This glossary defines how Workplace uses language when we talk about culture.

Words matter. Most confusion about culture comes from people using the same terms to mean very different things. These definitions are opinionated, precise, and grounded in how work actually behaves.

If a term appears on the Workplace site, this is what we mean by it.

Culture

Culture is the set of shared behaviors that shape how people think, decide, and act at work.

It’s not values on a wall or leadership intent. It’s what gets repeated, reinforced, and tolerated over time, especially under pressure.

Workplace Culture

Workplace culture is how work actually gets done when no one’s watching.

It shows up in meetings, messages, decisions, conflict, and recovery. It determines whether strategy turns into results or friction.

Cultural Intelligence

Cultural intelligence is the ability to see, understand, and act on cultural patterns in real time.

It’s not intuition alone. It’s informed judgment grounded in observable behavior and trend data.

Culture Metrics

Culture metrics are research-backed dimensions of behavior that describe how work functions inside an organization.

At Workplace, the six core metrics are Burnout, Psychological Safety, Conflict, Employee Engagement, Alignment, and Execution Risk.

Burnout

Burnout is a state of chronic workplace stress that leads to exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced sense of effectiveness.

It’s not about effort or resilience. It’s a signal that the work system is extracting more energy than it restores.

Exhaustion

Exhaustion is sustained physical, emotional, or cognitive depletion.

It’s the most visible dimension of burnout, but not the only one.

Cynicism

Cynicism is emotional distance from work.

It shows up as detachment, sarcasm, shortened communication, and reduced care.

Psychological Safety

Psychological safety is the shared belief that it’s safe to take interpersonal risks at work.

It determines whether people speak up, ask questions, admit mistakes, and challenge decisions.

Inclusion Safety

Inclusion safety is the feeling of belonging and acceptance.

Without it, people hold back before they ever engage with the work.

Learner Safety

Learner safety is the freedom to ask questions, experiment, and make mistakes while learning.

Without it, improvement slows and curiosity disappears.

Contributor Safety

Contributor safety is the confidence to apply skills and ideas meaningfully.

Without it, talent stays underused and initiative declines.

Challenger Safety

Challenger safety is the ability to question decisions and push back on authority.

Without it, risk goes unspoken and blind spots grow.

Conflict

Conflict is disagreement that carries friction.

It can be productive or destructive depending on where it’s pointed and how it’s handled.

Task Conflict

Task conflict is disagreement about ideas, options, or the work itself.

When managed well, it improves decisions. When unmanaged, it turns personal.

Process Conflict

Process conflict is disagreement about roles, ownership, workflows, or decision-making.

It often signals ambiguity rather than hostility.

Relationship Conflict

Relationship conflict is personal friction driven by disrespect or distrust.

It reliably harms performance and satisfaction.

Values Conflict

Values conflict is disagreement about what matters, what’s acceptable, or what’s right.

It’s emotionally charged because it touches identity and ethics.

Employee Engagement

Employee engagement is the cognitive and emotional connection people have to their work.

Engaged employees bring discretionary effort, ownership, and energy.

Disengagement

Disengagement is emotional withdrawal from work.

It often looks like compliance without care and effort without ownership.

Alignment

Alignment is shared clarity around purpose, priorities, roles, and ways of working.

When alignment is strong, effort compounds. When it’s weak, effort scatters.

Purpose Alignment

Purpose alignment is shared understanding of why the work exists.

Without it, motivation erodes and priorities feel arbitrary.

Goals Alignment

Goals alignment is clarity around what matters now.

Without it, teams optimize locally and miss globally.

Role Alignment

Role alignment is clarity around ownership and accountability.

Without it, decisions stall and conflict rises.

Process Alignment

Process alignment is shared agreement on how work moves.

Without it, execution slows and rework increases.

Values Alignment

Values alignment is consistency between stated values and lived behavior.

Without it, trust collapses.

Execution Risk

Execution risk is the likelihood that work will break down between planning and delivery.

It reflects coordination failures, decision bottlenecks, and system strain.

Decision Bottleneck

A decision bottleneck occurs when authority or clarity is missing and progress stalls.

Bottlenecks create urgency, frustration, and rework.

Miscommunication

Miscommunication is a failure of shared understanding, not just unclear wording.

It includes missing context, assumptions, and lack of confirmation.

Handoff Failure

A handoff failure occurs when work moves between people or teams without clear expectations.

It’s a major driver of execution risk.

Digital Exhaust

Digital exhaust is the trail of communication and interaction created by everyday work.

It includes messages, meetings, and coordination patterns that reflect how work actually happens.

Culture Signals

Culture signals are repeatable behavioral patterns that indicate how culture is functioning.

They only become meaningful when aggregated over time.

Leading Indicators

Leading indicators are early signals that predict future outcomes.

Burnout, safety erosion, and misalignment are leading indicators of turnover and performance issues.

Lagging Indicators

Lagging indicators reflect outcomes after the fact.

Examples include attrition, missed targets, and survey scores.

Culture Measurement

Culture measurement is the practice of observing and tracking behavioral patterns to understand how work functions.

It’s not opinion polling. It’s system observation.

Surveys

Surveys are episodic self-reports of perception.

They can provide context but are lagging indicators of culture.

System-Level Insight

System-level insight describes patterns that emerge across groups, not individuals.

This is the level at which culture should be understood and improved.

Surveillance

Surveillance is monitoring individuals to enforce compliance or punish behavior.

Workplace explicitly rejects this approach.

Culture Debt

Culture debt is the accumulated cost of unresolved cultural issues.

It shows up later as burnout, disengagement, conflict, and execution failure.

Culture Work

Culture work is the ongoing practice of shaping systems, norms, and behaviors intentionally.

It’s not a program. It’s leadership.

The Bottom Line

This glossary exists so culture stops being vague.

When leaders share language, they can share responsibility. When culture is named clearly, it becomes something you can actually improve.

That’s the point.