Dr. Sanjeev Dixit, author of Plan C and global culture strategist
Most companies believe culture supports strategy.
Dr. Sanjeev Dixit believes the opposite.
“Culture is God. Strategy is the disciple.”
After nearly three decades shaping people systems across global giants like PepsiCo, Philips, and Hindalco, Sanjeev has seen what separates organizations that thrive for generations from those that vanish in a few years. The answer? Culture that’s not just spoken, but systematized.
A Global Lens on Values
Sanjeev’s career has spanned continents, industries, and teams ranging from 4,000 to 15,000 employees. But one challenge always persists:
“How do you unify thousands of people—across languages, time zones, and beliefs—around shared values?”
The solution isn’t corporate jargon. It’s operational clarity.
In his culture playbooks, Sanjeev starts by defining universal, non-negotiable success behaviors—things like ownership, innovation, and empathy. Then he works with teams in each country or business unit to translate those behaviors into local, role-specific actions.
It’s not enough to say you value “entrepreneurship.” You have to ask:
- What does entrepreneurship look like for a frontline worker in a factory?
- How does a finance analyst in Dubai or a product manager in Toronto demonstrate it?
- How can we reward it consistently across the org?
This translation work is hard—but necessary.
Because culture doesn’t scale through slogans. It scales through systems.
The TBR Model: Trigger --> Behavior --> Reinforcer
At the core of Sanjeev’s framework is a deceptively simple idea:
Culture isn’t what you believe.
It’s what you reinforce.
He calls it TBR: Trigger, Behavior, Reinforcer.
Trigger: The conversations and values you introduce intentionally—your “why.”
Behavior: The specific, observable actions expected from everyone, everywhere.
Reinforcer: What gets rewarded, recognized, or redirected based on those actions.
“If someone consistently violates your values and stays—what message are you sending? You can’t build a culture on PowerPoint. It has to live in your decisions.”
The best companies, he says, don’t just celebrate value champions—they create consequences for behavior that contradicts the culture. Both matter. And both shape what gets repeated.
Plan A, B... or C?
Sanjeev’s book Plan C is more than a leadership guide. It’s a challenge to the way most companies operate.
Plan A = Strategy first. Action-oriented, fast-moving—but culture is an afterthought.
Plan B = Backup planning. Risk-averse, structured—but slow to evolve.
Plan C = Culture-driven. Intentional, adaptive, human-centered—and built to last.
“Plan C organizations ask, ‘What kind of culture will help us grow and survive—not just next quarter, but the next 50 years?’”
He’s seen firsthand that culture-driven orgs outlast volatility. During COVID, it wasn’t the best-planned companies that thrived—it was the ones with the deepest cultural trust.
The Middle Line
One of the most resonant ideas from our conversation was Sanjeev’s metaphor of the “middle line.”
“Top line is revenue.
Bottom line is profit.
But the middle line? That’s your culture.
It’s the heart and soul of your organization.”
Just like in the human body, the heart (culture) keeps the brain (strategy) and the body (operations) functioning. If the heart stops, everything stops.
This “middle line” perspective reframes culture from being a soft initiative to being the engine of sustainable growth.
How Culture Shows Up - Or Doesn't
Despite their stated values, many executives Sanjeev surveyed admitted they spend less than 10% of their time actively shaping culture. Even though 70% ranked it as their #1 lever for growth.
“The problem isn’t that leaders don’t care about culture.
It’s that they don’t operationalize it.”
Sanjeev’s call to action is clear: Treat culture like strategy. Define it, measure it, invest in it—and make it part of everyone’s job, from CEO to intern.
Practical Ways to Make Culture Real
Here are a few concrete practices Sanjeev uses with the companies he advises:
Create “value champions.” Recognize employees who embody the company’s values in specific, repeatable ways.
Localize values. Define what each value looks like in action at every level, in every geography.
Reinforce in systems. Build values into hiring, onboarding, performance reviews, and rewards.
Role model relentlessly. The most powerful culture-shaping tool? A leader who walks the talk.
"Culture isn't complicated. It's consistent."
One Big Question to Reflect On
If your culture disappeared tomorrow, what would break?
If the answer is “not much,” it might be time to revisit your middle line.
📘 Want more from Dr. Sanjeev Dixit?
Check out his book Plan C and connect with him on LinkedIn for more insights on building sustainable, human-first organizations.
📩 Know someone shaping culture in a meaningful way? Just reply—we’d love to feature them.
Until next time,
TeamHQ
