The phrase “foster a culture” has become a buzzword in workplaces, often implying a top-down approach where leaders dictate what is valued, what behaviors are acceptable, and how success is defined. While culture is important, it often carries the risk of becoming rigid, stifling innovation, and discouraging employees from questioning the status quo. Instead, I believe organizations should focus on building a “protective atmosphere“—a dynamic, evolving space where teams are enabled using tools and processes to fairly challenge ideas and thrive.
A protective atmosphere is fundamentally different from a culture. Cultures are often inherited or enforced from the top down, while protective atmospheres are more created using effective tools and processes. They are designed and purpose-built to empower teams to bring their unique perspectives, address unfair challenges, during disagreements, and ultimately protect contributors while exploring innovative solutions. The goal is not to create uniformity but to encourage a balance of tension—what some call “generative tension”—where conflicting ideas lead to breakthroughs rather than breakdowns.
In this environment, psychological safety becomes the cornerstone. Team members must feel protected to voice dissent, question decisions, and propose alternative approaches without fear of retaliation or dismissal.
Psychological Safety is….
“An atmosphere where one can take chances (which experimentalism implies) without fear and with sufficient protection (…) thus a climate is built which encourages provisional tries and which tolerates failure without retaliation, renunciation, or guilt”Schein and Bennis, in 1965
Encouraging challenges to ideas doesn’t mean chaos; it means creating processes for protecting team members during disagreements. Tools like SpatzAI, for example, formalize the steps for resolving micro-conflicts fairly, ensuring safety and accountability while promoting collaboration.
Speaking up with radical ideas takes courage more than genius. Speaking up fairly to challenge these ideas also takes courage and discipline. Enabling both processes, while protecting both contributors, is the goal set up by Schein and Bennis and enabled by SpatzAI.
“Courage is in far shorter supply than genius”
Peter Thiel
We believe that by focusing on a protective atmosphere rather than fostering a culture, organizations can unlock their teams’ full potential. Teams thrive when they know that both their ideas and objections are valued and protected from unfair challenges, which creates an ecosystem where innovation, fairness, and shared success flourish.
Challenge the status quo. Build the protective atmosphere where teams can truly thrive.
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