On Culture: From Mandates to Meaning—Agency at Work

Myste Wylde
Mar 20
5 min read

Dear Culturati Insider,

Raise your hand if you’ve ever had to reign in your inner control freak. I’ll go first. Like most Type A-dominant over-achievers, I like things done a certain way. (I'm working on it!) High standards, sharp execution, and a clear vision aren’t the problem. Misplaced control is. And I know I’m not alone. When uncertainty rises, the instinct can be to tighten our grip—increased supervision, stricter policies...RTO mandates, anyone? Control can feel like security—until it starts working against you. Research shows that excessive oversight erodes intrinsic motivation, stifles creativity, and weakens trust. The real real is that security isn't built on more rules; it's built on the belief that our actions matter. This secret is agency—and it is, perhaps, the least understood, most undervalued element of thriving organizational cultures.

Agency is the ability to take meaningful action, make choices, and drive outcomes with confidence. It’s the missing link between compliance and commitment, the difference between employees who do the work because they have to and those who bring curiosity and initiative to the table. Hope plays a role here too—not as blind optimism, but as a belief in one’s ability to influence outcomes. Studies show that hopeful employees are more productive, resilient, and engaged. But hope alone isn’t enough; it needs agency to turn potential into performance. Employees who take ownership don’t just follow instructions; they push boundaries, problem-solve, and create. The same applies at the top—leading high-expertise teams isn’t about having all the answers, but knowing when to step back, when to ask better questions, and when to trust your people.

The rise of AI is testing this balance. Many executives feel overwhelmed, employees are resisting, and algorithms are making more decisions than ever. Leadership in this era isn’t about handing over the reins or tightening them further; it’s about recalibrating. Structure can be thoughtfully deployed by embedding clarity, autonomy, and recognition into the fabric of work. Purpose sets the direction. Trust builds the foundation. And agency fuels the journey. It's time that agency gets the airtime—and the action—it deserves.

Keeping ourselves honest,

Myste Wylde, COO

Who's In Control?

MIT Sloan Management Review

By Abbie Lundberg

Summary: In uncertain times, leaders often tighten control—turning to automation, RTO mandates, and monitoring systems—but research suggests this can backfire. Compensatory control theory explains that when people feel powerless, they impose structure, yet studies by Gagné and Hewett show that excessive oversight erodes intrinsic motivation, undermining performance. Overreliance on digital talent systems risks ceding critical decisions to rigid algorithms that miss human potential. Saabye and Kristensen’s research highlights a better path: leaders who engage in problem-solving with employees foster autonomy, competence, and innovation. The takeaway? Effective leadership isn’t about more control—it’s about smarter control, balancing systems with human judgment to drive performance and trust.

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From Collaboration to Commitment — How to Get Your Employees to Take Ownership

Entrepreneur

By Cyrus Claffey

Summary: When employees take ownership, they stop working for a paycheck and start working with purpose. There’s a difference between engagement and investment—engaged employees meet expectations, follow instructions, and complete tasks, while invested employees ask why the work matters, take initiative, and seek ways to improve results. Lack of clarity, limited autonomy, and fear of failure often hold employees back from true ownership. To foster commitment, leaders must involve employees in goal-setting, give them a say in how work gets done, and create a culture where accountability supports growth rather than punishes mistakes. Recognition matters too—rewarding initiative, not just outcomes, reinforces the behaviors that drive lasting investment.

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Leading a High-Expertise Team? Here’s How to Foster Success

Fast Company

By Featured

Summary: Leading a high-expertise team isn’t about having all the answers—it’s about knowing enough to ask the right questions, spot key trends, and guide teams toward success. The best leaders replace micromanagement with clarity, using shared goals and measurable outcomes to align efforts and build trust. Establishing clear performance metrics creates a common language that empowers experts to take full ownership while ensuring leaders maintain strategic oversight. Reverse mentoring and knowledge-sharing sessions foster a culture of mutual learning, where expertise is valued and leveraged. This balance of autonomy and accountability strengthens collaboration, drives innovation, and encourages employees to take agency over their work.

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C-suite Leaders Grapple with Conflict, Silos Amid AI Adoption

HR Dive

By Lindsey Wilkinson

Summary: Generative AI adoption is creating internal conflict, with research from Writer finding that 66% of executives report tensions between IT and other departments, and 36% say implementation has been a disappointment. Resistance is growing, particularly among younger employees—41% of Gen Z and Millennial workers admit to actively undermining AI strategies, while 33% of employees are refusing to use AI tools or skipping AI training. At the leadership level, more than half of senior executives feel overwhelmed by the pace of AI adoption and ill-equipped to manage its impact (EY). Employee skepticism remains high, with a third believing AI-generated work is inferior to their own. Despite these struggles, nearly all enterprises plan to increase AI investments this year. To close the gap between ambition and execution, companies must improve change management strategies, address workforce concerns, and ensure AI initiatives are integrated with broader business goals rather than driven by technology alone.

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What Leaders Misunderstand About Hope

Forbes

By Paula Davis

Summary: Hope is often misunderstood in business, but research shows it’s a key driver of performance, resilience, and collaboration. Psychologist C.R. Snyder defined hope as an active process built on three components: clear goals, multiple pathways to reach them, and agency—the belief that one can take action and persist. Unlike optimism, which assumes things will work out, hope acknowledges obstacles and focuses on overcoming them. Studies link hope to higher productivity, with hopeful salespeople closing more deals and executives meeting goals more frequently. High-hope individuals also demonstrate greater cognitive flexibility, social competence, and stress resilience. Leaders can foster hope by providing role clarity, setting micro-goals, tracking progress, and encouraging mastery experiences. While some argue “hope is not a business strategy,” research suggests it is a crucial element of leadership that enables adaptability, problem-solving, and long-term success.

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