Action Research for Establishing Corporate Culture via a Culture Deck in an M&A Company

Based on action research, this study aims to determine the manner by which a newly established company formed via merger and acquisition establishes their unique corporate culture by creating a “culture deck” and infusing it into employees’ daily lives through culture activities led by the culture project team. To create a culture deck, comprehensive interviews were performed on “C”-level executives, after which the results were transcribed and coded for categorization. The culture deck was drafted based on the interviews and then complemented by focus-group interviews with middle managers. Finally, all employees participated in an online live session for a culture jam to provide their feedback regarding the culture deck. The culture deck includes the company’s vision, mission, leadership principles, compliance commitments, and detailed culture guide for decision making. To normalize the culture deck in the workplace, the company formed a culture task-force team and implemented various entertaining culture activities for promotion. The process of constructing a culture deck can be easily applied to other companies, thus facilitating them in establishing and fostering their own corporate culture.