PROJECT

CULTURE
CANVAS
10 steps on how to play nice
and hack project culture.
THIS BOOK
CONSISTS
OF 2 PARTS.
1 INTO THE
A LOOK
FUTURE
OF WORK.

2 THE CULTURE
CANVAS: TO
BRING THE
FUTURE OF
WORK TO
TODAY.
1
“ SMALL GROUPS
OF PEOPLE CAN
HAVE A REALLY
HUGE IMPACT.”
Larry Page, Co-Founder,
CEO, Alphabet Inc.

2
WHY YOU
NEED
THIS BOOK
The future of work is here.
Project teams are distributed, people work from home, email is
being dumped for Slack or Basecamp. Everything is agile or lean.
Or both. Self-managing teams are growing in popularity.

But deadlines are still being missed while everyone talks about
new cloud productivity apps, nothing has really changed.
There’s more noise than ever before.

Maybe it’s the tons of email you receive. The endless meetings
you attend, or the conference calls with multiple countries that
never start or end on time.

Maybe you see the possibilities for working remotely, running

projects in a more effective way, or you crave a better work-life
balance.

Whatever the reason to download this book, we get it.

We’ve been there. As have many of our clients.

3
On our journey to the future of work, we realised that there are
a few decisions that need to be made upfront for a project team
to be successful. We laid them out onto a single page and realised
we had something worth sharing.

We’ve designed this book to take a complex topic - the future of

work - and make it actionable by answering the most important
question…

Where do you start?

The book’s goal is to get you moving.
In a one hour read, we will show you how to:

1
Define the first
steps towards the
future of work

2 Apply those
steps using the
Culture Canvas

3 Be more effective,
get more done, in less
time, with less stress

4
Transform your
organization,
project by project

4
GLOBAL
TRENDS

5
TALENT
IS FREE
(LANCE)
Our mindsets are changing.
Highly skilled workers are seeking compensation beyond
money. Many are choosing temporary projects over permanent
employment, preferring flexibility and autonomy over the
security of a regular paycheck.

By 2020, 60% of the total U.S workforce will be freelance.

That’s 60 million people. Globally, the trend is not far off.

This shift is forcing corporations to re-think their traditional

9 to 5 mentality in order to compete for the best talent.

6
BY 2020
60% OF
THE U.S
WORFORCE
WILL BE
FREELANCE.
THAT’S
60 MILLION
PEOPLE.

7
“ WE WANT TO
UNDERSTAND
WHAT WORKS
HERE RATHER THAN
WHAT WORKED
AT ANY OTHER
ORGANIZATION.”
Laszlo Bock, SVP of People
Operations, Google
8
WI-FI
AND
COFFEE
Austere head offices are making room for working remotely,
either from a home office, co-working space, or anywhere in
between. With 4G and Wi-Fi connections available everywhere,
we can now work wherever and whenever suits us best.

This raises key questions:

If employees aren’t at the

office, how do you keep
people connected?
How does this influence
company culture?
Are they more or less
productive?

9
“ IF YOU WANT
SOMETHING NEW,
YOU HAVE TO
STOP DOING
SOMETHING OLD.”
Peter Drucker, Father
of Management Science

10
EFFECTIVE,
NOT
EFFICIENT,
TECHNOLOGY
Conference calls have replaced
meetings, but they still retain
the same old cultural hang-ups,
like printing out emails.
We’ve been taken over by technology that helps us to be
more efficient, yet reduces our effectiveness in getting things
(not tasks) done.

It’s time to leverage the possibilities the future of work

has to offer, which global businesses like Automattic, Buffer,
and Github have been doing for years.

11
“ CULTURE IS
SIMPLY A
SHARED WAY
OF DOING
SOMETHING
WITH A
PASSION.”
Brian Chesky,
Co-Founder, CEO, Airbnb
12
ARE YOU
A HUMAN
RESOURCE?
We know that more technology is not the solution, it’s people
that make for a great company. It’s people that influence and
make for a great culture.

We view this book as a call for a culture change, not by

employing armies of consultants with new vision and values
statements, but through small changes, one project at a time.

It leads us to the ultimate question:

How do you create a culture?

13
HACKING
TEAM
CULTURE
Research shows that group
norms, or behaviour when they
meet, is the most important
indicator of a team’s success,
more so than how smart all of
the individuals are.
This is backed up by research at Google, who identified 4 things
a team needs to be successful.

1. Safety: Can I share ideas without being ridiculed?

2. Dependability: Can we count on each other to do high
quality work on time?
3. Structure & Clarity: Are the goals, roles, and what we are
trying to achieve (and how) clear.
4. Purpose: Why is what we are doing going to matter?

