move to a new company, or until new leadership negatively impacts the team. That contrast taught me that culture is never permanent. It has to be protected, and it has to be rebuilt by every leader who inherits it.
Culture is a competitive advantage
Deloitte’s 2016 Global Human Capital Trends survey found that 82% of respondents believe culture is a potential competitive advantage. In a people business like staffing, I’d argue it’s the competitive advantage.
Clients feel it in the consistency of service. Candidates feel it in how they are treated. And internal teams feel it every single day.
So I’ll ask you the same question I ask my colleagues:
How would you describe your culture? Would your team describe it the same way?
Tom Florence is Managing Partner at Zeal Med, a healthcare staffing agency placing CRNAs, dentists, and physicians nationwide. With more than 25 years in healthcare staffing and recruiting, he is known for a relationship-first approach, building high-performing teams, and creating long-standing client partnerships.
