Clarity is King: Defining "good" drives workplace performance and culture

Employees and employers often have different perspectives on what a healthy culture and good performance look like. 

Employers tend to define culture by intent, emphasizing that they care about people, value respect and collaboration, and strive for accountability and high performance. 

Employees, on the other hand, typically define culture by lived experience: how they are treated under pressure, whether goals feel achievable or arbitrary, how mistakes are handled, and what behaviours are rewarded or punished. 

When these perspectives are misaligned, unclear or inconsistent, risk increases, potential stalls and frustration can grow. And if this persists, it can increase the likelihood of conflict, disengagement, grievances and, eventually, become a psychological health risk.

People cannot succeed in a game they do not understand or know how to play. With clarity and alignment, employees understand what is expected of them and they don’t have to guess at the behaviours that will help them succeed. 

Clarify what “good” looks like and define the behaviours to achieve desired outcomes

Most organizations are effective at defining outcomes, setting KPIs, targets, productivity measures and financial goals. However, employees also need clarity on goals, definitions of success, behavioural expectations, feedback loops and consequences so they don’t feel the strain of ambiguity, inconsistency and perceived unfairness.

A useful analogy is fitness. A goal like “get fit” is meaningless without specificity. Does it mean strength, endurance, weight loss or improved health markers? 

Work is no different. Telling employees to “collaborate,” “be accountable,” or “perform at a high level” without defining what those behaviours look like in their day-to-day activities, creates unnecessary uncertainty and stress. 

Your definition of “good” should take human limits into consideration 

When “good” is well defined, taking human limits into account, psychological health and safety (PHS) becomes embedded in how work gets done—not just how it is described.

It is not realistic to expect that employees can or will operate at full capacity every day. It is important to design systems that recognize variability in human performance to avoid injury or disengagement. Employees need recovery, adjustment and support during periods of high strain and when capacity dips.

This isn’t about lowering standards; it is about designing systems that recognize variability in human capacity and being prepared to respond before strain turns into injury or disengagement.

Defining “good” supports operational excellence and psychological safety

Operational excellence is about consistency, predictability and continuous improvement. PHS is about reducing harm and promoting mental health. These two are deeply connected and both are rooted in clarity and consistency. When employees understand what is expected of them and how they will be held accountable, they are more likely to feel safe and reach their full potential.

Caring about how employees feel will always matter, but to translate caring into a positive employee experience you must:

• • Articulate clear goals

  • Define what good looks like

  • Describe day-to-day behaviours to help employees succeed

  • Explain how success will be measured and measure what matters

  • Provide clear and consistent feedback

  • Apply consequences fairly and consistently

  • Make room for recovery and learning

Organizations that unlock employee potential do so by clearly articulating what “good” looks like, translating values into observable behaviours, monitoring how work is done and measuring outcomes. This is where culture, performance and psychological safety converge in a meaningful way.

Get to know the authors – Dr. Bill Howatt