We used this research as part of the thinking for the canvas,

to create a foundation for a successful project culture.

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CULTURE
IS WHAT
YOU DO
CONSISTENTLY

15
“ OVER THE YEARS WE
LEARNED THAT IF WE
ASKED PEOPLE TO RELY
ON LOGIC AND COMMON
SENSE INSTEAD OF ON
FORMAL POLICIES, MOST
OF THE TIME WE WOULD
GET BETTER RESULTS,
AND AT LOWER COST.”
Patty McCord, Chief
Talent Officer, Netflix
16
MEET
THE
CULTURE
CANVAS
17
HOW
DOES THE
CULTURE
CANVAS
WORK?
To hack a culture for a team, we need to make what we do
regularly the most important thing.

We’ve identified the 10 key decisions all teams working on a

project make anyway. Sometimes consciously, but most often
unconsciously. If we resolve the obvious, but often overlooked,
challenges from the start, it saves time, energy and frustration
further down the line. This makes the team function better,
allowing us to get the job done with better results.

The changes are either small or simple, and often both and
are designed to be actionable in your very next project.
There is no need to change everything you do, or to learn
a new ‘collaboration language’ before getting started.

The Culture Canvas is a roadmap with room for your own specific
needs. We go from left to right, and every block builds on the other.

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 PEOPLE ACTIONS RESULTS
PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

WHO - ROLE SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs

GET TO A DECISION
OR SOLVE A PROBLEM

DOING WORK
RITUALS
SOCIAL
PLAYGROUND

STOP

19
PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

WHO - ROLE SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs

GET TO A DECISION
PURPOSE OR SOLVE A PROBLEM

What is the purpose of the project?

Why did you gather as a group?
Why is it important to get this project done?
It ensures everyone gets the bigger picture.
DOING WORK
Whether it is a part of a larger project or a stand RITUALS
alone initiative, having the purpose defined in a
SOCIAL
way everyone on the team understands, reduces
PLAYGROUND
confusion and frustration in the long term.
STOP

20
PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

WHO - ROLE SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs

GET TO A DECISION
DESIRED OUTCOMES
OR SOLVE A PROBLEM

What is the end goal?

What does success look like?
When are we done?
What are the deadlines?
DOING WORK
While the purpose answers the ‘why’ , the outcomes
RITUALS
answers the ‘what’ and the ‘when’. It helps to know
SOCIAL
PLAYGROUND what direction you’re heading in, and what to expect
at the end.
STOP

21
PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

WHO - ROLE SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs

GET TO A DECISION
WHO - ROLE OR SOLVE A PROBLEM

Who is in on the project?

What roles are required?
It’s all about people, and what they bring to the
project. Roles can be official (project manager or
DOING WORK
developer) or unofficial (comic relief or team shrink). RITUALS
SOCIAL
PLAYGROUND

STOP

22
PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

WHO - ROLE
SOCIAL PLAYGROUND
SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs
If you’re working together but are distributed, there are certain agreements to
be made about the ‘when’ and the ‘how’. Differing ideas of urgency or level of
GET
politeness often lead to TO A DECISION
frustrations. The social playground is a team’s agreement
OR SOLVE A PROBLEM
about expectations.

Availability: When is everyone expected to be available, and for how long?

For example 24/7 or from 10am and 4pm PST?

Responsiveness: How long before you get back to someone during this window?
DOING WORK
Emergency: What channel do we use in case of an emergency
RITUALSor outside the
specified time window? For example, a call, SMS or Whatsapp?
SOCIAL
PLAYGROUND Politeness: What is acceptable behavior? For example, does every
interaction start with “Hi, how are you?” or can you get straight to the point?
STOP

23
PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

WHO - ROLE SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs

GET TO A DECISION
OR SOLVE A PROBLEM
SHARING INFORMATION
What tools do we use?
How often do we check or how do we indicate that there have been changes?
How do we version information?
DOING WORK
RITUALS
Every group shares information, whether it is via email, shared directories or print outs.
SOCIALWith a million collaboration tools available, it’s important to pick them according to your
PLAYGROUND
needs, and to be clear about what tool you use for what purpose within this team. Where
so many tools have similar functionality, the fewer the better.
STOP

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PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

GET TO A DECISION OR SOLVE A PROBLEM

WHO - ROLE SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs
Do we have a clear objective before we meet?
What needs to be prepared?
What do we need to agree on?
GET TO A DECISION
How long do we OR
meet for?A PROBLEM
SOLVE
Do we meet in person or online?
Who is responsible for collecting the data?

