Hundreds of HR opinions. One big question: is HR still seen as the owner of culture, or is its real role becoming something much bigger? Andy Brady explores what the results reveal about leadership, influence and the future of modern HR.
I’ve been having some great conversations with HR folks lately. You know the kind… the ones that start with a simple question and suddenly turn into a proper “hang on a minute…” debate.
So I ran a couple of LinkedIn polls. Not hypothetical, not “in theory” – real, live data from people in the market right now. And honestly? The results say a lot about where HR is today… and where it’s heading.
Let’s start with the big one.
Who actually owns company culture?
We all love the Drucker quote: “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” It’s on mugs, slides, probably a few office walls. And most of us would agree it’s true. Culture can make or break performance, retention, engagement… the lot.
The Culture Poll – What the numbers really say
But when I asked who really has the greatest influence on culture, I thought the answers were interesting:
51% of respondents said “everyone contributes equally” - On the surface, that sounds healthy and inclusive surely? But read another way, it also suggests diffusion of ownership. If everyone owns it… who’s actually accountable when it slips? This sounds democratic, but it also hints at a risk: when culture is everyone’s job, it can quietly become no one’s priority.
38% of respondents said “senior leadership own it” - That’s a big chunk. This reinforces something important: people still believe culture is set from the top, whether organisations admit it or not. You could interpret it as:
“Nearly four in ten people see culture as a leadership product, not an HR initiative. What leaders say, tolerate and role-model still outweighs any framework or values poster.”
Only 9% of respondents said “line managers” - This is really interesting because most culture actually lives here. The low number suggests people underestimate the role of managers, or they don’t see them as truly empowered to shape it.
2% of respondents said “HR” - This is a mic-drop stat. It’s not an attack on HR. It’s a repositioning of the function. This doesn’t mean HR isn’t important. It means the market doesn’t see HR as the ‘owner’ of culture - but as the enabler, the designer, the influencer behind the scenes.”
Only 2% said the HR owns it. Should this be seen as an Ouch moment or not. But also… kind of revealing, isn’t it?
What this tells me is that HR isn’t seen as the “owner” of culture. And maybe that’s not a bad thing. Culture doesn’t live in policies or posters. It lives in decisions, behaviours, what gets rewarded, what gets ignored, and what happens on a bad Tuesday afternoon when pressure’s on.
At the same time, when “everyone owns it”, there’s a quiet risk: does anyone truly own it?
Senior leaders clearly have a huge influence (nearly 4 in 10 people see them as the main drivers), and line managers… well, they’re where culture is either brought to life or slowly killed off in meetings and 1:1s.
So where does that leave HR? - Maybe not as the “owner”. But definitely as the architect, the challenger, and the conscience in the room. The ones who keep asking: “Is this the culture we say we want?” and “Are our leaders actually behaving in line with it?”
Which brings me nicely to the second poll, this was around What’s the make-or-break skill for HR leaders of tomorrow? We talk a lot about the “future HR leader”. Data-driven. Commercial. Strategic. Brilliant with people.
So I asked what skill really makes the difference for the leaders of tomorrow.
The skills poll – what’s hiding inside these choices
Again, the ranking matters, but the gaps between them tell the real story.
37% Coaching & Leadership (top) - This is a strong signal: despite AI, data, automation and transformation buzzwords, human influence is still seen as the differentiator. The most valued skill isn’t technical. It’s the ability to shift behaviour, challenge thinking and develop leaders.
31% Business Acumen (close second) - This tells us HR knows it still has to earn its seat at the table. Being brilliant with people isn’t enough anymore. HR leaders are expected to understand the business as deeply as they understand the organisation.
20% Data & Analytics - Important, but clearly not king. Data matters. But it’s a power tool, not the superpower. Insight only creates impact when someone can turn it into action through influence.
12% Employment Law & ER - This is fascinating because it shows it’s now seen as baseline competence, not leadership differentiation. Still essential. But no longer what defines great HR leadership.
Again, fascinating. Despite all the noise about data, AI, dashboards and metrics (and I am all about the data when it comes to HR), the top answer was still coaching and leadership.
In other words, the ability to influence, develop, challenge and support leaders and managers hasn’t gone out of fashion. If anything, it’s becoming more important.
Business acumen coming a close second makes total sense. If HR wants real influence, it has to speak the language of the business. Not just “people stuff”, but growth, risk, margin, productivity, and priorities.
Data & analytics is clearly rising (20% isn’t nothing), but it’s being seen more as an enabler than the core of the role.
And employment law & ER? Still vital. Still a hygiene factor. But not what defines great HR leadership anymore.
So what’s the thread that ties this all together?
Here’s my take. Organisations are saying, loudly and clearly:
Culture is created through leadership and everyday behaviour, not owned by HR.
And the future HR leader’s superpower is influencing those leaders, not just designing frameworks behind the scenes.
In other words, HR’s impact isn’t in “having” culture. It’s in shaping the people who shape the culture.
That means:
- Coaching leaders who are technically brilliant but culturally clumsy
- Challenging decisions that look good on a spreadsheet but feel wrong in real life
- Helping managers understand that how they deliver results matters just as much as what they deliver
It also means HR has to be credible in the business. You can’t influence the room if you don’t understand the commercial pressures in it.
A quiet shift in the role. If you’re a mid-level HR professional reading this, you might be thinking: “That’s great… but where do I focus?”
The data suggests this:
- Get really good at influencing and coaching leaders
- Build proper commercial understanding
- Use data to tell your story, not replace it
- And stop thinking of culture as something HR “rolls out”
Culture is what happens when no one’s looking. Your job is to make sure the people with the most impact on it actually realise that.
And maybe that’s the real evolution of HR.
Not the owner of culture.
Not the keeper of policies.
But the strategic shaper of leadership behaviour.
Which, when you think about it, is a pretty powerful place to be.
What do you reckon? Are you seeing the same shift in your organisation?