Solving problems and making decisions can be challenging. Especially in cross

functional, distributed teams. To avoid endless meetings and discussion without
getting anywhere, decide
DOINGupfront
WORK on the format needed, and who is responsible
RITUALS
for delivering it. As an example, for complex decisions, hold a structured
SOCIAL workshop with strict timelines, whether in person or remote. For simpler
PLAYGROUND decisions, an online vote could work. Think in advance of how to address these
critical situations, so the tools are already in place.
STOP

25
PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

DOING WORK
WHO - ROLE SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs
What format is the work being done in?
How are tasks being managed?
How is individual input meant to be delivered?
GET TO A DECISION
OR SOLVE A PROBLEM
People often confuse reading emails or sitting in a
meeting with doing work. This section identifies what
the work really is, how it will be delivered and how tasks
are assigned. Is the work being done as individuals and
reviewed, or is it completed as a group.
DOING WORK
RITUALS
SOCIAL
PLAYGROUND

STOP

26
PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

WHO - ROLE SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs

STOP
What will we stop?
GET TO A DECISION What keeps us busy, but is
OR SOLVE A PROBLEM
counterproductive?

It’s easier to define what we

will do, once we’ve defined
what we WON’T do.

DOING WORK For example, if you use Slack

RITUALS
for sharing information,
SOCIAL don’t use email.
PLAYGROUND

STOP

27
PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

WHO - ROLE SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs

METRICS & KPIs GET TO A DECISION

OR SOLVE A PROBLEM
How do we measure success?
What metric(s) will we track?
What benchmark(s) do we define?
How do we collect the data?

We stated what success looks like in the ‘desired

DOING WORK
outcomes’ block. This is where we measure success. RITUALS
It helps identify what we’re looking for from the
SOCIAL
beginning. When results are visible and measurable,
PLAYGROUND
it leaves zero room for misunderstanding.
STOP

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PURPOSE DESIRED OUTCOMES

RITUALS
WHO - ROLE SHARE INFORMATION METRICS & KPIs
Morning catch up over coffee?
Greeting everyone on the slack channel when
you come online
GET TO A DECISION
with a movie quote?
Weekly
OR SOLVE retrospective and planning session?
A PROBLEM

The key to success in developing a culture is defined by

what you do consistently. These actions can become
rituals not because they directly contribute to a result,
but because they create connection within the team.
DOING WORK
RITUALS
SOCIAL
PLAYGROUND

STOP

29
SO, THERE
YOU HAVE IT…
THE
CULTURE
CANVAS.
An easy, effective and actionable
method for improving the culture
within your next project. A step
in the right direction to moving
towards the future of work.
If you want to download the digital version:
www.culturecanvas.biz
If you’re curious for succes stories:
www.culturecanvas.biz/stories
If you want to comment, have feedback or get in touch:
www.culturecanvas.biz/contact
If you want more examples, download at:
www.culturecanvas.biz/examples

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WHO WE ARE
Culture Canvas
We transform the way businesses work by changing how teams collaborate. No big
fanfare, just small steps that change day-to-day behaviour. We create team norms
that are made for new technologies and enable the future of work. The Culture
Canvas was developed as a collaboration between &Innovation and Kevin Weijers,
as part of the #CoCreateSA project for the Consulate General of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands in South Africa, showcasing collaboration between Dutch and South
African innovators. www.culturecanvas.biz

Kevin Weijers
While being flooded by 150 emails a day working a government job, Kevin said
farewell to his inbox in 2013, and his full time employment shortly after. He now
helps companies, organisations, and brands all around the world explore the
possibilities of the future of work, by running actionable experiments.

Although the future of work is strongly associated with digital collaboration tools,
Kevin believes the single most important asset is always the team culture.

#CoCreateSA
#CoCreateSA is an initiative of the Consulate General of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands in South Africa to connect counterparts to exchange ideas and
innovations for a sustainable future. From 10 until 19 August #CoCreateSA
connected &Innovation and Kevin Weijers to work on a challenge: Can we hack
culture and help corporates move towards the future of work?

After 10 days of intense collaboration the Culture Canvas and this book were
realised. As a result of #CoCreateSA, a partnership is formed. If you want to know
more about #CoCreateSA, visit www.cocreatesa.co.za

&Innovation
We are a digital transformation consultancy. We partner with leading, future-
focused companies to drive strategic digital innovation and deliver revenue
growth. Our team consists of divergent skills and backgrounds, employing proven
methodologies to develop new products and services from concept to go-to-market.

We see digital transformation not just as a new interface, but also as the cultural
transformation required to make it stick. This book is an example of our work, as are
consumer apps, backend APIs, data driven insights and comprehensive business
models.